The Wrong Hostage

St. Kilda Consulting #2

by Elizabeth Lowell

When federal judge Grace Silva's teenage son Lane Franklin is taken hostage, Grace knows the only man who can help her is Joe Faroe, the very same man Grace spent a passionate weekend with 16 years ago before she helped send him to jail. Lane is being held prisoner in All Saints School, a private Catholic high school in Mexico, by drug lord Hector Rivas Osuna, the "Butcher of Tijuana," who is demanding the return of money "stolen" from him by his former business associate and Grace's ex-husband, Ted Franklin. The problem is that Grace has not heard from Ted in more than three weeks, and time is running out for Lane. With no other options available, Grace contacts Joe, a former kidnap specialist, hoping he can be persuaded to forget their past differences and rescue Lane before it is too late.

Genres: Romantic Suspense, Romance, Suspense, Fiction, Mystery, Audiobook, Thriller

490 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Individually and with co-author/husband Evan, Ann Maxwell has written over 60 novels and one work of non-fiction. There are 30 million copies of these books in print, as well as reprints in 30 foreign languages. Her novels range from science fiction to historical fiction, from romance to mystery. After working in contemporary and historical romance, she became an innovator in the genre of romantic suspense.

In 1982, Ann began publishing as Elizabeth Lowell. Under that name she has received numerous professional awards in the romance field, including a Lifetime Achievement award from the Romance Writers of America (1994).

Since July of 1992, she has had over 30 novels on the New York Times bestseller list. In 1998 she began writing suspense with a passionate twist, capturing a new audience and generation of readers. Her new romance novel Perfect Touch will be available in July of 2015.

To get a full list of titles as well as read excerpts from her novels, visit www.elizabethlowell.com.

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Wrong Hostage
3.5 Stars

Grace Silva is a federal judge backed into a corner when her teenage son is taken hostage by Mexican drug traffickers. With time running out, Grace turns to the only man she has ever loved and the one who believes she betrayed him 16 years ago: Joe Faroe, an operative with St. Kilda’s Consulting. As Grace and Joe work together to save her son, old feelings resurface and old secrets come to light. Can Grace and Joe leave the past behind to rescue her child before it is too late?

Series note: Although this is book #2 in the series, it can be read as a standalone as there is no connection to the previous installment either in terms of plot or characters.

Despite the rather stereotypical and prejudiced portrayal of Mexico and Mexicans and the somewhat far-fetched and convoluted storyline, The Wrong Hostage is fast-paced and action packed with a touch of romance.

Grace and Joe’s romance takes a back seat to the drug cartel/money laundering storyline. Nevertheless, they have an interesting backstory (which could have been better developed) and some solid chemistry. The secret keeping trope is thankfully kept to a minimum and leads to very little angst although what there is, is believable given the circumstances.

The best aspect of the story is Grace with her no nonsense, take no prisoners attitude and her transition from a naive believer in the rule of law to a woman who understand the realities of life. There are definitely no TSTL moments from this heroine and her reactions to her dirtbag ex made me smile.

Joe is your typical alpha male, covert operative, but he is exceedingly good at his job and his actions and decisions are appropriate and believable. It doesn't hurt that he is very yummy!

The secondary characters from the enigmatic head of St. Kilda’s to Grace’s willful teenage son to the disgusting drug lord and his minions are all fleshed out well and contribute to the overall effect of the story. If there is one small nitpick, it is that some passages are overly descriptive and the book could have been 50 pages shorter.

All in all, the likable characters and suspenseful storyline make this a worthwhile read.

[Cheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

To me this book went quite slow in the beginning. It did pick up slowly and then it was Boom in your face. In general I like this author. However, this was not one of my faves. I liked the h. She was smart, spunky and brave. I just could not warm up to the H at all. There was a lot of filler in the beginning of the story. Mostly geographical. The mystery and suspense was okay. I doubt I will be reading the rest of the series :(

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good romantic suspense. Heavier on the suspense than the romance and with good characters. You almost wouldn't have known it was written by a woman, except for the fact that the hero had green eyes. (Have you noticed what a high percentage of characters in romance novels have green eyes? I'd like every writer out there to know that only 1-2% of the world population has green eyes, which means they've pretty much all been represented in fiction by now.)

[Penelope · Rating 3 out of 5]

MY RATING GUIDE: 3 Stars. I debated between 2 or 3 stars and decided to round up due to the overall good quality of the writing. It simply wasn’t for me. It’s too grim overall. I prefer some humor (any!) to lighten the tone.

