Kirkus
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A worthy idea is undercut by slapdash craftsmanship. The idea: What to do if, like manna, a big bundle of money drops down out of the blue into your lap'two million dollars, in Ryan Duffy's case; two hundred thousand, in Amy Parkens's. The hitch (there has to be one) is that the money Ryan finds in his daddy's attic may be tainted. In fact, his daddy tells him so: It was gotten through blackmail, he confesses, and then breathes his last before he can divulge the details. But, as Ryan learns, there's this safety-deposit box in Panama that promises to be . . . well, interesting. So off he goes, and there discovers that he now has to add another three million to his worrisome treasure chest; also that his father, at age 16, was convicted of rape'though no names are mentioned in the yellowing press clipping. Is that the nasty secret behind the blackmail caper? Regardless, before Ryan leaves Panama, he's victimized by the kind of sneakily orchestrated heist that convinces him other players are involved in this no-rule game. In the meantime, Amy's also bothered and bewildered by her windfall'sent to her anonymously, no explanation. She's the resourceful type, though, and a bit of sleuthing leads her to Ryan'and to the conclusion that the Duffy family and her own must have been connected at some point, in all likelihood dubiously. Having arranged to meet, Amy and Ryan are instantly smitten with each other. (It turns out, thank heaven, that whoever Ryan's dad did rape, it was not Amy's mom, which certainly would have put a crimp in the romance .) Several murders'and one bad beating'later, it becomes clear that Dad Duffy was indeed framed. What's never entirely understood (or plausible) is why his secret was worth five million. Twists for twists, many of them preposterous. But the real problem is, as always, Grippando's (The Abduction, 1998 etc.) people: So few are persuasive.