The kidnapping theme is set very well in the suspense or mystery trope. Though most authors use kidnapping as a fictional story, it is also based on true events. If you read any psycho-thriller book, you find this part in real life. In romance trope, kidnapping is famous, and you get to see the Stockholm syndrome where the victim falls in love with the captor. The crime genre is unfulfilled without kidnapping and action.
15 Books About Kidnapping
In the kidnapping story, the hero/villain/psycho kidnaps women and keeps their secret place that seems hunted. You will find abuse, torture, and sometimes romantic situations. All of these situations create much hype or excitement for the reader. I also like thriller books as excitement, so I read many. Now I will review my top favorite 15 books with a kidnapping theme. Let’s begin!
1. Little Secrets
This thriller follows a woman (Marin) who goes out to the marketplace with her young son. She loses track of him and quickly finds out that he has been kidnapped. She has video footage of him walking off with a man dressed as Santa Claus. Then the story fast forwards a year, and he is still missing. There are no active leads. The police have put this on the back burner.
So Marin has hired a private investigator to continue the investigation. She is in a tough spot herself, dealing with depression and even suicidal thoughts. However, she has hope when the private investigator contacts her, but it turns out it’s not about her son. Instead, the investigator lets her know that she has discovered that her husband has an affair. She has given that information about that woman. The story spirals because she becomes obsessed with other women, decides to take her down, and wants to end her life.
Jennifer Hillier is an author who is a person of color, so she does include characters of different ethnic backgrounds in all of her stories, and that was present here. Although it wasn’t so much as in her other books, you see some different racial backgrounds. I found myself struggling to believe what was happening, that a character is struggling with depression and suicide over her son.
There were some twists and turns. Her stories are always told from multiple perspectives, so the reader does get more insight into what’s happening.
Author: Jennifer Hillier
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Crime Thrillers, Suspense
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Library Binding | Kindle | Mass Market Paperback
2. Thirteen (Eddie Flynn)
It’s a crime thriller in the Eddie Flynn series, but by no means do you need to have read any of the others to get this story. It is very good as a standalone law/crime story. The story follows the serial killer, an absolute genius mastermind, and he plans everything with precision, and everything always goes right for him. He’s not the criminal you would get in real life, at least not very often, but it makes for a fun little read.
So he is a serial killer who kidnaps and kills people. Also, he frames other people for the murder, so he never gets caught up. Law enforcement doesn’t realize they’re even looking for a serial killer because all the methods of killing are so different. They’re all in different places. There’s nothing to link the victims, and there’s been a conviction for every single crime.
So Eddie Flynn is our hero of the story. He is a lawyer who used to be a bit dodgy himself, a bit of a con man in his past. He is quite a cool little character, very smart, cool, clever, not afraid to get his hands dirty. Eddie is left defending a famous client who has been framed for the murder of his wife and bodyguard. Also, he has to prove this guy’s innocence. But in a massive twist, the actual serial killer is on the jury.
Author: Steve Cavanagh
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Legal Thrillers
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Mass Market Paperback
3. 99 Red Balloons
This book tells the story of a little girl kidnapped and gone missing. Part of the story is told from the girl’s perspective, and part of it is told from the family left behind. It’s told in parallel with the story of a little girl who went missing about 30 years before. It’s very emotional in places, but it’s very good.
The characters are very believable, and you get very invested in them. One character who wasn’t even the main character died in it, but I cried. It’s a nice little book with very deep characters that you get very invested in, and you see them develop over the plot. You get very invested in what happened to both little girls who went missing.
Author: Elisabeth Carpenter
Average Customer Review: (4.1 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Police Procedural Mysteries, Crime Fiction
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
4. Long Way Down
This book is about a boy who is living in New York. There’s a lot of gang crime in the area, and his older brother has been kidnapped and gun-shot. He gets his brother’s old gun, and he’s trying to kill the guy who shot his brother. But as he gets into the lift of his building, he’s hit by a series of visitations from the ghosts who have been victims of gun crime.
This was such a little emotional roller coaster for me. It ends on a bit of a cliffhanger that makes you think about how gun crimes and gang crimes affect everyone. It is a damaging cycle of one person hurts a person who then hurts another person. How do so many innocent people get mixed up in it? Discover something amazing and unknown facts that you want to know.
Author: Jason Reynolds
Average Customer Review: (4.7 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Fiction on Family & Violence
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
5. His (Dark Romance)
This is a serial killer romance. Kat is working at a university, and Gav is one of those serial killers who kidnaps and kills bad people. SomehowKat is dared to kiss him, and then he drops a note, and she decides to follow him because she wants to get to know him more. But under the pretense of giving him back this note, she sees him killing and torturing somebody in his basement.
