Blackbird Singing [Hardcover]

Jay Amberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 15, 1998

Everyone thinks that Robert "Sky" Walker has it all. And they're right. He's the world's most famous athlete and the darling of the Chicago Bulls; his wife is an internationally adored and beautiful anchorwoman; his nine-year-old daughter, Tonya, is the apple of his eye. He has money, fame, awards, and a picture-perfect family. Sky Walker has everything. And he loses it in a twinkling.

Sky Walker's world comes crashing down when Tonya is kidnapped. At first, there is no ransom demand-only deranged e-mail messages, incendiary faxes, and provocative photographs sent to the media. As the world watches on television, lead after lead evaporates. Tom Hopkins, the head investigator is rapidly caught in the middle of what is fast becoming an out-of-control media circus when he realizes that he's dealing with an insane hacker whose motives are highly complex-having more to do with revenge and megalomania than with money.

As the story unfolds, Hopkins and Walker discover they're caught up in an increasingly dangerous web of escalating violence, media mania, massive egos, computer wizardry, and high-tech madness. Inevitably, Hopkins becomes a target of the warped genius who abducted Tonya Walker-a genius who has concocted a climax designed to stun the world and link his name forever with the crime of the century.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Among the many things Jay Amberg does right in this sharp and savage new thriller is to create a credible monster--a physically and psychologically maimed computer wizard named James Robert Saville. This character plans and executes the kidnapping of the 9-year-old daughter of Chicago Bulls superstar Robert "Sky" Walker and his glamorous, high-profile television news reporter wife.

Amberg quickly makes us believe that Saville really is a master of the electronic universe, smarter than the people pursuing him and also able to do all the hard work necessary to make his plan succeed. The only cop with a shot at stopping him is a suburban detective named Tom Hopkins, a decent, dedicated man with undiscovered links to Saville's past, plus the obvious integrity to earn the trust of a jaded but ultimately likable sports legend like Walker.

Two other characters add depth to Amberg's strong story: an ambitious, amoral television journalist manipulated by Saville, and Walker's slick, secretive lawyer with an agenda of his own. There are several disturbing moments of pain involving children, but they're there for reasons of realism rather than exploitation. --Dick Adler

From Booklist

Sky Walker is the superstar of the world-champion Chicago Bulls. His wife, Monique, is a beautiful television news personality. Their fairy-tale life seems irrevocably shattered when Tonya, their nine-year-old-daughter, is snatched by an unknown but technologically savvy psychotic with unclear motives. The kidnapper's demands are transmitted electronically via a sophisticated, virtually untraceable computer network. Heading the investigation is Tom Hopkins, who struggles to maintain his focus in the face of a media frenzy that rivals the O. J. Simpson circus. Television reporters uncover false leads, the kidnapper sends red herrings from cyberspace, and all the while a young innocent suffers at the hand of a madman with no discernible motive. Though the obvious resemblance to Michael Jordan is heavy-handed, the plot takes on a life of its own, due in large part to the palpable evil of the kidnapper and the empathy and humanity of Officer Hopkins. Toss in an unsettling but believable conclusion, and readers will be eagerly awaiting the next Amberg suspense novel. Wes Lukowksky

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (August 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312865546
• ISBN-13: 978-0312865542
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,311,962 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well Written, Interesting, Thriller!, July 8, 1999

By 

Mrs. Fitz "fitzeesmrs" (MA/NH Border, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blackbird Singing (Hardcover)

I agree with the reviewer below who compared this book with John Sandford's "Prey" series. Blackbird Singing's hero, Tom Hopkins, is very similar to the Lucas Davenport hero of the Prey series. The only reason I gave this book 4 instead of 5 stars is because you need a scorecard to keep track of who's who and who does what for whom. Otherwise I really enjoyed this book and hope to see more stories involving Tom "Hoop" Hopkins.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you enjoy Sandford's "Prey" books, you will enjoy this!, November 8, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Blackbird Singing (Hardcover)

Jay Amberg's "Blackbird Singing" is a sensational thriller, that one only hopes is the first of many. Tom Hopkins, the lead detective in a much publicized kidnapping, is very likeable and believable. As a reader you will want to become better acquainted with him. What we do learn is that he is able to match wits with the cunning, delusional, computer-genius kidnapper who has captured the daughter of the famous Chicagoland basketball hero, Robert "Sky" Walker. We also learn that he is as vunerable as the rest of us. If you are a fan of John Sandford's "Prey" books or Robert Tannenbaum's many thrillers, you will enjoy Jay Amberg's "Blackbird Singing".

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stayed Up Late to Finish This One!, March 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Blackbird Singing (Mass Market Paperback)

I love a good detective thriller and this one certainly fills the bill. Likeable, hard-working Commander Tom "Hoop" Hopkins faces seemingly unsurmountable odds in trying to catch the cyber-kidnapper of Tanya Walker, 9-year-old budding-gymnast daughter of the Chicago Bulls' superstar player, Sky Walker, and his glamourous anchor-woman wife. Lots of characters get involved in this fast-paced story and I'm still having trouble figuring out what to do with Pit Bull, the sleazy t.v. reporter...but that's okay. The story twists and turns and kept me on the edge of my chair. I had started to bed and finally gave up and just got a cup of tea and finsihed the book! I hope there are more books forthcoming about this group of dedicated law enforcers...Hoop, Carl Henderson of the FBI and others. We gotta catch that brutal Saville. Surely he can't get away to Europe never to be heard from again. This book is truly a "thriller" in every sense of the word. A really good read!