Published 24th February 2025 by Lume Books.
From the cover of the book:
A VIOLENT ABDUCTION. FOUR HOSTAGES. NO LEADS.Two gunmen burst into the packed boardroom at an exclusive city law firm. Lawyer Maddy Kramer watches in horror as they snatch a popular partner and his young trainee.
Hours later, a tape is couriered to the offices. It shows the trainee, Charlotte Dempsey. She’s been brutally beaten. Her face is badly swollen and there’s a cigarette burn on her chest.
Tied up next to her are two more trainees from the same firm.
Detective Jake Carver leads the investigation. When he finds out Maddy is involved, he’s keen to get her sharp insights.
Then the ransom demand arrives. Time is running out.
But this isn’t just about money. The kidnappers know a shocking secret that could destroy the firm — and everyone who works there. And they’ll stop at nothing to get what they want . . .
This book was previously published as The Abduction.
Lawyer, Maddy Kramer is finally back on an even keel after her traumatic experiences in The Lawyer, and is working for another top City legal firm, where she has been concentrating on getting ahead in her career. She has neither seen, nor heard from, DCI Carver since the police investigation that introduced them to each other, but she often thinks about him - and the chemistry that existed between them.
But Maddy is not destined for the quiet life just yet, as masked raiders burst into a boring lunchtime meeting at her new firm and abduct a young trainee and one of the partners. Events are further complicated when it appears that two more of the firm's young trainees have also been abducted... and the senior partner has been sent an incriminating video and some rather personal demands in terms of the ransom required.
Maddy is set reeling by this turn of events, but she is also more than a little interested in finding out what is going on here. And then, who should walk back into her life once more? Well, DCI Carver, of course.... and the attraction between them is as strong as ever.
Kramer and Carver are back in their second adventure together. In company with Carver's new team, and the ever faithful Drake, this time they are after a gang of kidnappers who appear to be on rather an unusual crusade. Can they get to the bottom of this twisty case? Can Kramer and Carver ignore the attraction that lies between them? That's for me to know, and you to find out - although I will say that some interesting things happen between Kramer and Carver, which made me very happy indeed, and I absolutely loved the feisty new team members.
A.A. Chaudhuri sets out quite a different crime adventure for Kramer and Carver this time around, but it is every bit as engaging and twisty as their first, and continues the delicious air of romantic suspense between two of them - you can positively feel the passionate sparks fly!
From the outset, there is something a bit off about the nature of the kidnapping and the motives of the abductors, and this is what makes The Partner such a delight - for our villains are not your normal gangland thugs out for a bit of filthy lucre, and the best of intentions lie at the heart of their carefully plotted scheme. Of course, as the old adage goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and things do not go quite as smoothly as they were hoping with Kramer and Carver on their tail.
One of the things I most enjoy about A.A. Chaudhuri's books is that she likes to play mind games with her readers, carefully leading you along with enticing little titbits that have you thinking you know exactly what is going on, when the truth is actually far more complex. Although the hints and clues are there to follow, there are always a few delectable surprises that blindside you.
At the heart of this thrilling tale, there are some very thought provoking themes involving sexual assault and the legacy of unresolved trauma. This gives the book an intriguing depth and complexity, and sometimes had me questioning quite how I wanted the story to unfurl. Sins of the past, guilt by association, and doing the right thing weigh heavily on many of the characters in this book, and the way things play out will have you asking some searching questions about whether it is ever right to take matters into your own hands in the pursuit of justice, however admirable your objective.
Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive... but not too tangled it seems for our perfect partnership of Kramer and Carver! I adored everything about this one - the relationships, the nicely crafted plot, the revelations, the moral dilemmas... and I cannot wait for book three!
***********
But Maddy is not destined for the quiet life just yet, as masked raiders burst into a boring lunchtime meeting at her new firm and abduct a young trainee and one of the partners. Events are further complicated when it appears that two more of the firm's young trainees have also been abducted... and the senior partner has been sent an incriminating video and some rather personal demands in terms of the ransom required.
