Marc Rainer Books In Order

Publication Order of Jeff Trask Crime Drama Books

Marc Rainer real name Charles Ambrose is a historical fiction, thriller, and mystery author best known for the “Jeff Trask” and “Jeff Trask Kansas City Files” series of novels. He went to the United States Air Force Academy and then served as a JAG Circuit Air Force Prosecutor before he was a Kansas City and Washington DC Federal prosecutor. Combining his federal and military career, he has tried hundreds of cases in more than three decades of practice. His cases have involved the prosecution of persons in organized crime and mafia, federal conspiracy, and homicide cases. He often weaves stories from his trial and investigative experiences into many of his stories that have been critically acclaimed for their realism. He made his debut into the crime thriller world with Amazon bestselling title “Capital Kill” that was the debut novel of his immensely popular “Jeff Trask” series of novels. The fifth novel of the series Death Votes Last was the 2019 winner of the TopShelf Magazine book award. He is also the co-author of a manual on the best way to prosecute homicide cases that was published by the American Bar. Rainer currently lives in the northwest alongside his wife and their two dogs.

After more than thirty years working as an Assistant Unites States attorney, he often finds himself comparing his new profession of author with that of federal prosecutor. One of his most compelling impressions is that both professions have a floating subject matter. Both authorship and the law are overlays of other vocations or topics that attempt to come up with something. Whether it be a compelling novel that talks about a different topic or the attempt to get a favorable verdict on another. For example, the lawyer is often charged with advocating for a given party in court but the topic of advocacy varies wildly and from one case to another. As a federal prosecutor, he is charged with protecting the interests of the citizens of the US but the subject matter could be anything from criminal conspiracy, drug dealing, money laundering, or murder. As an author, he tells stories that are based on his experiences with criminals and cases he worked on. His stories often draw a parallel with the many cases he has had the privilege of working with, each with their unique evidence and subject.

Marc Rainer’s plotlines and cases often involve issues to do with forensics and experts who have to go to court to explain forensic evidence to juries. In his work as well as in his writing, he has had to study a lot before writing. For instance, he had to study forensic issues at hand when he had to either cross-examine a defense expert or when one of the experts was a witness in his own cases. He often had to become an expert on the forensic matter if he was to present a coherent testimony or attack that offered by the expert. In one case it might have been ballistics evidence, in another a tool mark, serology in another and fingerprint evidence in the next. In some instances, he had to be knowledgeable in several fields that were combined in one case. In some cases, the defense would plead insanity and he would have to study psychiatry to shoot them down. Rainer lives by the saying writers should only write what they know. It is by doing this that he has been able to write such authentic novels. However, while he mostly writes from his experiences, that does not mean that he does not do any research or learning. Since the law and writing are dynamic fields he is always researching to grow in knowledge and to expand his horizons and even the topics that he writes about. He has asserted that the biggest difference is that as an author he chooses the issues to write about while as a lawyer he had to react to the issues raised in a case.

Marc Rainer’s “Capital Kill” is an engrossing thriller novel set in Washington DC. Several streets away from the monuments and museums frequented by tourists is a ruthless killer. Jeff Trask is the lead in a team of police detectives working hard to resolve the series of killing and apprehend the culprit. But even as more bodies pile up, the team cannot find any headway until a break results in a scary confrontation the leader of a global drug trafficking organization. It is such a vicious organization that if cornered would react in such a manner that it would put the lives of everyone, including the police in danger. The novel is a prime example of an author who pens stories from what he knows given that Rainer as a former prosecutor in the District of Columbia and also in the US Airforce JAG. Just like his author, the lead protagonist Jeff Trasks has a similar background in the law.

Rainer’s “Horns of the Devil” is a thrilling sequel to the debut novel of the series. Timothy Wisniewski a former United States District attorney has been charged with investigating a case of a man’s mysterious decapitation. The body is that of Juan Lopez, the teenage son of the El Salvadorian ambassador. To leave a strong message, his killers had dumped his body outside the embassy’s front gates but they did not identify themselves. USDA Jeff Trask teams up with Barry Dorez an FBI agent, and Detective Dixon Carter to try to unravel the bizarre murder. The evidence points to two belligerent drug gangs made up of El Salvadorians that had been fighting each other for several years now. They originated from California but had recently set up new cells and staked out territory in Washington. As the body count keeps rising on both sides of the war, the Task Force realizes that some of the kills may be too sophisticated to be simply gang violence. They could be in the middle of gang warfare or maybe someone s more interested in fostering the rivalry and violence between the gangs. Whatever it is, they need to put a stop to it before it invades the peaceful streets of the capital.

Marc Rainer’s “Death’s White Horses” opens to the death of the daughter of a powerful senator which is just but the start of a string of murders. Several bodies of women believed to be prostitutes are found dead from an overdose of heroin that is stronger than the Mexican type law enforcement is familiar with. While Jeff and the team try to find the source of the new drug and the distributor, a war rages between the Mexican Marines and the different drug cartels fighting for dominance in the north of the country. In charge of the Marine team is Major Luis Aquilar who is fighting to save the people who are caught up in the gang wars between the rival cartels. But they also have to deal with prison officials and their police most of whom have either been threatened or bribed and are now willing to do anything to further the ends of the cartel bosses. It is a war fought across two nations with the United States resorting to the law while Mexico uses the power of the military and the gun in trying to win the war against the cartels.