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Jack Gannon #3

In Desperation

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"A superbly written thriller...Timely, tense, and terrifying." — Brad Thor
"A blisteringly paced story that cuts to the bone. It left me ripping through pages deep into the night."—James Rollins

Eleven-year-old Tilly Martin is dragged from her suburban bedroom. Her mother, Cora, pleads for mercy but the kidnappers are if they don't get their $5 million back in five days, Tilly dies. If anyone contacts police, Tilly dies.

Journalist Jack Gannon's estranged sister, Cora, disappeared without a trace decades ago. Now she is frantically reaching out to him for help. Cora tells him about the shameful mistakes she's made—but she guards the one secret that may be keeping her daughter alive.

A twenty-year-old assassin, haunted by the faces of the people he's executed, seeks absolution as he sets out to commit his last murders as a hired killer.

In the U.S. and Mexico, police and the press go flat out on Tilly's case. But as Gannon digs deeper into his anguished sister's past, the hours tick down on his niece's life and he faces losing a fragment of his rediscovered family forever.
 
Originally published in 2011
 

383 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 22, 2011

119 people are currently reading
450 people want to read

About the author

Rick Mofina

68 books1,331 followers
Rick Mofina is a former journalist who has interviewed murderers on death row in Montana and Texas, flown over L.A. with the LAPD and patrolled with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police near the Arctic. He's also reported from the Caribbean, Africa and Kuwait's border with Iraq. His true-crime freelance work has appeared in The New York Times, The Telegraph (London, U.K.), Reader’s Digest, Penthouse, Marie Claire and The South China Morning Post, (Hong Kong). He has written more than 20 crime fiction thrillers that have been published in nearly 30 countries.

His work has been praised by James Patterson, Dean Koontz, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Tess Gerritsen, Jeffery Deaver, Louise Penny, Sandra Brown, James Rollins, Lisa Unger, Brad Thor, Nick Stone, David Morrell, Allison Brennan, Heather Graham, Linwood Barclay, Peter Robinson, Håkan Nesser and Kay Hooper.

The Crime Writers of Canada, The International Thriller Writers and The Private Eye Writers of America have listed his titles among the best in crime fiction. As a two-time winner of Canada's Arthur Ellis Award, a four-time Thriller Award finalist and a two-time Shamus Award finalist, the Library Journal calls him, “One of the best thriller writers in the business.”

Series:
* Tom Reed and Walt Sydowski
* Jason Wade
* Jack Gannon

Awards:
Arthur Ellis Award
◊ Best Novel (2003): Blood of Others

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5 stars
288 (33%)
4 stars
349 (40%)
3 stars
178 (20%)
2 stars
28 (3%)
1 star
13 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
Profile Image for Pat.
2,310 reviews504 followers
October 2, 2016
Another classic thriller from one of the masters. This is the third book in the Jack Gannon series. Gannon, a journalist with WPA, is in Mexico working on a story about drug cartel assassinations when he gets a blast from the past.

Jack's sister, Cora, whom he has not seen or heard from in twenty-some years since she left home at 17 is pleading for his help to find her kidnapped 11 year old daughter, Tilly. Cora used to run with a bad crowd and was a drug addict until she became pregnant with Tilly.

Jack convinces Cora to call the police even though the kidnappers said not to. Cora is supposed to find her boss Lyle Galviera whom the kidnappers claim made off with $5 million of drug cartel money within five days or Tilly will be killed. Cora also appears to be hiding something about her past and Jack wonders if it is somehow related.

What ensues is the classic cat and mouse dash around the country and into Mexico to find the kidnappers before the deadline. Naturally roadblocks are thrown up at every turn and the situation is more and more grim for Tilly as time goes by. It was quite gripping, with possibly a little less finesse than some of Mofina's other books but nevertheless an enjoyable read.
Profile Image for Dan Biermeier.
Author 2 books51 followers
September 21, 2016
This is a well written book with short chapters which I really like. The story was good and moved at a brisk pace.

I had just finished a Lucas Davenport novel and this book felt like a soap opera version of that type of story to me. This is probably my fault as I seem to like harder edged characters and a bit more of an in your face story.

Because of that I was not as drawn to the characters and did not care too much about what was happening in the tale. I guess for me, the book and its characters were just too nice. There was at times some dialogue or 'inner thoughts' that gave me the feel of 'soap opera', this was not constant, just occasional, but enough for it to stop me for a moment while reading.

You probably did or will grade it higher, my reading tastes lean a bit further to the dark side.
Profile Image for Christine.
1,970 reviews61 followers
June 4, 2024
I've read many of Rick Mofina's newer thrillers, but have been wanting to read some of his earlier books. This book is part of a series, but works well as a standalone. Journalist Jack Gannon is on assignment in Mexico when he gets a call he never expected to receive. His estranged sister, Cora, contacts him when her eleven-year-old daughter, Tilly, is kidnapped from their home. Jack drops everything to travel to Arizona to help his sister and the niece he has never met. Jack can tell his sister is hiding something and her secrets could cost all of them, including Tilly, their lives because of the dangerous people involved in the abduction.