1= dnf/What was that?; 2= NOPE; NOT FOR ME; 3= This was okay/cute; 3.5= I enjoyed it; 4= I liked it a lot; 5= I Loved it, it was great! (I seldom give 5 Stars).

THE WRONG HOSTAGE is bk2 in Elizabeth Lowell’s St Kilda Thriller series, published 2006.
Southern California Federal Judge Grace Silva married the wrong man - ambitious, greedy, ruthless and duplicitous. The corrupt dealings of Silva’s now ex-husband have caused Judge Silva’s 14yr old son to be in endangered while attending a private school in MX.

Years ago as a DEA agent, Joe Faroe was framed and sent to federal prison. Upon his release, Joe joined St Kilda Consulting, a highly respected covert black ops organization. One week ago Joe Faroe was the best Latin American kidnapping retrieval expert on St Kilda’s staff. Now, at 40, he’s retired. Yet Judge Silva reaches out to Faroe, pulling him from early retirement with a desperate request - get my son safely out of Mexico.

Comments ~
1) Although THE WRONG HOSTAGE is bk2 in Elizabeth Lowell’s St Kilda Black Ops Thriller series, it can be read as a standalone title.
2) This is a Contemporary Suspense Thriller novel but not a light one. Humor is nearly nonexistent and angst is low. It’s a Proximity-Danger trope novel (generally, one of my favorite), very action and suspense based.
3) I have read nearly all Lowell’s novels. Some I have enjoyed, others not so much (WH is in the latter group). Although WH was a reread for me, I couldn’t recall the details. Once I began, I remembered not identifying nor caring much for the Judge Silva character. Her attitude seems incredibly arrogant. Her son, Lane, is likable. The extraction expert, Faroe, is very bunt but considering his history, job, and the risk elements he assumes, his attitude is understandable. With any humor, I might have enjoyed this quite a bit more.
4) Although WRONG HOSTAGE was published in 2006, the story itself has held up very well over time (with slight technology changes). Readers who prefer gritty, dark and fairly realistic Suspense Thrillers (victims dealing with corruption and crime) would probably enjoy WRONG HOSTAGE much more than I.

READER CAUTION ~ Not recommended to those who prefer Clean fiction or to YA readers.
PROFANITY - Yes. Strong language is used occasionally, antagonists use various innuendos fairly often.
VIOLENCE - PG-13. Kidnapping, hostage, drug violence. The details are present yet not dwelt upon.
SEXUAL SITUATIONS - One closed door scene. Innuendos.

[Lisa Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

★★★½✩

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bought at a library sale because I seem to remember liking the author. Pulled from my emergency reading shelf for a cross country plane trip. I started in and then listened to pod casts instead. Finally finished it late last night thanks to a little insomnia. If I liked Elizabeth Lowell in the past this is unlike to tempt me to search out more of her writing. The story line was ok, there were some good characters but it just didn't pull together for me.

Apparently our strong, no nonsense judge who spent her youth getting out of the barrio and resides and presides in San Diego is pretty much unaware of the drug trade. A large part of the book seems dedicated to prove to her that the whole of Mexico is trafficking in drugs or humans, buying and selling power and influence and basically, with a few very rare exceptions, corrupt to the core. It got old.

So Judge Silva' son has been kidnapped or perhaps more accurately used as a pawn by her sleaze bag ex, and has hours to live. She contacts a former flame and mortgages her house and secures his particular skill set and the resources of St. Kilda's, his about to be former private special ops/mercenary/when you need to color outside the lines type employer. She's a smart, strong female character but just has to have hot against the wall sex to pass the time as she fears for her son and processes the actions and utter duplicitous rotten scheming nature of her ex husband?

Get me outta here.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grace Silva a tow the line, stay within the lines judge finds herself faced with taking actions she never thought possible in order to save her kidnapped son. In order to rescue her son needs help and it has to be the very best. The best happens to Joe Faroe, who works for St. Kilda Consulting, a firm that protects and sometimes rescues their clients by means not available to governmental agencies. But there is a one problem. Joe and Grace have a history. Grace intended to never have contact with him again, and she isn't even sure Joe will speak with her. As they team up to find her son, they fight the Mexican drug cartels. It's a very dangerous Grace finds in herself the ability to do things she never thought possible in order to save her son.

