Baptism

Baptism by Max Kinnings is a top class thriller detailing an attack by some home-grown terrorists on the London Underground. At the center of the book, we find three very different characters. Leading the attack, there’s Tommy, a young ex-soldier who’s found Jesus and decides to bring a different interpretation of Christian values to an unsuspecting world. Then we have Ed, a highly experienced hostage negotiator who lost his sight during his second negotiation. Thirteen years later, he finds himself trying to establish a line of communication with a religious zealot. Caught in the middle is the driver of the train. George has his work cut out to avoid summary execution by this soldier — his wife and children are being held by the terrorists.

This book takes a well-established idea — think The Taking of Pelham 123 — and adds some highly original twists. Although the ultimate mechanism for resolving the crisis is not the most credible possibility, it’s nevertheless all part of the fun in this fast-paced and exciting thriller. In a way, the slight loss of plausibility doesn’t matter. The author triumphantly carries all before him. He’s now looking for funding to shoot a movie version of the book.