Publishers Weekly
07/08/2024
In Driscoll’s pulse-pounding third thriller featuring Gemma Capello (after Shot Caller), the NYPD hostage negotiator tackles a case that hits uncomfortably close to home. When Gemma was 10 years old, she and her mother were taken hostage by armed robbers during a trip to the bank, and her mother was killed. On the 25th anniversary of her mother’s death, Gemma calls her father in hopes of distracting him from his grief, but her efforts are interrupted by news of a shooting at Brooklyn’s South Greenfield High School, which her nephew attends. Though she’s off-duty, Gemma rushes to the scene. She and the SWAT team easily apprehend the first shooter, but a second gunman manages to take a classroom hostage, forcing Gemma to figure out what, exactly, the teenager wants without setting him off. Over the course of her negotiations—which Driscoll illustrates with breathtaking panache, taking readers through the school room by room and floor by floor at Gemma’s side—Gemma connects the current shooting to the years-old death of a South Greenfield student. Driscoll approaches the potentially lurid material with admirable sensitivity, and maintains suspense throughout. Readers will clamor for the next installment. Agent: Nicole Resciniti, Seymour Agency. (May)This review has been updated with new bibliographic information.
From the Publisher
Praise for the NYPD Negotiators Series
“Tense and tightly plotted, Exit Strategy pulls you in and doesn’t let go. A compelling page-turner.” —Marc Cameron, New York Times bestselling author, on the NYPD Negotiators series
“An energetic series launch . . . Convincing descriptions of New York City neighborhoods and police tactics, along with flashbacks full of Italian family lore, compensate for some stilted dialogue and heavy-handed action. Fans of contemporary police procedurals will hope to see a lot more of the capable Gemma.” —Publishers Weekly on Exit Strategy
“A compelling, dramatic story while using the protagonist’s family background as motivation. Readers who love the TV show Blue Bloods, with its family of cops, will relish this launch." —Library Journal on Exit Strategy
“What a rush this riveting, edge-of-the-seat thriller is! It is a fast-paced novel set in a jail on Rikers Island that demonstrates the author’s talents with setting, dialog, excellent characters, and suspense that does not quit.” —Open Book Society on Shot Caller
“The attention to detail, the psychological thought process of the police and antagonist, and the tidbits about an Italian family make for an interesting read. But the story is also riveting with its suspenseful, fast-action pace.” —Crimespree Magazine on Exit Strategy
