In one of the countries of South America, in the vice-president's mansion, a magnificent reception is held in honor of the birthday of an influential Japanese businessman, Mr. Hosokawa. High-ranking guests from all over the world are fascinated by the special guest star, the legendary opera singer Roxanne Koss. Suddenly, the lights go out in the hall. Armed terrorists burst into the house and take both the singer and her listeners hostage.The story, which begins with universal horror in the face of seemingly imminent death, gradually turns into something completely different. A story about beauty and art. In the story of how mutual understanding, friendship and ... love are born between strangers who speak different languages and even between bandits and their captives. Neither the terrorists nor the hostages want to think about mortal danger anymore. But it threatens both.For the first time in Russian, the book was published in 2003 under the title "Hostages".