Abduction

Alex Caine #3

by Alan Baxter

The past often catches up with you, but when it's Alex Caine's past the results can be deadly.

Alex Caine has been suffering the weight of the world, and some days it's hard to even get out of bed. Alone one night, a band of Fey overwhelm him and steal him away from the mortal realm. Silhouette, desperate to save her lover, calls in Armour, but the organisation seems reluctant to help.

Claude Darvill, his fragile alliance with Alex at an end, is still searching for the remains of his father, Robert Hood. In frozen wastes of Iceland, Darvill is driven by a deep-burning grudge and a need for revenge. His efforts are backed by all the considerable resources of Black Diamond Incorporated.

Silhouette must overcome her greatest fears and use all her skills to locate Alex. But even if she can find him, that's only the start of their problems.

In this third Alex Caine book, sequel to the bestsellers Bound and Obsidian, old enemies and new share a common goal. Alex Caine hates to be the centre of attention, but he and Silhouette need to pull together as the world is threatened once more and only Alex can save it.

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Horror, Science Fiction Fantasy

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

My book rating system:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Brilliant, I bloody loved it!
⭐⭐⭐⭐ - Really good, highly recommended.
⭐⭐⭐ - Enjoyable, well worth a read.

I don't talk about ⭐⭐ and ⭐ reads because I only talking up the good stuff. That's why my Goodreads rarely has anything under a ⭐⭐⭐.

Bio: Alan Baxter is a British-Australian multi-award-winning author of horror, supernatural thrillers, dark fantasy, and crime. He’s also a martial arts expert, a whisky-soaked swear monkey, and dog lover. He creates dark, weird stories among the valleys of southern Tasmania.

Fond him online at www.alanbaxter.com.au

Reviews

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is no secret that I am a fan of Alan Baxter. When I first read Bound last year I touted him as one of the future stars of speculative fiction in this country, and after reading Abduction I still stand firm on that opinion.

Abduction finds Alex Caine in a bad way. The weight of the world and its secrets have taken their toll, and some days Alex finds it hard to even get out of bed. Alone one night, Alex is overwhelmed by a band of Fey who kidnap him and take him away from the mortal realm. Their leader, a powerful enemy, wants the Darak from his chest. Another more familiar enemy has also returned seeking vengeance, and Alex and his friends will need all of their power and intellect to fight both of these foes. The fate of the world rests on whether they succeed or not.

So what did I love about Abduction? Pretty much everything!

Abduction is a cracking adventure that will leave you needing a sweat rag and a lie down after finishing it. From the outset Baxter sets a frantic pace that pulls no punches as Alex is suddenly kidnapped and whisked away to the deadly realm of the Fey and their Queen. From this start the story unfolds at a rapid rate and twists and turns as Alex and Silhouette attempt to save the world, and familiar and unfamiliar players emerge from the shadows in a showdown that has been coming for a very long time.

Sublime action is Baxter's norm, and Abduction does not disappoint. Each action sequence and fight scene were choreographed brilliantly, and at times I was left stunned by the realism and violent intent on the pages. You really can tell that Baxter has a background in martial arts, and by god does he use that knowledge to great effect! I was glued to these to these scenes, and I felt every punch and kick ricochet off the pages as I read.

The characterisation and world building were again very strong in Abduction, and I adored seeing old foes return to the fray as events spiralled out of control. Alex, despite being incredibly powerful, has almost buckled from the pressure that this has brought upon him, and his conflicted nature was one of the highlights of this series for me. I loved the fact that despite his power he still experiences depression, fear, anger, and hopelessness. His power bears a cost, and it is one that he struggles with. With Alex being trapped in the land of the Fey there is also a much greater focus on secondary characters in Abduction.

Silhouette is again alluring and deadly, and the roles of Armour and Black Diamond are fleshed out much more. The Lady is an enthralling new player who both delighted and terrified me at the same time, and the return of Robert Hood is brilliantly executed. Hood was one of my favourite characters from Bound (alongside the Subcontractor, who just creeped the fuck out of me!), and his return really added a sense of dread and danger to the book for me. Baxter also knowingly laces the narrative with tidbits and world building that both delighted and informed me without ever slowing the pace of the story down. His universe is dark, deadly, and addictive, and it will grab you by your eyeballs and steadfastly refuse to let go.

Baxter has continued to improve with each book, and Abduction is arguably his finest work yet. The twists and turns left me reeling, and the ending was both surprising and very satisfying. Baxter has now reached the milestone of being an author whose work I immediately buy without question now, such is his talent for weaving a great story.

