Ten Seconds – Ben Harper #3

Author: Robert Gold
Genre: Crime Thriller
372 pages
Publisher: Sphere, 2024

Synopsis
After a tense birthday celebration in Haddley, journalist Ben Harper watches his boss, Madeline, get into the car that has come to collect her. He walks home, never imagining that by the next morning, Madeline will be missing.

To find Madeline, Ben will have to return to the now infamous murder case that made her journalism career over a decade ago. A case which, Ben quickly discovers, was never as simple as it seemed.

But time is of the essence, and soon it’s not just Madeline’s life on the line . . .

My review
Ten Seconds by Robert Gold is the 3rd installment in the Ben Harper series, and though it’s my first time diving into this series, I found it easy to enjoy as a standalone. The opening chapters skillfully introduce the characters and weave together multiple subplots that later intertwine to form the mystery unfolding in a small town near London. I’m a big fan of intricate storylines with seemingly separate threads that eventually connect, and this book delivered that beautifully. It was a thoroughly entertaining read and easy to finish in just one day! Fans of complex, puzzle-like mysteries will enjoy this one, especially if they prefer a story without the dark or graphic elements often found in other crime thrillers.

This story unfolds through multiple perspectives, each adding depth to the narrative. The main storyline occurs when Ben Harper finds himself involved in a dangerous situation after his boss and close friend Madeline is abducted following a birthday celebration dinner. Ben and Sam, Madeline’s father, embark on a frantic search to find her and uncover who is behind the kidnapping. Will and his husband are dealing with personal struggles, heightened by Nathan’s recent addition to the family. Nathan himself faces challenges tied to his past and his romantic life. Meanwhile, Ben and Dani are struggling to carve out time for each other as they navigate uncertainties about their future. In the background, suspicions arise about the integrity of the police force, something Dani must handle delicately, especially with Ben being a journalist. Tensions run high in the community as an intruder targets women, breaking into their homes when they’re alone at night. What’s truly compelling is how these seemingly disconnected events are intricately linked in ways I never anticipated.

Gold does an excellent job of developing his characters, and even though I haven’t read the first two books in the series, he provides enough backstory to create a strong connection with them, particularly Sam, Madeline’s father and Ben’s partner in the search for her after she goes missing. Additionally, the narrative offers glimpses into the thoughts of the main antagonist, woven seamlessly throughout the story.

Ten Seconds is a captivating web of secrets and manipulation that held my attention from start to finish. I highly recommend it to readers who enjoy solving intricate puzzles without the dark, gritty, and graphic elements often found in other crime fiction.

My recommendation: read it!