Before It's Too Late by Jane Isaac

Description from Goodreads:

“I concentrated hard, desperately listening for something familiar, the sound of life.

I heard nothing.

Just my own breaths and the wind, whistling through branches above... The thought made me shiver.

I am buried alive.

Following an argument with her British boyfriend, Chinese student Min Li is abducted whilst walking the dark streets of picturesque Stratford-upon-Avon alone.

Trapped in a dark pit, Min is at the mercy of her captor. Detective Inspector Will Jackman is tasked with solving the case and in his search for answers discovers that the truth is buried deeper than he ever expected.

But, as another student vanishes and Min grows ever weaker, time is running out. Can Jackman track down the kidnapper, before it's too late?”

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I haven’t read any of Jane Isaacs’ books before but after reading this, I will certainly read more by her and I feel very privileged to have been invited to provide an honest review by the publisher, Legend Press, via NetGalley. This invite in no way influenced my thoughts on the book and I say it as I read and feel it!

Before It’s Too Late introduces us to a really interesting, complex and likeable Police Officer - DI Will Jackman. He is thorough, methodical, logical and driven and is the sort of Police Officer that I would want looking for me if I had been kidnapped but, if I was a miscreant, I would be quaking in my boots. Will is also a troubled man with a huge amount of guilt being carried on his shoulders following a car accident which seriously injured his wife. Jane excellently delves into Will’s mind and describes his thought processes and reasoning as well as his frustrations with the investigation in a way that feels natural. I really like Will and feel there is quite a lot of mileage with him and his colleagues.

The victim, Min Li, is another great character and I love the way the Chinese culture is brought to life and explained by Jane in an interesting way without being cliche or patronising. I found the sections told from Min’s perspective when she was in the pit were so well described that I really felt like I was in there with her and I could really feel her absolute terror.

The story moves at a good pace and kept my interest from start to finish. There are some red herrings and twists and despite me guessing what was going on when the 2nd person was kidnapped, I still enjoyed how it all played out to the end. I’m not sure I would go as far as to say that this is a psychological thriller, well not for me anyway, but I do think it’s a good crime thriller and I would recommend to anyone who enjoys this genre.

One last thing, this is the first fiction book I have read that mentions THE greatest motorcycle rider EVER - the Doctor himself - Valentino Rossi - this alone adds a star to my rating ;)