- Mass Market Paperback: 528 pages
- Publisher: Hyperion (July 1 1999)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0786889551
- ISBN-13: 978-0786889556
- Product Dimensions: 17.1 x 10.7 x 2.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 227 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #878,726 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
A wave of babynappings has terrified parents from San Diego to Portland. And when the Pied Piper--named for the penny flute he leaves in the cribs of his victims--claims his first Seattle infant, the investigation draws in homicide detective Lou Boldt. Assigned temporarily to Intelligence so he can spend more time with his kids while his wife is hospitalized for chemotherapy, Boldt's role is to keep the FBI out of the Seattle Police Department's way. But FBI special agent Gary Flemming is a tough adversary--so tough it almost seems as if he's intentionally sabotaging the SPD's investigation. Then the Pied Piper snatches Boldt's own daughter, promising that unless Boldt throws both the Feds and the SPD off his trail he'll never see his child again. Caught between his professional obligations and his fear for Sarah's life, Boldt launches his own private manhunt with the help of John La Moia, his replacement in homicide, and police psychologist Daphne Matthews, his closest friend in the department. They form a sub rosa task force under the noses of the Feds and the SPD, and soon discover how the Piper has managed to stay a step ahead of the police, elude capture, and find his small victims. The chase moves from Seattle to Portland to New Orleans, culminating in a thrilling denouement in the daffodil fields of Washington's Skagit Valley. Combining strong characterizations with an impressive command of both policing and pacing, Ridley Pearson, author of Chain of Evidence and Beyond Recognition, delivers another sure winner in this outing for Lou Boldt. --Jane Adams
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
A serial kidnapper called the Pied Piper?the villain of Pearson's ingenious, fast-moving 11th thriller?has targeted Seattle, and newly promoted Lieutenant Lou Boldt (last seen in Beyond Recognition) is called in on the case by John LaMoia of the Seattle Crimes Against Persons unit. Boldt, whose wife, Liz, is undergoing chemotherapy, soon discovers that the Pied Piper has managed to target families, steal children and vanish from city after city seemingly at will, although the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent Gary Flemming, has been chasing the serial kidnapper across the country for months. And it looks like the same thing will happen in Seattle, especially when vital information is withheld by the FBI in a turf battle with the locals. But just as Boldt starts asking the right questions, the Pied Piper abducts his daughter, Sarah. It's twists like this that fuel the rest of the novel as Pearson tightens the screws on Boldt as he tries to find his daughter and prevent another kidnapping. The plot begins simply and becomes wonderfully complex, stretching from Seattle to New Orleans; while the lucky car accident that helps break the case wide open is somewhat facile, the work of Boldt and an expertly drawn supporting cast of characters will hold the attention of readers. As will be clear even to neophytes, Boldt's relationship with forensic psychologist Daphne Matthews, and the ongoing affair between two members of the task force, point to a lot of history between these characters, none of it confusing for first-timers, who may be tempted to pick up earlier novels to see whether they're all this good. $250,000 ad/promo; Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club selections; author tour. Agent, Al Zuckerman. (Aug.) FYI: A mass market edition of Beyond Recognition will be published simultaneously.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
First Sentence
The train left the station headed for nowhere, its destination also its point of embarkation, its purpose not to transport its passengers, but to feed them. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The train left the station headed for nowhere, its destination also its point of embarkation, its purpose not to transport its passengers, but to feed them. Read the first page
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Concordance
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Utter Confusion,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Pied Piper (Mass Market Paperback)
Ridley Pearson goes out of his way to make you back track every 5 pages, just to see if you are still reading the same book that you started out with. How anyone can say that this author is "Pure Genious" is beyond me. This book is confusing and nonstimulating and I don't know why I read past page 5.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Wild Ride,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Pied Piper (Mass Market Paperback)
This is my first Ridley Pearson although I have read many other thrillers. I will definitely be reading more of his. Lou Boldt and Daphne Matthews are an awesome team together conducting an investigation within an investigation into a series of (as a parent I can only say) heart-wrenching baby snatchings in the Seattle area. Definitely keeps you turning those pages, especially late at night. Good read. Well worth the effort.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Spinechillingly Suspenseful,
By Elizabeth Reynolds (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Pied Piper (Mass Market Paperback)
A kidnapper is stealing children from their homes, right under the noses of great sitters. This should've been Lou's case, but he's been promoted and is temporarily running intelligence. LaMoia is running the case quite capably, and would be doing better if the FBI wasn't withholding evidence. A local PI gets killed, and Lou helps LaMoia by following evidence garnered by a somewhat reluctantly won over gorgeous realtor, who recognizer a noncustomer when she sees one. That trail leads directly to a view of his own home. The kids are safe, for now--it's the next day that little Sarah is stolen--and Lou is left with an impossible ransom--let other little onesb kidnapped and save his daughter, orsolve the case as only ge can asnd sacrifice her on a principle. He puts off telling Liz as long as he can, but eventually he has to tell her,because she finally in remission and coming home from the hospital. Once she's over her initial anger--she comes up with the only solution. Since Lou has already decided he has to do both--save Sarah and solve the case--Liz is going to tell; the rest of the crew. It is touching to see how close this crew is. La Moia is more hurt that Lou didn't confide in him in the beginning, and every one is willing to do what it takes to get her back--even if it appears they're letting the kidnapper get away. The kidnapper doesn't get away, a good chase scene up to Mt Vernon and a trip to New Orleams, ensures it...but there's a lot to figure out...and nobody does it better than Boldt's squad and Ridley Pearson
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