How much is a life really worth?

Two football stars. One ruthless gang. And a hostage negotiator running out of time.

When two professional footballers are kidnapped, their clubs face an impossible demand: pay a huge ransom or risk never seeing their star players again.

That’s the plot of Storm Ransom, the third crime novel by Country Images writer Steve Orme.

Steve usually writes about basketball which featured in both his previous novels, Storm Bodies as well as Storm Deaths. But now he has turned to the world of football for the inspiration for Storm Ransom.

“I thought if I wrote about Derby County I’d be putting the noses of Nottingham Forest supporters out of joint. There’d be a similar reaction from Rams’ fans if I wrote about Forest.

“So I’ve got two players, one from Forest and the other from Derby. They’re big mates and hang out together when they’re not playing.

“But their ordeal becomes more stressful the longer they’re kept in captivity. It’s a situation they’ve never experienced before on or off the field.”

Just as in Steve’s previous books, the central character, Detective Inspector Miles Davies, is given the task of solving the crime. He has to find the footballers and get them released – before the kidnappers lose their patience and end the footballers’ careers.

“I’m grateful to a number of serving and former police officers who’ve given me so much information about the force,” says Steve. “One used to be a hostage negotiator who explained how a relative of someone who’d been abducted would react when the kidnappers called to make their ransom demand.”

Steve was anxious for everything to be authentic: “I don’t want anyone who’s in or used to be in the police to say ‘it wouldn’t happen like that’.

“I refer to the kidnapping as Miles Davies’ most difficult case to date. It was fascinating to write. I hope readers will find it just as engaging.”

Storm Ransom will be released on Monday 5th October. Copies can be ordered through Steve’s website, www.steveorme.co.uk. Alternatively  paperback and ebook versions are available through Amazon.