24 Hours
This explosive suspense thriller gets off to a blistering start: the  kidnapping of a little boy--in eight breathless pages--that culminates with the  child's safe return and the disappearance of the successful kidnappers. That  sets the stage for the book's centerpiece, the abduction of little Abby  Jennings, daughter of Will, a successful physician, and Karen, a slightly  dissatisfied suburban woman who's wondering where the passion in her marriage  went. The criminals' modus operandi is established early on. They target the  progeny of Mississippi doctors, demand a reasonable (to an affluent M.D.)  ransom, release the child after it's paid, and promise the victim parents that  if they ever breathe a word of the incident to anyone, their kids will be taken  again and killed. The kidnappings are carefully set up, targeted to take place  when one parent is out of town at a medical meeting or convention, thus ensuring  the cooperation of the other. And the victim is held by a sweet, slightly  retarded but humongous and powerful man whose loyalty to his cousin, the  mastermind, is unquestioned.24 Hoursis a version of the locked room school of kidnap mysteries and a  very good one indeed, especially when Will turns the tables on the kidnapper and  takes control of the situation. Abby's diabetic condition (she needs lifesaving  injections on a regular basis) notches the suspense up one last turn. It's a  well worked-out plot, the pacing is terrific, and the characters likable and  attractive. Iles is a master storyteller, and this one has big screen written  all over it--with Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer as the Jennings, if we're  lucky.--Jane Adams