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As the book progresses, we are introduced to a number of stories, all interlinked in some way and we are drip fed snippets of information as we make our way through the story. I don't want to say too much more for fear of any spoilers however the way it all comes together is simply masterful. The story revolves around a detective hunting down cold-blooded killers, but as the plot unfolds, you begin to question whether he knows more than he's letting on. Alongside him is a mother who must defend a murderer to protect her kidnapped daughter. The moral dilemmas and tension in this situation are palpable. And then there's a cunning couple attempting the perfect crime. There are some good twists along the way that worked well for me - some of the recent 'twist masters'' works have felt like they just want to add one after another after another to the point you find them so contrived it's spoils the story. Here, they're relevant, appropriate and germane to the overall plot. I can’t say that I liked any of the characters, with perhaps the exception of the lawyer, Becca, as she is a victim too, but even then, what she chooses to do is not sympathetic. This makes it difficult to identify with them and get caught up in their plights.
The book then moves to a completely different character, Becca Barraclough, a successful defense barrister who believes that everyone deserves the best defense possible, no matter what they've been accused of. It's her job to try and plant reasonable doubt in the jury's mind. You immediately wonder how Becca's storyline is connected to the Vanishers, and then her daughter is kidnapped. This time around it isn't money that the kidnappers demand. A group of kidnappers, and a crooked cop who knows how the system works is also on the investigation team. Before we start with your five books, I would love to know what you think makes something a thriller as opposed to a straightforward crime novel.
Retailers:
It is well-known to most thriller readers (as well as the relevant authorities) that the first 48 hours is critical in any criminal investigation involving a disappearance or kidnapping. This book is a fast-paced examination of those critical hours in the case of a child who has been kidnapped by a professional ring known as The Vanishers.
Which made it so compelling and thrilling to read and it's why I would genuinely recommend this story to all. I highly recommend this thriller- if you’ve read other books by Simon you’ll love this and if you haven’t it’s a perfect one to start with. Five stars from me. Newly engaged Elena Serenko has just made the life-changing decision to quit her job and start a new life in Australia. And as the story unfolded and I learnt more about the detective at the heart of it I genuinely couldn't get enough.
The style of writing is lively, engaging and colourful with scenes springing to life before your eyes. I like the contrast between the different perspectives. Whilst the lead character is despicable, he’s also amusing with a clutch of one-liners and a wry sense of humour. He thinks on his feet, he has to. The kidnappers point of view couldn’t be more different as this is cold, chilling, creepy and violent. The mothers narrative is fascinating as you witness the lengths she is prepared to go to. Yes, exactly. He can’t be one hundred per cent sure because, like everyone else, he’s convinced she’s dead, but he looks into it more deeply and he opens up a real can of worms, finding out first that she is still alive (although in hiding), and then that he’s being set up for her murder. People around him start dying and he finds himself on the run. It’s a hugely pacy book, with short chapters and a whole load of twists and turns. You always think you know what is going to happen but then Coben produces another twist and once again you don’t know where you are. And he manages to carry this on right the way through the book, which is no mean feat. There are very few redeeming qualities among the array of characters that feature in the story. Many of the characters come across as caricatures of criminals, their driving force is self-preservation and they are more than willing to double-cross each other if that means they'll escape. I love this book; this really is a thriller, and a beautifully written one. For me, Dennis Lehane is one of the best American thriller writers alive today. This is one of his early books from his Kenzie and Gennaro series – a male and female partnership of private investigators based in Boston. He wrote five books featuring them in the 1990s. Once again, I was treated to an excellent, gritty and gripping plot filled with twists, turns and tension that had me reading way into the night with anticipation as to how it was all going to end. The pacing of the story is perfect with each chapter moving the story on at speed.
So... we start with a detective on the hunt for some cold blooded kidnappers. Ones who have also just stepped up to being killers. There's something hinky about the way he is going about it though. We also then have a mother who is a lawyer defending a nasty piece of work but one she has to defend with every bone of her body as her daughter's life depends on the outcome. And finally we have a couple bent on committing the perfect crime. Briefly, the demotion doesn’t bother Fisher as he has one last job to complete before he retires to the beach in Thailand. We follow Fisher as he tries to keep his police colleagues from discovering who the Vanishers are, where the kidnapped daughter is and of course his Jekyll and Hyde life. Without giving away any spoilers it's a kidnapping procedural with a difference and brings its apparently disparate plots together in an intriguing way. Oh, totally. I don’t think crime fiction can be realistic. It can be authentic, but that’s very different. I like to think that my books are authentic insofar as I give the reader the correct information about police procedures. However with my books – and a lot of other crime books – everything is summed up very neatly at the end. Your main detective protagonist solves the crime and catches the killer. It’s always a killer who isn’t very easy to spot, whereas the reality is totally different. Usually with police work, who you think did it usually did do it, and when you get them in the interview room, rather than spilling the beans Hercule Poirot style, they call for their lawyer and say nothing but a litany of ‘no comment’s. And when you finally do get the case before a court, months and reams of paperwork later, the lawyers often get them off!Fish is a detective who works for the Met investigating kidnaps, particularly a group of kidnappers called the Vanishers who snatch young people for ransoms. However Fish has many secrets of his own and his first person narration leads the reader to suspect that he is not a particularly nice character and certainly knows more about the kidnappers than it first appears. High up amongst the penthouse suites, a skilled and dangerous killer is hunting a quarry who's eluded him for far too long. Becca is a barrister asked to defend killers and seemingly impervious to the fact she might be getting guilty criminals off scot free. When something awful happens to her daughter she is forced to choose between her family and her personal belief in the law- how far will she go to protect her own flesh and blood? What none of them know is that a group of ruthless gunmen are about to burst into the Stanhope, shooting indiscriminately, and seizing hostages. I would like to thank Netgalley and Headline for an advance copy of The First 48 Hours, a stand-alone thriller set in London.
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