Friday, January 1, 2016

The Tears Of Dark Water by Corban Addison


Daniel and his teenage son, Quentin, are sailing around the world.  Daniel and his wife, Vanessa, are having issues in their marriage, and Quentin is aimless, heading towards trouble.  Daniel decides that a sailing trip for father and son will be the cure for all the problems the family is having.  Halfway through the trip, Daniel's plan seems to be working; Quentin is back to his own self and focused on completing.  Then disaster strikes.

The sailboat is attacked and taken over by a band of Somali pirates.  They are led by a young fighter, Ismail, who has taken up the life of a pirate after the wars and corruption of Somali have ripped his family apart.

Paul Derrick is the FBI's top hostage negotiator.  He is called in to broker the release of Daniel and Quentin, backed up by a huge navel presence and an elite SEAL team.  This will be a difficult negotiation as it is so bound by time.  Usually, Paul has days if not weeks to wear down a hostage taker but the boat is only four days off the coast.  The government is determined that the pirates will never make landfall where the hostages can disappear with no chance of rescue.

Derrick is making progress when Ismail goes off the record.  He finds a way to contact Vanessa and the family left behind directly and demands a ransom for their release.  Daniel's father is wealthy and well-connected and the government agrees to try the ransom.  But disaster occurs and all the participants are left to face the fallout from what happens.

Corban Addison has written a compelling page-turner.  The story is told through the viewpoints of Daniel, Vanessa, Paul, Ismail's lawyer, Megan, Ismail and his sister Yasmin.  All sides of the complicated issue are explored in depth and the reader is pulled into the controversy and left to wonder how they would handle such a volatile situation.  This book is recommended for readers of thrillers and those interested in current events.

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