Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable, but not nearly his best
Review: "The Quiet Game" raised the bar so high for this Natchez, Mississippi author that almost anything else would seem a letdown. Unfortunately, "24 Hours" is a big drop. The systematic kidnapping of the doctor's daughter (perpetrated by a very well-prepared and experienced felon) makes for fairly compelling reading, but the yuppy-couple-living-in-a-huge-house-in-rural-Mississippi backdrop is beginning to wear a bit thin. Iles' writing is still strong, as he creates real heartache for any parent who can imagine his/her child (especially one with an illness) being snatched away. But "24 Hours" veers to close to Grisham territory in Will Jennings' race against time to save his wife and daughter (the F.B.I. portrayed as arrogant buffoons comes off a trifle smug) and the climactic plane landing on the highway scene is a wee bit too Hollywood for this reader. This is an enjoyable book, but it strikes me as perhaps rushed into print. You might be inclined to agree if you read this one, then try "The Quiet Game" and "Mortal Fear."
Rating: 
Summary: A BOOK THAT YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO PUT DOWN
Review: 24 HOURS is one of those books that once you start reading it, your heart starts to race and your hands refuse to release the book until you have finished reading the whole book, and boy is it worth it. John Hickey is a mad genius, one of the worst kind, who has mastered the crime of kidnapping. Hickey is so good at it, he can exact his crime in 24 Hours. With hellish precision, he squeezes a family's pressure points, extorts the ransom and vanishes into thin air, leaving the hostages alive (his promise is the kid always makes it out alive), but the family is too shattered to call the police. Hickey has carried out his plan five times now and hasn't been caught. He has his sights on his next victim, Abby Jennings, the five-year old daughter of Dr. Will Jennings and his wife, Karen, of Jackson Mississippi; this time there is a possible problem that Hickey does not know about. Greg IIes takes a parent's greatest horror, the kidnapping of a child, and turns it into a whopper of a chiller. As the title tells us, the book takes place in 24 HOURS. But in that 24 hours, though you move along at a frenzied pace, you also get to know each and every character intimately. The story line is disturbing and yet fascinating at the same time.
Rating: 
Summary: 24 Hours of Boredom
Review: Greg Iles is a talented young author with the ability to write exciting prose and draw his readers into his stories. Unfortunately, he didn't do that with this book. 24 Hours, later renamed Trapped when they made a movie out of it, is as exciting as a middle school spelling bee. There is never any real threat to any of the characters. The meanest of the three villians is quickly subdued early in the book, before he can truly menace anyone. The other two villians are so weak and "nice" that they never seem more frightening than a half-dead roach. Even the kidnapped little girl is never, ever, ever portrayed as being in a dangerous situation. "Mildly inconvenienced" would be more applicable. This book was a good idea that was badly executed, and I can't help wondering if the editor was at fault here instead of Iles. I really had to struggle to keep reading this one, unlike some of the other books by Iles. If you want to be kept on the edge of your seat, start with Sleep No More or Mortal Fear by the same author. Keep this book around for those nights when you have insomnia and need something to put you to sleep. It definitely worked for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Main feature: it?s believable
Review: Greg Iles is not a common author in the sense that he likes to diversify the main subjects of his books. In "24 hours", it's the kidnapping of a child. OK, this is not an original theme; in fact, it's a pretty used one. But Greg Iles' originality lies on the fact that he has created completely believable characters. While reading the book, I kept saying: "Well, now I'd do like this... now I'd do like that..." and the characters did pretty much the same thing I was thinking. No idiotic heroism, not improbable and endless plot twists, no last-minute deus-ex-machina intrusions. Only in the final chapter what happens is a little unbelievable, but by that time the reader is so gripped by the story that it becomes a minor affair. Greg Iles likes to lay down many conflicting elements early in his books, and keeps toying with them along the pages. This sweeps the reader attention from page one. In "24 hours" it happens again. Iles is one of the very good recent surprises in this genre of fiction. I hope he keeps up the good work, and he'll have me as a constant buyer and reader of his books. Grade 9.0/10
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Greg Iles book I've ever read!
Review: I could not put this book down. It was my first book by Greg Iles so I didn't know what to expect. I am hooked. Fast paced, spine tingling, full of twists and turns. Great book.
