Assassin's Rose
A classic struggle of Venus and Mars
One woman's vision challenges traditional masculine values and tactics
In a battle for the U.S. presidency, the candidacy of a charismatic leader, Claire Alden, threatens the status quo. A devastating betrayal robs Claire of trusted advisors; the man she looks to for love and support may not deserve her trust; and a mysterious rose-sender plots her death, all combining to hold the nation in the grip of profound suspense on Election Day. Learn more | Buy online (coming soon).
A classic struggle of Venus and Mars
One woman's vision challenges traditional masculine values and tactics
In a battle for the U.S. presidency, the candidacy of a charismatic leader, Claire Alden, threatens the status quo. A devastating betrayal robs Claire of trusted advisors; the man she looks to for love and support may not deserve her trust; and a mysterious rose-sender plots her death, all combining to hold the nation in the grip of profound suspense on Election Day. Learn more | Buy online (coming soon).
"A three-dimensional thriller. Fast pace, strong characters, and a plot both deep and rich. Not to be missed."
~ Mark A. Clements, Geisel-Award Winning Author The Land of Nod
Voice of the Goddess
An epic story of grace, grandeur, betrayal, pride, and the enduring power of love. In this extraordinary fiction debut, Judith Hand immerses the reader in an ancient (3500-year-old)Mediterranean culture unlike any with which we are familiar. Until the discovery in the twentieth century of its spectacular ruins on the island of Crete, the existence of this society lay buried and forgotten by the world, perhaps remembered only as myth about a place called Atlantis.
Leesandra of Keftiu is born on Crete into a society devoted to the worship of the Great Goddess. From youth we follow her and the man who will become her lover, Alektrion of Kalliste, until they enter into the final struggle to preserve their peace-loving way of life from the encroachment of mainland foes. Into this primal mix of passion and war is added the historical 1628 BC volcanic explosion of the nearby island of Santorini (Thera), a staggering natural catastrophe. Learn more | Buy online.
An epic story of grace, grandeur, betrayal, pride, and the enduring power of love. In this extraordinary fiction debut, Judith Hand immerses the reader in an ancient (3500-year-old)Mediterranean culture unlike any with which we are familiar. Until the discovery in the twentieth century of its spectacular ruins on the island of Crete, the existence of this society lay buried and forgotten by the world, perhaps remembered only as myth about a place called Atlantis.
Leesandra of Keftiu is born on Crete into a society devoted to the worship of the Great Goddess. From youth we follow her and the man who will become her lover, Alektrion of Kalliste, until they enter into the final struggle to preserve their peace-loving way of life from the encroachment of mainland foes. Into this primal mix of passion and war is added the historical 1628 BC volcanic explosion of the nearby island of Santorini (Thera), a staggering natural catastrophe. Learn more | Buy online.
"Hand vividly portrays a goddess-worshiping society and its inability to withstand the assault of the patriarchs . . . a page-turning style that keeps the reader entranced all the way to the ending that hints at a sure-to-be welcomed sequel."
~ Booklist-American Library Association
"Superb historical drama! The first novel ever to bring readers into the utterly alien reality of the Minoan world . . . I wasn't able to put the book down. For me it was right up there with James Michener's The Source."
~ Charles Pellegrino, Author of Unearthing Atlantis
The Amazon and The Warrior
Not all the heroes of ancient mythology were men.
For eight years, the besieged city of Troy withstood the relentless might of the Greek invaders. But now the dread Achilles, mightiest of the Greek warriors, seeks to conquer the fabled realm of the Amazons as well. But one woman stands between him and his ruthless ambition to conquer her homeland. Penthesilea, Warrior Queen of the Amazons, watched her mother die upon Achilles' sword. A fiery, red-haired tigress of tremendous passion and courage, Pentha vows to take revenge on the legendary Greek champion, even if it means leading an army in defense of imperiled Troy. Her lover, Damonides, does not share her eagerness for battle. Once a formidable warrior in his own right, he long ago put away the sword. Now he yearns only to live in peace with the beautiful and ardent Amazon Queen. But can he stand idly by while the woman he loves risks everything for the sake of her people?