Maddy is set reeling by this turn of events, but she is also more than a little interested in finding out what is going on here. And then, who should walk back into her life once more? Well, DCI Carver, of course.... and the attraction between them is as strong as ever.
Kramer and Carver are back in their second adventure together. In company with Carver's new team, and the ever faithful Drake, this time they are after a gang of kidnappers who appear to be on rather an unusual crusade. Can they get to the bottom of this twisty case? Can Kramer and Carver ignore the attraction that lies between them? That's for me to know, and you to find out - although I will say that some interesting things happen between Kramer and Carver, which made me very happy indeed, and I absolutely loved the feisty new team members.
A.A. Chaudhuri sets out quite a different crime adventure for Kramer and Carver this time around, but it is every bit as engaging and twisty as their first, and continues the delicious air of romantic suspense between two of them - you can positively feel the passionate sparks fly!
From the outset, there is something a bit off about the nature of the kidnapping and the motives of the abductors, and this is what makes The Partner such a delight - for our villains are not your normal gangland thugs out for a bit of filthy lucre, and the best of intentions lie at the heart of their carefully plotted scheme. Of course, as the old adage goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and things do not go quite as smoothly as they were hoping with Kramer and Carver on their tail.
One of the things I most enjoy about A.A. Chaudhuri's books is that she likes to play mind games with her readers, carefully leading you along with enticing little titbits that have you thinking you know exactly what is going on, when the truth is actually far more complex. Although the hints and clues are there to follow, there are always a few delectable surprises that blindside you.
At the heart of this thrilling tale, there are some very thought provoking themes involving sexual assault and the legacy of unresolved trauma. This gives the book an intriguing depth and complexity, and sometimes had me questioning quite how I wanted the story to unfurl. Sins of the past, guilt by association, and doing the right thing weigh heavily on many of the characters in this book, and the way things play out will have you asking some searching questions about whether it is ever right to take matters into your own hands in the pursuit of justice, however admirable your objective.
Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive... but not too tangled it seems for our perfect partnership of Kramer and Carver! I adored everything about this one - the relationships, the nicely crafted plot, the revelations, the moral dilemmas... and I cannot wait for book three!
***Review originally published in March 2021.
The Partner is available to buy now in paperback, ebook and audio formats. Previously published under the title The Abduction.
About the author:
THE SCRIBE and THE ABDUCTION, published by LUME BOOKS in July and December 2019, are her first crime book series, plunging readers into London’s glamorous legal world and featuring series’ heroine, Maddy Kramer, fiction’s first female City lawyer amateur sleuth, who teams up with charismatic DCI Jake Carver to solve a gruesome series of murders and a puzzling abduction. THE SCRIBE and THE ABDUCTION were published as audio books by Isis Audio on 1st January and 1st March 2021, both read by David Thorpe.
She has also contributed an original short story THE ENCOUNTER to crime anthology GIVEN IN EVIDENCE published by LUME BOOKS in May 2020, has written many articles and short stories for The Crime Writers’ Association.
Her first psychological thriller with HERA BOOKS, SHE’S MINE, was published in e-book, paperback and audio in August 2021, the second, THE LOYAL FRIEND, was published in all three formats in June 2022 and published in the USA by Canelo US on 20th June 2023. Her third, THE FINAL PARTY, was published on May 25th 2023. It was released in audiobook on 1st February 2024.
Her fourth psychological thriller - UNDER HER ROOF - was released in e-book, paperback and audio on 13th June 2024. Her fifth psychological thriller will be released in June 2025.
The Scribe, was re-published as THE LAWYER by Joffe Books on 7th October 2024 in e-book and paperback. The Abduction, has now also been republished as THE PARTNER by Joffe Books in February 2025.
Besides being an avid reader, she enjoys fitness, films, anything Italian and a good margarita!
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