I don't usually enjoy books that involve drug cartels, but this book is also a story about family and new beginnings. It is tense and often violent, and some of the scenes were hard for me to read. However, I enjoyed the suspense of the story and especially liked the characters of Jack and Tilly. Rick Mofina is definitely an author I will continue to follow.
Profile Image for Patricia.
443 reviews11 followers
September 24, 2020
The Jack Gannon Series, They have all been a Good Read, this one included!!!! Reading about the Cartell, they should be stuck from this Earth....
Profile Image for Salsadancer.
614 reviews1 follower
February 8, 2018
Kidnapping, drug cartels, murder, Juarez, Mexico, El Paso, Phoenix - not my cup of tea! And even if it were, the plot amounted to 20 pages with 360 pages of filler.
Profile Image for Baley Petersen.
272 reviews2 followers
September 24, 2011
As much as I love crime-fighting movies and television shows, I am rarely intrigued by books of the same genre. I suppose that's because visual entertainment still pales in comparison to an active imagination. However, for whatever reason, Rick Mofina's action-packed novel caught my attention and demanded I give it my time.

Single mother Cora and her daughter Tilly are spending a quiet evening at home when two men posing as police officers arrive and kidnap Tilly. Cora is left with the daunting message that if her boyfriend, Lyle Galviera doesn't return the five million dollars he stole from Norte Cartel--the largest Mexican drug cartel--then Tilly will die. Of course Lyle is nowhere to be found, and with the threat of her daughter's life on the line, Cora calls her reporter brother, Jack, rather than contacting the police. Cora and Jack have been estranged for twenty years, causing layers of guilt and doubt to complicate their situation. Once Jack convinces Cora to involve the police, things start unfolding. In Desperation takes place over five excruciating days, while Tilly's life hangs in the balance. The Norte Cartel are closing in on Lyle Galviera and have dispatched a notorious assassin to get rid of him as well as Tilly. Meanwhile, Cora is holding back a secret that may explain how the cartel became involved with the Gannon family in the first place.

I dragged my feet through this novel. I was interested in the storyline, but Cora frustrated me to no end. I had the feeling that if I were faced with her, I'd slap her. It's a fairly graphic novel, detailing the ways that drug cartels handle vengeance, but that also makes it an exciting story, filled with action and heart-pounding chapters, making this a page-turner.

Rating: $$

ARC received courtesy of MIRA Imprint
Profile Image for Rip Converse.
Author 4 books2 followers
November 4, 2019
I've read a number of stories by Mofina. This one didn't really capture my interest like some of the others; not sure why. It had some really bad characters like the Sicario that had killed almost 200 people, but by the end of the story you really didn't feel as though the people who controlled him, received any justice. And Jack's sister Cora, who is one of the main characters (daughter kidnapped) really wasn't very likable. Tilly, the 11 year old who is kidnapped and held is likable, but with all that happens to her and all that she sees, I would have expected her to be catatonic by end. Mofina gets us there in terms of a story plot but I didn't end up liking or caring about the victims the way I wanted or getting the justice I felt I deserved vis a vis the bad guys. I read really fast, 800-900 words/minute and would normally read a book like this in two or three sittings. With this book I found myself going to some of the other books on my Kindle for a break. I don't mean this to be too critical because Mofina is, as a rule, a good storyteller and I recommend him as an author. I've enjoyed many of his titles. The problem with In Desperation is it isn't quite as good as some of his others. He sets his own high bar.
Profile Image for Bryan.
697 reviews14 followers
September 16, 2018
This is the third book with lead character Jack Gannon, and my least favorite. I've not taken to Jack Gannon, as I did Jason Wade. Jason Wade is the lead character is another series by the same author. Both are reporters. This should be rated 3.5 stars, I rounded up because I like Rick Mofina work overall.
Profile Image for Maureen.
406 reviews
February 23, 2013
8 chapters in this book and I am giving up on it. The story line is not keeping my interest and the characters are dull. I have read other books by this author but find this one lacking in quality to others like Six Seconds and Vengence. Was disappointing to me.
Profile Image for Ben.
1,114 reviews
October 8, 2017
In my opinion Rick Mofina is one of the best crime/thriller writers in the business writing today.
"In Desperation" begins with an impact that sets the pace for all that follows. The pace never lets up until the climax.
The book begins with two men dressed as police officers entering a home in Arizona and terrorizing a single mother and he pre- teen daughter. The woman is told that she has five days to find out where her boos is or her daughter dies. It seems her boss, the owner of a courier and delivery service has been laundering drug money with which he has absconded. The Narcos want it-and him-back,
Quick switch to Juarez in Mexico where the woman's brother a reporter , whom she has not seen for twenty years after she ran away from home is doing a feature article on cartel violence. He gets a phone call form her , telling him to come to Arizona, to forgive and forget the past to help her find her kidnapped daughter.
That is a bare-Bones synopsis.
If there are holes in the plot, I couldn't find them. Besides, the pace of the action is so fast, and the tension builds so fast, that the reader is swept along by the current.
The book in the e-book version is about 500 page-turns. I read it in almost a single sitting beginning one evening and fins hung it the next afternoon.
Recommended . High tension excitement and a very good story awaits with "In Desperation."