So in this basement, she gets caught, but Gav doesn’t want to kill her. Then he sexually brainwashes her not to report him. I find that to be very questionable. But it’s locked up in the basement and sexually teased, and there is some violence in here. So if a dark serial killer non-consent things happening to brainwash, if that sounds good to you, give it a shot.
Author: Aubrey Dark
Average Customer Review: (4.0 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Action & Adventure Erotica
Available: Kindle | Audio CD
6. Monster (Savages)
Breaker is hired to kidnap Alex, which he does all the time, but never women. He can’t get out of this one because of who hired him. So he’s not happy that he has to kidnap a woman. Then he sees the woman, and he’s not happy because he likes her and he’s there to kidnap her. So she doesn’t stay full on his prisoner very long because he’s not cool with this.
It is romantic suspense, and Breaker is a criminal who another criminal hires. They’re going to work to try and take down criminals while still being criminals. Alex is a hacker. It takes place in Investment Bank, where the mafia, the motorcycle club, the loan sharks, and the hail storm are a bunch of crazy mercenaries. Other criminal enterprises live in the town, and the cops are dirty. I enjoyed the twists and the takes on this type of mafia captor romance.
Author: Jessica Gadziala
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Romantic Suspense
Available: Paperback | Kindle
7. Little Dove
Nobody is surprised this is a captive captor. This is an age gap, daddy kink and Maximo are casino owners. It starts with him taking her (Juliet) against her will because he murdered her dad and witnessed it. Juliet is 17. When Maximo takes her, and he is her captor, he does keep her. Now he has a lot of staff, and nobody abuses her at all. Juliet is a captive, and she does escape.
So it goes from captive captor to a good relationship. When Juliet turns 18, he makes it abundantly clear that he wants her relationship. There’s no little play in this book. Maximo also clarifies that by being taken care of and having money, a place to live, and all the things she does not have to sleep with him to maintain, he will take care of her financially. Juliet won’t lose anything.
Author: Layla Frost
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Crime Action Fiction, Billionaire Romance
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle
8. Captive of the Horde King (Horde Kings of Dakkar)
This is an alien romance about Khal Drogo and Khaleesi. It’s the horde, and they’re tribesmen. So they ride horses, and it’s very Khal Drogo. Humans are sellers on this planet, but they are very restricted. One of the ways that they’re restricted is they can’t leave their villages, and they aren’t allowed to hunt. Hunting is for the Dakkari.
So Luna trades her life for her brothers, and she goes to be his concubine, except Arokan didn’t want her to be his concubine. Arokan wanted her to be his queen. Luna is the captive and doesn’t know their culture, and she knows of them because they rule the planet. As she tried to learn about it, did she try to understand? No, she goes around to find new people like Bubba. Wouldn’t your life be easier if you shut your mouth and try to learn, but the people you’re going to spend forever with? It happens a lot, and it gets on my nerves every time.
Author: Zoey Draven
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Multicultural & Interracial Romance, Thrillers & Suspense
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle
9. A Heart of Blood and Ashes (A Gathering of Dragons)
Yvenne is captive, and she knows a ton about it. She changes her ways quickly to fit with a value out of respect. The hero (Maddek) will annoy you. He is the giant warrior. So she’s been a captive of her father her whole life because the kingdom rightfully goes from mother to daughter, and her dad is a horrible person.
Yvenne is also very small and weak because of being kept in captivity her entire life. She is the smartest main character who is good at reading people. She has a ton to offer, and his need for revenge blinds Maddek because he believes that it is her fault that his parents were murdered. So he goes, kidnaps her, and wants to kill her. It’s slow-burn without feeling slow burn because there are so many interactions with them the entire way, and it’s a travel story.
Author: Milla Vane
Average Customer Review: (4.4 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Action & Adventure Romance
Available: Audiobook | Mass Market Paperback | Kindle | Audio CD
10. Stolen Heir (Brutal Birthright)
This is a Beauty and the Beast retelling, and it’s between Mikolaj and Nessa. Mikolaj is the boss of the Polish mob, and Nessa is the daughter of the Italian mafia. She is one of his children, but she is the most naive one. She wants to work for ballet, but she’s not a dancer. She does the choreography. The whole book is set in this very gothic mansion in there.
There’s so much to learn about the house and more about Mikolaj’s history. It’s tragic but doesn’t have that much of a sad feeling. Also, It was a slow burn when Mikolaj had kidnapped her, and they got together. Mikolaj was so crazy about her, and he wanted to protect her so much. It was a grumpy sunshine trope like Nessa is so happy and ballet dancing.
