Doug Ross @ Journal

Book Review: Robert Crais' Hostage

It's like Reading an Action Movie

First off: I'll admit I'm not a fan of the author's Elvis Cole series. But Hostage is a flat-out barn-burner. Written in a series of third-person vignettes, each from the perspective of a person ensnared in the drama, the action is pulse-pounding and compelling. Give yourself a few hours because, as passe as it sounds, you -- seriously -- will not want to put this book down. And I'm not exaggerating in the least.

Within the first few pages, we encounter a trio of hoods who've recently been released from the pen. On the spur of the moment, they decide to rob a convenience store located in a ritzy, suburban neighborhood. In seconds, the robbery goes sour and they skeedaddle a ways down the road... until their vehicle suddenly dies. Exiting the road, they run into a high-end suburban enclave, and quickly end up in the backyard of a beautiful home.

Unfortunately, a father and his two kids are actually in the house. The trio invade the home, looking for a vehicle or an exit route. Unfortunately for everyone involved, the police show up a little too quickly, and the scene rapidly degrades into a hostage situation.

All is not as it seems, however. The accountant is no run-of-the-mill businessman. He is, in fact, a bookkeeper for the California mob and was only moments away from handing off some critical disks to a courier. The lives of many parties end up riding on the fate of the disks, from police officers, to mobsters, to the family in the house.

Three words: just read it. You won't regret it for a split-second.