TAKEN

Author: Chris Jordan ISBN: 0778322939 7/2006 SUSPENSE Publisher: MIRA

No parent believes it can happen to them-their child taken from a suburban schoolyard in the gentle hours of dusk. But as widowed mother Kate Bickford discovers, everything can change in the blink of an eye. One minute her lanky, amazing, maddening Tommy is begging for ice cream. Then in a terrible instant, he's gone. Opening the door to her Connecticut home, hoping to find her son, Kate comes face-to-face with her son's abductor. He wants money. All she has. And if she doesn't follow something he calls The Method, the consequences will be gruesome. Her comfortable life collapses as precious seconds tick by, and Kate is horrified to uncover the terrible, world-shattering secret she and her son share with a killer who will stop at nothing....

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

This book isn't about child abduction, murder and intrigue. It's about how far you would go to save the life of your child. Kate Bickford is willing to do anything to safely recover her son. She'll do whatever she's told, pay any price, and if that fails she's willing to take matters into her own hands.

Author Chris Jordan keeps the reader entranced with the trials and obstacles Kate faces. It is a fast paced and heart-wrenching story that you'll find you can't put down. Finding Kate's son becomes all important, even to the reader. It's an enthralling look at the emotional roller coaster faced by the parent of an abducted child. An experience everyone wants to know about, but no one wants to experience. Then, by the end of the book, Jordan has you questioning your original thoughts on how far you would go to save the life of your child.

I have yet to come across a book this riveting, and look forward to reading more from this author. The only reason I cannot give this book a Top Pick rating is because this is not a romance. I would, however, recommend this book, even for those who are not big mystery fans.

Amanda Rutherford