Author: Sophie Lark
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Kidnapping Crime Fiction
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle
11. Kidnapped by the Pirate
It’s about Hawk and Nathaniel. Nathaniel has been promised to marry a girl, and he’s traveling to see her. But his beau is invaded by pirates, so he’s kidnapped by the pirates. As for protection, he stays in the captain’s quarters. I loved Hawk so much because he didn’t want to be attracted to Nathaniel at all. He wanted to treat him as nobody. But slowly, he starts to get feelings from him.
Nathaniel is a virgin, and Hawk is 40, so he’s an experienced guy with his sexuality. The steamy scenes were so awesome. If you’re looking for a pirate romance that’s very light and steamy, then check this one. It’s a good kidnapping romance.
Author: Keira Andrews
Average Customer Review: (4.6 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Suspense & LGBT Romance
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
12. Ruthless King (Mount Trilogy)
This book is about the mafia boss (Lachlan Mount) of New Orleans. He controls everything that happens in that city has to go through him. He is obsessed with Kiera Kilgore, and her husband has died. Her husband left her with a huge debt, so he owns a lot of money to Lachlan.
Kiera works as the boss of the whiskey factory that her father left to her, but it’s still a very new business, so she’s not making a lot of profit from it. She doesn’t come up with the money, and she has to go with Lachlan. In this bad situation, Lachlan kidnaps her. This is very steamy and angsty. Their relationship, in the beginning, is very angsty, and no one wants to admit their feelings. Lachlan likes to give people this version of him that makes people fear him.
You also have to have respect and fear from other people to rule and be at the place he’s at right now. Lachlan thinks Kiera is going to be a toy to play with. She is very resistant, and she’s not afraid of him. The second and the third book are not as good as the first one.
Author: Meghan March
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Contemporary Women’s Fiction & Abuse
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle | Audio CD
13. The Bad Guy
Camille is committed, but it’s a very weak relationship. Sebastian is a very bad boyfriend. He wants to commit to her like he wants to live with her. But Camille thinks that he’s going too fast. The first time the hero, Sebastian, sees her at a party, he is very attracted to her and a psychopath. When they see something, they don’t measure their effort to get what they want. Sebastian takes her to dinner slowly seduces her to break up with her boyfriend.
Sebastian tricks her into thinking that she will go to Amazonia to explore the plants. Camille is a science teacher, but the thing is, when she’s going to the airport, she gets into a limo. He kidnaps her and takes her to his house in the middle of nowhere. He doesn’t feel bad for what he’s done because he’s a psychopath. There’s a little bit of angst, especially on her part.
Author: Celia Aaron
Average Customer Review: (4.5 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Psychological Literary Fiction, Kidnapping Crime Fiction
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle | Audio CD
14. The Bratva’s Baby (Wicked Doms)
It’s time for Kazimir to get a wife, and he finds Sadie. He’ll marry her from the first time she sees him. She thinks there’s something not wrong about him, but a little editorialize about him. Kazimir has to kidnap and punish Sadie because he has no choice. If he doesn’t do that, the other people from the mafia will.
When Sadie arrives in Russia, he has to show that she respects him or else he will be disrespected. Sadie is his submissive, so she’s in that type of phase that he has to discipline her. Some scenes were a little bit heavy. It was a short book that feels slightly longer for many things.
Author: Jane Henry
Average Customer Review: (4.3 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Multicultural & Interracial Romance
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle
15. Didn’t I Warn You? (Bad for You)
This book is about Haithem and Angelina. Angelina saw this guy had a coffee shop, and he’s cute. Then she bumps into him again, her workplace, and she’s confused. She thinks it’s a sign of life, and she will not lose another one. It’s dangerous to know more about him because Haithem is a dangerous guy who is part of the mafia.
Angelina finds out he’s living on the boat, and it’s not safe for her to know his location because there are some things he’s hiding from this technology. Haithem has a bunch of enemies trying to get that thing. Angelina goes to his boat, and she bumps her head and wakes up hours away from her Australian city.
In Sydney, this book starts, and Sadie tries to escape. But Haithem kidnaps her for his safety. Sometimes they had a bunch of these games. Moreover, there was a lot of touching during these games.
Author: Amber Bardan
Average Customer Review: (4.3 out of 5, on Amazon)
Category: Erotic Thrillers
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle | Audio CD
Read More Captor Books: 10 Books Like 365 Days
Table of Contents
