Book Review - Takeover by Lisa Black
Category Book Review Lisa Black Takeover
As part of the Amazon Vine review program, I got the chance to read an advance copy of Lisa Black's first novel, Takeover. She shows some real promise as a new entrant into the forensic crime genre, and I think she would end up on my "authors to follow" list.
Theresa MacLean is a forensic scientist working for the Cleveland police. She's normally brought into the game once a crime's been committed, and someone needs to read the evidence for clues. But in this particular case, she ends up right in the middle of a crime in progress. Two bank robbers are holed up in the Federal Reserve branch building in Cleveland, and they have hostages. One of those hostages happens to be a detective, Paul Cleary, who is also MacLean's fiancee. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, but MacLean is frantic with worry over what they might do to him if his true identity becomes known. They find out the answer to that question when he pulls his gun trying to stop one of the killers from taking another life. In order to get him out of the building and to a hospital, MacLean puts her job on the line and decides to give the robbers the escape vehicle they've been demanding. She's able to trade the car for Cleary, but she also ends up being part of the deal. Now she's a hostage, ill-prepared to carry on negotiations now that she's unexpectedly on the inside. Add to that the concern over Cleary's life and her daughter (who could become motherless due to her careless action), and MacLean is in way over her head.
I thought the storyline and pacing worked well. I kept turning pages to see what turn would happen next as they tried to avoid any more bloodshed. The characters weren't quite as fleshed out as they could have been. It was almost as if this were part of a series, and you should have already had some background into the characters. MacLean was developed well as a person, but not necessarily as a forensic scientist. The hostage negotiator was also developed well. Many of the other characters seemed to be a bit light, and the reasoning behind the original robbery attempt was a bit murky. Still, all things considered, it was an enjoyable read and a good first effort for someone who could develop into a solid author.
As part of the Amazon Vine review program, I got the chance to read an advance copy of Lisa Black's first novel, Takeover. She shows some real promise as a new entrant into the forensic crime genre, and I think she would end up on my "authors to follow" list.
Theresa MacLean is a forensic scientist working for the Cleveland police. She's normally brought into the game once a crime's been committed, and someone needs to read the evidence for clues. But in this particular case, she ends up right in the middle of a crime in progress. Two bank robbers are holed up in the Federal Reserve branch building in Cleveland, and they have hostages. One of those hostages happens to be a detective, Paul Cleary, who is also MacLean's fiancee. He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time, but MacLean is frantic with worry over what they might do to him if his true identity becomes known. They find out the answer to that question when he pulls his gun trying to stop one of the killers from taking another life. In order to get him out of the building and to a hospital, MacLean puts her job on the line and decides to give the robbers the escape vehicle they've been demanding. She's able to trade the car for Cleary, but she also ends up being part of the deal. Now she's a hostage, ill-prepared to carry on negotiations now that she's unexpectedly on the inside. Add to that the concern over Cleary's life and her daughter (who could become motherless due to her careless action), and MacLean is in way over her head.
I thought the storyline and pacing worked well. I kept turning pages to see what turn would happen next as they tried to avoid any more bloodshed. The characters weren't quite as fleshed out as they could have been. It was almost as if this were part of a series, and you should have already had some background into the characters. MacLean was developed well as a person, but not necessarily as a forensic scientist. The hostage negotiator was also developed well. Many of the other characters seemed to be a bit light, and the reasoning behind the original robbery attempt was a bit murky. Still, all things considered, it was an enjoyable read and a good first effort for someone who could develop into a solid author.
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