Dana Stabenow begins her taut maritime thriller with an "if only" in the detection of terrorists. Following the bombing of a restaurant in Pattaya Beach, Thailand, two Koreans in identical nondescript clothing calmly watch the scene of carnage. Their passivity catches the attention of several people nearby, most importantly Arlene, a blond, plump woman who photographs them at the scene and, later, in a meeting with some notorious bad guys. Turns out she's CIA, and she tails them to the airport until they catch her off guard by a last minute boarding for Moscow.

When CIA boss Hugh Rincon studies the photos and IDs, he and Arlene track down one of the men at the meeting, Jaap Noortman, in Hong Kong. A little CIA torture discloses a well-funded Al Qaeda-inspired plot involving a dirty nuke heading for Alaska. But Hugh can't convince anyone at Langley of the imminent danger to 240,000 people. Since his wife Sara Lange is the Executive Officer aboard the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Sojourner Truth patrolling the Maritime Boundary Line--exactly where the terrorists are headed--he arranges to board her ship to guide the crew in an interception. But the pounding seas aren't the only navigational dangers. The real problem is cunning deception.

Adding to her extensive knowledge of Alaska and its waters, Edgar-winner Stabenow ("Fire and Ice") spent 16 days researching her fictional mission aboard a cutter in the Bering Sea. The resulting level of accuracy and crisp on-board dialogue helps make the drama so harrowing you'll be looking for a life vest before the last wave drenches you. An exceptional mystery writer establishes her sea legs with the excitement of a smashing maritime adventure.