Riker’s Calling by Rico Lamoureux

Riker’s Calling is a rather short standalone novel by Rico Lamoureux published this August. The author asked me if I could read and review the book and as I was going on holidays shortly, I agreed, since I knew I needed lots of reading material while enjoying my time at the beach for 2 weeks.

In all honestly I forgot to read the book until I got on the plane to head back home. And as luck would have it, the flight was one hour long, and I’ve read the book in a little over 50 minutes. Time well spent on an otherwise boring flight.

The book’s main protagonist is Jeremy Riker and we first meet him as he’s heading towards the train station where he notices a pregnant woman in distress, and soon after he notices a bunch of thugs coming towards them. Acting purely on reflex, he gets the woman out of the way and disposes of the evil doers in a very efficient way. This first book scene was just like watching an action packed movie opening screen. I didn’t know at this point who Riker was, but I already liked him.

As the story progresses, we learn that Riker had a very dire past, having been bullied in school by a security staff, up to a point where he said enough is enough, and decided to join the police – right until a stray bullet got him in his back and put him in the hospital, where he got the crushing news that for him life as a police officer is a dream he had to say goodbye to forever.

Since he never got a break all his life, after this last crushing news his mentor, a fellow police officer, helped me get in top form and urged him to apply for a PI license. If he could not serve and protect from within the force, maybe he could do it from its fringes.

But once again, luck is not on his side, when it turns out that the whole book opening action scene – you know, the one with the pregnant woman and the thugs – is just part of a psychopath’s scheme to bring Riker down for good, for some very unknown reasons.

Now bear in mind that what I have described above is only the beginning of the short novella, and there is much more to come. The book is action packed to the brim, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the movie rights were bought at some point.

I was quite surprised to learn at the end who the evil mastermind (called by the press Spiderco Killer) actually was. Throughout the entire book he kept targeting people whom Riker was close, and seeing his anguish and his inability to do anything about it – till the last moment when it all got revealed, really kept me in anguish the whole time.

I’ve already given away too much, so I won’t spoil it any further,but I’ll leave this with an urge to get this book and read it. Riker’s Calling is a fast beach read filled with non-stop action which really pucks a punch. Those 50 minutes on the plane back home were quite well spent.