Product Description
Written by two officials of the European Parliament, this book guides the reader through the complexities of this multinational body. It describes the historical basis of the Parliament, how it operates, what its powers are, what political groups are represented, and how the Parliament can be expected to affect European countries and the European Community in the near future. The authors offer an inside view of the workings of the Parliament. The result is a topical guide to an institution rapidly growing in influence. ... Read more

Product Description
vgl. Hardcoverausgabe ... Read more

Product Description
A gripping tale of betrayal, murder, and redemption.

Detective Alisha Barba hadn't heard from her long lost friend Cate in years, but when she receives a frantic letter pleading for help, she knows she must see her. “They want to take my baby. You have to stop them,” Cate whispers to Alisha when they finally meet. Then, only hours later, Cate and her husband are fatally run down by a car.

At the crime scene, Alisha discovers the first in a series of complex and mysterious deceptions that will send her on a perilous search for the truth, from the dangerous streets of London's East End to the decadent glow of Amsterdam's red-light district. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Excellent thriller
I picked up this book based on the cover blurb, having never heard of the author.It turned out to be a treasure and I'm looking forward to tracking down Mr. Robotham's other books.He's an author to watch.

Alisha Barba is an unusual protagonist for a detective type thriller.She's a Sikh who happens to be a policewoman.The Night Ferry places her in a mystery from her own past, and Michal Robotham skillfully reveals Alisha's backstory a little at a time as she pursues arsonists and baby sellers.A really attractive aspect of Mr. Robotham's books is their recurring characters.They're all angst-ridden and flawed on the order of Rebus, but they're very appealing.

The Night Ferry has plenty of action, plenty of characters and several different story lines.Alisha's physical struggles, her difficulties balancing her life as a professional woman with her Sikh family and her non-Indian boyfriend, and her personal quest to avenge her friend Cate's death are interesting to read about.

Night Ferry is a cesspool disaster
Michael Robotham's Night Ferry starts out with an interesting main heroine, Ali Barba. I don't know anything about the Sikh people so I anticipated learning about their culture in a modern setting of London. Barba's external demure was contrasted nicely with her internal dialogue that made for some humorous situations. Unfortunately that is where this book ended. The author tries to shock value to make up for the lack of character development.

Barba's pregnant best friend, Cate, draws her into the plot with a cryptic message that someone is trying to steal her baby. It turns that Cate was lying to Barba, her husband and everyone.Cate is killed by a cab.Now Barba is on the case because of the murder and her effort to atone for sleeping with friend's father. Perhaps this is the only moral high point of this book. After that this book is just a picture of the cesspool of humanity which eventually slides down the toilet into the seamier side of Amsterdam.

Barba lies to other policemen, tries to work a deal with a possible murderer, manipulates her boyfriend, breaks into houses, and denigrates Cate`s family.She then goes to a family Sikh dinner where she attacks her Sikh heritage and makes her family seem stupid. She even happens to meet Cate's fertility doctor at her family's dinner. How believable is that! Now this quiet Sikh women flies off to Amsterdam to follow up on people who are selling babies, buying and selling immigrants, and impregnating teenage girls.There is a few gratuitous murders thrown in for good measure. Then we are treated to an endless description of Amsterdam's red light district and human suffering.

I ended up routing that the (heroine?) would get mugged while performing her incredibly intelligent? piece of detecting by putting up flyers all over the red light district.The main character has no morality and seems to learn nothing during the book.I admit I couldn't read anymore past the Amsterdam scene because I was just so disgusted. I won't even return this book to my used book store because I can't be mean enough to someone I don't know to let them read this piece of literary trash.

I contiune to enjoy robotham's work
a wonderful continuation in the series. intriguing characters and relevant plot. twists and turns that are an enjoyable ride and do not cause a whiplash. i'd recommend starting from the first in the series...i beliieve boomproof... as i have bounced from the middle to the end to the front... although i don't think that has hurt the individual novels because each novel is it's own story, own plot, newly addedcharacters. however i'm sure that in order there are events and nuances that are more poignant.

i also have read some of the series and listened to the audio books of others, and i much prefer reading because of the style of writing,native jargon, and fast pace derived from the short sentences.

highly recommend.

Stellar combination of....
fast pace, complex/original plot, rich characters and a lean writing style. This is quite a feat.All the other reviewers have it right and can provide you with more details

Haunting, heartbreaking and tragic deceptions
Detective Alisha Barba is trying to get her life back on track after almost being crippled by a murder suspect. She receives a desperate plea from an old school friend, Cate, who is eight months pregnant and in trouble. On the night they arrange to meet, Cate is run down by a car and Alisha discovers the first in a series of haunting and tragic deceptions.

Determined to uncover the truth, Alisha undertakes a dangerous journey that will take her from London to Amsterdam and involves a violent underworld of sex trafficking, people smuggling, slavery and exploitation.

A highly recommended thriller.I am looking forward to Mr Robotham's next novel ('Shatter') which is due in May 2008.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

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