Published: September 20, 2022

3.5⭐

Captain Delia Merola of the Baxter Police Department has a lot on her plate. With the new Nissan Car Company plant promising to boost the economy of the small town of Baxter, she is in charge of cleaning up the local drug trade, making Baxter a safer place to live and work. She spends her days busting meth labs and arresting dealers and pushers while balancing her role as a single mom to her fourteen-year-old son Danny. When the fifteen-year-old daughter of a rich family, who also happens to be the highest bidder on the construction contract of the new plant, Delia is instructed by her boss to let the FBI handle the case. When the FBI advises the family to pay the ransom and wait for Elizabeth’s release, the family reaches out to Delia and asks her to run a parallel investigation- one that does not involve sitting and waiting.

Elizabeth Bradford was born with a golden spoon in her mouth. She is a smart teenager two years ahead of her peers in school, aware of the privileges of her family background but realistic in her observations of the world around her. When she is kidnapped, she is aware of the potential peril that awaits her despite her kidnapper’s assurance that she will be released once the ransom is paid. She trusts no one and though she appears to be the perfectly meek hostage, her mind is working in ways her captor would never guess.

Narrated by both Delia and Elizabeth in the first person, The Hostage by A.F. Carter is atmospheric, gritty and exciting. The procedural aspects and the dynamics in an understaffed police department were very well executed as were Elizabeth’s moment in captivity. The author does a great job of describing the setting of a struggling, crime-infested small town. Delia’s personal life and her dynamic with colleagues and friends form an integral part of the narrative. Both Delia and Elizabeth are two strong and smart protagonists who manage to keep the reader engaged. The emphasis on local crime fighting often overshadows the kidnapping case , which at times dampened the thrill for me. Though the narrative did drag a little towards the end, I was happy with the way the story was resolved. I would be interested in more stories featuring the fearless Delia Merola in the future.

Thank you to Penzler Publishers and NetGalley for providing a digital review copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. ( )