Product Description
Andrew Vachss returns with a mesmerizing novel about a hard-core thief who’s about to embark on a job that will alter his life forever.
 
Sugar is that rarest of commodities: an old-school professional thief, as tough and loyal as a pit bull, packing 255 pounds of muscle. When he’s picked out of a photo array in a vicious rape case, the cops find his apartment empty. A stakeout catches Sugar when he returns . . . carrying a loaded pistol. The sex-crime cops get nothing from their interrogation, but a streetwise detective figures out why Sugar offers no alibi: at the time of the rape, a holiday-weekend break-in job was being pulled at a jewelry store. The DA offers Sugar two options: give up his partners in the jewelry heist and walk, or plead to the rape he didn’t commit—and he’ll toss in the gun charge. For Sugar, that’s not two options; he takes the weight.
 
When Sugar finishes his time, his money is waiting for him, held by Solly, the mastermind behind the jewelry heist. But Solly tells Sugar that one of the heist crew was actually sent by another planner—and that planner has just died. In Sugar’s world, all loose threads must be cut. He suspects that there’s more to this job than what Solly is telling him. But nothing he suspects or imagines can prepare him for what he finds . . . ... Read more

Product Description
From the author of the acclaimed Burke series comes a sharply affecting new novel about a group of outcasts who undertake a “mission” to save a schizophrenic’s hidden treasure.
 
When his most beloved student dies as a result of what he believes to be his misguidance, Ho renounces his position as a revered sensei, abandons his dojo and all of his possessions, and embarks on a journey of atonement on the streets of New York City. Here a group of homeless men gather around him: Michael, a gambler who lost it all; Ranger, a psychotic Vietnam veteran; Lamont, an ex-con, poet, and alcoholic in that order; Target, a compulsive “clanger”; and Brewster, the keeper of a secret library in an abandoned inveterate building on the waterfront. When news hits that the building is slated for demolition, the group must subsume each individual’s demons into one shared goal: save Brewster's library, at all costs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

A Different Kind of Vachss Novel
I read my first book by Andrew Vachss when a friend of my wife's was giving away paperbacks he had read and no longer needed. That was Blossom, one of Vachss's "Burke Series". I was blown away by the raw violence and the gritty, street-level view of American city life. Across 2006 and 2007, I read 5 or 6 of the other books in the Burke series as I saw them at the library. Vachss, along with Neil Gaimin, helped me see the full range of what could be expressed with the written word.

Unfortunately, I was thinking "Burke" when I read Haiku.

There are some similarities: there is the street-level view of an American city, characters with a wide range of dark backgrounds fallen on hard times (or having chosen the street), and compassion and justice for people and situations that the middle and upper classes of America tend to not even see.

I enjoyed reading Haiku. But I'm not sure I really got it. Which could be because I was Braced for Burke, but I think there's more to it than that. Haiku is a much more subtle novel than any of the Burke books I've read. Burke books are about revenge, hard-edged street justice, usually involving robbery, assassination, or both (and more). There is violence in Haiku, but it's not the point. There is even a Burke-like robbing of a wannabe-pimp, but, again, that's not the point. The point, I think, of Haiku is about people finding themselves again (or maybe for the first time).

Vachss isn't at his storytelling best in Haiku, maybe because he was trying to not write just another Burke novel. There are some backstory/flashbacks near the beginning that could have been handled more deftly, I think. And the story itself seems to twist and turn, focusing on this, then that, almost like it's being blown back and forth as the novel continues. Maybe this is more of the subtlety that I wasn't prepared for...or maybe not.

In any case, Haiku is a good read. I like Vachss, and I like his view of the world. And it looks like I've got a good dozen or so books of his to catch up on...

-David

Trash...
This is one of those books, if you rate it "trash", the author and a few readers will say that you just don't get it. But anyway... Mr. Vachss hasn't managed to invent something new, he still writes his books the only way he can, just like the Burke novels he wore out with the concept and which have become more and more boring with each year: Short prose, interrupted sentences, no imagination in the settings, no real story to hook you (a white Rolls-Royce no one can find), all the psychologically and socially challenged characters (this time: bums and criminals) are "warriors" as well as the real good guys, they act on some twisted code of honor, always in search of themselves, and we, the majority of people out there are just "sheep" and ignorant. Throw in some pimps and hookers and a littel of thepseudo-Asian culture Vachss seems to like and admire so much, and you got a book that's disappointing, not in the least satisfying, not even worth mentioning (except when you return it to your bookstore) or thinking about, something to forget as soon as you throw it in the bin... just a waste of time and money! A book, even a novel, dealing with the lives and struggles of homeless, weak and sick human beings could change a lot, written by the right author... Mr. Vachss definitely is not that guy.

