Reviewed by Ray Simmons for Readers' Favorite

A group of greedy active duty CIA operatives decides they want to cash out of government service by selling cutting edge technical secrets. They try to kidnap Leecy Granger, Ron and Valerie's daughter, as the first step in their plan. Boy, did they ever pick the wrong family. Meet the Grangers, a typical American family on the surface but so much more underneath. Ron is a quiet guy, a very likable husband and father. But Ron is also a former CIA agent, actually something of a legend at the agency, a one man kill squad. But wait, there's more, a lot more; his wife is even deadlier. This is the premise behind Blood Line by John J. Davis. I have to say Davis pulls this off brilliantly. I liked Ron but I was fascinated by his wife, Valerie. Valerie is a mom, businesswoman, devoted daughter and sister, and a former Mossad assassin. She is every bit as lethal as her husband and probably a little smarter.

Blood Lines is a quiet little gem of genius. I love espionage novels and I have read a lot of them, but I can assure you that I have never read a novel where the world of espionage is so smoothly blended with ordinary American family life. The genius of John J. Davis is that both facets of Ron and Valerie's characters are believable; the spy and the parent. Just as importantly for the reader, this family is very, very likable.