Amelie was only 16 when she lost her father. After that, she had no one left. He’d had cancer, and she had been helping to take care of him. And when his health declined quickly, she was left alone, with no place to live and no money. She moved to London to try to find a job so she could save some money for law school. But she had such a hard time finding a place to live that she could afford, she wasn’t able to put any extra money aside. And when she lost the waitressing job she had, she didn’t know what to do. That was when she met Carolyn.
Carolyn’s husband had just left her, and she was looking for someone who could help with the housework and cooking while she was at work. She offered Amelie the job, and Amelie moved in. She met some friends of Carolyn, who worked at the magazine Exclusives, owned by wealthy playboy Ned Hawthorpe. When attending a party for Exclusives, she caught the eye of Ned and he asked her to work for the magazine. She agreed, and when he called her up one day and asked her to accompany him to Las Vegas to try to get a specific celebrity interview, she agreed.
While they were in Las Vegas, they got married.
And only a few weeks later, back home in England, they got kidnapped.
Amelie finds herself in a darkened room, alone, only a mattress on the floor. Someone comes twice a day to bring a tray with some food, and she does have a small bathroom, with a toilet and sink. Occasionally she can hear them talking to Ned, who is apparently being held in a room downstairs from her. But mostly it is quiet. It is dark and quiet, and Amelie has to fight to stay strong. She has felt her way through the entire room, and while there is a window, it’s been carefully nailed shut. All she has is the mattress and darkness. And time to think.
And think she does. She thinks through everything that lead her to the moment she got kidnapped. She thinks of how she might be able to escape. She thinks that her kidnappers may just kill her. And she thinks that if for some reason her kidnappers leave her alive, then her husband might be the one who ends her life.
The Prisoner is the latest thriller by B.A. Paris, and it is dark. It starts with the kidnapping and releases bits of information slowly, as Amelie is trying to figure out how to survive. The stakes are high, as she could be killed at any time, and it’s hard to know just who is the victim, and to know who is behind the kidnapping. This fifth domestic thriller by Paris is a bit of a throwback to her first, Behind Closed Doors. But it’s also innovative in its twists and turns.
I have had mixed feelings for Paris’s books since I read her first one. This one isn’t my favorite, but it’s also not my least favorite. I liked the character of Amelie, and I thought the kidnapping plot was interesting. But I also figured out who her captor was. It’s a good story and a quick read, but it is dark and a little creepy.
Egalleys for The Prisoner were provided by St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley, with many thanks.
