Former U.S. Navy SEAL, Jake Palmer, is searching for something to fill the void in his life, a void present since he left the Navy ten years earlier. Neither his previous work as a corporate attorney nor his string of short-term personal relationships filled the indefinable emptiness. When a former colleague at B&A Pharmaceuticals asks Palmer to investigate the deaths of a physician researcher and his nurse in a car crash in southwest England, he is reluctant but accepts the assignment. Palmer is teamed with Fiona Collins, a tenacious B&A research auditor. Collins believes Palmer's role is to observe and assist her in auditing the deceased physician's clinical research records, assistance she neither needs nor wants. While Palmer believes the sooner Collins completes her audit, the sooner he can commence his investigation into the deaths.

They travel to a small town on the Cornish coast and follow a trail of evidence that leads them to London, where they become entangled in a web of deceit, ambition and murder. With their lives in imminent danger, Palmer must confront his demons and bring those responsible to justice, even if it means killing them.

Author Bio:

Ron McManus is the award-winning author of Libido’s Twist, The Drone Enigma, The Envelope, and The Chameleon.

The Chameleon won the 2021 Best Indie Book Award—Suspense/Thriller/Espionage, the National Indie Excellence Award—Action/Adventure, and the Chanticleer International Book Awards's Global Thriller Grand Prize. The former naval officer, combat veteran, and corporate executive is currently working on his next Jake Palmer novel. Ron and his wife, Mildred, reside in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

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"...a thriller that will keep readers turning the pages to a satisfying—and unexpected—wind-up. Spy thriller aficionados will revel in the lively fight scenes, engaging cast, and vivid settings." —BookLife

Jake Palmer, investigative consultant and former US Navy SEAL, has signed on as a contractor with a top-secret US Joint Special Operations Command team in Islamabad, Pakistan. Palmer and his JSOC partner work to uncover a suspected mole and gather intelligence regarding the security of Pakistan’s nuclear weapon arsenal as the country prepares for war with India over control of the disputed region of Kashmir. Fears regarding security of the weapons escalate when Pakistan decides to deploy its arsenal and rumors surface that a shadowy figure, the Chameleon, will attempt to divert a nuclear warhead during the deployment. With a nuclear war countdown clock at a minute ’til midnight, Palmer and his partner risk everything to prevent the Chameleon from carrying out a plan for the world’s first act of nuclear terrorism.

More Reviews:

2022 IAN Book of the Year Awards 2nd Place Fiction Book of the Year
2022 IAN Book of the Year Awards Outstanding Action/Adventure Winner
2022 IAN Book of the Year Awards Outstanding Suspense/Thriller Winner
2022 National Indie Excellence Awards Winner—Action/Adventure
2021 Chanticleer International Book Awards Grand Prize Winner—Global Thriller
2021 Best Indie Book Award Winner—Suspense/Thriller/Espionage
2021 Publisher's Weekly BookLife Editor's Choice

"Exhilarating...a fast-paced, absorbing terrorist tale.” —Kirkus Reviews

"The Chameleon is packed with action and mystery....  I have high expectations from Ron McManus, and he always delivers!" —Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite

"The Chameleon is a book you want to place high on your list of thrillers and suspense experiences. I stand in awe of Ron McManus's writing and I thank him for making my reading of The Chameleon a pure pleasure." —Tom Gauthier for Readers' Favorite

"a fast-paced action/adventure thriller that will ultimately give every international top ten bestselling thrillers a run for its money!" —Lex Allen for Readers' Favorite

Author Bio:

Ron McManus is the award-winning author of Libido’s Twist, The Drone Enigma, The Envelope, and The Chameleon.

The Chameleon won the 2021 Best Indie Book Award—Suspense/Thriller/Espionage, the National Indie Excellence Award—Action/Adventure, and the Chanticleer International Book Awards's Global Thriller Grand Prize. The former naval officer, combat veteran, and corporate executive is currently working on his next Jake Palmer novel. Ron and his wife, Mildred, reside in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

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"Ron McManus...continuously builds the tension by the unpredictable, but quite believable, plot twists and turns.... I would recommend this book to readers who like action and adventure and a frighteningly believable plot."  —Readers' Favorite

Jake Palmer accepts an offer from a defense contractor to consult with the company on the death of an engineer assigned to the top-secret Perseus Project-the development of the navigation and targeting systems for an experimental Navy drone.

