Africa - Present Day

Though going into a Hot Zone is nothing new for Dr. Rikki Kinn, something about the latest mission for the Centers for Disease Control feels different. Her friend Jean-Claude warns her as he’s helping her to the ferry that not even the UN will keep her safe and tries to dissuade Rikki from going to the site of the outbreak. Once there, everything seems off. Not even the worst case of Ebola killed every one affected, but this village of one thousand has been wiped out, and within hours of showing symptoms. She’s barely started investigating when two strangers arrive to help, but others aren’t far behind, and those others have no intention of allowing Rikki to figure out what’s going on.

It has been two years since Amiri has stepped foot on African soil, and while the Congo is different from his native Kenya, Amiri feels the pull of the land, and the memories. A shape-shifter now working with Dirk and Steele, he has been sent to protect Rikki Kinn, and after seeing her picture, Amiri knows he will do whatever it takes to keep her safe, and not just because of his job. When the men arrive to get rid of the evidence of the outbreak, Amiri and Rikki run, but Amiri isn’t the only thing in the jungle that is not completely human, and there may be no safe place for any of them.

Once again, Marjorie M. Liu takes readers into her world where the impossible is common and danger lurks at every turn. For those unfamiliar with the Dirk & Steele books, I’d recommend reading them in order, as a few of the characters in THE LAST TWILIGHT were first introduced in earlier books. However, the story’s focus is on Amiri and Rikki, two people who have suffered horrific pasts and now find it difficult to trust anyone. Yet, from the moment they meet, there is a bond between them that has both of them letting down their guard.

An action-packed tale that will keep you on the edge of your seat, THE LAST TWILIGHT is a book you won’t want to miss.

Jennifer Bishop