A review by labraden
Forged in Smoke by Trish McCallan

3.0

Forged in Smoke is the third book in the Red-Hot SEALS series. In this book Eric Manheim and his group are closing in on the SEALS where they have taken refuge in the mountains. At the beginning of the book, Rawls is dealt a fatal wound but is healed by Kait and her lover, Cosky. When he comes back from the dead, he brings a bad guy named Pochico back with him. Rawls does not believe in ghosts, so he thinks he may have had some kind of mental breakdown when Pochico begins tormenting him with repeated singing and won't let him go to sleep. Enter Dr. Faith Ansell who is one of several doctors whose deaths have been faked in order to get them working for Manheim on his plan to diminish the population of the world. His plan includes taking control of the Earth's resources in order to save it from over population and stop the devastation of the planet.
This is a huge story that has become bigger with each book in the series. Unfortunately the big story overwhelms the personal stories of the characters. There are now so many characters in the series that there is a list at the beginning of the book telling who each character is and how they each fit into the story. I really like the story being told in this series, but I just wish more time was spent on developing the characters rather than the development of the story. Overall, a good read, and I look forward to the last book in the series.