It's Another 5-Star Review!

Many of you know Sheri Hoyt. She's a partner in the well-known book reviewer Readers' View and has reviewed all eight of my novels. Here's what she thinks about When Power Fails.

Reviewed by Sheri Hoyte for Reader Views (08/2024)

When Power Fails is a corporate thriller about a powerful businesswoman fighting to save her AAA-rated company from cyber-attacks and organized crime as she attempts to expand her global supermarket chain through a major acquisition. As book eight in The Multima Saga by Gary D. McGugan, readers can expect a high-stakes narrative blending international suspense and complex character dynamics in the world of global commerce.

Suzanne Simpson is about to pull off the biggest acquisition in the Multima Corporation’s history. The only thing standing in her way is obtaining a $6 billion loan from a banking consortium. Well, perhaps that’s not quite everything blocking her success – she also discovers that the company she’s acquiring has deep ties to the Yakuza, Japan’s notorious crime syndicate.

A malicious chain of events, including a potentially devasting cyber-attack on Multima’s networks, further complicates her efforts.

Suzanne must be ever diligent, fighting external forces intent on destroying her company while also dealing with internal conflicts and misplaced trust. As the pressure intensifies, Suzanne finds herself in a fight that goes above securing the acquisition. She’s battling to ensure Multima Corporation’s survival and to protect her own hard-earned position within the company. The stakes have never been higher, with every decision carrying potentially dire consequences.

And, while the high-stakes and looming threats form the backbone of When Power Fails, for me, it’s the characters who truly bring this thriller to life. To name a few:

Suzanne Simpson is the prominent lead in this story; her ambitions soaring to bring the Multima Corporation to new levels. She’s one of the most powerful female characters I have ever met, and it’s all in her subtle management style. She has a knack for delivering even the toughest messages with a calm that’s almost unnerving to get her point across. The measured tilt of her head, the slight arch of an eyebrow – there’s no mistaking, she means business.

Serge Boisvert is Suzanne’s partner in both life and business as Multima’s chief security officer. Serge brings a necessary intensity to his role. His responsibilities have multiplied in this story to extend far beyond typical corporate security, demanding constant vigilance as threats lurk physically and digitally. Together, Suzanne and Serge form a “power couple” if you will, at the pinnacle of the corporate world.

Meanwhile, Fidelia Morales, the shrewd leader of The Organization, finds herself in an unusually precarious position with unseen forces threatening her control. She proves early on she can handle as much punishment as she gives, but as she plots against Multima, she must also navigate treachery within her own ranks and counter the moves of the elusive Shadow.

Secondary characters like Gordon Goodfellow and Amber Chan spice up the story with betrayal and revenge, their actions twisting the plot in unexpected ways. All in all – a stellar cast of characters!

Relevant themes in the story include corporate power and ambition, organized crime in the business world, cyber-security and technological threats, and trust and betrayal. But McGugan’s characters also address a growing real-world concern: the rising cost of groceries. The story reveals that it’s not simply a case of greedy CEOs inflating prices for profit. Instead, we’re shown a complex web of factors such as global market shifts, climbing production costs, supply chain hiccups, and even climate change’s fingerprints on agriculture. I thoroughly enjoyed learning what I’m sure was meticulously researched on the author’s part about this sobering yet enlightening look at an issue that affects us all.

Gary McGugan continues to raise the bar with each new novel, and his fans are fortunate that he has been consistently delivering a new adventure every year. When Power Fails is no exception and may well be one of the strongest entries in the series. The novel maintains a brisk pace, balancing corporate intrigue with personal drama. McGugan ratchets up the tension; the stakes are higher, the drama more intense, the betrayals cut deeper, and the antagonists are more ruthless than ever.

While When Power Fails stands as a gripping read on its own, I highly recommend starting with Three Weeks Less a Day, the first book in the series and my personal favorite. Experiencing the series from its inception allows readers to fully appreciate the character development and intricate plot threads McGugan has woven throughout this remarkable series. For those who enjoy corporate thrillers with depth and complexity, McGugan’s work is not to be missed.