Ex-spy Michael Weston wants to do just about anything except live in Miami. More accurately, he wants to return to good standing as a covert op. Thanks to a burn notice that kicks him out of the spying game, he’s stuck in his childhood town and now must deal with his neurotic family and stay ahead of his former associates. Michael is fully capable of protecting himself against spies with a grudge, but staying alive is harder to do without the career benefits of contacts, money, and travel ability. Determined to return as a covert operative, he launches an investigation to find the person responsible for his burn notice. As he gathers puzzle pieces, Michael takes odd-jobs from people who need his expertise.

Michael enlists help from two friends: Sam, an ex-Navy Seal, who flirts with the FBI and rich women for money and drinks, and Fiona, his sensual, arms-dealing ex-girlfriend, who keeps pressuring him for a relationship. Sam brings him a new client: a man whose wife and child have been kidnapped. Michael’s a little wary of Sam’s vague information, and with good reason. The man is Gennaro Stefania, who has married into the ultra-wealthy and scandalous Ottone family. Kidnappers tell Gennaro they are sailing on board the Ottone’s personal yacht, and his wife and child will die unless Gennaro loses the Hurricane Cup yacht race. The kidnappers are clear: he cannot drop out from the race but nor can he win it. Gennaro’s family is unaware of the plot to kill them, and the easiest choice would be for him to go into the race and lose. Of course, the situation gets more complicated when Gennaro drops an even bigger bombshell: his past races have been fixed by a friend. A mafia-connected friend, who won’t quit fixing his races. How will Gennaro lose a race that’s a sure winner? Michael scrambles to figure out how to out-wit one of the wealthiest crime-connected clans, before the end of the race and in time to save Gennaro’s wife and child.

Burn Notice: The End Game is a mystery novel, with a tie-in to the USA network TV show Burn Notice. If you enjoy the TV series, you’ll love this book. The characters are just as kick-action alive and funny as they are on TV, thanks to author Tod Goldberg. Readers will enjoy the sarcastic but loveable characters, who make a formidable team whenever Michael needs their combined strengths. Minor characters are fully developed and make the plots intriguing. MyShelf also reviewed book one, Burn Notice: The Fix. The End Game is Goldberg’s second book in a three-book contract for the Burn Notice series. Readers will enjoy running beside Michael, Fiona, and Sam, as they out-maneuver the bad guys.