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The Ransom Note
Nick Severance and his pregnant wife Mariko leave Japan for the United Kingdom, intending to settle there and bring up their child.
Nick is offered his first case as a private investigator in London. There are two things his client, the CEO of a hotel group, wants to know. Can the ransomware gang that paralysed the group's IT systems be tracked down and brought to justice? And was the hit and run that killed his son Gordon, who was the group's IT security director, really an accident?
Nick agrees to find answers to those questions. The most promising lead comes in the shape of Gordon's mysterious girlfriend, who it seems nobody met until the day of his funeral. In trying to establish just where she fits in, Nick uncovers a plot to compromise the security of the country. His discovery puts him and Mariko at serious risk, and results in the kind of ransom demand that under the circumstances, nobody could ever pay.
But it's a demand that won't remain unanswered. There's too much to lose.
Nick is offered his first case as a private investigator in London. There are two things his client, the CEO of a hotel group, wants to know. Can the ransomware gang that paralysed the group's IT systems be tracked down and brought to justice? And was the hit and run that killed his son Gordon, who was the group's IT security director, really an accident?
Nick agrees to find answers to those questions. The most promising lead comes in the shape of Gordon's mysterious girlfriend, who it seems nobody met until the day of his funeral. In trying to establish just where she fits in, Nick uncovers a plot to compromise the security of the country. His discovery puts him and Mariko at serious risk, and results in the kind of ransom demand that under the circumstances, nobody could ever pay.
But it's a demand that won't remain unanswered. There's too much to lose.
375 pages, Paperback
First published September 21, 2022
About the author
Mark McKay
14 books19 followersMark McKay did a number of things before becoming a novelist – van driver, wine salesman, psychiatric orderly, Santa Claus at a major department store… He also spent many years working in the IT industry. After studying creative writing with the University of East Anglia in the UK, he wrote his first novel. Once bitten by the writing bug (for which there’s no cure), more novels followed.
When he isn’t writing, Mark is either reading, struggling to master the guitar, learning aikido (useful research), trying to find time to get out more, and looking for new and unusual experiences that might one day find their way into a book. His goal as a writer is to produce another 50 novels by the age of 100. His goal as a guitar player is to get beyond three chords. He’s pretty sure he can do it (the guitar bit, at least).
When he isn’t writing, Mark is either reading, struggling to master the guitar, learning aikido (useful research), trying to find time to get out more, and looking for new and unusual experiences that might one day find their way into a book. His goal as a writer is to produce another 50 novels by the age of 100. His goal as a guitar player is to get beyond three chords. He’s pretty sure he can do it (the guitar bit, at least).
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
September 26, 2022
Since this is the seventh in the Nick Severance series, one might be tempted to think that the stories are getting dull and repetitive. One would be mistaken. This story is just as fresh and intriguing as the first. There is plenty of action, tension, and suspense. Mr. McKay quite deftly draws the reader into the terror, desperation, and helplessness that Nick and Mariko feel as they seek to solve the mystery of the ransomware attacks and the murder, knowing that only when they do can they get back what has been stolen from them. This is one of those books that you find difficult to put down because you have to know what happens next. You can't imagine being able to sleep or do anything else until it is finished. I will admit to being nervous that Mr. McKay would end the series here, but I have reason to hope there will be additional books. I highly recommend this series and strongly suggest you get to know Nick and Mariko.
Displaying 1 of 1 review