"Terse thriller"
On Christmas Day 2001 in Des Moines, Riordan "Dan" Michael
Gray and his wife of seven months Charlotte come home from
visiting family. Dan takes out the garbage, but fails to
return. Charlotte calls the police who begin a search that
fails. Dan owns the successful Panini coffee shops. When
payroll is due to the employers, Charlotte's father calls
Dan's lawyers to learn he gave the business to her as a
divorce settlement. Later the FBI informs her that her
missing husband is terrorist Daniel O'Toole of the IRA. A couple of years later in Tampa Bay, FBI agent John
Hanseck visits Charlotte to inform her that Dan is in the
country and probably in the Tampa area. The Feds want to
use her as bait to catch him, but she wants her past buried
so declines participating. However, refusal fails to keep
her from being kidnapped. One of her abductors, whom she
finds attractive and somewhat familiar looking, keeps her
safe. This is an exciting romantic suspense that hooks the reader
once Dan vanishes. The story line is fast-paced as the
audience waits to see what will happen when Dan and
Charlotte meet up and learn why he left. There is the
question of who will end up with the girl as a potential
romance between the heroine and the Fed as well as the
abductor protecting her adds to the intrigue. Though the
climax seems too pat, fans will appreciate this terse
thriller. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted April 24, 2003
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