Takeover [Mass Market Paperback]

Lisa Black (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 30, 2009

A grisly death in a quiet suburb pulls forensic scientist Theresa MacLean into the case.

A terrifying hostage situation at a downtown bank makes it personal.

But the nightmare truly begins when she gets inside.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

When high-level executive Mark Ludlow is discovered beaten to death in front of his house early one morning, forensic scientist Theresa MacLean and her fiancé, homicide detective Paul Cleary, investigate in Black's underwhelming debut, a thriller set in Cleveland. Paul immediately heads downtown to interview Ludlow's co-workers at the Federal Reserve Bank and walks right into a botched robbery attempt and hostage situation. Lucas Parrish and Bobby Moyers want $4 million, but top hostage negotiator Chris Cavanaugh isn't ready to give in to their demands. When Paul is shot in the leg and becomes a hostage, Theresa breaks protocol and convinces Lucas to let Paul go and take her instead. It's up to Theresa on the inside and Chris on the outside to uncover the motive behind the robbery and Ludlow's murder before anyone else gets hurt. Theresa, despite her professional training, devotes little time to scientific deduction. Readers can expect to find richer plots on most TV crime dramas. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

“Takeover is a riveting hostage drama packed with surprises. Once Lisa Black gets you inside the bank, you—like the bad guys—won’t be able to stop.” (Peter Abrahams, author of Delusion )

“Takeover is captivating. Part procedural, part psychological suspense, and every inch a thriller, Takeover succeeds from the opening chapter.” (Ridley Pearson, New York Times bestselling author of Killer View )

“Grab-you-by-the throat suspense, written by someone who has actually walked the disturbing walk of an investigator.” (Tess Gerritsen, New York Times bestselling author of Body Double )

“The combination of a credible, likable hero and a bizarre, chilling story is rare in crime fiction....Lisa Black makes the tumblers click perfectly.” (Jeremiah Healy, author of Invasion of Privacy )

“Entertaining” (Chicago Sun-Times )

“...a tautly plotted, relentlessly suspenseful debut. Let’s hope she writes another scorcher-and soon.” (Booklist (starred review) )

“An exciting story that is hard to put down.” (Dr. Bill Bass, forensic anthropologist at the Body Farm and coauthor of The Devil’s Bones )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Harper; Reprint edition (June 30, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061544477
• ISBN-13: 978-0061544477
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #889,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lisa Black is a certified latent fingerprint examiner and crime scene investigator in Florida and a former forensic scientist for the Cleveland coroner's office. She is a member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, the International Association for Identification, and the International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts, and has testified in more than fifty homicide trials.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Page Turning Mystery/Thriller Debut, July 28, 2008

By 

Philip R. Heath "Gadgets, Music, & Books" (DFW) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Takeover (Hardcover)

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Lisa Black has written an excellent mystery/thriller in her debut novel Takeover. Takeover is set in Cleveland in the heat of the summer. The story begins with Theresa (medical investigator), Paul, and Frank (police detectives) investigating the scene of a murder. However, to varying degrees, the day goes downhill quickly for these three. As Theresa continues to work the homicide at the medical examiner's office, Paul heads to the Federal Reserve to question the victim's coworkers. It is here that he finds himself a hostage in an attempted bank robbery. The robbers, Bobby and Lucas, create a standoff with three law enforcement agencies as hot shot hostage negotiator, Chris Cavanaugh, arrives to try to right the situation. What follows is a page turner that will keep you interested through the twists and turns until the climax at the end.

The story moves at a brisk pace with chapters that average 10-12 pages each. This makes for a book that is easy to read in spurts except that most chapters end like scenes of a TV show going to commercial. I often found myself frustrated that I didn't have time to jump right in to the next chapter to see what happened next. I found myself fully engaged until the very end. Structurally, the book has a good balance between dialog and description. For a first time writer, Black did an outstanding job of finding this balance and keeping it throughout the novel. Finally, objectionable material is kept to a minimum. The "s-word" and "d-word" are sprinkled lightly throughout the book, but not to the point of being a distraction. The violence is not graphic, and it is kept to what is appropriate for the flow of the story. Last of all, there are is no sexual content.

