In Ransom, Ann Hagedorn Auerbach explores two years in the high-stakes world of international kidnapping, beginning on July 4, 1995, when terrorists seized an American couple relaxing on the banks of a river in Kashmir.

Seamlessly moving between this story and others, Auerbach provides the first inside look at the highly secretive world of private industry kidnap negotiators, the little-known international role of the FBI, the explosive controversies over ransoms and negotiations, and the ordeals of hostages of the 1990s.

Exposing many never-before-reported facts culled from interviews worldwide, Auerbach shows how events in the post-Cold War era have compelled criminals, terrorists, former rebels, and even former soldiers to turn to kidnapping to make a living.