another excellent book by Vachss
Haiku, by Andrew Vachss (220 pgs., 2009).This is the author's 24th published book.It's not one of the eighteen in his series featuring Burke.This is his fourth stand alone full-length novel.In this novel, Vachss delves into the world of the invisible homeless.He gives a small group of them faces & names & individual identities.The leader of this small group is a Japanese born American now called Ho, by his friends.He used to be a member of a temple in Japan & after WWII he was brought to the U.S. to run a martial arts school & became famous & arrogant.He ran away from his arrogance when a prize pupil was killed.He eventually became the leader, against his will, of a small group of homeless men made up of a Vietnam Vet, a fallen Wall Street Trader, a schizophrenic, a former Latin Gang Leader/Poet, & a seemingly autistic idiot savant.They become a family.How they function & how Ho helps them all find their way out of homelessness, at least for most of them, is what this book is about.There is love.There is violence.There is loyalty.There is hope.There is idealism.There is humility.
This is another excellent book by Vachss.

kshatriya voice
In the Burke series Vachss spoke out the inner voice of the warrior, with the spirit of the warrior caste of Shakyamuni, the kshatriya.Here we have a different character who clearly comes from the same caste and spirit.

This work stands alone from the Burke series as its own complete unit.A commercially successful fiction series is a rarity in itself; when a writer can follow up a completed series publishing a competent work thereafter, its extremely rare in turn.So, we can't resist comparing this book to the series, nonetheless, both in style and content.

The content of this work edifies the reader.It captivates.Beyond captivation, it educates concerning homelessness and mental illness.When I heard the author say on youtube that he had put down the Burke rifle and was picking up a new weapon, but the target remained the same, I wondered exactly what the target was.In this book part of that unanswered question is revealed and we are left wondering what else the author will explore in future works.Completing this book I felt a sense of thankfulness for Vachss' work and my own opportunity to read it.

If there is a flaw, then perhaps that the sparseness of Vachss writing style has been cut too far to the bone.We need description of physical detail in writing, and for his brevity I have never seen Vachss short it.Yet, at times I felt this book gave too little detail of the scene, setting, what the characters wore, what they phsically did, what things looked or sounded or smelled like.What detail was there was pertinent and well stated but too scarce.If the book were a boxer one might say it won the match though underweight.I want to qualify this criticism by saying that nevertheless I much prefer the economy of Vachass to the bloviating logorrhea of much what ones reads today.At the accomplished level of writing, better too few words than too many.

Finally I can't help remembering the voice of Don Juan of Carlos Castenada's series in the narrator's chastisement of himself;I wonder if others heard this as well?I also heard a few of my own sensei, all of whom I recall with affection and sense of humility over my own faults.At all levels from physical culture to life choices, though, in this work Vachss speaks authentically to us with the voice and discipline of the kshatriya.

This Excellent Book
If you have a hit, of any kind, the easiest and most tempting thing to do would probably be to stick with it.This would especially be true if your audience regularly begged you to do it.

The braver - and thus, more painful - path to take would involve change.Honesty.Introspection.

Andrew Vachss, the author, could easily have done the former.But he's never depended on only one weapon while waging his holy war, and frankly he's too good at writing to confine himself to one popular character or series.

So what does one do when they've been entrusted with the loyalty of a group in need of leadership?Perhaps an especially vulnerable group, where the slightest misstep can have a disproportionately high cost?

This is the question facing Ho, the narrator, as he begins a journey of what he hopes will be redemption for one such misstep.Despite his protestations, Ho is constantly drawn into a leadership role, his wisdom and knowledge merely assumed in most cases.

No one is more aware of this than Ho himself; his constant self-examination is full of disdain and frustration at how easily he meets the very low expectations of those seeking his guidance.But bad habits cannot simply be willed away; and Ho is forced into action in a bid to finally achieve the true atonement he desires.

Through Ho, Vachss employs a gentle, almost formal tone.Its surprisingly effective at conveying the pain and despair of Ho and his fellow wanderers.The depiction of Ho's companions is deceptively simple, but the layers are there, from the seemingly random exclamations of Target to the connection between Michael and Ranger.

Two things seem to be true of Vachss:that he has been routinely underestimated throughout his career; and that he has always proven his detractors wrong.The same, no doubt, will be true with this excellent book.

... Read more

Product Description
In this blistering conclusion to the nationally bestselling series, Burke is forced into a journey that will change the lives of the urban survivalist and his outlaw family forever.

The only person Burke has ever called father, known throughout the underground as “The Prof,” is in a coma, barely clinging to life in an off the-books hospital. So when Pryce, a slippery man with government connections, offers the best medical services for the Prof and a clean slate for all concerned, Burke takes the contract without reading it. The two-year-old son of a Saudi prince has been kidnapped. A highly professional snatch; no mistakes, no clues, and no ransom note. Burke’s job: get the kid back, whatever it takes. To do so, the ultimate man-for-hire must return to the day “Baby Boy Burke” was written on his birth certificate, and write, in the blood of his enemies, the final act of this story.Amazon.com Review
Book Description
In this blistering new novel, Burke ("lord of the Asphalt Jungle"–-The Washington Post Book World) is forced into a journey that will change the lives of the urban survivalist and his outlaw family ... forever.