Published in 2004 by TOR Books | ISBN# 0-765-34936-1
Available online at Amazon.com.
Not all the heroes of ancient mythology were men.
For eight years, the besieged city of Troy withstood the relentless might of the Greek invaders. But now the dread Achilles, mightiest of the Greek warriors, seeks to conquer the fabled realm of the Amazons as well. But one woman stands between him and his ruthless ambition to conquer her homeland. Penthesilea, Warrior Queen of the Amazons, watched her mother die upon Achilles' sword. A fiery, red-haired tigress of tremendous passion and courage, Pentha vows to take revenge on the legendary Greek champion, even if it means leading an army in defense of imperiled Troy. Her lover, Damonides, does not share her eagerness for battle. Once a formidable warrior in his own right, he long ago put away the sword. Now he yearns only to live in peace with the beautiful and ardent Amazon Queen. But can he stand idly by while the woman he loves risks everything for the sake of her people?
Published in 2004 by TOR Books | ISBN# 0-765-34936-1
Available online at Amazon.com.
Code Name: Dove
"Get Close to Him by Any Means Necessary"
Seduction was a weapon CIA Special Agent Nova Blair had never resorted to before. After a tragic childhood, she'd dedicated herself to ridding the world of criminals, not entertaining their wildest fantasies. It didn't matter that her target was extraordinarily handsome and charming. What did matter was the he was a suspected terrorist using mind-control drugs, and millions of innocent lives were at stake. Her CIA boss says time is running out. World governments are already on their knees. Failure isn't an option-but is sleeping with the enemy?
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2004 by Silhouette Books | ISBN# 0-373-51318-6
Available online at Amazon.com.
"Get Close to Him by Any Means Necessary"
Seduction was a weapon CIA Special Agent Nova Blair had never resorted to before. After a tragic childhood, she'd dedicated herself to ridding the world of criminals, not entertaining their wildest fantasies. It didn't matter that her target was extraordinarily handsome and charming. What did matter was the he was a suspected terrorist using mind-control drugs, and millions of innocent lives were at stake. Her CIA boss says time is running out. World governments are already on their knees. Failure isn't an option-but is sleeping with the enemy?
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2004 by Silhouette Books | ISBN# 0-373-51318-6
Available online at Amazon.com.
Romantic Times Bookclub rates "Code Name: Dove" as "fantastic"
Iron Dove
It's simple. She succeeds or millions die."
They called her the Dove - her gentle beauty concealing a will of iron. But agent Nova Blair never wanted to return to the world of spying. She'd started a new life ... until her former partner came to her with a mission she couldn't refuse. Terrorists had threatened to release a deadly strain of the Ebola virus that could wreak global devastation. Going back to the shadowy, seductive life of an international spy was the price she would pay to save millions of live - but could Nova save her soul, too?
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2005 by Silhouette Books | ISBN# 0373513798
Available online at Amazon.com.
It's simple. She succeeds or millions die."
They called her the Dove - her gentle beauty concealing a will of iron. But agent Nova Blair never wanted to return to the world of spying. She'd started a new life ... until her former partner came to her with a mission she couldn't refuse. Terrorists had threatened to release a deadly strain of the Ebola virus that could wreak global devastation. Going back to the shadowy, seductive life of an international spy was the price she would pay to save millions of live - but could Nova save her soul, too?
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2005 by Silhouette Books | ISBN# 0373513798
Available online at Amazon.com.
"Judith Leon has scored a hit with IRON DOVE. The tale is so gripping it will keep you on the edge of your seat. Nova is a strong woman who does what's right—even if she doesn't want to. Joe is the hero we could all fall in love with."
- Alexandra Kay, RT Book Club
"Former CIA agent Nova "Dove" Blair is finished with the world of espionage vowing never to return as she fears her soul is rotting from what she has done. Anyone who knows her iron will believe this tough lady. However, the CIA needs her for a job in which the lives of millions are at stake. Unable to say no with so many innocent lives in the balance, Dove agrees to perform one last task though she fears she will not mentally recover from the ugly realm of the spy world.
