Mo Hayder's thriller Gone is a first-rate mystery, full of tension and plot twists. Winner of the 2012 Edgar Award, Gone features Detective Jack Caffrey of Bristol's Major Crime Investigation Unit. The unit is investigating a car jacking. Rose Bradley was loading groceries into her car when a man wearing a Santa Clause mask rushed up, threw her aside, grabbed the keys off the seat, started the vehicle and roared away. Bad, yes. But here is what's really awful: Rose's 11-year old daughter was in the back seat of the stolen car.
Caffrey knows that when a carjacker realizes that he has made a mistake such as this, statistics show that 'jacker drops off the passenger within three hours. The trouble is, the clock is running down and the girl is not back. Was the thief after the car or the daughter?
To avoid spoiling any bit of the suspense in Gone, that's as much of a plot summary as I will provide for this clever, chilling - but not macabre - book. Mystery fans and fans of police procedural books will definitely enjoy reading Gone.