Skin in the Game: A Cain/Harper Thriller

This formulaic series debut from Lyle (the Jake Longly series) introduces two maverick investigators. When Cindy Grant, a sophomore at Vanderbilt in Tennessee, goes missing, Cindy’s retired general grandfather, William Kessler, who raised her with his wife after the girl’s parents died in a plane crash, fears the worst. Kessler, who was involved during his military career in “some of the most secret missions in U.S. history,” reaches out to a former army operative of his, Bobby Cain, who now works as a troubleshooter with former CIA agent Harper McCoy. The pair, who were raised by a marginalized ethnic group as siblings, ascertain that Cindy did not go on a hiking trip in Colorado with a new beau, as her roommate claimed. The stakes rise when the reader learns that Cindy, through her work as an escort, has fallen into the hands of the wrong customer. Cain and McCoy’s efforts to find Cindy before it’s too late are strictly by the numbers, and there’s nothing to compensate for an overly familiar plot. Hopefully, Lyle will return to form next time. Agent: Kimberly Cameron, Kimberly Cameron & Assoc. (Oct.)