Grace is divorced and her ex-husband has left a mess that pulled Grace and her son into the middle. Meanwhile, Joe and Grace find their formal attraction still burns inside each of them. Although this is as romantic suspense, there is plenty of suspense for most readers.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suspenseful thriller. The hero and heroine have a past, but she married someone else after their passionate encounter. Now she's just divorced from the guy she married instead, and her teenaged son is kidnapped as a hostage by a Mexican drug lord. So she goes to the hero to get help to get her son back, because the ex is a sleaze. It's hot, scary, tense, emotional and exciting. I liked it a lot.

[Laurene · Rating 1 out of 5]

I frogged this one. Deemed it not worth finishing. Hate the setting, the characters, the tone. I judge my reads highly on how much it holds my attention and this one screams when will it end. Only 4 chapters in and I knew it wasn’t for me.

[Jodi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read that kept me turning the pages. At the start of the book, I was thinking what kind of parents puts their kid in a boarding school in Mexico if they live in the United States. As I read, of course the reason became very clear. What a horrible "dad!" I'm so glad everyone survived this ordeal!

[Ellen Spes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Divorced mother and biological father battle with Mexican smugglers and drug lords to get their son out of a hostage situation.

[Tyrone Precious · Rating 3 out of 5]

#PreciousReads Book Review

Wrong Hostages by Elizabeth Lowell

My mom recommended this book to me saying it was my late grandfather. Grace Silva is a powerful judge in California in California who gets put in a bind after the Mexican cartel uses her son as collateral in a deal gone bad with her ex-husband.

She enlists the help of Joe Faroe, a renegade agent, to retrieve her son (which incidentally is also Faroes bio child). Together they fight through Mexican deals, the US Feds, and their own feelings to save their son.

This book was okay. It wasnt un-put-down-able but it is a nice, non-complicated easy read. Im glad I read but honestly not much to it. Story is pretty basic as well as the characters. But i enjoyed the mindless read.

3/5 stars.

[Jessica S · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Nurse0428 Carmen P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not former book reviewer but I really enjoyed the book, I love how all the places in the book are real, the plot no, but the locations yes! Well written

[Elmer Foster · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although it was decently written, the subject, topic, and delivery was tired, repetitive, and done better before by other authors. Mexican Cartel, empty threats, and several trips back and forth into Mexico because of the lame plot and lack of story details presented. Add the telegraphed ending because you already know how it will end after the lazy start. guess who shoots whom in the finale?

I looked forward to Judge Grace Silva, a strong, Hispanic female lead character, work before children, smart, spirited, and willing to speak her mind. However, some of her choices were very left field given the setup and situation. And then she was along for the road trip along the border. Minor judicial politics that went nowhere, a couple of intelligent judicial conversations without justification, and predictable violence as needed.

Who is Joe Faro and why do I care? He did nothing to validate his abilities, (beyond fertility levels as a sperm donor) even less so since he can only shoot right handed (LOL). He had no charisma, no authority, no sense of who he was supposed to be beyond those who kept asking him if he was Joe Faro? Because that is supposed to mean anything to the reader. Not for me. And who carries around uncut diamonds in a small sack as currency? Really?

Perhaps the hostage/misfit son was the best written, if only stereotypically a young boy with computer skills (of course he can hack a computer file, smh.)

There was no tension, instead a running time clock as story headers. The bad guys were copy/paste from any tv movie about Narcos, including the gutter spanglish and curse words to make it edgy, (sarcasm.) Wasted effort.

Skip this one. I won't even discuss the St. Kilda Consulting group that did little to display their abilities.

Surely Lowell has better books written, although I haven't read any and may welcome any recommendation to remove this layer of boredom from her name.

Thanks for reading.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I guess it's fortunate the I seem to have hit the jackpot for good fiction once school started. While getting stressed out about classes starting up again, I've been able to escape in the pages of a relaxing book on my nightstand at home & realize my problems aren't anything compared to those of Grace Silva while listening to this romantic thriller by Elizabeth Lowell during my daily commute.

The Wrong Hostage delivers suspense with a kidnapping built around a drug smuggler's money laundering problems, and a romance involving passionate lovers kept apart for years only to discover than neither had given up on what they once had.

Of course my rational brain wants to call suspenseful romance a cheap trick - getting scared makes you want to find comfort in the arms of someone you love - but that doesn't mean I wasn't drawn in hook, line, and sinker by Lowell's riveting prose.

