LoveReading Says
LoveReading Says
A Maxim Jakubowski selected title.
Four bright university friends turn to professional kidnapping for profit in a failing job market. All goes well with this new business venture until the day they kidnap the wrong man and all hell breaks loose. With both the authorities and a blood-thirsty organized crime outfit on their trail, the loosely criminal entrepreneurs have to do a perilous balancing act to emerge in one piece from the unholy mess. Fast-moving, witty and frightfully imaginative, this is the first in a highly heralded new American series that will appeal to fans of Lee Child, Michael Connelly and other best thriller writers from over the pond. Terrific twists and thrills litter the pages.
Sarah Broadhurst's View...
Rather like a present day Bonnie and Clyde with events escalating far beyond what was initially thought to be a safe wheeze, it concerns four young American graduates unable to get satisfying jobs who turn to kidnapping to make a living. They take ultra-wealthy people, don’t demand too much so it’s easily affordable and then move on. All goes well until they kidnap the daughter of a Mafia don. Now they have both the FBI and the Mafia after them … Good action, good characters, lots of plot and good fun.
Maxim Jakubowski
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The Professionals Synopsis
Four friends, caught in a terrible job market, joke about turning to kidnapping to survive. And then, suddenly, it's no joke. For two years, the strategy they devise works like a charm - until they kidnap the wrong man. Now two groups are after them - the law, in the form of veteran state investigator Kirk Stevens and hotshot young FBI agent Carla Windermere, and an organized crime outfit looking for payback. As they crisscross the country in a series of increasingly explosive confrontations, each of them is ultimately forced to recognize the truth: the real professionals, cop or criminal, are those who are willing to sacrifice everything.
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Press Reviews
Owen Laukkanen Press Reviews
'Really terrific - characters that live and breathe, a just-right story, and chills aplenty. Highly recommended' -- Lee Child
'Ingenious plotting, perfect-pitch characterization and evocative sense of place combine to create an impressive debut' -- Jonathan Kellerman
'Fasten your seat belts, Owen Laukkanen's The Professionals is one heck of a wild ride. A first-class thriller by a terrific new voice' -- John Lescroart
'A high-octane adrenaline and gunpowder-fueled rocket ride across the country from Seattle to Miami to Detroit and points in-between... An excellent first novel!' -- C.J. Box
'A coiling plot, insightful characters, and a tale fraught with danger. What more could any thriller reader want?' -- Steve Berry
'A fast-moving debut thriller with enough twists to fill a pretzel bag... Let's hope Laukkanen writes more thrillers like this one' -- Kirkus Reviews
Author
About Owen Laukkanen
A graduate of the University of British Columbia's Creative Writing program, Owen Laukkanen spent three years in the world of professional poker reporting before turning to fiction. He currently lives in Vancouver.
Author Photo © Kate Anderson
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