Child Not Found

April 25, 2016
At the start of Daniel’s enjoyable if complex third book of murder and mayhem with a Boston accent (after 2015’s Corrupted Memory), computer programmer Aloysius Tucker takes his cousin Sal’s nine-year-old daughter, Maria, sledding on Boston Common, where Maria is kidnapped. Sal, a Mafia don, is arrested and the strangled body of Sal’s wife, Sofia, is found at their home. Tucker tries to concentrate on finding Maria, since neither the police nor the FBI seems interested. Meanwhile, some of Sal’s men think Tucker has turned against Sal, so they’re trying to kill him; others are trying to take over the organization and are trying to kill him just in case. And the mysterious David Anderson, who either owns or doesn’t own Internet startup PassHack, either has or doesn’t have Maria, and is either trying to kill everyone or is totally uninvolved. Things only get worse before the satisfying whirlwind of a resolution. Agent: Eric Ruben, Ruben Agency.

April 1, 2016
A child's disappearance triggers a high-stakes mob turf war that Boston programmer Aloysius Tucker can only wish he had no part of. As part of his Christmas celebration with his cousin Sal Rizzo, head of the city's Mafia, Tucker has bought Sal's 9-year-old daughter, Maria, a sled and taken her out on Boston Common to give it a try. Big mistake. While he's distracted talking to Sal, who appears out of nowhere commanding him to take Maria and run, someone in a Bruins jacket leads the little girl into a Lincoln and drives away. The trademark jacket and the lack of any struggle suggest that the abductor is a member of Sal's crew, perhaps his friend Joey Pupo, but before Sal can look into it, he's arrested for the murder of his wife, Sophia, who was strangled with Sal's Christmas necktie right around the time Maria was taken away. The kidnapping, the murder, and especially the arrest act as powerful catalysts for a fight to the death over Sal's territory. As Tucker's partner and friend, former Mossad assassin Jael Navas, tells him, "all sides see you as an enemy": Sal's allies want to kill him for betraying Sal; his rivals want to kill him in order to grab Sal's turf. Tucker's enemies apparently include rival mobster Hugh Graxton, private-equity kingpin David Anderson, Tucker's old friend Bobby Miller of the FBI, and maybe even the attractive women who keep coming on to him. Behind the high-fatality plot, however, is a shatteringly simple motive. As usual, Daniel (Corrupted Memory, 2015, etc.) is more than generous with the violence, guilt, tweets, craft brews, and compassion.

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June 1, 2016

Aloysius Tucker is an MIT-educated computer genius. Sal Rizzo, his cousin, is a mafioso don. Tucker loves Rizzo and his family and mostly stays out of mob business, except when he can't. One morning Tucker takes Maria, Rizzo's nine-year-old daughter, sledding. The fun quickly ends when she is kidnapped and her mother is murdered. The Boston police finger Rizzo as the likeliest culprit. As soon as Rizzo hits jail, his territory is up for grabs, igniting a vicious turf war. All Tucker wants to do is find Maria, but no one is interested in helping him except friend (and Mossad agent) Jael Navas. VERDICT The third Tucker outing (after Corrupted Memory) features a gripping plot and engaging characters who are sure to satisfy readers of Vincent Lardo, Joseph Finder, and John Hart.

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