BYE BABY BYE

A Texas police officer fights to rescues her kidnapped daughter in Marshall’s thriller.

Madison Jackson, a police officer with the Texas State Department of Parks and Wildlife, was once held captive by a Mexican cartel and forced to marry Jose Miranda, the second-in-command to kingpin Alejandro Rosales. Madison and Jose had a daughter, Anna, who now lives at home with Madison in Texas while Jose is in prison for his “cartel connections.” One night, Madison discovers her baby has been taken—after a visit to a maximum security facility to check on Jose, she is certain that he and his cartel are responsible for Anna’s kidnapping. Madison enlists the aid of her former Ranger father, Grant Jackson, as well as the Texas governor, Dixon Tucker, who also harbors feelings for her. Madison’s priest, Father Lee, discovers Anna is, indeed, in Mexico, where the cartel is planning to baptize her; Madison decides to steal Anna back in lieu of waiting for a slow court system to address the problem. This novel, the 19th installment in a series, is a quick read that is well-paced and boasts emotional heft. The prose is focused on scene-setting and is very descriptive, sometimes needlessly so: “The driver dressed in a traditional black suit, put the vehicle in park, got out of the car, unlocked the gate, and swung the metal access to the side of the road. He reentered the car, drove forward, then repeated the process to close the gate.” Additionally, the dialogue can feel a bit stilted and old-fashioned, as when Dixon, the governor, flirts with Madison: “You must promise that you will meet me for dinner at least once a week, here in the conservatory…It is the rare woman that I invite to my home twice.” There is also an infelicitous moment when Madison’s dad, while discussing “female intuition,” says, “Don’t think I’ve gone trans on ya,” which is eye- roll-inducing. Setting these flaws aside, Marshall’s story is an effective thriller.

More dialogue than action, but a satisfying yarn.