Zoe Bradbury, a young biblical archaeologist known for her love of partying was kidnapped from the Greek Island of Corfu the night before she was to return to England.

Former SAS operative Ben Hope was in the process of changing careers following the devastating loss of his beloved wife. His desire was to return to Oxford and become the theologian he had always wanted to be. Shortly after his return, his professor, Tom Bradbury, asked Ben to look into the disappearance of his daughter, Zoe.

Ben did not want to leave his studies or his new life, so he asked Charlie Palmer a former SAS pal to take the case. Charlie runs into problems during his investigations and begs Ben to help him out.

What follows turns into a life and death mission to save a woman who causes more problems than she may be worth.

Following Zoe’s trail, Ben ends up in the United States. While staying with a long-time friend of Zoe’s, Augusta Vales, he meets a young fundamentalist preacher with much high aspirations, and who is hoping Augusta’s millions will get him there.

Ben also follows a series of clues on his quest to find Zoe, a trail that takes him to Jerusalem and back to the United States. And later, he heads into the mountains of Montana and the upper echelons of politics.

Ben soon finds that not only is Zoe’s life in danger, but also the lives of millions of people as the perpetrators take upon themselves to create an end of the world scenario.

The Hope Vendetta was written by Scott Mariani, the author of The Mozart Conspiracy. Mariani writes with an intensity that keeps the story moving whether during extended conversations or deadly confrontations.

As the story progresses, the fear factor increases as terrorists try to get rid of Ben before he can stop their plans to take over the government.

Mariani keeps the tension strong, and often includes a surprise or two along the way. One particularly interesting scene has to do with a shooting match in Georgia that will give readers an unexpected pleasure.

Readers will not be disappointed by the harrowing finish to this intriguing thriller that will have them looking forward to the next Ben Hope novel.

A special thank you goes to Touchstone, a division of Simon and Shuster, for providing a complimentary copy of The Hope Vendetta for our review. If you are interested in purchasing your own copies of Scott Mariani’s thrillers, they are available at Amazon.com.