Profile Image for Amanda.
40 reviews2 followers
February 20, 2025
I found this beat up book on a park picnic table. After three days unclaimed I couldn’t take it anymore. A kidnapping of its own right. I have never read the author, didn’t realize it was book 3 in a series. Stands alone as its own read, thankfully. I enjoyed the story and the pace. I had some quirky personal moment where before bed I prayed in regard to my deceased mom. The next morning I read the next chapter and was floored how similar it was to one of my moms dark life moments and her story of my origin and how much it paralleled to Cora and Tilly’s story. Then, best of all, when I woke up today at 12:40AM and could absolutely not get back to sleep the rest of the night, the book kept me company. At one point it had me in tears. Needless to say I felt all the feels. It did not help to lull me back to sleep, but I finished it! I do not typically read this genre and it may have piqued my interest to continue down this road and check out the Gannon series. I enjoyed the character development and personal stories.
Profile Image for Laraine.
1,856 reviews3 followers
June 15, 2020
4 - 4 1/2 star read. This book, the third in Mofina's Jack Gannon series was a very good read. Gannon is in Mexico doing a story on the narcotics traffickers there when he gets a call from his long missing sister Cora, asking for his help. Cora ran away from home and Jack hadn't seen or heard from her in 22 years. But she reads his articles and follows him and knows he can help her. Her 11 year old daughter Tilly has been kidnapped by narcos and she's been told to find $5 million which they say her boyfriend stole from a major drug gang. Cora has no idea how to even begin doing this and hopes Jack can help her. Jack finds it hard to get to know this sister of his and wants to help find the niece he just discovered he had, so he networks and tries to discover a lead. But the police get involved and soon they are looking into Cora's difficult and traumatic past for clues to what happened to her daughter. A very good thriller and I enjoyed this read.
678 reviews1 follower
February 21, 2022
Eleven-year-old Tilly Martin is dragged from her suburban bedroom. Her mother, Cora, pleads for mercy but the kidnappers are clear: if they don't get their $5 million back in five days, Tilly dies. If anyone contacts police, Tilly dies.

Journalist Jack Gannon's estranged sister, Cora, disappeared without a trace decades ago. Now she is frantically reaching out to him for help. Cora tells him about the shameful mistakes she's made—but she guards the one secret that may be keeping her daughter alive.

A twenty-year-old assassin, haunted by the faces of the people he's executed, seeks absolution as he sets out to commit his last murders as a hired killer.

In the U.S. and Mexico, police and the press go flat out on Tilly's case. But as Gannon digs deeper into his anguished sister's past, the hours tick down on his niece's life and he faces losing a fragment of his rediscovered family forever.
1,493 reviews8 followers
January 23, 2024
I liked the two first books about Jack Gannon. This book was just frustrating. Jack threatens Victor Lomax who has cartel connections! He's lucky to survive that!

Lyle borrows money from the cartel. Instead of giving them the money he keeps 2 million dollars and thinks that is going to end well! Tilly's life is in danger when he finally admits to having hidden the money. Then he thinks they are going to let Tilly and him leave!

Cara gets a lawyer. Then she agrees to a polygraph where the lawyer isn't present but Jack is! What was the point of getting a lawyer!? Without Johnny's testimony she could have been accused of murder!

Cara has been introduced as Jack's assistant to the Tarantula. She can't keep quiet and asks the guy about Tilly. Then she tells him Tilly is her daughter!

I was going to listen to book 4 but I've changed my mind after listening to this book!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for The Honest Book Reviewer.
1,593 reviews38 followers
April 24, 2021
This was an okay book, but not fantastic. The idea for the plot is interesting, but I think the execution could have been better. By the end of the story, I didn't really care about any of the characters, which is a sign that the book wasn't engaging. It reminded me of a midday made-for-TV movie. You know the type - the thriller that is mostly drama with snippets of action and suspense thrown in. It could have worked, but I didn't find Cora or Jack great characters.

