HOSTAGE

[Editor's Note: The following is a combined review with the abridged production of HOSTAGE.]--Relentlessly fast-paced, Crais's newest stand-alone novel tells the story of former frontline crisis negotiator Jeff Talley as his quiet suburban life is taken hostage. The author reads the abridged version with expressive professionalism and a believable intimacy as he follows three delinquents who kill a convenience store clerk and a police officer and then hole up in a suburban home--a house that turns out to belong to an important accountant for the Mob. James Daniels--who also co-wrote the abridged script for Hostage together with his wife, Aasne--uses his vocal talents to bring the unabridged version to life. He effectively matches Crais's style and gives flesh to Jeff Talley, the family taken hostage, and the sociopathic ringleader of the convenience store robbers. S.E.S. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC/ JAN 02]