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Hostage (Todd Mills Mysteries) [Hardcover]

R.D. Zimmerman (Author)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)


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Book Description

Todd Mills Mysteries October 6, 1997
It's the coup of his career--until the unthinkable happens.

Todd Mills, Minneapolis's only openly gay journalist, is getting ready for what promises to be an explosive television event: an exclusive interview with Congressman Johnny Clariton, a conservative whose vehement opposition to gay rights and AIDS research has fueled his rapid political ascent.

But coup turns to chaos when Todd's interview is abruptly ended by three gun-wielding kidnappers--an unlikely trio of domestic terrorists in the final stages of AIDS.  With Todd as their conduit to a global audience, the abductors are willing to risk what's left of their lives to give violent expression to their AIDS rage.

Their goal: to make the world know what it's like to live--and die--with AIDS.

Their weapons: a video camera, a hostage, and a syringe full of blood.

While the increasingly desperate events play out on television for the world to see, Todd's relationship with homicide investigator Steve Rawlins is dragged into the fray, throwing the unsuspecting Rawlins--still grieving over the recent end of his closest friend's long struggle with AIDS--on a collision course with the kidnappers.  And as television reporter, cop, and the FBI all continue their hunt for the terrorists, the tension builds to a heart-wrenching, tragic climax.

Unsettling, unpredictable and unapologetic, Hostage is Zimmerman's darkest and most suspenseful tale yet, a bold step forward for this acclaimed and widely popular series.


Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

When two men and one woman suffering from AIDS kidnap an antigay U.S. congressman in Minneapolis and threaten to inject him with the virus, they unwittingly thrust an enterprising gay television reporter into the limelight. On the scene during the kidnapping, Todd Mills (recently seen in Tribe, Dell, 1996) shows his mettle in the ensuing media frenzy. He is further tested when his detective lover, Steve Rawlins, goes missing and then finds himself caught up with the kidnappers. Nitty-gritty details and a credible and fast-moving story; recommended.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Desperate to dramatize the plight of AIDS victims and furious at homophobic Congressman Johnny Clariton--whose presidential speeches, identifying AIDS as a punishment for immoral behavior, are calling for a moratorium on government assistance for AIDS sufferers and research into a possible cure- -three friends in the terminal stages of the illness kidnap the Congressman from a fund-raiser, planning to videotape themselves as they tell him how they contracted the HIV virus and guarantee his sympathy for AIDS research by injecting him with their blood before they turn him loose. Since they don't plan to hold him more than a short time in their undetectable hideout and they're not making any demands (except on detestable Clariton), the plan seems foolproof--and it would be if (1) one of the witnesses to the abduction, uncloseted WLAK reporter Todd Mills, already the toast of the Twin Cities, hadn't roused himself from his shock and grief over his current lover's infection to notice some telltale clues to the kidnappers' whereabouts, and (2) the last stages of AIDS hadn't left the would-be terrorists, running on adrenaline and rage, so pitiably weak. Veteran Zimmerman (Red Trance, 1994, etc.), as if knowing this high-concept snatch has nowhere to go, punches up Mills's hardcover debut with such ferocity and horrific physical detail that it transcends its pulpish story to become a full-throated howl of anger and pain. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Delacorte Press; First Edition edition (October 6, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385319835
  • ISBN-13: 978-0385319836
  • Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.9 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,102,739 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

10 Reviews
5 star:
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4 star:
 (2)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (10 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Good, Compelling Mystery!, January 21, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Hostage (Todd Mills Mysteries) (Hardcover)
This is a great novel. The action was fast-paced and the story was compelling. This was not a cut-and-dry who-done-it because Zimmerman crafted this story in a morally ambiguous area. AIDS is such a polarizing force in our society, yet Zimmerman finds the gray area and expolits it. More so than solving the crime, I found myself asking "Are these people right?"... That, I believe, is the true testament to Zimmerman's craftsmanship. A must read.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Not a good beach mystery, August 24, 1998
By A Customer
This review is from: Hostage (Todd Mills Mysteries) (Hardcover)
After reading Closet and Tribe I was excited to see a new book by Mr. Zimmerman featuring gay newscaster Todd Mills. Although, this mystery follows the earlier high standards of the earlier works it is much darker. My disappointment could have been due to the fact that I purchased this as one of my "read at the beach" books and it was more emotionally based than I expected. Even though I was disappointed I would still recommend it to friends.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Good novel on a hard topic, May 25, 2001
By 
"govt_atty" (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Hostage (Paperback)
Although this is not Zimmerman's first novel in the Todd Mills series, it was the first one of his I read. And I think it was a good choice for my first one.

Todd Mills is a gay TV reporter who is still adjusting to being out. He's currently seeing a studly cop named Steve, and life seems to be going well for the both of them. Then during an interview between Todd and a congressman who loves to rant and rave his anti-gay agenca, everything changes. A small group of young people with AIDS became tired of his yelling, and kidnapped the congressman during the interview. Todd's now on the case. But that's not all - something's wrong with Steve, and he later disappears as well.

Zimmerman makes an interesting tale through his vivid descriptions of the conflict between groups when the anti-gay banner is waved, the impact of AIDS on relationships with family and friends, and the continued questions facing the recently outed.

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