Douglas King has a king-sized problem. His chauffeur's son has been kidnapped. If he pays the ransom, it could ruin the greatest business deal of his life. If he doesn't pay it, the boys at the 87th Precinct could end up with a case of cold-blooded murder on their hands. . . .

Douglas King has a king-sized problem. His chauffeur's son has been kidnapped. If he pays the ransom, it could ruin the greatest business deal of his life. If he doesn't pay it, the boys at the 87th Precinct could end up with a case of cold-blooded murder on their hands. . . .

For a wealthy businessman, a kidnapping puts him in a predicament as troubling as any he has ever experienced. For Detective Steve Carella and the men at the 87th Precinct, their troubles are even worse. Their only hope is that he will play ball--at least long enough for them to catch the perps before the kidnapping turns into a homicide.

Ed McBain delivers another rapid-fire nail-biter in his 87th Precinct series with King's Ransom, a morally complex weaving of friendship, personal responsibility, and the nature of man hailed by the Daily Mirror "McBain spins the tightest tale in town...there's nobody who does it better." King's Ransom was made into the major motion picture High and Low by acclaimed director Akira Kurasawa.