I thought there was a lot of filler in the book, and I felt tempted to skim ahead to reach the conclusion. I've read some reviews that the author has written better books, so I may give Rick Mofina a second chance to catch my interest.
Profile Image for Kate Vale.
Author 24 books83 followers
January 27, 2025
Another in the Jack Gannon series, in which the reporter is on a big case involving drugs coming into the southern border when, out of the blue, he gets an email from his long-lost sister, 20 years gone from her family, including brother Jack. Can he help her? Someone has kidnapped her 11-year-old daughter, Tilly.

Jack isn't sure if the woman who contacted him is Cora, but he can't ignore her plea, so off he goes to Arizona to see for himself what is going on. There he finds an unholy mess somehow connected to things that happened to Cora when she was estranged from her family and from the story he'd been working on before she reached out to him.

Can he help the cops, including the FBI, find Tilly before her kidnappers kill her? And will this mean he has a family after all?
Profile Image for Ginny.
1,423 reviews15 followers
August 9, 2025
Be careful what you ask for, you just might get it. Jack is finally reunited with his sister, but only because she is desperate to find her 11 ear old daughter. This novel doesn't focus so much on Jack trying to get "the" story for his paper as much as him and the FBI trying to get the story from his sister and find her daughter. At times you wanted to shake Cora, as she just wants her daughter back, but also wants to hold onto the secret of her past. Lots of implied violence. Really have no idea how Tillie, the kidnap victim keeps her sanity during this ordeal.
Profile Image for Jess.
259 reviews1 follower
January 1, 2018
I really like the way these books are written. There's enough action and emotion to hook you. While some other authors daunt you with procedural bs having a reporter to follow gives you a new view on the case.

I enjoyed how so many different characters had a chance to weave their story into the overall story. The strong plot makes you fly through this book.
109 reviews
December 23, 2019
Awesome book! Again Rick Mofina didn’t disappoint me. The book was intense and filled with twists and turns.
The murders were gruesome but Rick Mofina kept the nastiness on the low keel.
Again I absolutely love Jack Gannon, an awesome character who came to his estranged sisters’ aid. He put his many resentful feelings against Cora aside and
Concentrated on helping his niece come home.
Profile Image for Chi Dubinski.
798 reviews1 follower
March 15, 2020
Eleven year old Tilly is kidnapped from her home in front of her mother Cora. Cora is told that the kidnappers want five million dollars from her employer. Desperate, Cora calls her brother Jack Gannon, a well-known journalist whom she has been estranged from for twenty years. Jack agrees to help Cora. But Cora is hiding her past from Jack and the police—will they find Tilly in time?
Profile Image for Kate McDougall Sackler.
1,741 reviews15 followers
September 30, 2022
This thriller about a kidnapping, a robbery, an old murder and being on the run from a mexican drug cartel didn’t really do it for me. I didn’t really like any of the characters and there were so many characters i had trouble telling them apart. Not the best book by this author.
Trust in your reads challenge- trust the universe
Profile Image for Sandra.
1,004 reviews31 followers
October 18, 2024
This is an okay book. Cora, Jack’s sister, is very annoying. There is quite a bit of information about the drug cartels, but it is common knowledge these days. Depressing! There was too much inner dialogue by Cora and Jack which became repetitive. Mofina has written some very good books, but this one is not at the top of my list. Many readers liked it.
376 reviews1 follower
February 3, 2018
I've like most of what i have read by this author, and have liked past stories with the character, Jack Gannon. But when you find yourself skimming to get to the end of the book faster, it's a sign that this one wasn't my favorite!
132 reviews
October 25, 2018
Another great Mofina thriller

I've read many of Rock's books and enjoyed them all. This Gannon story has a realistic tale of the Mexican drug cartels and how innocent people get ensnared in their network. I highly recommend it.
Profile Image for Vicki.
222 reviews
July 13, 2021
I have been loving Rick Mofina’s books but really struggled with this one. Started out great with Tilly’s kidnapping but struggled through it due to not keeping the suspense going. I had to skim through some pages just to hurry it along. Predictable ending and just didn’t keep the interest for me.
7 reviews1 follower
June 27, 2017
It was edge of your seat, but a little too graphic and gruesome for my taste. If you like that kind of thing, it would be at least a four star.
Profile Image for Don.
1,030 reviews5 followers
October 29, 2017
I enjoyed it, maybe not as much as some of his others but still quite a ride. Turned out to have a lot of characters.
16 reviews
January 23, 2018
Book 3

Book 3 in this series, couldn't put it down. Will be starting the last one in the series as soon as I submit this review
Profile Image for Sandy.
1,418 reviews6 followers
February 1, 2018
Good story but again way too much extra info that I would skim. The end drags with repetition yet it was an exciting ending. Taking a break from Mofina.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews

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