Help Me Please (SIGNED) [Hardcover]

Barbara D'Amato (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Forge (2000)
• ASIN: B000GTNO4E
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a page-turner!, December 5, 1999

By 

"susannet" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Help Me Please (Hardcover)

After reading a review of this book, I knew that once I picked it up, I wouldn't be able to put it back down until I'd finished it! It kept me up 'til 2 AM! What an exciting thriller. I'm usually pretty sqeamish when it comes to children in jeopardy plots, but D'Amato really pulls this one off. I heartily recommend both this book and D'Amato's KILLER.APP to people looking for a fast paced and fabulous reading experience, and to fans of meticulously researched police procedurals.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A chilling thriller, September 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Help Me Please (Hardcover)

Famous country-western singer Maggie Mckittredge and Senator Neal Gaston have tried to conceive a baby for years without any success. Their prayers are answered at a Northwestern University clinic where Danni is conceived. The infant is born healthy and her two parents begin an annual pilgrimage to the Holy Name Cathedral to thank God.

When Danni turns three, Maggie and Neal travel to the church for their pilgrimage. A priest stands at the door, ushering the worshipers into the building. Danni wanders down the aisle when an elderly person collapses. Maggie looks away for a moment, but when she returns to check on Danni, the little girl is missing. A search of the church reveals nothing except that the priest at the door did not belong to the congregation. Professionals kidnapped Danni, and the little girl appears on the Web site HELP ME PLEASE less than two hours later. The bare room contains no food or toilet. Chief of Detectives Polly Kelly heads the investigation with her only goal being to bring the child safely home. Time is ticking away as Danni seems to have only a few days of survival time left.

HELP ME PLEASE is a superbly executed police procedural that will leave a chill in the readers's soul as the motive for the abduction is uglier than the crime. Polly is a wonderful detective, but little Danni clearly owns the story line as readers can envision her plight and trauma. Though the technical aspects of the web seem incomprehensible at least to this reviewer, the story line moves rapidly to its climax. Barbara D'Amato has written another thriller that feels so genuine as to make the story line feel even chillier.

Harriet Klausner

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars D'Amato's Chilling Thriller, August 13, 2001

By 

Kent Braithwaite (Palm Desert, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Help Me Please (Mass Market Paperback)

As a mystery writer with my debut novel in its initial release, I was fascinated by Barbara D'Amato's HELP ME PLEASE. I love the way Ms. D'Amato effectively works the criminal use of the Internet into this police procedural. Danni Gaston, a young daughter of two celebrities--an entertainer and a politician--is abducted from a church. The snatched child appears on the Internet a matter of hours later, and the kidnappers demand the release of a web-terrorist. Police detective Polly Kelly is given the task of solving the crime and finding the child. Kelly finds herself pressured by a camera webcasting Danni's every move as well as the child's deteriorating condition. Ms. D'Amato has written a fine book with a realsitic setting, a highly contemporary plot, and realistically drawn characters. It is a fine read.