Capital Punishment by Robert Wilson

[Ray]

• By
• TOM NOLAN
• Wall Street Journal            

"Charles Boxer, the green-eyed, ex-British army, ex-Metropolitan Police homicide detective, freelance kidnap consultant and hero of Robert Wilson's excellent thriller "Capital Punishment"                                      (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 407 pages, $28), makes a strong first impression: "self-contained, unimpressed by wealth, not overawed by status or celebrity. . . . He either inspired total confidence or profound dislike."

This crackerjack tale—the first of an announced series—is set in March 2012, in the run-up to the London Olympics. The self-critical Boxer, on poor terms with his teenage child from a broken marriage, is served up a case to match his angst: The 25-year-old daughter of a wealthy Indian tycoon is abducted during a night out with friends. Her well-connected father, on the verge of a high-profile U.K. venture, insists that Boxer (well-known for his private-sector rescues) be hired and that there be no police involvement. The authorities, who fear foreign-terrorist involvement, agree to his terms—or at least pretend to.

But what do the kidnappers want? "Ransom is a rather simplistic way of putting" what's sought, says the gang's spokesman, who insists on dealing only with the victim's mother. "This is not about money." Instead, the kidnapper seems intent on prolonging the rich man's agony—with something maybe much worse planned for his daughter. Three, four, five murders of ancillary characters occur. The tycoon—a former Bollywood star with a "spicy" past—survives an assassination attempt. Still no clear demands are made.

Featuring a large cast of well-sketched players and a plethora of plot twists, "Capital Punishment" shifts scenes briskly from London to Lisbon, Mumbai to Lahore. Mr. Wilson writes with elegant vigor as he describes the shoot-outs and emotional crescendos that result from the political and criminal intrigue at the heart of the book."

     I enjoyed the book and will be reading this new series.