Series: Knight and Moon (Book 2)
Buddhist monk Wayan Bagus lost his island of solitude and
wants to get it back. The island was about two hundred miles northeast of
Samoa. It had a mountain, beaches, a rain forest, and a volcano. And now it’s
gone. Poof! Vanished without a trace.
Brilliant and boyishly charming Emerson Knight likes
nothing better than solving an unsolvable, improbable mystery. And finding a
missing island is better than Christmas morning in the Knight household. When
clues lead to a dark and sinister secret that is being guarded by the National
Park Service, Emerson will need to assemble a crack team for help. Since a
crack team isn’t available, he enlists Riley Moon and his cousin Vernon. Riley
Moon has a Harvard business degree and can shoot the eyes out of a grasshopper
at fifty feet, but she can’t figure out how to escape the vortex of Emerson
Knight’s odd life. Vernon has been Emerson’s loyal and enthusiastic partner in
crime since childhood. He now lives in an RV behind Emerson’s house.
Together, this ragtag, mismatched trio will embark on a
worldwide investigation that will expose a conspiracy one hundred years in the
making.
This was a fun book. Totally out there on the
believability scale, but it was a riot to read. Emerson is a super-eccentric
bazillionaire, who is charming, brilliant, and loves solving mysteries. The
arrival of his Buddhist monk friend, Wayan Bagus, with the news that his tiny
Pacific island has disappeared, was just what he needed to spice up his life.
It will also get him out of helping Riley Moon bring order to his financial
paperwork. Riley became his personal assistant after he got her fired in the
first book, Curious Minds. Riley is practical and resourceful. She has multiple
degrees from Harvard, but thanks to her small-town Texas sheriff father, she can
also shoot, drive, and rope, abilities that come in handy when dealing with
Emerson.
Starting with NOAA, Emerson, Riley, Wayan, and Emerson's
cousin Vernon, investigate why an island that was on all the maps suddenly
isn't there any longer. A bit of runaround from the officials there sent them
to the National Park Service, who had jurisdiction over that area of the
American Samoas. When Vernon made an unexpected connection between a multitude
of missing hikers, volcanic activity, and several national parks, there's no
choice but to investigate. Threats from a Park Service secret society only served
to increase the group's determination to solve the mystery.
The action was nonstop as our team lurched from DC to
Yellowstone to Hawaii. Emerson's brilliance was exhibited in some pretty
off-the-wall plans that somehow always worked out in their favor. I couldn't
help but laugh at their camping exploits in Yellowstone, especially Emerson's
negotiations with a bear. I was utterly caught up in the tension as they
bluffed and finagled their way into the hidden laboratory deep in the woods of
Yellowstone. They barely escaped with their lives after a run-in with an ax-wielding
thug with the nickname "Tin Man" and had to high-tail it to Hawaii to
stop a plan for Armageddon.
They arrived in Hawaii one step ahead of the bad guys. I
was on the edge of my seat as Emerson's make-it-up-as-he-went-along methods were
put to the test. Riley's capture by the bad guys made her hostage to the return
of that which Emerson had stolen. Emerson and the others launched a rescue
attempt utilizing lava tubes while avoiding wild pigs and the patrols of bad
guys, while Riley put her mind toward her own rescue. The final confrontation
was a nail-biter as Emerson faced off against a man who was ready to destroy
the planet. Emerson was impressive and
Riley was right there to back him up.
I loved each member of our intrepid team. Wayan was an intriguing mix of Buddhist philosophy and wicked sense of humor, and the nuggets
of peace and wisdom were an interesting contrast to his martial arts abilities.
Vernon is Emerson's redneck cousin who lives in an RV on the grounds of
Emerson's mansion and writes a conspiracy blog. Vernon believes that he is
God's gift to women and his conversation is innuendo-filled. He's always ready
to join in on Emerson's adventures. I thoroughly enjoyed the friendship between
Vernon and Wayan and the contrasts between them. I loved the pairing of Emerson
and Riley. Emerson's version of flirting is both awkward and adorable, and
Riley is certainly receptive. There is also the contrast between her
practicality and his "anything goes, anything is possible" philosophy.
Seeing her try to keep Emerson grounded is pretty funny.
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