As I finished it earlier today on my way to class I wondered if I really should have been listening to The Wrong Hostage while driving. After getting so involved in the characters, I couldn't help but freak out during the story's climax (not a good thing to do while driving on I-80 in Iowa City in the middle of the day).

After releasing that much adrenaline I'm a little too incoherent to describe why this book was so good (or maybe it's just lack of sleep from staying up late reading my other book).

Several times I thought of The Wrong Hostage as 24 in book form. This time the Jack Bauer type has 48 hours, so it's really the longest two days of his life, but that doesn't mean he manages to get much sleep. He's supported by the staff at St. Kilda's Consulting, which seems an awful lot like CTU. True, Joe does manage to share the spotlight with Grace, but he's still the one who basically saves the day with all his seemingly superhuman badass abilities.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seems that Elizabeth Lowell is trying to break in a new series these days: books all centered around St. Kilda Consulting, a group of freelancers who are apparently "consultants" who go in and do tough jobs regular governmental types won't. Like, in the case of this particular novel, rescuing a teenaged boy from being held hostage by a Mexican gangster. It's too early to tell yet whether this set of stories will develop the same elan as the Donovan series or the related Rarities Unlimited one--much will depend upon which characters are recurring and, of those, which stay interesting.

This book does have a couple of interesting side characters connected with St. Kilda, the leader of whom is noteworthy even if there's something of a cross between Professor X and Remington Steele to him. A couple of his side assistants are also on screen long enough to show enough character quirks to make a bit of an impact, and I suspect quite a few of them will be showing up in subsequent novels.

And of course you have your pretty basic hero and heroine. This time around they're a bit unusual in that they've both got non-white ethnic heritage, which is a bit of a nice switch for these sorts of novels. Pretty standard "heroine must call upon the only man she ever wuvved to get her ass out of a jam", and the plot twist involving the real reason he needs to come help her isn't surprising. I will give Lowell points, though, for keeping the angst about that plot twist to a minimum. Points off, though, for another heroine driving an SUV. Three stars over all, I think.

[Dale Safford · Rating 3 out of 5]

ahhh, I just wasn't crazy about the Mexican drug scene and the violence involved. The voice for the woman main character was pretty husky - might have liked it more feminine, but she did come across as a tough broad. It's still unbelievable to me how Grace's husband Ted was talked into being a part of the ransom deal.

Judge Grace Silva's 15-year old son has been put into a Mexican Catholic school by her husband, and only her husband can take him out. But the school is not the good one that it appears to be, and her son is taken hostage when it is discovered that his accountant father has been money laundering for the local drug lord, and has stashed away millions that they want back now. Add to this that when her son was several years old, it became clear that her husband is not her son's biological father. His real father Joe Faroe was an undercover agent who is now retired and has no knowledge of having a son. Grace seeks Faroe out to rescue Lance, who is being treated civilly but has a time limit until the drug guys will harm or kill him. And where is that sleezy rat of a husband? Can Joe help get her son away from the bad guys?

[Anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've decided to create a new shelf called "Unfinished reading", and "The Wrong Hostage" is the first book to go on it.

I'm a fan of Lowell's books, and I'm usually game to follow when she breaks out a new style of writing, but not this time.

"The Wrong Hostage" re-introduces the St. Kilda Consulting Agency, this time to aid Grace Silva, a federal judge whose son Lane has been taken hostage in Mexico, and will be killed unless her ex-husband Ted Franklin repays the millions he stole from various cranky drug cartels. In a clunky plot twist, her son is actually the biological child of Joe Faroe, who just *happens* to be a member of St. Kilda, an elite task force who takes the jobs too dirty or sensitive for the law to touch, and therefore the only man alive capable of saving her son.

Did I mention that Joe is unaware that Lane is his child and Grace is terrified that he may abandon her and her son if he finds out?

Believe it or not, this book is moving along at such an anemic pace that I've decided to put it down until I have more patience for it.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

#2 in the St. Kilda Consulting mystery series. It is a for hire company which operates behind the scenes and gets things done that governments and real world justice agencies aren't able to accomplish. This story takes place in north western Mexico involves Mexican drug lords and an American high powered businessman who appears to be swindling the drug lord out of multimillions. The business man has placed his son as a hostage to the drug lord who is threatening to kill the boy if the business man doesn't come up with the money and other things. The mother hires St. Kilda to rescue her son.

