Chastity Riley and her friends are held hostage in a hotel bar by twelve armed men set on revenge, in a searing, breathtakingly original new thriller from the ‘Queen of Krimi’

Book blurb

Twenty floors above the shimmering lights of the Hamburg docks, Public Prosecutor Chastity Riley is celebrating a birthday with friends in a hotel bar when twelve heavily armed men pull out guns, and take everyone hostage. Among the hostages is Konrad Hoogsmart, the hotel owner, who is being targeted by a young man whose life – and family – have been destroyed by Hoogsmart’s actions.

With the police looking on from outside – their colleagues’ lives at stake – and Chastity on the inside, increasingly ill from an unexpected case of sepsis, the stage is set for a dramatic confrontation … and a devastating outcome for the team … all live streamed in a terrifying bid for revenge. Crackling with energy and populated by a cast of unforgettable characters, Hotel Cartagena is a searing, stunning thriller that will leave you breathless.

My thoughts

A beautifully weaved story which moves, over serval years, from Germany to South America and back. A story of a young man trying to escape a life controlled by drugs who finds that it’s not such an easy thing to do. He finds love and gets married. He leads two lives but it’s not long before they collide and, once again, he runs. Only this time it’s with his family. When the past catches up the results are devastating and it’s enough. There is nothing more to live for.

In Germany in a hotel bar Chastity is with a group of colleagues who are having celebration drinks when they, along with the rest of the customers and hotel bar staff, are taken hostage at gun point.

The police are soon outside planning what to do, assembling negotiators and special units. Who are these hostage takers? Why are they doing this? How will it all end?

Simone Buchholz is a writer you should not let pass you by her Chastity Riley books are a roller coaster ride they are superbly written, expertly translated, they have terrific storylines, are beautifully plotted and have a unique lead character who is just wonderful. I highly recommend Hotel Cartagena and all the books in this series.

Book: Purchased

I have read and reviewed Beton Rouge | Mexico Street | I have purchased but, not yet reviewed, Blue Night.

Well that’s my seventh review done! This one was on my original list so I’m back ‘on track’. Just four reviews to catch up on and then keep up with my reading through August. Nine more books, may just make it!

You can find out all you need to know about this challenge at Cathy’s 746Books and lot’s of other great book stuff. My list for this year’s challenge is on my blog if you’d like to check it out.

Information

Published: Orenda Books (March 4, 2021)| Length: 276 pages | ISBN 13: 9781913193546

Translation: by Rachel Ward – Twitter | Website | Blog

Rachel Ward is a freelance translator of literary and creative texts from German and French to English. Having studied modern languages at the University of East Anglia, she went on to complete UEA’s MA in Literary Translation. Her published translations include Traitor by Gudrun Pausewang and Red Rage by Brigitte Blobel. Rachel is a Member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting.

Buy: Bookshop.org | Waterstones | Your local bookshop | Orenda Books |

Author: Simone Buchholz was born in Hanau in 1972. At university, she studied philosophy and literature, worked as a waitress and a columnist, and trained to be a journalist at the prestigious Henri-Nannen-School in Hamburg. In 2016, Simone Buchholz was awarded the Crime Cologne Award and was runner-up in the German Crime Fiction Prize for Blue Night, which was number one on the KrimiZEIT Best of Crime List for months. The next in the Chastity Riley series, Beton Rouge, won the Radio Bremen Crime Fiction Award and Best Economic Crime Novel 2017. In 2019, Mexico Street, the next in Chastity Riley series, won the German Crime Fiction Prize. She lives in Sankt Pauli, in the heart of Hamburg, with her husband and son.

Follow Simone on Twitter @ohneKlippo | visit her website www.simonebuchholz.com.

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