Lockdown
Sara Driscoll
May 21, 2024

Gemma Capello is back in Negotiators part 3. She starts out this epic journey on the 25th anniversary of the episode that her mother died in a bank robbery. She was left alone to be a hostage in the chaos. Now she is enroute to her dad’s house with her mom and dad’s favorite cake, an Italian Cassata, that she spent the night making. Mid-trip she gets a call. It was her brother Alex. Thinking he wanted to know the time for family dinner she picked up. Instead he tells her frightening news. Her nephew, Sam is in school. It has been put on lockdown due to student shooters infiltrating the hallways. She flips the car around deciding they may need her although the HNT was not called, she is obligated to be there. She would find Sam, she could help with the students.
Lockdown will be published by Kensington Publishing on May 21, 2024. I was able to read Driscoll’s latest book via NetGalley. It is a tremendous, frightening novel of the events of a mass shooting from the thoughts and words of police, firefighters and the negotiators who talk down the hostage taker in emergency situations. This author must have done considerable research to be able to tell this story. It was real, it was shocking, yet I could not put it down. It is a novel readers should not miss. In this world of indefensible events, readers should understand, Knowledge is Power.

This novel tackles the aftermath of a school shooting, which is not an easy topic, but from a fresh angle: the crisis negotiators. It's a harrowing read, but the author's focus on the negotiation team was unique and interesting. The writing is vivid and pulled me in quickly. I didn't realize this was part of a series. I think this was fine to read as a standalone.

I've been a fan of this series but this was just so hard to read because of the subject matter. Det. Gemma Capella is, as always, a dynamic character with good sense and a way of resolving difficult situations (there's a reason she's a hostage negotiator). I focused, this time out, more on the Capella family dynamics. While this will be fine as a standalone, it likely will be most appreciated by those who have read earlier installments. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

This was such an intense and thrilling book. It is definitely a really hard read and will hit close to home. It felt so real, the writing was great and the storytelling even better.

Warning: This was a hard story to read. Anything involving a school shooting would be. But the focus on the negotiating team is unique and makes it very interesting - if you can get past the horrific situation. The author doesn’t dwell on the gory details but they are unavoidable to some extent.

Gemma Capello is a member of the New York Police Department‘s Hostage Negotiation Team. She comes from a large Italian family with a lot of other police officers (her dad and three of her four brothers). She is heading to her dad’s house on her day off when she gets word of a school shooting in a nearby Brooklyn neighborhood so she heads there immediately. To make matters worse, her nephew is a freshman at that particular high school. As you might imagine, the book is filled with tense situations. It was especially vivid for me, as I went to high school just a few blocks from this fictional school and could easily picture the area from my memories.

This is a top-notch series (I’ve read the first book and now this one). The writing is vivid and pulls you in quickly. The main characters are realistic and likable. The teachers are heroic in their actions to try to shield the students in their care. It’s a shame that they/we have been drilled in the “right” ways to react in such a scenario (“Run, Hide, Fight”). The various students of the school who we meet are described in a sympathetic fashion, but the author doesn’t minimize the tragedy of the perpetrators.

Although third in the NYPD Negotiators series, this would work well as a standalone. There are references to events in the previous two books but they don’t impact the plot of this one.

Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

My first book by this author and held my interest from first character. Gemma Compelling is a great character. Would love to see a series. But for now this story will keep you rivited

A hard book to read with so many emotions. When it comes to a school shooting or a mass shooting of any kind it can be hard to read but with the state of the world at the moment, it hits close to home. Though I live in an Australia it is rare that a day goes by where I don’t want up and hear about a new shooting somewhere in the world.

I liked this book and really enjoyed that it didn’t hold back from the investigation side of the story. This book pulls you in from the very beginning.

So many emotions reading this book. It made me cry, it made me angry. You hear about school shooting all the time, but living in Australia, we are quite removed from it as it doesn’t happen here. It saddens me that it happens anywhere, so many lives lost.

A school shooting in Brooklyn. Gemma Capello has a day off, a call from her brother changes all of that. There is a shooter at her nephew’s school, you bet she is going to do anything to get him out of there alive. Gemma is a negotiator, and a brilliant one at that.

I really got caught up in this story, on edge the whole time hoping for a good outcome. The author did a great job of telling the story of the shooters and the victims, along with all the first responders. You feel as if you are there, watching and waiting along with the characters.

This was my first book by this author, and although this is book 3 in a series, I had no trouble keeping up. I will certainly be looking out for more by Sara Driscoll and hunting down the first 2 books.

Thanks so much to Kensington Publishing for my advanced copy to read. Publishes on May 21st.

This book was crazy from the begining to the end I loved it. I mean the premise was rough, school shooting and all, but the writing was so good. I was rooting for everyone to make it out ok. I also really enjoyed the negotiation part of the book because you dont normally see that side. The author really did a wonderful job not making it super sad and gory with the actual shooting part but i really enjoyed it.

This is my first read of the author and wow was it intense. Let me start with this is about a school shooting and negotiating with the shooter. This will be a trigger for some, but it is so well done. There is a sensitivity to the presentation.

The shooting is personal for Gemma, an FBI negotiator, when she learns her nephew is unaccounted for. She never hesitates in jumping in and trying to help even though it is also the anniversary of her being held hostage and her mother’s death.

From the moment I picked this one up, I was absorbed in the shooting, the students, the school and the team trying to diffuse the situation. Gemma is such a relatable character and the situation created by the author is scary and complete. As the story unwinds, we learn of Gemma’s past, her family, the situation at the school and how and why it unfolded.

This is gripping, emotional and intense and I loved it from start to finish.

Whew! That was a rough one! It was a fantastic read! Both my boys went to stoneman Douglas in parkland! I Can literally see the school from my home! That was an awful petrifying scary day! as I sit here crying and remembering, this book also let me see more into what might have been going on in the school on that fateful day! It was a sad read but very informative! We all still go through so many emotions about that day! I highly recommend reading this book! It was a fantastic read! But definitely beware! It has triggers for some people! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

This was a strong third entry in the NYPD Negotiators series, it had everything that I wanted from the previous two books. It had that hostage element perfectly and thought the characters were supposed to in this world. Sara Driscoll has a great writing style and always does a great job in this.

A tough subject that is well handled. The emotional toll of the day ends with the family gathering to support each other.

When NYPD Negotiator Gemma Capello gets a call from one of her brothers about a shooting at the high school their nephew Sam attends, being-off duty isn't a consideration. Gemma arrives quickly to help wherever needed. Two shooters are both seniors at the school, and one had an agenda to kill as many as he can.

Following negotiators and tactical team members as they hunt for anything to bring this to a close with the fewest lives lost is intense and at the same time reassuring to understand how this all works. Identifying the shooter(s) and the victims, rescuing where possible, gathering the tiniest of details made this hard to put down.

Lockdown is book 3 in the series. I read it as a stand-alone and have now purchased books one (Exit Strategy) and two (Shot Caller) to spend more time with Gemma Capello and her family.

A parent's worst nightmare. One feels as if you are right there. This was a quick read as I couldn't put it down. Thanks to the publisher for providing a copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

A school shooting…a dedicated police officer…frightened children…a hostage situation…the setting is, of course, a school…keeping everyone safe is the goal. This reminds us of what can happen. From the beginning to the end…wondering what will happen… This talented author has written a cannot put down novel that reads like nonfiction…a great author…thanks Netgalley