The FBI is planning a takedown of a drug and sex trafficking cult masquerading as a self-help institution. Before the feds can execute the plan, ex-convict and MMA fighter Killian Delaney is hired to get two cult members out of harm's way. This sets in motion the twisty thriller Call of Vultures, Kate Kessler's sequel to Seven Crows.
Since her release from prison, Killian has been working for a secretive vigilante organization called The Initiative. On paper, Killian's job description is security consultant with a global company known as New Amsterdam Security, which keeps Killian's parole officer happy. Killian's freedom is threatened when Raven, an old cellmate, comes to visit. The daughters of Raven's girlfriend are trapped in the cult the FBI is about to take down. There's a hefty paycheck, and a personal debt will be paid in full if Killian can get the girls away from the cult before the raid. Taking on the mission might violate the terms of her parole, but time is running out for the sisters, and Killian risks it all--even her life--to save them.
Killian is an angry person who'd rather throw a punch than discuss her feelings, but Kessler provides enough character layering to show humans are complicated and not everyone fits into a box. Killian isn't afraid of anyone, even people she has no chance of beating, but the author goes past simple hardheadedness, revealing a softhearted side to Killian's intentions. At the heart of all the fist-flying action in Call of Vultures lies a soul-stirring universal mandate: always fight the good fight. --Paul Dinh-McCrillis, freelance reviewer