Sufficient Ransom is a fast-paced, mystery/thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat reading long past your bedtime. Art dealer, Ann Olson, lives a comfortable life in an affluent enclave of San Diego with her entrepreneur husband and young son, Travis. Every mother’s worst nightmare comes to pass when Ann’s son disappears from the backyard one evening.
Ann is certain the social worker who unjustly accused her of child abuse is responsible, but as the investigation into his kidnapping unfolds, and other children in San Diego begin to disappear, it is soon evident something more malevolent is afoot. Sarno takes on some big issues such as atheism, faith, and organized crime, and deftly puzzles them together in a page-turning, well integrated plot you will eagerly try to decipher. A set of engaging and unique characters—a dubious social worker with a hidden past, a helpful and concerned pastor, a husband who is frustrated with his distraught wife who seems to attract trouble everywhere she goes, inhabit the world of Sufficient Ransom. An excellent first novel—sharp, multi-faceted, and impeccably written.
