A good distraction that would be a fab tv series

3.5 stars, not quite a 4, for me. 

Manhattan Down is exactly what it says on the tin - an action thriller about Manhattanites being put to sleep, along with all world leaders at the UN, by terrorists/climate activists. All excluding a notable few who are exempt owing to head trauma or insomnia. These include Nick Lockwood, police detective; Samantha Rossi, insomniac IT genius; Zoe, her daughter and Hank Kowalski, Marine veteran.

On the whole it was a great premise that delivered well thought through peril and consequences of a city whose inhabitants drop unconscious regardless of what they may be doing. There's a lot of tech jargon that came across as plausible and the sense of threat packed a hefty punch, at times. The characters we get know are all likeable but on a shallow level. Though there is backstory provided for each, they felt ever so flimsy and two dimensional. Quite a lot happens as we visit five banks in one night repeating the same sequence. That process could have been whittled down with a good edit. I did enjoy the arch of the story but it seemed slightly formulaic and foreseeable. Bad events occurring didn't cause much anxiety for the reader as there was always confidence it would all work out. A bit too safe. A lack of emotional investment on my part.

It would be ideal for this to be adapted for tv. In the right hands this could be amazing to watch and characters could become three dimensional in a way the book wasn't. On the whole, a good distraction that I wouldn't mind seeing occur in real life.