At Close Range

At Close Range is the third book in the Ivory Nation series by American author, Tara Taylor Quinn. While Superior Court Judge Hannah Montgomery presides over the trial of an Ivory Nation member accused of a heinous murder, her close friend, paediatrician Brian Hampton suddenly finds himself the target of a media campaign and police persecution over the SIDs deaths of his patients. Ivory Nation leader Bobby Donahue is searching for the mother (and kidnapper) of his son, the only woman he ever loved.

Hannah is subject to multiple incidences of harassment that have her wondering about the trustworthiness of those close to her. She can't believe Brian could be responsible for the baby deaths (one was her adopted son), but the evidence has her wavering. Another Judge is urging her to recuse herself from Ivory Nation case in the interests of personal safety, but Hannah can't ignore her principles.

This third book of the series is a marked improvement on the second book, Behind Closed Doors, with a much faster pace and les repetition. It is important to read the series in order as there are significant spoilers for the first two in this book. The main characters have quite a bit of baggage while the rest are rather stereotypical, and the plot is a little convoluted, if predictable. Handily, by the dramatic climax, many of the baddies either give themselves up or kill each other, thus removing the background threat for a happily ever after ending.