24 Hours
by Greg Iles
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Book Summary Information
Author: Greg IlesEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2001-06-01
ISBN: 0451203593
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: Signet
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780451203595
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of 24 Hours
Book Review: CLOCK WORK BLACK
Summary: 5 Stars
Greg Iles is turning out to be one of the most dependable writers in the thriller genre today. In "24 Hours," his skills as a plot technician, suspense/thrill master, and most importantly, character structure, is impeccable. While not as engaging and plausible as other books I've read by him ("Mortal Fear," "Dead Sleep"), this novel nonetheless is one you can hardly put down.Again, skipping the synopsis already well covered by other reviewers, I'd like to focus once again on the tremendous ability Iles has in giving us richly developed and flawed characters, even the heroes.
The leading characters, Karen and Will Jennings, have fallen into the recognizable "stagnant" marriage. Jennings is a doctor who has come up with an amazing new medicine, and Karen is a wife who wanted to be a doctor, but had to give that dream up when she got pregnant, with their daughter Abby. This resentment fuels the story, and is both agonizing and convincing. It's also indicated in the fact that Will's concern for his kidnapped daughter, doesn't include his wife until late in the novel. He is also tempted by the sultry Cheryl, although this is initially when she's an audience member of his presentation, and before he finds out her role in the kidnapping. Even then, his temptation for sexual relationship is obvious. (He and Karen have conflicting views on the frequency and/or need for sex). Overall, Karen and Will are piercing characters, and you end up supporting them both in their desperate struggle to get their daughter back alive.
Abby, the little girl, is a different child character than usual. She is quite a charmer, a five year old with both the innocence of youth and the wisdom of intelligent and caring parents. She is also a diabetic, and is keenly aware of the need to watch what she eats and to make sure she gets her insulin shots.
The book has three villains, so to speak, but only one is truly irreprehensible. That's Joe Hickey. This man is evil through and through, and although he uses revenge as his motive for his fifth kidnapping, the other four show how cruel he can be also. He has a perfect crime on his hands, and has been successful four times before, but he meets his match in Karen and Will. He is vile, and quite well written.
Cheryl and mildlly retarded Huey are different; you can see their good side, and how they have been enamored and "captured" by the evil in Joe. I especially liked Cheryl's character, in that she "matures" in the reader's eyes.
The ending is spectacular and breathtaking; I can see its' cinematic value. "Trapped", screenplayed by Mr. Iles, is the movie version, and though I haven't seen it, reviews have indicated it stays close to the book.
Wow, this is a great read. I look forward to catching up on all of Mr. Iles' books.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
Summary of 24 Hours
24 HOURS-that's how long it takes a madman to pull off the perfect crime. He's done it before. He'll do it again. And no one can stop him-until he picks the wrong family to terrorize.BRILLIANTLY PLOTTED...perfectly-timed terror...and a hair-raising finale. (Publishers Weekly (starred review))
THE TENSION IS PALPABLE... superbly-crafted and clever. (The Times-London)
A CHILLING TALE...calculated to jangle the reader's every nerve...gut-wrenching. (Library Journal)
A taut tale, terrifying in its intensity, compelling in its pace...A good, old-fashioned thriller, the likes of which are rare...A winner. (Chattanooga Times)
A tour de force of suspense....enough twists and turns to keep [the] hair-raising ending unpredictable. An enigmatic crime figure, as brilliant as Hannibal Lecter. (The Commercial Appeal-Memphis, TN)
24 Hours is Iles' best. A thriller that moves at break-neck pace. (Wichita Falls Times)
This explosive suspense thriller gets off to a blistering start: the kidnapping of a little boy--in eight breathless pages--that culminates with the child's safe return and the disappearance of the successful kidnappers. That sets the stage for the book's centerpiece, the abduction of little Abby Jennings, daughter of Will, a successful physician, and Karen, a slightly dissatisfied suburban woman who's wondering where the passion in her marriage went. The criminals' modus operandi is established early on. They target the progeny of Mississippi doctors, demand a reasonable (to an affluent M.D.) ransom, release the child after it's paid, and promise the victim parents that if they ever breathe a word of the incident to anyone, their kids will be taken again and killed. The kidnappings are carefully set up, targeted to take place when one parent is out of town at a medical meeting or convention, thus ensuring the cooperation of the other. And the victim is held by a sweet, slightly retarded but humongous and powerful man whose loyalty to his cousin, the mastermind, is unquestioned.
24 Hours is a version of the locked room school of kidnap mysteries and a very good one indeed, especially when Will turns the tables on the kidnapper and takes control of the situation. Abby's diabetic condition (she needs lifesaving injections on a regular basis) notches the suspense up one last turn. It's a well worked-out plot, the pacing is terrific, and the characters likable and attractive. Iles is a master storyteller, and this one has big screen written all over it--with Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer as the Jennings, if we're lucky. --Jane Adams
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