I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions are my own.

A man must risk everything to save his daughter and sister from the hands of a powerful drug cartel in author Al Dawson’s “Borderlines.”

THE SYNOPSIS

U.S. Attorney Jace Kelly has spent years dismantling the drug cartels that poison his home state of New Mexico. But when a daring bust captures Rafael “El Arcángel” Aguilar, the ruthless son of Juárez cartel kingpin Pepe “El Mono” Aguilar, Kelly’s world shatters. In a brazen retaliation, El Mono’s operatives cross the border and kidnap Kelly’s only family: his sister and teenage daughter.

Now, Kelly faces an impossible choice.

Release a monster to save his family, or defy the cartel and risk their lives.

With the clock ticking and the Department of Justice circling for political reasons, Kelly knows he can’t rely on the system. Teaming up with a renegade Apache tracker, a former Air Force pilot with a secret past, and a CIA analyst with her own agenda, he launches a rogue rescue mission into the heart of cartel territory.

A relentless, morally complex thriller in the vein of the most gripping cartel and legal dramas, Borderlines is a pulse-pounding journey into the dark heart of the drug war, and the even darker choices of those who wage it.

THE REVIEW

This was a gripping and compelling thriller. The author’s intensity and balance of narrative tone, action, and suspense let readers immerse themselves in a visceral world of drug cartels and the people who go after them. The author touches on a plot point that has become a staple of the international thriller genre while also capturing the pulse of experiences so many people have undergone when desperately trying to save the lives of those they care about most.

The novel’s heart lies in its dynamic character development and the powerful themes it explores. The mystery and intrigue surrounding each member of the ragtag group the protagonist assembles, and how they come together to face overwhelming odds, hook the reader and keep them on the edge of their seats as each pivotal moment packs a punch. The exploration of the drug trade’s impact on the lives of innocents, and how politics often dictates how law enforcement handles certain crimes, adds depth and elicits an emotional response as the story progresses.

THE VERDICT

Compelling, thrilling, and engaging, Author Al Dawson’s “Borderlines” is a must-read thriller. The twists and turns keep readers on the edge of their seats as the heroes race against the clock to save the protagonist’s family, delivering the action and razor-sharp tension often found in blockbuster thriller films worldwide. If you haven’t yet, please be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Al Dawson is a retired regulatory lawyer who spent his career inside the institutions his fiction examines: the Church, the courtroom, the regulatory apparatus. He understands how they work. And how they fail the people who trusted them.

His novels are built from that knowledge. Searching for Noriko (2021), a WWII story about guilt and forgiveness, earned second place at the Palm Beach Book Festival. Priest (2024), a moral thriller about institutional corruption within the Catholic Church, won Gold/First Place for Adult Fiction in the 2025 Feathered Quill Book Awards. Borderlines (2026), a political thriller about a federal prosecutor taking on a Mexican drug cartel, continues the moral universe he has been building across all three books.

Al Dawson lives in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, with his wife Jane. He publishes under Luna del Lobo Books.

lunadellobo.com/