The Chain

By: Adrian McKinty

Narrated by: January LaVoy

When a mother is targeted by a dangerous group of masterminds, she must commit a crime to save her kidnapped daughter—or risk losing her forever—in this "propulsive and original" award-winning thriller (Stephen King).

It's something parents do every morning: Rachel Klein drops her daughter at the bus stop and heads into her day. But a cell phone call from an unknown number changes everything: it's a woman on the line, informing her that she has Kylie bound and gagged in her back seat, and the only way Rachel will see her again is to follow her instructions exactly: pay a ransom, and find another child to abduct. This is no ordinary kidnapping: the caller is a mother herself, whose son has been taken, and if Rachel doesn't do as she's told, the boy will die.

"You are not the first. And you will certainly not be the last."

Rachel is now part of The Chain, an unending and ingenious scheme that turns victims into criminals—and is making someone else very rich in the process. The rules are simple, the moral challenges impossible; find the money fast, find your victim, and then commit a horrible act you'd have thought yourself incapable of just twenty-four hours ago.

But what the masterminds behind The Chain know is that parents will do anything for their children. It turns out that kidnapping is only the beginning.

"McKinty is one of the most striking and most memorable crime voices to emerge on the scene in years. His plots tempt you to read at top speed, but don't give in: this writing—sharply observant, intelligent and shot through with black humor—should be savored."—Tana French

"A masterpiece. You have never read anything quite like The Chain and you will never be able to forget it."—Don Winslow

"Diabolical, unnerving, and gives a whole new meaning to the word "relentless". Adrian McKinty just leapt to the top of my list of must-read suspense novelists. He's the real deal."—Dennis Lehane

"Pairing an irresistible concept with a winner protagonist, The Chain promises to be your new addiction once you succumb to the first enticing page."—Alafair Burke

"A grade-A-first-rate-edge-of-your-seat thriller. I can't believe what went through my mind while reading it."—Attica Locke

©2019 Adrian McKinty (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

An instant New York Times bestseller!

One of the best books of 2019...

• TIME
• Chicago Tribune
• New York Post
• Booklist
• Kirkus
• The Strand Magazine

"McKinty hangs on to his wit and literacy even under duress...Beneath its surface of high-speed thrills, "The Chain" is clearly the work of the philosophical thinker McKinty has always been."—Janet Maslin, New York Times

"The pace quickens and the tension builds whenever the mother and daughter appear in a scene. In the end, what makes The Chain so frightening—and why it works so well as a thriller—is that all of Rachel's actions remain completely relatable, even as she whipsaws between terror and determination, morphing from victim to perpetrator."—Tina Jordan, The New York Times

"A deeply unsettling story about the limits of morality, raising questions about the nature of good and evil and the depths of parental love."—Joumana Khatib, New York Times

Wow!

What an interesting premise! Really enthralling book. And well performed by readers. Hard to stop listening!

Good story but amateur writing

Story would have been better if writing was more sophisticated Narrator was just okay Good quick listen

MUST READ

This book is everything!!! I voted for this book during the Jimmy Fallon summer book club but another book won and I really hate that this book didn’t win because it was 100 times better than the book that won! I am definitely going to read this book again!

A solid read.

The only thing that made me not rate this book higher was the constant referring to “the youth.” Everything was Starbucks this and Stranger Things that. If the author would have left out these details in attempts to be relatable, the book would have been a 4 or 5 star rating from me. Once I was able to get past the “hip” talk, the book was a very interesting concept. A true psychological thriller. The narrator wasn’t the best, but certainly not the worst listen either. I’d recommend this book— just try to listen past the over detailing of things that needed no further explanation. A lot of “iPhone” and “MacBook” and “Starbucks” talk. Unnecessary, but the overall story line is wonderful.

Captivating and heart pumping

From the first sentence, this book had be captivated and heart pumping. I couldn't put it down. The chain is twisted! Loved the narrator.... best I've heard!

strong start weak finish

not a bad listen. started really well but slowly got worse as it came to a close

WOW! What a story!

I can't wait to see what they do with the movie. Very impressive writing and engaging story. Makes you really wonder what you'd do if you were put in the same shoes as the main character. WARNING ⚠️ : May scare the heck out of parents!

Not McKinty's best, for sure

I used to like McKinty's books, violent though they may be, although I had not read one in a couple of years. This one, which is a departure from his usual criminal milieu, has a really gripping concept as a basis. That concept is horrifying. But in providing the back story and in the closing chapters, the book descends in predictability. It kept me listening to the end, but the end, in my mind, was a foregone conclusion.

a little creapybearly on

I ended up enjoying this book..spoiler alert, it's eerie early on with risk to children but good guys win in the end

stayed engaged

The story grabbed me from the start and kept me interested because I liked and cared about the characters and couldn't figure out the mystery until towards end of book. Narrator was superb.