Her assignment is to stop an unknown terrorist from releasing Ebola in Italy. Agent Joe Cardone is assigned to work with Dove. As the pair work diligently to stop this man-made disaster, they fall in love, but the clock runs out on the duo.
IRON DOVE is a tense espionage thriller starring two dedicated champions with the heroine reluctantly returning to the battlefields that have wrecked her emotionally and the hero her lifeline to sanity. The romance augments their relationship, but serves as a backdrop to an action- packed thriller that accelerates as time ticks away and the inevitable pandemic devastation seems imminent. Judith Leon writes a one sitting thriller."
~ Harriet Klausner, The Best
"Hang on tight, because IRON DOVE is non-stop action from page one. For Nova Blair, moving from tree to tree on rope bridges suspended one hundred and fifty feet high in the Costa Rican jungle canopy is just another day in her life as a high adventure travel guide. But when CIA agent Joe Cardone arrives in Costa Rica asking for her help one last time, Nova knows she has no choice.
Servizio per le Informazioni e la Securezza Militaire(SISMI), the Italian intelligence agency, has learned that terrorists have made a deal to obtain a strain of the Ebola virus—a strain that has been mutated so that a person would be able to carry it without showing symptoms for a while, as well as being an air-borne virus (not needing physical contact to spread it)—and the implications are terrifying. It will be up to Nova and Joe to find the people in possession of the virus before it is released, putting the Italian public—and the world—at risk.
Nova and Joe have worked together before, as readers of CODE NAME: DOVE may remember, and along with a history, the two share an unexplored attraction. From the steamy Costa Rican jungle to Italy's beautiful Amalfi coast, they will have a chance to get to know each other while searching for the terrorists.
With its interesting characters and a riveting plot sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats, IRON DOVE is not to be missed."
~ Jennifer Bishop, Romance Reviews Today
Captive Dove
Nova Blair—code name, Dove—is known as the ultimate, tough-as-nails agent who always gets her man. So when ten prominent American tourists are kidnapped in Brazil, Nova launches into a race against time to rescue the innocents and uncover the identity of their sociopathic captor and the criminal mind behind him, someone at the highest levels of the U.S. government who is bent on subverting the U.S. Supreme Court. Her mission hits a snag, though, when the CIA assigns a fellow agent to the case—Joseph Cardone. He's the man Nova loved but walked away from. Nova and Joe must put their fiery standoff aside if they are to save the tourists and uncover the high level traitor. And this time the cost of Nova's success may be Joe's life."
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2006 by Silhouette Bombshell Books | ISBN# ISBN-13 978-0-373-51425-0 | ISBN-10 0-373-51425-5
Available online at Amazon.com.
Nova Blair—code name, Dove—is known as the ultimate, tough-as-nails agent who always gets her man. So when ten prominent American tourists are kidnapped in Brazil, Nova launches into a race against time to rescue the innocents and uncover the identity of their sociopathic captor and the criminal mind behind him, someone at the highest levels of the U.S. government who is bent on subverting the U.S. Supreme Court. Her mission hits a snag, though, when the CIA assigns a fellow agent to the case—Joseph Cardone. He's the man Nova loved but walked away from. Nova and Joe must put their fiery standoff aside if they are to save the tourists and uncover the high level traitor. And this time the cost of Nova's success may be Joe's life."
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2006 by Silhouette Bombshell Books | ISBN# ISBN-13 978-0-373-51425-0 | ISBN-10 0-373-51425-5
Available online at Amazon.com.
"CAPTIVE DOVE is a exciting romantic suspense that leaves you breathless, the description of Brazil and the rain forest are amazing, I felt I was there. The action starts on the first page and goes to the last, and the attraction between Joe and Nova is hot. This is my first Judith Leon book, it will not be my last. CAPTIVE DOVE is a page turner you won't want to miss."