Abduction is a fantastic tale filled with magical splendour and pools of bloody and violent realism. I would highly recommend it (and the rest of Baxter's work) to anyone with a beating heart and functioning brain.

4 out of 5 stars

smashdragons.blogspot.com.au

[Gary Kemble · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really satisfying conclusion to (at least this part of) the Alex Caine series.

I remember reading Obsidian, getting to a point where Baxter took me in a completely unexpected direction.

Abduction has plenty of surprises, a host of exotic locations (both in our realm and others) and some truly despicable villains.

I love that Baxter has kept Alex Caine such a relatable character. The events of Bound basically turned Caine into a superhero, and yet he doesn't lose his human vulnerabilities and doubts, and in Abduction is still trying to come to terms with what went down in Obsidian.

I also really value that Baxter doesn't pull any punches when it comes to horror. This book is urban fantasy but Baxter isn't afraid to unleash some blood and guts when required!

Nice work Alan -- and I hope we all get to catch up with Alex Caine at some point soon.

[Jason Franks · Rating 4 out of 5]

This bruising conclusion to the trilogy sees the hero Alex Caine tested at his most vulnerable, and the stakes are never higher. Psychologically scarred by the events in Obsidian, Cain needs to somehow face an old enemy as well as a new one, each more powerful than any foe he's previously faced.

Abduction is just as pacy as the prior books. The characters are recognizably themselves, although they have evolved logically from where we've earlier seen them. It's particularly enjoyable to see Silhouette get to show us what she can do by herself in the first part of the book as Baxter continues to build out the world they inhabit.

Big,bone-shaking action. Tough heroes making tough decisions. This is my kind of book.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a book that surprises me at the end, and I love a trilogy that leaves me wanting more. This book represents both of these literary loves for me. I adore Alex's resolution, and I want to know more about the Kin, and the sword, and the Eld. A great read - here's hoping this book ends up in paper, it needs to be on my bookshelf!

[Veronica Strachan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alex Caine is back, and it seems he can barely draw a breath, and recover from his last adventure before he's plunged into his worst nightmare. Abduction is a great wrap up of the storyline that began with Bound and Obsidian. Strong protagonists and villains too. Lots of action and fighting of course.
A good read.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I begin with the Alex Caine series? Abduction is the third in the series, and I highly recommend following this story from the beginning, as Alan Baxter has crafted an excellent, modern urban fantasy that is laced with a fantastically dark sense of humour.

I am reminded of an old website called They Fight Crime, which randomly generated a crime-fighting duo. In some ways the main characters Alex Caine and Silhouette feel a bit like one of those random pairings. He's a martial artist with the ability to anticipate his enemies moves, she's a half Fey who likes to eat things, they fight crime!

Silhouette discovers that someone has abducted Alex from his home, and launches a rescue operation that is just the start of a battle against enemies who will stop at nothing to succeed in their dastardly plans. I think that a hero is only as good as the enemy he is pitted against, and the great thing with Alan Baxter's novels is that - honestly - the really bad guys don't fuck about. Baxter does a great job of developing his bad guys as credible threats, and they are in keeping with the dark and gritty nature of this novel.

It is hard to talk about this novel without going into the details of what has come before in the series, but I cannot recommend this author highly enough. It is easy to draw comparisons to authors like Jim Butcher and Benedict Jacka, and this is series which would be enjoyable for fans of those authors. However, the Author has brought his own unique take and taste to this genre. New readers should start at the beginning, but this is an excellent edition to Alex Caine series.

I received a review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

[Penny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book in the Alex Caine series. Alex is in bed one night and is abruptly abducted by the Fey. When Silhouette returns home to find Alex gone, she calls in Armour to help retrieve him. In the meantime, Claude Darvill is on the hunt for his father and wants revenge on Alex. Will Silhouette find Alex in time and save the world, or will his enemies be the death of him? I must admit upfront I’ve wanted to read this series for a while and jumped on the chance to read the third book even not having read the previous two. My thinking was that if the author was any good, I could for the most part jump right in. I am pleased to say he is good! I really enjoyed the characters, and I really liked how Alex was feeling down about previous events, something that made him more human and likeable, if you will. I enjoy characters that aren’t invulnerable. This book was very well-written, and I loved the plot. I do have to admit the book was a little darker than I was expecting, but that was OK. As soon as I have time, I’m going to read the first two to catch up. If you are a fan of this series, I can’t see how you wouldn’t love this latest installment. Highly recommend! Thanks to NetGalley and Ragnarok Publications for the e-copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

[Dannielle Line · Rating 5 out of 5]

After barely escaping with their lives from Obsidian, all Alex and Silhouette want to do is relax and get to know each other better. Well, as relaxed as they can be knowing the Fey are baying for Alex’s blood. When he’s abducted and taken to the Fey realm, where unimaginable torture awaits him, Silhouette must return to the one place she swore she’d never set foot in again if she’s to rescue her lover. But further enraging a Fey queen is the least of their worries because something dark, disturbed, and decidedly demonic has risen from its burial place. And all it wants is Alex’s cold, dying body twisting in its hands, even if it has to destroy all the realms and all its inhabitants to get him.

