Who would think that patent law could be interesting? It is, in bits. And that’s the background for this legal thriller but because patent law is mainly interpretation and analysis it can get dry. So we have a couple of kidnappings and a murder to spice things up a bit.

Judge Scott Sampson doesn’t brag about having a perfect life, but the evidence is clear: A prestigious job. A loving marriage. A pair of healthy children. Then a phone call begins every parent’s most chilling nightmare. Scott’s six-year-old twins, Sam and Emma, have been taken. The judge must rule exactly as instructed in a drug case he is about to hear. If he refuses, the consequences for the children will be dire.

*******
Say Nothing
by Brad Parks
2017 / 441 pages
read by George Newborn – 12h 28m
rating: A / legal thriller
*******

For Scott and his wife Alison, the kidnapper’s call is only the beginning of a twisting, gut-churning ordeal of blackmail, deceit, and terror. Through it all, they will stop at nothing to get their children back, no matter the cost to themselves . . . or to each other. (from publisher)

I quite enjoyed the book even though it’s rather unlikely, unbelievable, that the parents of two kidnapped children would not go to the authorities. Somehow Parks writes well enough to just suspend disbelief and buy into the ideat for the sake of the story. The lengths to which Sampson and his wife go to accommodate the kidnappers while trying to keep their own personal suspicions at bay makes for huge suspense.

“Parks does a fantastic job conveying every parent’s worst fear while also showcasing the marital conflict and mistrust that erupts in the midst of a crisis….Fans of Harlan Coben and Lisa Gardner will love this thriller. Don’t stay silent, tell everyone.”—Library Journal (starred review)