Customer Reviews

Hostage: A Novel

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(34)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Robert Crais' "Hostage" is a stand alone thriller that at first glance, didn't seem like it could hold my interest because the action occurs over one night. But Crais does a masterful job of creating enjoyable characters and injecting enough twists to carry the novel through the slow middle parts.

The action begins with losers Kevin, Dennis and Mars deciding to rob a convinience store in the suburbs. The robbery goes bad and a man is shot and on the getaway the car breaks down, forcing the thugs to escape through a ritzy neighborhood on foot. They plan to steal a car and make their getaway but the police are on their tail. Before they can escape, the police have them trapped. Dennis, the older brother and the leader, Kevin, the younger brother who really is an okay kid if it weren't for the influence of Dennis, and the loner Mars are all trapped in a house and they hold the Smith family hostage.

Jeff Talley, chief of police, is called to the scene. Talley has experience in these situations as a hostage negotiator. One bad experience forced him to quit the SWAT team and caused him to lose his family. Now he has to overcome his fears to ensure the safety of the family inside the house.

The novel seems pretty straight forward up to this point when Crais throws in a new plot twist. George Smith, one of the hostages, is an accountant for the Mafia with evidence that would incrimate families in LA and NY. The mafia then takes steps to ensure none of the evidence reaches the police.

The story moves back and forth between the point of view of Talley, the mafia, the hostages and Dennis and Kevin. Crais does a great job with the characters of Dennis and Kevin. You really can understand why Dennis has turned to crime and why Kevin is following him. Mars is an intriguing character (almost comical when listening to the audio book) whose motives are much more sinister than they appear.

The ending is satisfying and expected. I'll definitely look into more Crais novels.

I can't say that Hostage is the best suspense novel I've ever read, but it kept me interested and made me want to keep reading. It was an easy read for a boring business trip!

Why six stars to this book?

1) It has to many people involved, but the book explain perfectly who are these people and you know exactly what are they doing and why.

2) It never goes out of the story and it has three different stories that will keep you very busy.

3) You will be interested in all the people of the book, not only Talley or the terrorists.

4) You won't be able to put down the book until you finish it.

5) It has no sex scenes that many writers write just to fill pages.

6) IT IS A GREAT BOOK, JUST FOR THAT.

Why did I put off reading Hostage until long after I had zipped through the rest of RC's books? Perhaps it was because I was delaying gratification, not wanting to read the last one...like saving the last peanut M&M. Wanting to savor it later on. Perhaps it was simply that "hostage" situations are probably my least favorite type of suspense. In either case, I just finished it. And while I feel slightly depressed that there are no Robert Crais left unread, I'm delighted that it's changed my attitude toward hostage stories.
The business of preserving and protecting takes its toll on those charged with the awesome task of policing. Case in point is Jeff Talley, former LAPD SWAT team negotiator. The price he paid was his heart... his emotions...his family, all the elements that give life short of the breath that keeps the body alive. The price was exacted from Talley the day he failed to talk down a perp in a hostage situation and witnessed the man put a bullet in his 9 year old son's neck.
After sitting on the couch for a year, Talley leaves his wife and daughter behind and takes a job as Police Chief in the small upscale community of Bristo Camino. A job that routinely involves little more than security work. Most of the local 14 man police force had never even had to draw their weapons. A peaceful little town where a man could heal and figure out his next move.
Then one day, all hell breaks loose and Talley is thrust into the middle of a high profile hostage situation. By page 40 the hostages have been taken, Talley's world had been rocked and you wonder, how can it take another 300 pages to resolve this? I can guarantee that there is never a wasted word as Crais reveals the complexities that makes this one of the best hostage stories ever. It seems the three young thugs who have taken a family hostage, have blundered into the middle of mob operation that includes some of the biggest crime families in the country. These modern day wise guys may have college educations but they are every bit as ruthless as their bentnose, monosyllabic predecessors.
And Talley gets his groove back, forced into reliving a situation similar to the one that took it away. "Talley wasn't acting like a has-been cop who had been broken by the job and come to nowhereland to hide; he was carrying on like a full-blown SWAT tactical streetmonster." I love it.
Sharp thinking, sharp writing, sharp shooting ...sharp sharp sharp! Can't wait to see it on the big screen, starring Bruce Willis!!!

I got this book at the Atlanta airport while my flight was delayed. I had never heard of Crais but I loved this book. It was exciting and had enough twists to keep you guessing until the end.

