A BLIND EYE

This novel finds a widower bumping heads with mobsters and crooked law enforcers as he rushes to save his abducted daughter.

Ex-lawyer Nick Ceratto loses his beloved wife, Grace, to cancer. He leaves Nantucket and returns to their Philadelphia home with the couple’s 12-year-old daughter, Starr. Grace’s funeral happens to coincide with the New Year’s Day Mummers Parade, where Nick loses Starr among the jam-packed crowds. When it’s clear someone has kidnapped the tween, the FBI arrives, including profiler Carmen Lopez (“I’m going to psych out the who, what, when, where, and why of this crime, which might allow us to bring back your daughter”). The agent has a startling connection to Nick, as she blames him for causing her mother’s death and nearly getting Carmen and her sister killed. But the abduction case only becomes more bizarre; Nick seeks unlikely help from a mob boss while several individuals aren’t who they appear to be, from police officers to Grace’s family, which Nick has only just met. As authorities suspect sex traffickers have the girl, Nick, Carmen, and others frantically search for Starr before she’s sold. But there’s a much deeper conspiracy at play, which involves a veritable horde of people. Rizio’s fast-paced thriller sequel is nothing short of exhilarating. Nick and Carmen repeatedly find themselves in harrowing circumstances, as a bevy of dubious types—and not just gangsters—ignites twists throughout. This practically necessitates a huge cast, which the author gradually and masterfully introduces without ever easing off the narrative’s accelerator. Some of the plot ties to Rizio’s preceding Nick-centric book, Blood Money (2011), but those threads are subtly incorporated to cater to all readers. Though he’s returning, Nick, like many of the other male characters, isn’t particularly likable; he’s hotheaded, and he often comes across as incompetent while scouring Philadelphia for his daughter. In contrast, the women shine gloriously, especially quick-witted Carmen and the equally shrewd, wise-cracking police detective Rose Formosa. Considering the genre, readers should expect loads of violence, deaths, and profanity-laced dialogue.

A sharply crafted, engaging thriller with a healthy shot of adrenaline.