~ Gloria Behres, theromancereaders.com
"Nova Blair is back for her third adventure in CAPTIVE DOVE. What should be a simple hostage rescue is actually much more complex, and it's up to Nova and Joe to fix it. With its focus on the time-sensitive retrieval of the hostages and the fact that most of the players, good and bad, are known to the reader, CAPTIVE DOVE is more suspense than mystery, and a non-stop adventure. Whether you've read the earlier books (CODE NAME: DOVE and IRON DOVE) or not, CAPTIVE DOVE is a book that I highly recommend."
~ Jennifer Bishop, Romance Reviews Today
The Good Thief
When the case is as potentially explosive as that of an Athena student's abduction, Lindsey Novak never enters a negotiation without knowing just who to trust. All of Europe is her bailiwick, and she thrives on black-market deals with shady characters—even when she has to steal from the thieves themselves. But this time every weapon in her arsenal— including the enigmatic and all-too-sexy bodyguard hired by her father to follow her to Prague—may not be enough. For recovering the missing girl is only the first phase in thwarting a plan so evil it could change humanity forever.
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2007 by Silhouette Athena Force | ISBN# 13 978-0-373-38973-5 | ISBN# 10 0-373-38973-6. Available online at Amazon.com
When the case is as potentially explosive as that of an Athena student's abduction, Lindsey Novak never enters a negotiation without knowing just who to trust. All of Europe is her bailiwick, and she thrives on black-market deals with shady characters—even when she has to steal from the thieves themselves. But this time every weapon in her arsenal— including the enigmatic and all-too-sexy bodyguard hired by her father to follow her to Prague—may not be enough. For recovering the missing girl is only the first phase in thwarting a plan so evil it could change humanity forever.
Written under the pen name Judith Leon.
Published in 2007 by Silhouette Athena Force | ISBN# 13 978-0-373-38973-5 | ISBN# 10 0-373-38973-6. Available online at Amazon.com
"In THE GOOD THIEF, never-ending danger surrounds a competent Athena Academy graduate, Lindsey Novak. Her story is immediately gripping and the threats only escalate to perilous heights. Judith Leon convincingly depicts every incident which befalls the heroine, infusing each scene with vivid realism.
When Lindsey attended the Athena Academy for young women, she did not like to fail and learned that fear could cost her the admiration of her friends, and most of all, her beloved father. Now with her rather secretive career as a professional negotiator for those who cannot get help through legal channels, she still has a strong drive to win and prove her fearlessness in every dangerous case she tackles, which often involves stealing artworks back from the thieves who stole them. Although some of her contacts are disreputable, Lindsey sees herself as only helping others, not a thief in the true sense of the word.
She receives a phone call from another Athena graduate, informing her about the kidnapping of two current students at the school, girls that have been given superior powers through genetic enhancement. Lindsey is asked to help to find them. When she comes upon a lead, she quickly forms a plan that will take her to Prague. Unbeknownst to Lindsey, her father sends his best agent, Marko Savin, from his security company to just watch over her. Soon, however, Lindsey and Marko find themselves thrown together in a race against time to locate the kidnapped girl before she is sold on the black market involved with human gene manipulation.
The books penned by Judith Leon have twists interwoven into their storylines which will keep readers quickly turning the pages until the surprising conclusions are discovered. There is definitely never a lull in this story. Readers will frequently find their hearts pounding from the frightening situations played out by Lindsey and Marko. Initially at odds with each other personally, the pair come to realize they work well together, and then that they have come to care for each other. As they take on an evil agent whose web of blackmail and manipulation is becoming a global menace, they each start questioning exactly what they expect for their own future to hold. These revealing moments were beautifully handled by Ms. Leon, making this reader feel every touching instant.
THE GOOD THIEF is a visually stunning adventure, where danger, exploits and mystery abound."
~ Amelia Richard, Cataromance (review condensed and slightly modified from the original)
Astronomy image credit: NASA: Full Hemisphere Views of Earth at Night.