Kill Devil by Mike Dellosso

★★★★★
Goodreads | Amazon

Jed Patrick is convinced he’s doing all it takes to keep his family safe―new names, new location, new identity. But just when he thinks he finally has his life back, trained men claiming to be CIA agents break in and threaten his wife and daughter, proving once and for all his family will never truly be safe until he eliminates the agency dead set on hunting him down.

Not knowing if Karen and Lilly are better off by his side or in hiding, Jed is determined to protect them while finding a way to use the classified information that he possesses to dismantle the Centralia Project. But he soon learns that eliminating Centralia may require compromising his own values. As danger escalates, Jed isn’t sure whether there’s anyone or anything he can trust―including his own senses.

I’ll start by saying that after beginning to read Mike Dellosso’s Kill Devil, I realized it’s the sequel to Centralia. I have not yet had the chance to read Centralia, and I imagine the two books are better understood when read in order. So, while I still managed to enjoy Kill Devil quite a bit on its own, I recommend reading Centralia first. 

Now - Kill Devil is an excellent read, full of thrilling suspense, action, and mystery. The danger Jed Patrick and his family hoped to escape follows and finds them, and the subsequent series of twists and turns challenges Jed to discerns who and what to trust for truth. From start to finish, it’s a well-paced page-turner that had me entirely intrigued, and I can’t wait to read more from Dellosso. I easily and highly recommend Kill Devil to fans of suspense and thrillers.

Thanks to Tyndale BlogNetwork, I received a copy of Kill Devil and the opportunity to provide an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all the opinions I have expressed are my own.

Q&A with the Author

Mike Dellosso is the author of several novels of suspense, an adjunct professor of creative writing and popular conference teacher, a husband, and a father. Born in Baltimore, Mike now resides in southern Pennsylvania with his wife and four daughters. Visit him at his website.

1. Kill Devil is the sequel to Centralia. How are the two books connected?

First and foremost they are connected by Jed Patrick and his family. Kill Devil picks up where Centralia left of. With the conclusion of Centralia we left Jed and Karen and Lilly headed to Idaho where they would assume new identities and a new life far from any government agency’s reach or knowledge. They would become obscure and live in safety, albeit secluded. But somehow, some way, they are found and in Kill Devil we see the results of that. There is also a continuation of the story behind the Centralia project, a ghost agency buried deep within the labyrinth of Washington politics. Jed is still battling this foe and continues to battle the enemy within himself as well, his memories and mysterious past.

2. What role does faith play in the lives of some of the main characters—Jed, his wife Karen, daughter Lilly, Tiffany, and Jack?

Faith plays a huge role in all of their lives. In spite of everything they’ve been through, especially Jed with all the brainwashing and torture, their relationship with God has remained the one thing that has gone unchanged. Yes, Jed doubts it at times and had to rediscover it totally, but if there is one ribbon of hope that runs through their lives, it’s faith. Lilly’s faith is the strongest of the three of them, so childlike and unwavering. Jed draws strength from her and in Kill Devil learns that he needs to make her faith his own, he needs to stop channeling strength through her and find his own very real connection with God. Like all of us, their faith development and maturity is a journey with ups and downs and setbacks and growth spurts, but they move forward, learning more, discovering more, and being challenged more and more to simply trust.

3. As a creative writing teacher, what advice would you give aspiring authors?

Two basic things. One, don’t get too caught up in the “rules” of fiction writing. Most of them change weekly and few of them, if broken, will actually kill your manuscript. Pay attention to the basics, get really good at the basics, and then have fun. Too much of the art of fiction writing is smothered by nonsense rules. And two, never give up. Persist. Here’s a truth: 100% of published authors never gave up. You’ll want to. You’ll second-guess your motivation, your talent, your purpose. The day will come when you have no desire to write. But write anyway. The day will come when that last rejection will utterly break your heart and you’ll want to throw in the towel. Don’t. Write anyway. Keep on.

4. What is next for you, writing-wise?

I have some ideas for a third Jed Patrick novel and am bouncing them around to see which one fits best. I also have an idea for a stand-alone thriller. Other than that I’ve written a couple short stories featuring Jed Patrick and a bunch of articles and guest posts to promote Kill Devil.