"one sitting action-packed thriller"

Savannah Police Lieutenant Phoebe MacNamara is the Georgia city's top hostage negotiator. Her work is how she meets sports bar owner Duncan Swift when he observes her talk a leaper whom he just fired from jumping. Unable to resist this fascinating woman, Duncan romances her although Phoebe's family baggage, her young daughter and her agoraphobic mother causes difficulty in their relationship.

At the police station, someone assaults Phoebe; battering her after he or she put a hood over her head so she cannot identify who her attacker is. She is stunned as this is the last place she would expect anyone to be so brazen. She looking deep inside herself and remembers when she was a child and she and her family were terrorized by a dangerous intruder in their home. Phoebe refuses to back down and become a victim though she is very shook up. When the terror campaign continues with threats to her loved ones, the frustrated Phoebe decides to uncover the culprit so that she can get into his or her face before her fears of harm to her loved ones cripple her.

This is a one sitting action-packed thriller that grips the audience from the moment they meet the intrepid Phoebe and never slows down until the final confrontation with her unknown adversary. The entertaining cat and mouse police procedural story line is gripping because the beleaguered heroine is likable while her anonymous antagonist remains shadowy adding tension. Fans of Ms. Roberts or anyone who appreciates a tense HIGH NOON drama will want to read Ms. Roberts' strong Savannah saga.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted July 24, 2007

Summary

Police Lieutenant Phoebe MacNamara found her calling at an early age when an unstable man broke into her family's home, trapping and terrorizing them for hours. Now she's Savannah's top hostage negotiator, defusing powderkeg situations with a talent for knowing when to give in—and when to jump in and take action. It's satisfying work—and sometimes those skills come in handy at home dealing with her agoraphobic mother, still traumatized by the break-in after all these years, and her precocious seven-year-old, Carly.

It's exactly that heady combination of steely courage and sensitivity that first attracts Duncan Swift to Phoebe. After observing her coax one of his employees down from a roof ledge, he is committed to keeping this intriguing, take-charge woman in his life. She's used to working solo, but Phoebe's discovering that no amount of negotiation can keep Duncan at arm's length.

And when she's grabbed by a man who throws a hood over her head and brutally assaults her—in her own precinct house—Phoebe can't help but be deeply shaken. Then threatening messages show up on her doorstep, and she's not just alarmed but frustrated. How do you go face-to-face with an opponent who refuses to look you in the eye?

Now, with Duncan backing her up every step of the way, she must establish contact with the faceless tormentor who is determined to make her a hostage to fear . . . before she becomes the final showdown.