The trilogy comes full circle in Abduction. Elements from the previous novels combine to ensure the reader remains as ensnared in the book as Alex is with his fate and the knowledge he’s the key to saving not only humanity, but realms of innocents. This is an epic battle between good and evil with plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader churning through the pages.

[Tammy Bulcao · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best of this series so far.

Fantastic story. IMO This was the best book in the series. Perhaps it’s because everything is pulled together with reoccurring characters as well as a few new ones. I love how these stories are written with multiple POV’s. It allows the story to continue flowing regardless of where we are at and with who.
The narration was very good. I think the accents fade in and out a little but otherwise Jonathan Waters performs these characters brilliantly.
I say this often but it bares repeating. Jonathan has a phenomenal female voice. I find myself drawn towards the female characters more because of his delivery and his style. Fantastic!!
This is book 3 in this series with an HEA. That said, because of the nature of these adventures, it’s definitely opened ended enough for a book 4. Otherwise a great end to this series.
I recommend this book/series!

Sisters Spotlight 💜

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abduction is a cleverly written urban fantasy and a fantastic addition to the Alex Caine series. With each book, the series gets better and better. Baxter's writing is always excellent; the world-building is creative and believable. His characters are fully developed, diverse, and unique in their own way, making them quite intriguing. The storyline is super engaging and entertaining, descriptive, fast-paced, and action-packed, a rollercoaster of twists and turns. Buckle up and ready yourself for a wild ride!

An outstanding performance by Jonathan Waters! I can't imagine anyone else as Alex. Waters captures the subtleties of the various personalities, adjusting tone and inflexions, literally bringing the characters to life. Abduction was a fantastic listen, and I'm definitely recommending the audiobook.

[Maree · Rating 5 out of 5]

This third book seemed to mirror the second when again Alex is drawn into another dimension. Hood is still around as is his son and there are only a few new characters, the best of whom is Jacob who is a strong solid Kin who has a background we do not uncover. The story is a direct follow on from the second book and the Fey are the villans here. They are nothing like fairies of other stories but are malevolent and cruel so Alex needs to learn a whole lot more about magic to survive this chapter. Silhouette is the heroine once again and stays with Alex most of the way through. She is a terrific character who could carry her own series of books. The story ends with Alex somewhat magically diminished so a fourth book would be interesting. This is a fun series.

[Georgia Tumbleweed McNabb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! When things go all sorts of wrong they do I in Spades! All the bad People/Creatures coming at Alex all at once, even the ones dealt with from before. This is a Great Series with a whole lot of Action, Magic, Fae Beings and such in our world. The Narrator did a wonderful job of bringing the story to life and the characters personalities to the fore.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great conclusion to the epic shitfest that became Alex Caine's life. A great read. A great ride. I always hate saying goodbye to characters when I finish a series so lets hope this is only goodbye for now.

[Bear Reads Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

The final of the series, it ties things up nicely and still leaves room for more iterations. You can overlook some clunky writing and just lose yourself in a rollickingly good tale of magic and adventure.

[Tiffany Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series keeps getting better. Worth a look if urban fantasy is your thing.

[Leticia Supple · Rating 3 out of 5]

WARNING: Contains spoilers.

Even though I could have started Abduction immediately after Obsidian, I was careful enough to write my last review and continue on my way a day after my brain had had a chance to rest. It was just as well; I devoured Abduction quickly... as seems to be my wont with Baxter's books.

It is unfortunate for readers that in the twenty-first century publishers become lazy. This is particularly the case when an author smashes out a trilogy in short order. And in at least one of the books - one always hopes not the first - it becomes painfully evident that not enough time was spent on the project. As projects go on, less time is spent (and, the publisher hopes, less money).

This is most likely to be the reason why there are actual word replacement errors in the first paragraph of Abduction. It is also most likely to be the reason why the book is riddled with split verbs, and why meaning is compromised more than once. I found myself, for the first time, re-reading passages to get it clearly. It's almost as if publishers say to themselves, 'well, the first one was great, nobody will notice this in the third book'.