Black does a solid job of character development. Theresa is very believable as the central character of the novel. She shows courage in action throughout while she struggles with tough decisions about her own life and the lives of others. Cavanaugh is every bit of calm and cool that you would expect from a negotiator, and Lucas is a chilling sociopath. I found myself being able to hear the inflection of their voices as I read the dialog.

Overall, I was very impressed with Takeover, and I hope that Lisa Black is working on her next novel. I would recommend this book to fans of Law & Order, Crossing Jordan, and similar crime dramas. I have enjoyed these kinds of shows for years, and it was a treat to read a book in that genre.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lisa Black shows some real promise as a forensic crime writer..., July 26, 2008

By 

Thomas Duff "Duffbert" (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Takeover (Hardcover)

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As part of the Amazon Vine review program, I got the chance to read an advance copy of Lisa Black's first novel, Takeover. She shows some real promise as a new entrant into the forensic crime genre, and I think she would end up on my "authors to follow" list.

Theresa MacLean is a forensic scientist working for the Cleveland police. She's normally brought into the game once a crime's been committed, and someone needs to read the evidence for clues. But in this particular case, she ends up right in the middle of a crime in progress. Two bank robbers are holed up in the Federal Reserve branch building in Cleveland, and they have hostages. One of those hostages happens to be a detective, Paul Cleary, who is also MacLean's fiancée. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, but MacLean is frantic with worry over what they might do to him if his true identity becomes known. They find out the answer to that question when he pulls his gun trying to stop one of the killers from taking another life. In order to get him out of the building and to a hospital, MacLean puts her job on the line and decides to give the robbers the escape vehicle they've been demanding. She's able to trade the car for Cleary, but she also ends up being part of the deal. Now she's a hostage, ill-prepared to carry on negotiations now that she's unexpectedly on the inside. Add to that the concern over Cleary's life and her daughter (who could become motherless due to her careless action), and MacLean is in way over her head.

I thought the storyline and pacing worked well. I kept turning pages to see what turn would happen next as they tried to avoid any more bloodshed. The characters weren't quite as fleshed out as they could have been. It was almost as if this were part of a series, and you should have already had some background into the characters. MacLean was developed well as a person, but not necessarily as a forensic scientist. The hostage negotiator was also developed well. Many of the other characters seemed to be a bit light, and the reasoning behind the original robbery attempt was a bit murky. Still, all things considered, it was an enjoyable read and a good first effort for someone who could develop into a solid author.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Murder, Bank Robbery, Hostage Negotiation -- could it get more exciting?, August 3, 2008

By 

Gayle Surrette "omnivorous reader" (Brandywine, Maryland) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Takeover (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

Theresa MacLean, a forensic scientist with the M.E.'s office, is now engaged to homicide Det. Paul Cleary. Her daughter Rachel even seems to like him. They work well together on the job and are currently working a murder--a bank manager found dead on his lawn. Paul is taken hostage by two bank robbers when he goes to question coworkers and Theresa becomes simply an impediment to the negotiator because she's still working the case believing the bank robbery and the murder are connected. Will Paul mange to get out alive? Will the bank robbers learn he's a cop?

Lisa Black, also a forensic scientist, writes with authority and clarity. She manages to set the mood, build up the tension and keep it high throughout this fast paced novel. As a reader, I was so caught up in the story that the book disappeared and it was like watching a movie happening before my eyes. There scenes were so clear and the characters so sharply portrayed that it become real for the length of the book. I'm not a fast reader even though I do a look of reading for reviews, but I finished this book in less than 8 hours. I was just tearing though it reading as coffee perked, one handed as I ate, in the loo--I just couldn't put it down until I knew what was going to happen and how it would all turn out.

This is not just an action adventure thriller, it has heart. These are real people in a dangerous situation that can and often does bring out the best and the worse in a person. Black keeps the story rolling along and lets you look in as these people deal with extraordinary circumstances. (NOTE: Book has a bibliography of suggested non-fiction reading.)