Rating:
Summary: action packed page turner
Review: I could not put this one down easily, there is so much action and surprises involved. The plot is simple, there is a team of professional criminals who specialize in kidnapping for ransom. They have succeeded five times without a hitch. Their plan is based on a 24 hour cycle. First, a doctor (preferably a well established specialist) with a family that has one small child is selected. The team takes advantage of a time when the doctor has to attend a medical conference. Each team member holds every member of the family hostage, keeps them separate and stays in contact via cell phone. One family member wires the cash to a bank and another family member is forced to pick up the cash at a bank and give it to the kidnapper. After the 24 hour cycle, the family is reunited and everyone promises to not say anything to anyone under the threat of their child being killed. There is just one job the team does however that presents a special challenge they could not have anticipated. All of the plans start to fall apart one by one which forces the team to alter their original plans. As everyone knows from reading popular mystery/thriller novels the bad guys always lose, but the question is, how far are the bad guys able to make it without getting caught and what are the things which contribute to their plan being foiled? I found it interesting how a similar scenario from the movie "Panic Room" was used.
Rating:
Summary: A good place for me to start...
Review: I've been intrigued by the way Greg Iles keeps popping up in my peripheral vision, mostly on the Amazon site, but also forcing his way into my subconscious in bookstores and airports. So I decided to try his writing style with a book not as beloved as some of his earlier material, and go from there. I give "24 Hours" 3 stars, although for action and intensity, and the inability to put the book down, it probably deserves more. An intriguing and complex kidnapping plot by a group of grifters who have perpetrated the crime before sets the stage in three locations as the race to save a child's life unfolds. Joey, Cheryl & Huey, the band of kidnappers, realistically portray the number and type and psychology of most of those involved with acts of targeted violence for financial gain. Iles correctly captures the fear and willingness to take risk that all parents must feel when trying to save the life of their child. Will and Karen Jennings are accurately drawn as a wealthy physician couple , losing interest and faith in each other and staying together for their young daughter. Karen Jennings survives the novel as the most believable; facing the most dangerous of the kidnappers and willing to take risks she needs to take not only for her daughter but for her own soul. Iles increases the tension and keeps the reader stimulated throughout his novel. Drawbacks include the larger than life rescue scene, the thought left that there will be a happier ever after for the Jennings' and the needless twist that ties Joey to this kidnapping for stakes larger than any of his previous crimes. To understand and believe in the character of Joey, it is important that the author would have kept the storyline to the thought that "one crime is pretty much the same as another" for a band of casual criminals. That said, I really enjoyed the pace & characterization of the novel and hope to read more by Iles in coming weeks!
Rating:
Summary: A fairly enjoyable thriller
Review: Joe Hickey has figured out how to pull off the perfect kidnapping for ransom. He knows that the problem with kidnapping is the drop...you always get caught at the drop. Therefore, he has devised a plan where each family member, mother, father and child are all held in seperate locations for 24 hours where each kidnapper then places a check in call every half hour to make sure that everything is going according to plan. There is no drop, no confusion and most importantly no one gets hurt. They have pulled this off numerous times before and have yet to be caught, however, Joe didn't anticipate running into a family who refused to keep with his plan!
'24 HOURS' is an enjoyabe thriller by Iles and while I cannot say that it exactaly kept me on the edge of my seat, I can say that it was well written, well thought out and because everything was done just right I decided to give it 3 1/2 stars. While others raved about this book I didn't find that I was kept in suspence at all, I could pretty much figure out how the book was going to end from the begining, but hey, at least it kept me entertained for a day or two.
Rating:
Summary: A perfect day's reading
Review: Joe Hickey is one smart sadist. Like your more successful gamblers, he knows that walking away from the table when you're ahead is usually the best policy. For five years he has supported himself and his collaborators with his patiently-won earnings, the produce from his kidnappings--only one perfectly planned abduction per year--of the young children of well-to-do doctors. His crimes are so well thought out that Hickey knows his victims will neither attack him nor call the police, either during the kidnapping or after their children's safe return. He is confident enough in his planning that he uses his real name--rubbing his victims' noses in their impotence--and is unconcerned if they happen to have access to firearms. The distraught parents of Hickey's targeted children bend to his will--a rather unpleasant business given his demands--because they have to.
Hickey's sixth kidnapping, of five-year-old juvenile diabetic Abby Jennings, is the subject of Greg Iles' taut, perfectly plotted, utterly gripping 24 Hours. The Jenningses may be having the worst day of their lives in the book, but you'll have a great one as you neglect your responsibilities, lock yourself in your bedroom, and read Iles' novel from cover to cover.
Debra Hamel -- book-blog reviews
Author of Trying Neaira: The True Story of a Courtesan's Scandalous Life in Ancient Greece
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining
Review: Joe, Hickey and Cheryl are kidnappers. They abduct children, ask for a moderate ransom in the form of a wire so that the transaction runs smoothly and is completed within 24 hours.
As they are about to kidnap Abby, Will and Karen Jennings's daughter, they can hardly imagine that this time their operation is going to be anything but easy-going. As for the victims, they are about to spend the worst 24 hours in their lives.
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