The Night Charter

Camaro Espinoza, the intense and capable heroine of a series of novellas from Hawken (Camaro Run, etc.), makes her full-length debut in this hard-boiled thriller. A former army medic with two tours in the Middle East, Camaro (whose father was into cars) now skippers a deep sea charter fishing boat out of Miami. Parker Story initially tells her that he wants to hire her for some night fishing, but his true purpose is to smuggle a dissident out of Cuba. Camaro agrees, but the plan goes awry when the leader of the operation goes rogue and attempts to blackmail the Cuban exile group financing it for a higher payout. Not part of the blackmail plot, Parker fears that his 14-year-old daughter, Lauren, is in danger from his inadvertent involvement and asks Camaro for help. Fortunately, Camaro has an ironclad sense of justice that includes meting out violence against the bad guys when necessary. Hawken delivers a potent climax that winds its way through an unremitting firefight to a satisfying conclusion. Agent: Oli Munson, A.M. Heath (U.K.). (Dec.)