Book excerpt: Has the kidnapper been kidnapped? A mystery in the detective series known for “full-bodied characters, sharp dialogue, and rich humor” (Booklist). It’s February and Ontario is frozen—along with Benny Cooperman’s private investigation business. That is, until Muriel Falkirk knocks on Cooperman’s door. Her boyfriend, Johnny Rosa, is missing. A decade earlier, Rosa had been involved in the kidnapping of an heiress. He was sent to prison and the ransom money was never recovered—and now that he’s out on parole, he’s nowhere to be found. As it turns out, Cooperman isn’t the only one on his trail . . . From the Arthur Ellis Award-winning author of The Suicide Murders, this is a witty, compelling mystery “steadily enlivened by Engel’s unassuming style and the textured personality (a kind of Donald Lamm/Lew Archer amalgam with Jewish overtones) of likable Benny” (Kirkus Reviews). “Mr. Engel is a born writer, a natural stylist. This is a writer who can bring a character to life in a few lines.” —Ruth Rendell The Ransom Game is the second book in the Benny Cooperman Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.