Nobody except a discerning reader, that is. It positively ruined my ability to get into the first part of this book, which was actually kind of devastating. Everybody else will say that this is because I am a pernickety sort of person. But it's not; it's because I prize well edited books, goddamnit. Artefacts about which most businesses (these days) couldn't care less.

Anyway, now that I have this off my chest, I would like to point out that Abduction, apart from the misdemeanours outlined above, is a better work than its predecessor. Having found his stride again, after feeling like the point of the story had to be rediscovered in the second volume, Baxter smashes us towards the conclusion with his customarily destructive pace.

The story was good; the introduced characters were nicely turned, and the muddiness that emotion brings to situations was handled with a maturity that Obsidian lacked. And although we had an inkling that our hero Alex Caine was going to live through to the end, for a while we weren't sure whether he was going to wake up.

When he did, it was almost like the author winking at us, telling us just wait for the next three.

While this leaves the author open to the possibility of becoming a stacked-trilogy-tragic like Brian Lumley, it somehow feels like Alex Caine is going to be let to rest for a while.

That alone is a good thing. I don't think I could handle too many more battles for a while. They were super fun but, like sugar, addictive. It wouldn't take too much more of it for me to be clawing at my bookcase, mewling for a fix that I am just not going to find. (For now, anyway.)

[Rick Keuning · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book three Alan Baxter’s Alex Cain series, Abduction, launches straight into the action. Books one and two lead in with a bunch of scene setting, which was the weakest part of both of them, but not this time. In my view this is the best of the three very good books.

Alex is immediately abducted and taken to the land of the Fey. The evil race from another dimension who have been in the background previously are now front and centre. Just to add to the fun, Alex’s enemy from book one returns with a twist. What follows is action and then some more action. In all the action there is also a lot of world building and character development, which is nice. Character and world building through the action is one of a number of things Alan Baxter does well. Alan actually does a lot of things well.

Another good thing about Abduction is that the story feels bigger. Most of books 1 & 2 focus very closely on Alex Cain, he is the main character.

However, because he is taken off the Fey Land early and spends a lot of time separate from his friends we get to see a lot more from their point of view. This really helps. It feels like an evolutionary step forward in the series.
The one small issue that stands in this book (it’s also in the others) is the sudden appearance of convenient helpers. People who appear at the right time with the right bit of information. Given the high speed nature of the stories, this may have been necessary and really not a big deal.

Basically all the major plot threads are tied up in this book and there is a solid, and surprising, conclusion. However, there is still heaps of scope for more books and I hope there will be.

A great book to end a great trilogy.

[D.C. Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Abduction, book three in the Alex Caine series, is reminiscent of the first book with a frantic pace and high stakes as Alex confronts two enemies each of whom have a magic power much superior to his own. The Lady, Queen of Faerie wants the Darak that is embedded in Alex’s chest and Robert Hood, whom Alex thought he had consigned to an unescapable prison, just wants him dead. The body count is high as events spiral out of control, forcing Alex to consider that taking his own life would be preferable than being captured and killed by either party. I enjoyed this as much as the first, caught in the twists and turns as Alex goes from elation to despair, to elation and back to despair again. Using all his power as well as his intellect Alex must prevent his capture, or death, or both, to save the world. If you like your dark fantasy interwoven with realism then you will enjoy this as much as I did.

[Phillip Berrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid finish to a solid trilogy about a trained fighter with 'special' talents that is thrust into a hidden world of the arcane through no fault of his own.

Pros: I thought the characterisation in this book was the strongest of all three books and there are some very memorable female characters.

Con: As these books are set in the same world as the author's Balance series, I thought it odd that there was only a little crossover between the two, especially considering the stakes.

I'm looking forward to reading more about both Alex Caine and Isiah.

Full disclosure: I won a copy of the trilogy signed by the author by winning a short story competition that he was a judge for. I entered the competition because he was one of the judges.

[Katharine (Ventureadlaxre)]

Katharine is a judge for the Sara Douglass 'Book Series' Award. This entry is the personal opinion of Katharine herself, and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging coordinator or the Aurealis Awards management team.

I won't be recording my thoughts (if I choose to) here until after the AA are over.

[Shelley Nolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read that kept me hooked from start to finish. Didn't want it to end and would love to read more Alex Caine adventures.

[Cat Sheely · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had to read in one day. This was the best of the Alex Caine series I think and the first two were fabulous.

If you loved Jim Butcher's Dresden you'll be sure to love this series.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow.. another fast moving story, filled with deadly 'cat and mouse' chasing, an insane immortal, an angry man, a vengeful fey, and Alex Caine in their crosshairs.