BLOG TOUR, BOOK REVIEW - The Takers And Keepers by Ivan Pope

 

                                                                 BOOK DESCRIPTION

Where do the disappeared go? 

The girls and women who vanish, seldom to resurface.

Allen Kimbo, a freelance reporter, believes there is a network of men who guard their "taken" and keep the silence that surrounds such deeds. 

An email lures him to Eastern Europe, to a meeting of the Takers and Keepers. 

His girlfriend, Emily, pleads with him not to go. 

In Belgrade more is revealed than he had thought possible. 

Back at home, Emily is missing.

The statistics on the numbers of people who disappear every year are truly staggering and mind blowing, how is it possible that large numbers of individuals can simply just disappear into thin air. There are known reasons why some people go missing, some go voluntarily, some due to mental illness, some are murder victims. But there are also sadly people who are snatched by unscrupulous individuals who buy and sell men,women and children with the same casual regard as they would have if they were selling a used car. I have watched films and read books about the horrific and unfortunately subject of people trafficking but I never imagined that prisoners were being held captive underground as was happening in this dark and gritty thriller.

The main character and dominant voice of this story was Allen Kimbo, a freelance reporter who reports of cases involving missing people and has been trying to find a way to infiltrate the secretive and hidden world of the takers and keepers. When a mysterious person sends Allen a email containing shocking footage of a family being held captive underground and later invites him to Belgrade so he can learn more, Allen ignores his girlfriend Emily's fears about his safety and is swiftly on his way to investigate. But what he learns and experiences in Belgrade is even more shocking and stomach turning than even he expected and then his life takes another bad turn when he returns to England and learns that Emily is missing. Where is Emily and can Allen uncover her whereabouts before she disappears....forever? I thought Allen was a very likeable character, his dedication to the fate of missing people despite the risks to his own life was admirable. I also liked a character called Jennifer. I can't say that I liked Emily very much and therefore struggled to feel any sympathy for her when she found herself trapped in a living nightmare. 

I really cannot understand how some humans can treat their fellow humans so callously and with such a shocking disregard for their care and well being. And the fact that the takers and keepers viewed this behaviour as normal was even more dumbfounding. The treatment that the taken received and the descriptions of the conditions that they were forced to live in were horrific and heart breaking,difficult to read at times and made  more shocking by the horrible truth that there is in reality innocent victims of all ages living in the same conditions and with constant feelings of fear,every minute of everyday all over the world.

This is a very well written,dark,gritty,character driven thriller that causes the reader to experience a wide range of emotions. It is a very topical story when you take into consideration the current climate within the press and on social media throughout the world. It's tightly plotted,fast paced,gripping and had some unexpected twists and turns. Despite some parts of the story being uncomfortable to read,I thought this was a enthralling thriller and would happily read more of this author's books in the future.

                                                                 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ivan Pope is a writer, artist and long-distance cyclist who lives in Brighton. 

He graduated from Goldsmiths College Fine Art BA with the YBA generation and was involved with a number of early internet developments in the UK and across the world. 

He invented the cybercafe at London's Institute of Contemporary Arts and founded the world’s first web magazine, The World Wide Web Newsletter. 

He has taught at art colleges in London, Newport and Brighton. 

He is now a writer of fiction and creative non-fiction. 

He is currently undertaking a PhD in creative non-fiction at Plymouth University.

Social media....

Twitter @Ivan007

Publisher : Hookline Books (8 Mar. 2021)

Language : English

Paperback : 196 pages

ISBN-10 : 1838057919

ISBN-13 : 978-1838057916

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CHECK OUT THE POSTS OF THE OTHER BLOGGERS WHO HAVE STOPS ON THIS BLOG TOUR