Official Review: The Cartel Crusher by Dan E. Hendrickson

[Guda Lydia]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Cartel Crusher" by Dan E. Hendrickson.]

---

4 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Marnia Gonzalez is the eldest daughter of Mexico's president and first lady Tomar and Allison Gonzalez. She was happily celebrating her birthday on a cruise ship in the presence of her friends and her nanny, Barbara. She loved and trusted the woman and even forgave her for the affair she had with her father, President Tomar Gonzalez. Barbara used this trust and favor to complete her mission, to acquire sensitive information from the presidential office. Her employer was Boris, a mysterious, exceptionally skilled, and influential Russian. The cruise ship was the final part of the plan, where Barbara was to depart, and Marnia and her friends were the insurance against any government interference. However, things got out of hand when a member of Boris’s team went rouge resulting in deaths and injuries. Commander Edwards Jacob was immediately tasked to rescue and remedy the situation, and he did so skillfully and swiftly.

Since then, Jacobs became Marnia’s inspiration and role model. She reinvented herself, dropped her famous last name, and worked towards joining the Anti-cartel Task Force. She is now Lieutenant Marnia Gonzalez of the Anti-cartel Task Force and immediately begins working towards her goal. She pushes on and is soon immersed in a murky world of child sex trafficking, slavery, gun smuggling, and a bizarre secret but powerful society. She fearlessly pursues the Santiago and Menerez cartels. Boris also resurfaces, and more curiously, a familial name comes up. What does her family have to do with this world? What will be the ultimate cost of her war against the cartels? How much power and influence do these individuals command, and whom will she trust?

The Cartel Crusher by Dan E. Hendrickson lives by its name right from the introduction. It instantly throws the reader into a world where everyone seems to be working an angle or is corrupt. Hendrickson excellently introduces and develops the characters, and the description of their attributes is exquisite. Each character has a specific role and origin, making them realistic and distinct. The action and fight scenes are amazingly detailed, allowing the reader to visualize and experience every physical and tactical maneuver. The depiction of the military operations, cartel settings, and their array of weapons and activities are authentic.

My favorite aspect of the book is the formidable and heroic female presence. Marnia’s skills amaze and terrify many, and she rises through the rankings through hard work and commitment. Rosemary Sargent is another stout woman who runs the most profitable brothel in Mexico City. She commits to and helps Marnia thwart cartel operations at whatever cost, including her own life and wellbeing. I equally love the chronological arrangement and the telling subheadings within the chapters. Initially, I thought the story unfolded too fast, but as it progressed, the reason for this became apparent, and it developed into a comprehensive and captivating plot. Otherwise, I found nothing to dislike.

The book is professionally edited, and I did not find any errors. The language is simple and has minimal use of profanities, but the despicable acts of child abuse and forced prostitution might affect sensitive readers. The book has minimal reference to religion with only one quoted Bible verse. The Cartel Crusher entails organized crimes, covert operations, government corruption, the wealthy one percent influence, and sadly the perverseness of human behavior. Additionally, there is an unlikely romance blooming, but with one party suspecting the other's sincerity. I recommend it to those looking for an action-packed novel full of secrets, tension, and suspense. The book’s ending is just the beginning, leaving one yearning for the next one. The rating is definitely a 4 out of 4 stars.

******
The Cartel Crusher
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Kennedy NC]

Sometimes we place our trust in people who are not deserving of them such as Marnia's trust in Barbara. Great review.

[Zaeda Amrin]

Great to see that the female protagonist is formidable and heroic without being a caricature! It's so bothersome when they do a bad job of representing a female lead but this one sounds promising! And the betrayal aspect sounds so interesting. Thank you for the excellent review.

[Kenna Ridzi]

Interesting description of how the author portrays the fictional world as being corrupt, it sounds intriguing and pushes me to read this book. Great description of the book and its characters, great review.

[NetMassimo]

This seems like an intense story that digs into humans' darkest sides in a novel full of actions and suspense. Thank you for your great review!

[lani_21]

I am really fond of this kind of story. About politics and crimes because this can really depict what our society is experiencing right now. This review piqued my curiosity.

[Kavita Shah]

A female protagonist who takes on the bad world and she will fight to the finish. I cannot wait to read this. You've written an Excellent review.

[Jessica045]

The cover page speaks volumes. I love Marnia already. Thanks to the reviewer for an excellent job.

[Cristina Chifane]

How does the daughter of Mexico's president turn into Lieutenant Marnia Gonzalez of the Anti-cartel Task Force? I love strong female characters like Marnia. The novel seems to rely on realistic decriptions of both settings and characters. I worry about the scenes of child abuse and forced prostitution, though. Thanks for your review!

[Harty Muli]

I like this crime novel because of the lead female character. I look forward to some action involving drug cartels and the Mexican army. Great review.

[Brenda Creech]

A Mexican president's daughter joining the anti-cartel task force is a unique concept for a story! This sounds like a fast-paced, action-filled novel with all the trimmings! Not my cup of tea but it still sounds like a thrilling read for those who love crime novels. Thanks for the great review!

[Sanju Lali]

A nice crime, thriller, mystery novel "The Cartel Cruser" by Dan E. Hendrickson, which is devoted to cartel crushing. Moreover, it is quite interesting to note that a woman from an elite family, the protagonist Marnia here, who need not have to, takes up the task of crushing the cartel despite a lot of resistance from her father and others. I like such stories to read.

[gen_g]

I do enjoy reading books with strong female characters, and detailed fight scenes are also a plus. However, it seems like there are some issues with pacing that could still be ironed out, even if there is a reason for it. Thanks for the review.

[Adelee Grobler]

Thank you for your review. I did consider reading the book, however, I don’t think I’ll handle reading about child abuse. It haunts me most nights since I found out a person I knew very well is a pedophile. Nonetheless, I can see this is an excellent book and wish I could stomach it.

[Tars]

Thanks to review this book's plot seems really promising. It would be quite interesting to follow characters through corruption spread by cartel in high political circles of Mexico. Congrats on the BOTD!