The Foundation is a work of fiction in the thriller, suspense, and crime sub-genres, and was penned by author Roberta R. Carr. Written for adult audiences, the work does contain explicit language throughout, violence and sexual references as well as the potentially sensitive central topic of sex trafficking. The story revolves around lawyer Tara, who becomes involved in a new battle for justice when she encounters Ashlee, a beaten-up teen runaway who won’t talk about what led her to the streets. As Tara uncovers Ashlee’s origins, she happens upon a terrifyingly prominent ring of sex trafficking, all leading up to a mysterious kingpin who will stop at nothing to protect the business empire he’s created.

Author Roberta R. Carr brings us this stunning standalone novel, which can also be read as part of her series as it does include some crossover characters. One of the things which I really appreciated about the book was its frank honesty in opening our eyes to the graphic, gritty and painful work of sex trafficking, a modern-day crime that so many would rather pretend doesn’t exist. Tara’s investigation gives us the emotional space to experience the shock and disgust along with her, and the author’s close narration is inspiring as we explore Tara’s reasons for wanting to stand up and fight. I also found the dialogue highly engaging as it moved the plot along at a great pace. Overall, I would certainly recommend The Foundation to all thriller fiction fans seeking a truly accomplished read.

The Foundation by Roberta Carr is an exciting thriller that takes on the world of child trafficking and exploitation in the USA. Tara is a young lawyer with a mission. Already running her own law firm, she is offered the opportunity to really make a difference for those faced with systemic injustice and the ability to fight, especially as it pertains to family law, her specialty. Her best friend gives her a massive gift to allow her to set up a charitable foundation to provide legal assistance, “pro bono”, to those in dire need and unable to afford good legal representation. She is about to run smack-bang into Alexander, a self-made, ruthless millionaire who profits from the suffering of others. His drug and prostitution empire is particularly successful and is run with an iron fist, where nobody except him has a say and to cross Alexander is an almost certain death sentence. When he decides the market is in need of younger and younger girls to service his wealthy clients, he happily enters the world of child prostitution and trafficking. One of his earliest acquisitions is the one that is going to test his resourcefulness and ruthlessness to the extreme, as he heads for a confrontation with the crusading lawyer cum detective, Tara. In this fast-paced thriller, the stakes could not be higher and the results of failure could not be more dire.

The Foundation is an incredibly easy, fast-paced, and satisfying read that I was able to churn through in one sitting because it was so riveting. Author Roberta Carr has a relaxed, conversational style that brings you right into the protagonists’ mindsets despite the two main characters being extreme overachievers in their particular fields of endeavor. I kept looking for some redeeming features in the arch-villain Alexander but unless you count good-looking and hot as redeeming features there really were none to find. He was the quintessential evil crime boss and written as such. His ruthlessness has to be read to be believed. Although Tara was the polar opposite in her views of the world and life from Alexander, there was a central theme that seemed to permeate the work – that these two characters were, in fact, the opposite sides of the same coin. Both incredible overachievers who believed in themselves to the exclusion of all other’s opinions and yet one was inherently good, moral and compassionate whereas the other was pure evil, despite the attempts to mitigate this through explaining his dysfunctional childhood and his “almost” relationship with one of his employees. I think the author did a fantastic job of highlighting the problems of child exploitation and trafficking as being very much an American problem just as much as an imported problem. I was also impressed with the research that had clearly gone into the specialist roles and situations described and enacted in the novel. This is an excellent read with a little spicy romance as well, which is never amiss. I can highly recommend this book.