Author: Chris Hauty

Publisher: Emily Bestler Books

ISBN: 978198212661

A White House aide races to find the source of several cyber attacks on the U.S. before the terrorist can strike again. As other government officials fight for their own agendas, the aide must make sense of all the information coming her way while staying true to a higher mission. Author Chris Hauty follows up last year’s Deep State, the debut in the Hayley Chill thriller series, with the commendable sequel Savage Road.

Hayley Chill has had a year. Or two, that is. First joining the White House as an intern, she got a big promotion after thwarting an assassination attempt on President Richard Monroe. Now she’s the chief of staff for a senior advisor to the president, which puts her in the direct line of communication with the Commander-in-Chief. 

Her “eye-on-the-ball” approach is becoming more and more important. Monroe is starting to crack under the pressure of running the country, and the recent threat to the U.S. isn’t helping. Someone is attacking America’s cyber security. First the printing presses of the biggest newspapers in the country go offline. Then it’s the derailment of a train heading into D.C. Before the government can get a handle on things, their own servers start to tank.

It’s clear to Hayley that the attacks are intensifying, but she keeps getting orders to focus on Monroe. The president seems to spend more time wringing his hands than he does anything else. To Hayley, his hand-wringing is just a symptom of the larger problems at hand. If no one else is going to figure out what’s going on, then she’ll have to take up the cause. 

But that won’t be easy when everyone at the highest levels of government seems intent on advancing their own causes. The head of the Department of Homeland Security keeps requesting increased oversight of private sector cyber security. The director of the National Security Agency wants to go on the offensive based on incoming data on which foreign power might be responsible for the cyber attack. 

While Hayley works to guide the president in the midst of growing hostility in the West Wing, she runs across information regarding her father who died while serving in Iraq. She made peace a long time ago with it, but the memories won’t leave her alone. Using her contacts, Hayley starts digging for more information and realizes her personal life and professional life might be connected in more ways than she’s ever understood before.

Author Chris Hauty uses his screenwriting skills to full effect in this second installment in the Hayley Chill thriller series. His descriptions make it easy to picture the action, and his character building of protagonist Hayley could easily be translated to the big screen. Long chapters—just 12 in this novel—go against the tradition in thriller writing of short chapters and many of them, but Hauty clearly wants to set a visual stage for his readers just as a camera would for an audience.

Hauty’s biggest risk comes in the information or “info” dumps that happen throughout the book, but the risk pays off in spades here. Readers will get fun tidbits about characters, settings, and historical events that work together to build suspense. Lesser skilled authors would leave readers bored or turn them away altogether by using the technique; instead, Hauty’s writing style and use of the omniscient voice compel readers to stick with the story.

As a protagonist, Hayley Chill is a winner all the way. Her standoffishness with her coworkers and romantic partners endears her to readers. The more she tries to hide behind her stoicism, the more readers will want to know about her. Even with an absolute dedication to country and cause Hayley has faults, which make her all the more appealing as a character

The first book in the series, Deep State, ended on a fun twist, and Hauty comes up with an even bigger one for Savage Road. Fans of political thrillers who enjoy books that mirror reality while still maintaining an adequate distance will enjoy this one. I recommend readers Binge Savage Road.