7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
PLOT TWISTS AND DASHES OF FORENSIC SCIENCE, October 9, 2006
Life's short and there are so many good books that if a story doesn't grab me by the first chapter, it's just put aside. Edgar Award winning author Burke didn't need a chapter - just two pages - actually opening lines:
"Cleo Smith firmly believed that neatness counted, especially if you were going to get away with murder. Which was why she now stood completely naked, save for a pair of plastic booties and a pair of thin rubber gloves, in the office of the man she had just killed."
With "Kidnapped," her tenth suspense novel, Jan Burke has outdone herself. After the murder and any telltale traces of evidence have been removed, the story flashes back to the fictional California town of Las Piernas and the Fletchers, outstanding citizens all. They're a large family, powerful, led by patriarch Graydon Fletcher after whom an exclusive private school has been named. He seems to be a model citizen, so concerned for the care of the young that he and his wife have adopted 21 children in all.
However, every family has one they call a black sheep and, in the Fletcher's case, it would be Richard, an artist. He doesn't buy into the pattern drawn for the whole family and refuses to let his children tow the patriarchal line. Death comes too soon to him - he's found murdered in his studio. His three-year-old daughter, Jenny is missing as is his stepson, Mason. It only takes hours for the police to locate Mason as he has trashed his car in the San Bernardino mountains. With the murder weapon found in his car, Mason is convicted of killing his stepfather, Richard, and little Jenny.
Only Caleb, his older brother believes he is innocent. Five years later Caleb is working in forensic science, and has been sent to study recently found remains - a puzzler as the deceased is supposedly hiding somewhere with the son he kidnapped several years ago. At about this same time reporter Irene Kelly has written an article about the number of child snatchings by relatives in Las Piernas, and she is sent to the site where Caleb is working.
As it happens there is also new evidence about Jenny's disappearance. Someone will stop at nothing to make sure that Kelly and Caleb never discover the truth.
Those who enjoy their mysteries with plot twists and dashes of forensic science will sit up all night turning the pages of "Kidnapped."
- Gail Cooke
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Page-turner, November 4, 2006
Las Peirnas Express reporter and her Police Detective husband Frank Harriman return in the newest installment in this excellent series. The story opens with the murder of graphic artist Richard Fletcher, and the disappearance of his young daughter Jenny. Richard is part of the famous Fletcher family, but has distanced himself from the cult-like influences of his family. To make matters even more tragic for Richard's wife, Elisa, her son Mason was found drunk and incoherent with the murder weapon and bloody clothing in his car.
Five years later, Jenny is still missing. Mason is in jail and their brother Caleb is a graduate student studying with forensic anthropologist Ben Sheridan who works with the police department. Caleb has always believed that Jenny was alive and that Caleb was innocent. Irene Kelly enters the scene when she does a story on missing children. When she fills in for another reporter at crime scene where human remains are found, she stumbles upon a connection to the infamous Fletcher family. After that connection is made, Irene is committed to helping Caleb find out what really happened five years earlier.
Often in a continuing series it is prudent to read some of the earlier books to get a feel for the characters and their continuing storylines. It might be helpful with this book, but not necessary at all. Even though, I have read the other books in the series I was a little lost at why Ethan was living with Irene and Frank. I still didn't know at the end of the book, but it really made no difference to my enjoyment of the story, and enjoy it I did. I had trouble putting this one down. It was well-paced with on-going, intricately-plotted suspense which made me want to turn the pages faster and faster. Irene and Frank are well-rounded sympathetic characters. The secondary cast was interesting and well-developed. There were characters to love and characters to hate. Highly recommended.
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
NOT her best work., November 14, 2006
Reporter Irene Burke does an article on kidnapped children that ties her into a 5-year-old murder of Robert Fletcher, for which one son is imprisoned, the daughter missing and the remaining son working with forensic anthropologist Ben Sheridan. Robert Fletcher's father believed in adopting and fostering children, home schooling them before enrolling them in the prestigious Fletcher Academy.
Jan Burke is an author whose work I normally love, but this missed the mark for me. There was an assumption you had read the previous books of the series so character development was thin at best. The only characters who were truly distinctive and interesting were two young girls. There where so many characters, it was very difficult to keep track of them. Missing children is such an important issue yet the plot was implausible, convoluted in the extreme. The motive was weak and the ending was improbable at best. However, as the story progressed, the forensic information was very interesting, as was that about working with search dogs. There was some excellent, gripping suspense. The book wasn't such that I won't read more of Ms. Burke. But, for me, this was definitely not her best work.
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