About the Author

Shannon Kirk is a practicing attorney and a law professor. She attended West Virginia Wesleyan and St. Johns Universities, is a graduate of Suffolk Law School, and was a trial lawyer in Chicago prior to moving to Massachusetts. She has been honored three times by the Faulkner Society in the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, a physicist, and their son. Method 15/33 is her first novel.

Reviews

Method 15/33is crowded with fascinating characters -- even the spear carriers pop off the page -- but the standout is the kidnapped pregnant teenager. Her captors want her baby. Little do they know they've brought an insanely brilliant, angry, vengeful, borderline sociopath under their roof. Somebody's in big trouble... and it isn't the teenager. -- F. Paul Wilson, New York Times best-selling author of Santa Jack

Completely original and totally kick ass! Shannon Kirk pulls no punches in this adrenaline rush of a thriller where the victim is the one to watch, while the kidnappers learn to fear. Loved it! -- Lisa Gardner, New York Times best-selling author of Fear Nothing

What happens when infant traffickers kidnap the wrong pregnant teen?You get Method 15/33,a cross between The Lovely Bones and Silence of the Lambs.Shannon Kirk's debut thriller is a dark, literate page turner, utterly compelling.I read it in one sitting. -- Leonard Rosen, Award-winning author of All Cry Chaos and The Tenth Witness

Wow. Ridiculously good. Crazy good. Brilliantly heart-stoppingly nail-bitingly original, this is a true thriller tour de force. Shannon Kirk is an instant star. -- Hank Phillippi Ryan Agatha, Anthony and Mary Higgins Clark Award winning author of Truth be Told

Nietzsche warned us to beware of people with a strong desire to punish. That thought lingers after putting down this dark, disturbing, damnably readable novel...a worthy challenge, a joy to discuss, and a great pairing with John Katzenback's equally rivetingWhat Comes Next(2012). -- Booklist - Starred Review

Method 15/33by Shannon Kirk has an extraordinary plot as well as an extraordinary character in Lisa Yyland, although we do not know her name until way into thiscrazy goodbook...Her thoughts, as she explains what she hopes to do, will bewilder you at the same time that you realize you're pulling for her. Make sure you have some extra time as you start this unusual and suspenseful novel. It is darn hard to put down. The only thing I wish is that I could meet this intelligent young woman but I am sure she wouldn't want to meet me. Good, good book. Don't miss it. -- Bookloons.com

To summarize: this is just superb. One of the best thrillers I have read in years. It's fresh. The writing totally encapsulates you from the very beginning to the very end. It will sicken you. It will keep you on the edge of your seat. You will read with one eye closed and you will find some of it harrowing. You will be amazed at the strength of the characters and how they think of things you would never think of. This proves to me the imagination Shannon Kirk has and believe me, we will be hearing a lot more from this lady in the future. The highest possible recommendation and 5 stars. -- Nev Murray

"She is taken in a flash, thrown into the back of a van, tied up, and blindfolded. She is 16, pregnant, and in trouble. The room she is taken to is three floors upa farmhouse, perhaps? The man who kidnapped her comes in at precisely the same time three times a day to give her food. A doctor comes to check on the health of her baby, and once, a couple comes to be assured that their new babyher babywill be blue-eyed and healthy. She waits. She collects "assets," such as the handle from the bathroom bucket, a towel, or a blanket. She practices her escape and plans her revenge. Kirk's brilliantly executed novel alternates between the kidnapped girl and Special Agent Roger Liuthe detective assigned to find her. He and his partner slowly and methodically collect clues as they make their way to the remote hideaway. Meanwhile, the kidnapped girl is stuck in the room awaiting her certain death at the hands of the brutal man and his partners. But her brilliance is exceeded only by her ability to plan, calculate, observe, and wait. The abductors never have a chance as she orchestrates a conclusion that will leave readers satisfied and possibly unsettled. Readers wait with her as she ponders the right moment to make a move even as they suspect that it might not work. VERDICT Give this to teens who read Stephen King and other psychological thrillers, especially those with a penchant for dark and violent suspense." Connie Williams , Petaluma High School, CA - School Library Journal