BOOK REVIEW: OCCULT THRILLER BY A LOCAL AUTHOR

Devil's Eye by Al Ruksenas

     It would be tempting to say that Cleveland author Al Ruksenas has created, in the novel, Devil's Eye, a combination of The Pelican Brief and some of Stephen King's most fear-inducing works.  In reality, however, he has created a brand-new entity which defies any known "genre" classification.
     Devil's Eye is, more accurately, a mainstream novel which takes the reader on a terrifying trip through the inner circles of Washington politics, while simultaneously providing an overlay of the power of the occult underworld.  When these two spheres cross, "all hell breaks loose" (not just figuratively, but literally, as well).      Devil's Eye is the story of Colonel Chris Caine, a military man whose exploits, and whose clearance, exceed even the level of most CIA operatives.  He is a member of the ultra-elite and ultra-secretive U.S. government organization known as The Omega Group.  Caine, along with his long-time comrade-in-arms, Colonel Garrison Jones, are initially enlisted by their superior to investigate the disappearance of Jeannie McConnell, the "party girl" daughter of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.  As a part of that investigation, Caine attends a cocktail party at the Smithsonian.  While at the party, he meets Dr. Laura Mitchell, a professor of French History, whose Lithuanian family roots extend back to the time when Lithuania was a part of the former Soviet Union--a fact which later plays a key part in this complex thriller.  Caine and Mitchell experience an immediate and mutual romantic attraction to each other, a relationship which leads both of them to the discovery of major secrets in the U.S. government, in the Middle East, and in our world as a whole. 
    As the story unfolds, the events surrounding the disappearance and current whereabouts of the young Washington socialite begin to take a "back seat" as the plot stretches far beyond that issue.  The reader is drawn into the world of international espionage, terrorism and--in a most unexpected, but fascinating twist--the world of witchcraft and the occult.
     Devil's Eye is the proverbial "page-turner," an "unputdownable" read from beginning to end.  Although this book is Ruksenas' first novel, it is certainly not the author's first foray into the publishing arena.  In his youth, he was a reporter for United Press International, before going on to publish two non-fiction works, the award-winning Day of Shame (which became a TV movie) and Is That You Laughing, Comrade? a book of Russian jokes sometimes used by Ronald Reagan in his dealings with the Soviets.
     Perhaps the most interesting fact of all is that the author is one of our own--a Northern Ohioan!  His first novel is a must-read for anyone who enjoys fast-paced and intriguing tales of espionage, the White House, and the power of evil in our modern world.