Those In Peril (Hector Cross Book One) by Wilbur Smith

 

Those in Peril (Hector Cross Book one) by Wilbur Smith.

Published 1st January 2018 by Zaffre.

From the cover of the book:

Some debts can only be paid in blood . . .

When Hazel Bannock, billionaire oil tycoon, discovers her daughter has been kidnapped by Al Qaeda pirates just off the coast of Somalia, she uses all the power at her disposal to rescue her daughter - but politics and diplomacy fail her at every turn.

Her only hope is Hector Cross, an expert in surveillance, infiltration and combat. For all Hazel's connections and wealth, Cross is the one man who is offering to find her daughter. Hazel and Cross must work together to bring Cayla home, but neither of them realises that the kidnappers are not merely interested in ransom - what they have planned is far, far worse . . .

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Ex-SAS operative Hector Cross is not a man to mess with. Head of Cross Bow, he is an expert in security and surveillance methods, with a team of highly skilled men and women at his disposal. Contracted to handle security for Bannock Oil, Hector has his hands full protecting their operation in the impoverished emirate of Abu Zara - it is a job that has made him enemies among the Islamist terrorists who would dearly love to target the oilfields.

Oil billionaire Henry Bannock's widow Hazel is now in charge of the company, and she has proved herself to be a smart and capable businesswoman. She may not have much of a liking for men like Hector Cross, but she is happy to continue to employ Cross Bow... for now. But then something happens to make Hazel appreciate quite how skilled Hector and his team really are.

A gang of Somali pirates, operating under the auspices of an Al Qaeda cell, kidnap Hazel's only daughter Cayla and spirit her away to their desert stronghold in the self-proclaimed state of Puntland, where Sheikh Khan of the Flowers of Islam is determined to extract bloody revenge along with the billions of dollars he demands in ransom money.  Hazel's only hope of getting her daughter back alive is to work together with Hector and his team on a daring rescue mission.

Those in Peril is the first book in the gripping Hector Cross series by late best-selling author Wilbur Smith. It begins with a slow burn set up, laying out the relationships between Hector Cross and his staff, and Hazel Bannon and her daughter, before suddenly going full throttle into action adventure territory once Cayla is abducted by brutal Islamist terrorists.

This book is full of old school thrills and spills in keeping with the Wilbur Smith brand, and once the story takes off the pace is pretty much fast and furious throughout, apart from a more sedate interlude which builds on the spark that grows between Hector and Hazel to establish a well-drawn relationship between them. There is a great mix of characters throughout, with loveable rogues to get behind, and real baddies to get your teeth into. I really enjoyed that Smith includes some fabulous female characters too - I would love to see more of Russian firebrand Nastiya, because she was a force to be reckoned with! 

Smith weaves a story full of themes of corruption and betrayal around the unstable political and ideological situation in Somalia, both on land and sea, using terrifying plotlines around extracting money with extreme menace, blood feuds, and revenge tactics that make the hairs on the back of your neck stand to attention. He holds nothing back in the level of violence incorporated in this book, which is very much on the graphic side, particularly when it comes to the physical and sexual assaults aimed at the vulnerable, but this is all integral to the story that plays out. There are some spicy sex scenes too, which I was not expecting.

I will admit that I was not too sure how I was going to get on with this book when I began reading it (particularly as the action gets hot an heavy only a few pages in), but the story really worked its way under my skin. Before long I was racing along, unable to look away from the twists and turns that Smith conjures, and the pages absolutely flew by. There are many gloriously cinematic scenes that spring from the page in technicolour, and Smith brings all the heartrending plotlines together in one almighty explosive climax that is extremely satisfying.  

It is easy to see from this book how Smith managed to hit the best-seller lists time and time again with his story-telling, and I cannot wait to find out what happens in the next Hector Cross adventure, Vicious Circle!

Those in Peril is available to buy now in paperback, ebook and audio formats.

Thank you to Zaffre for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest reviews, and to Compulsive Readers Tours for recruiting me for #TeamWilbur.

About the author:

Wilbur Smith was born in Central Africa in 1933. He was educated at Michaelhouse and Rhodes University. He became a full-time writer in 1964 after the successful publication of When the Lion Feeds, and has since written over thirty novels, all meticulously researched on his numerous expeditions worldwide. His books are now translated into twenty-six languages.