Two days into the case, Palmer finds the defense contractor shot dead. What he discovers convinces him that both deaths are related to the project and that someone within the company is working with terrorists to seize control of the drone during a planned live-fire test in Afghanistan. With no hard evidence to support his theory, he is unable to persuade either the company or the Navy that an imminent threat exists. Concerned that he will disrupt the test, the company terminates Palmer's contract and notifies the police.

Pursued by the police and headed for engagement with a large, well-armed terrorist cell led by the company insider, Palmer is close to defeat when he receives help from the most unlikely person. With only hours to spare, they race to stop an attack half a world away.

More Reviews:

"Addictive...you do not want to lay it down! Well-researched and real world scenario filled with excitement." —Rear Admiral Don "Smoke" Hickman, SC, USN (Ret.)

"McManus hits a home run with The Drone Enigma, blending modern drone warfare with exceptional realism against possible terrorist threats to our national security." —Brigadier General Jim Ward, USAF (Ret.)

"McManus sets the hook in the first few pages and then lets you run with it. Current and relevant to today's modern battlefield, the plot's twists and turns keep this a page-turner to the very end." —Captain Steve Burish, USN (Ret.)

Author Bio:

Ron McManus is the award-winning author of Libido’s Twist, The Drone Enigma, The Envelope, and The Chameleon.

The Chameleon won the 2021 Best Indie Book Award—Suspense/Thriller/Espionage, the National Indie Excellence Award—Action/Adventure, and the Chanticleer International Book Awards's Global Thriller Grand Prize. The former naval officer, combat veteran, and corporate executive is currently working on his next Jake Palmer novel. Ron and his wife, Mildred, reside in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

Shop the Jake Palmer series

"Breathtaking suspense and international intrigue describe the Ron McManus fictional work, The Envelope." —Deborah Lloyd for Readers' Favorite

"The Envelope is a gripping detective story that blends medical science and criminal fiction with captivating depth, without letting the details take over the thrill of the story. Once you pick it up, you will not put it down." —Faridah Nassozi 

Jake Palmer is attending a wedding in New York, and Fiona Collins has flown in from London to accompany him to the event. The night before the wedding a U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent meets Palmer in the hotel bar and requests his help. He leaves Palmer a sealed envelope and tells him to review the contents, saying he will be in touch in a few days.

Moments later, the agent is gunned down. Palmer decides to return the envelope to HSI but not until after he and Collins open it. Inside they find a cryptic note from the agent and information related to a counterfeit medicine case involving a drug manufactured by the company where Collins works. The next morning, they take the envelope to HSI’s New York office, ending Palmer’s involvement in the investigation, or so he thinks. Collins returns to London intent on finding more about the counterfeiting of one of their newest medicines.

After an unexpected event changes Palmer’s perspective, he teams with the HSI special agent now in charge of the case. Together they pursue those behind a global counterfeit medicine and money-laundering operation. As the investigation unfolds, Palmer makes a startling discovery that raises his personal stake in the outcome and reveals the real reason the murdered HSI agent wanted him involved.

With those closest to him now in danger and more patients dying from taking a medication that contains almost none of the life-saving ingredient, time is running out. The search for answers takes Palmer to London, Rome, and the Amalfi Coast, each step moving him closer to a confrontation with one of the world's most dangerous assassins, former Russian Spetsnaz operator Viktor Utkin. The Envelope will keep you up at night and make you question those medicines that seem to change shape and color each time you refill them.

Author Bio:

Ron McManus is the award-winning author of Libido’s Twist, The Drone Enigma, The Envelope, and The Chameleon.

The Chameleon won the 2021 Best Indie Book Award—Suspense/Thriller/Espionage, the National Indie Excellence Award—Action/Adventure, and the Chanticleer International Book Awards's Global Thriller Grand Prize. The former naval officer, combat veteran, and corporate executive is currently working on his next Jake Palmer novel. Ron and his wife, Mildred, reside in Virginia Beach, Virginia, on the shore of the Chesapeake Bay.

Shop the Jake Palmer series