The Hostage
(Libby/OverDrive eAudiobook)

Delia Mariola returns (after The Yards, 2021), now a police captain in a Rust Belt city called Baxter, where she is charged with eliminating "a drug problem so deeply entrenched it might be included on the city's seal." There's no time to lose, either, as investors are breaking ground on a new Nissan plant, which will revitalize the local economy and increase the city's sagging population base. Delia's home life as a gay single mother is sensitively portrayed and provides a perfect counterpoint to the crisis that erupts when Elizabeth, the daughter of one of the Nissan developers, is kidnapped, putting the development project in jeopardy. The family calls in the FBI, but Delia is able to make progress before the feds do, thanks to her vast local network and fierce determination to eliminate the threat to Baxter. At times, the narrative seems to move slowly, but every detail matters in this tense and solid police procedural set in an unusual locale.

Delia Mariola returns (after The Yards, 2021), now a police captain in a Rust Belt city called Baxter, where she is charged with eliminating "a drug problem so deeply entrenched it might be included on the city's seal." There's no time to lose, either, as investors are breaking ground on a new Nissan plant, which will revitalize the local economy and increase the city's sagging population base. Delia's home life as a gay single mother is sensitively portrayed and provides a perfect counterpoint to the crisis that erupts when Elizabeth, the daughter of one of the Nissan developers, is kidnapped, putting the development project in jeopardy. The family calls in the FBI, but Delia is able to make progress before the feds do, thanks to her vast local network and fierce determination to eliminate the threat to Baxter. At times, the narrative seems to move slowly, but every detail matters in this tense and solid police procedural set in an unusual locale. Copyright 2022 Booklist Reviews.