The story moves quite quickly and is action packed with macho people, plots, counter plots, and U.S. government agencies. The story is pretty standard for this genre in that there's a good guy who operates outside the law who can pretty much accomplish anything, romance between the lead female and male characters, stumbling bumbling bad guys, and U.S. government agencies. One can pretty much predict the conclusion, but it was still an enjoyable read.

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book. The plot was intriguing enough to get me about 100 pages in, so I felt obligated to finish it. That is the only reason I didn't give it one star. Unbelievable, stereotypical crap. The characters annoyed me.... I am still reeling over the on-the-wall-sex while on a stake-out, yet her son is hostage? Nice going, mom. Making out in a trailer when your son has two hours to live? Excellent. The interactions between FBI and St. Kilda were just ridiculous. I can't even describe how annoyed I was through the whole book. I am disappointed... I expected it to be better. At least, that's my opinion. Sigh.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I don't think I have ever read Elizabeth Lowell before. This one is an action/romance, perhaps that is her genre. There were many appealing elements to the characters. A gutsy 15 year old son, a woman who stood her ground when it came to the priority of her son, a man of heroic quality. Plus a plot that kept me reading. Drug money corruption on both sides of the border, good verses evil, deep love renewed. Though slow in a few places, I found the novel entertaining.

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a super good read.... Mom is a federal judge, father a naughty drug dude... doesn't pay the drug lord money he owes so the bad guys take the kid... Takes place in Mexico, near the San Diego border. I thought it was very well written, just enough suspense that it was interesting and I can sleep at night without fear that the bad guys are under my bed. (I ike that in a book).

[Peggy Nash · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was too stupid to continue wasting my time. Seriously, who always thinks about having sex with some hot guy whenever your kid has just a few hours to live? Without that, the story would have been a good one.

[Fiona Forthe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the characters and the plot is good, but unfortunately the book continues the super-annoying trend of chapters that are 2 or 3 pages long and whipsaws between points of view. I'm not a goldfish so I don't need a character swap every 5 minutes.

[Laura Steinert · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of her best books (of the 10 I have read). There is a love story, as always, but at least in this book the thirty-somethings do not act like hormone raved 15-year-olds. If you liked Kidnap with Hally Berry, you are sure to love this.

[melanie loyola · Rating 1 out of 5]

yeah im going to dnf it. ill rather not read 400 pages of "mexicans are drug dealers", "colombians kidnap" and "men are better". Ill also rather not read about a woman whose son is being held hostage and she's too focused on her ex lover. please.

[Tipping Ellis · Rating 2 out of 5]

skipped the last few chapters and went to the last page. Got bored with it. To heavy on the "romance"

[Kathy Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second book in the St. Kilda series was another excellent romantic suspense title. Federal Judge Grace Silva has a problem. Her fourteen-year-old son Lane is being held hostage in a Mexican boarding school until his father - Grace's ex-husband - returns the drug money he scammed from some Mexican cartels.

The problem is that the ex has disappeared and doesn't care about Lane anyway since he wasn't Lane's father. With a short timeline, Grace has to find a way to get her son away from those who want him dead. She turns to Joe Faroe who, unknown to himself, is Lane's father and is the one regret in Grace's life.

Joe has recently left St. Kilda after years spent in the shadows. The final straw came when a friend betrayed him, and he had to kill him. But Grace is the one regret in Joe's life too and he can't turn down her plea for help.

This action-packed thriller had me reading the story in one sitting and finishing at 3:30AM. I loved the tension between Joe and Grace. I also loved that Lane was a well-developed character with mad hacking skills and a strong love for the man who didn't care even a little about him.

[Michael W. Boleware · Rating 5 out of 5]

As my friends know I rarely give a five rating to anything other than the bible and several, but not all, classics. They argue and I am coming to believe that the rating must be done in the context of the type of literature composed. With that in mind, I found this novel one of the very best of its genre. Hard and fast to the point and does not waste time unnecessarily on too many background details nor the life stories of the characters since puberty. Their motivations and desires are explained but not belaboured endlessly as is done in many modern novels where I lose focus on the main storylines. I found it compelling, interesting but not preachy and satisfying. The reason for the five is not because it rises to the level of a 19th century work of art. Rather, I suppose, it is that if I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and can not come up with one criticism, anything less is unjust.