This is the best thriller that I've ever read! Robert Crais has excelled himself with this story of hostage taking and negotiation. Jeff Talley is a former negotiator with LAPD's SWAT team who has retired to a small town as police chief after the mental strain got to him and destroyed his marriage.Three small time crooks robbed and murdered a store owner and fled to a small community to hide out in a private house. Unfortunately for them, they chose a house of a Mafia accountant who was about to hand over very incriminating records to the Mafia chiefs. Ths accountants house contains a safe room, an elaborate security system and also a huge amount of cash which the trio of crooks are determined to take for themselves.The accountant is bludgeoned into a coma before he can identify himself so that the trio have no idea that they have stumbled into a bigger situatiin than they can handle. Talley is once again forced into the role of negotiator, trying to protect the 2 children of the accountant. It's tightly written with the pace never letting up and it's easy to see it as an action movie.

Why did I put off reading Hostage until long after I zipped through the rest of RC's books? Perhaps it was because I was delaying gratification, not wanting to read the last one...like saving the last peanut M&M to munch later on. Perhaps it was simply that "hostage" situations are probably my least favorite type of suspense. In either case, I just finished it. And while I feel slightly depressed that there are no Robert Crais books left unread, I'm delighted that it's changed my attitude toward hostage stories.
The business of preserving and protecting takes its toll on those charged with the awesome task of policing. Case in point is Jeff Talley, former LAPD SWAT team negotiator. The price he paid was his heart, his emotions, his family, all the elements that give life meaning and that keep the body alive. The price was exacted from Talley on the day he failed to talk down a perp in a hostage situation and witnessed the man put a bullet in his 9 year old son's neck.
After sitting on the couch for a year, Talley leaves his wife and daughter behind and takes a job as Police Chief in the small upscale community of Bristo Camino. A job that routinely involves little more than security work. Most of the local 14 man police force has never even had to draw their weapons. A peaceful little town where a man could heal and figure out his next move.
Then one day, all hell breaks loose and Talley is thrust into the middle of a high profile hostage situation. By page 40 the hostages have been taken, Talley's world had been rocked and you wonder, how can it take another 300 pages to resolve this? I can guarantee that there is never a wasted word as Crais reveals the complexities that makes this one of the best hostage stories ever. It seems the three young thugs who have taken a family hostage, have blundered into the middle of mob operation that includes some of the biggest crime families in the country. These modern day wise guys may have college educations but they are every bit as ruthless as their bentnose, monosyllabic predecessors.
As Talley gets his groove back, he is forced into reliving a situation similar to the one that took it away. "Talley wasn't acting like a has-been cop who had been broken by the job and come to nowhereland to hide; he was carrying on like a full-blown SWAT tactical streetmonster." I love it.
Hostage by Robert Crais. Sharp thinking, sharp writing, sharp shooting ...sharp sharp sharp! Can't wait to see it on the big screen, starring Bruce Willis

This was my third Crais book. This book grab's you from the first chapter and does not let go.I read this book in one day. The only thing i didnt like was the mafia twist, kind of hard to swallow that.

As a loyal devotee of Crais' Elvis Cole series, I waited a while before reading this book - his newest "stand-alone" book - after the immensely entertaining DEMOLITION ANGEL. This was silly of me, as HOSTAGE is one of those books that you just really don't feel comfortable putting down, due to the irrational fear that something might happen while you're not reading.

Mind you, HOSTAGE is not Crais' best work, nor is it a book without flaws. Quite frankly, the book is absolutely riddled with cliches. What makes Crais a fascinating writer is the way he transcends these cliches and allows us to get caught up in the intensity of the situation. There are even certain moments in the book where the main character, Talley, has to take a second to laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

But, like all of Crais' work, this book is exciting, intriguing, full of interesting, real characters, and you just don't want to put it aside until it's done.

Author Crais remains in top form with this story, in which
a burned-out LA SWAT negotiator has semi-retired to a small,
quiet suburb, where he expects to remain as police chief in
a similarly small, quiet job.
His expectations are shattered when some small-time losers
rob a convenience store, where an unexpected struggle over a
gun results in a dead clerk, with the panicked hold-up guys
running for cover and ending up in a nice, high-end house
with a man and 2 kids. Before the robbers can get away, as they
seriously want, they are cornered in the house, where they then
take that family hostage.
The hostage situation seems routine, if dangerous, for the local
chief, but the scenerio plays out much differently than expected.
It turns out the man of the house is an accountant for a large
west-coast organized crime family, and those people make immediately plans for handling the situation, over and above
anything the cops can do. And they bring massive resources to
play in their attempt to get what they want.
Plus, their solution involves taking some hostages of their
own, so they can control the problem and its solution.
The action moves along quickly and effortlessly, and all the
characters ring true, even if a bit more willing to work for
organized crime than we like to think possible. Some unexpected
characters end up working agains the police chief, and he has
multiple enemies to fight in trying to reach a reasonable
conclusion to both the crimes and his own personal demons.
A very serious story that is gripping and entertaining.