The only person Burke has ever called "father," a legendary crime planner known throughout the underworld as the Prof, is in a coma, barely clinging to life in the off-the-books hospital where the crew stashed him after their last job went off the rails. So when Pryce, a shadow-man with deep (and very dark) government connections, offers a package–Presidential-grade medical services for the Prof and a wiped-clean slate for everyone who participates–Burke signs the contract without reading it.

The two-year-old son of a Saudi prince has been kidnapped. A highly professional snatch: no errors, no forensics ... and no ransom note. Burke's job: get the kid back. Whatever it costs, whatever it takes. Pryce came to Burke because the profile concluded this was the work of a pedophile ring. But after Burke turns over every rock and comes up empty in his hunt for maggots, the ultimate man-for-hire must return to the day "Baby Boy Burke" was written on his birth certificate to conduct the one interrogation that could possible save this child and write, in the blood of his enemies, the final act of his life story.

Customer Reviews (29)

I have always looked forward to reading about Burke & his family
Another Life, by Andrew Vachss (280 pgs., 2008).This is the eighteenth novel in the suspense series featuring Burke.It's the twenty-third book published by Vachss.I've read them all.Vachss is a darker version of Robert B. Parker.Parker deals with outlaws working both sides of the law & often helping the hero accomplish good things.Vachss' outlaws are always outlaws.Even Burke is an outlaw, something which doesn't occur in Parker's series.Spenser, Sunny Randall & Jesse Stone are all flawed characters, but none are active outlaws.Burke is.His pals are the same as he is.Rather, his "family" is the same as he is.
In his other job as a lawyer, Vachss deals with the dark side of child abuse, child abduction & child pornography cases.This may color his novels.They are very dark.Burke does whatever is needed to help children.Rarely, does he do good deeds for any other reason.In this novel, he works with a shadowy government operative to help his "family" come out of the shadows & live normal lives with normal paperwork attesting to their legal identities & marriages & sons & daughters.
He is told he has to find & rescue the abducted two-year old son of a Saudi Arabian Prince.Burke delves into all the darkest recesses of his life to do this.Eventually, he digs up the truth.It's an ugly truth.It's one of many ugly truths dug up by Burke.Burke needs to do all these things to save his "family" & save the life of his "father," the Professor (who took Burke under his wing while both were in prison).Vachss writing style is perfectly suited to his dark noir books.I have always looked forward to opening the pages of a new Vachss novel featuring Burke & his family.I will look forward to the next novel published by Vachss.

A sad but fitting goodbye to Burke et al
It's not the very best of the Burke-novels, but it ends in a fitting way and lives up to the usual high standards. It feels a bit sad to say goodbye to the best crimeseries ever written in my opinion. I can only hope Andrew Vachss continues creating new fascinating characters and gripping intrigues. Bye Burke, long live Vachss.

A contractual obligation?
Maybe a bit harsh, but my impression was this was a book that had to be written quickly before the author could move on. It may also be that the "book" I had in my head for Burke's last outing was so different.

A number of pivotal characters in Burke's past are very conspicuous by their absence. Little set pieces that are not plot driven but familiar to all Burke fans were also missing...no card games with Max, no bets on the trotting. Even Burke's relationship with a new dog is glossed over and made irrelevant and unbelievable.

I am glad that most reviewers found the book to be 5-star but I'll stick with my version. If Mr Vachss gives me permission I might even write it!

In the meantime I'm going back to Flood to read through the series again.

I have every Vachss book written
and some are better than others, but all advance the story of Burke and his "family". Since the beginning I've been fascinated by Vachss' spartan writing style and will frequently back up and reread a section just to savor the words. Go back and pick up all his books and read them from the beginning. These are on my "desert island" shelf of books to read again and again.

Spectacular finale!
The only problem with this novel is that it's the last of the series! Burke faces two final mysteries -- the first, a kidnapping involving an infant, the Israeli secret service, and a Saudi prince. The second is the murky history of Burke's own birth. I loved this series, this journey, from beginning to end; if you haven't picked it up yet, then jump right in! Andrew Vachss' Burke novels always speak from the heart, and always spoke to my secret, vengeful soul. ... Read more

Product Description
School bullying is universally decried, bemoaned, and condemned. And on the rise. Whether it's a teenager committing suicide as a result of a Facebook posting or a group of schoolchildren taunting another child with autism and filming it for the "entertainment" of others, the longest-lasting, deepest-scarring impact of bullying is emotional, not physical. Failure to understand this has handicapped an already-insipid series of failed "solutions." Heart Transplant is aimed at actually changing the way we deal with perhaps the most critical issue for children and parents alike today. To accomplish this mission, an entirely new genre was created. Neither a graphic novel nor a self-help book, it uses elements of both to reach parents and children alike. The intermingling of word and art is achieved so smoothly that it is experienced as one does words-and-music: you may forget the lyrics and hum the tune, but that very act evokes the lyrics. And if it's the lyrics that stick with you, you'll find yourself humming the tune. The anchoring essay (by clinical social worker Zak Mucha) explains in prose detail what the reader has just experienced. This book will be shelved under "Parenting" and  "Young Adult." Why? Because there is no "Bullying" section in any bookstore. And if Heart Transplant hits either  target, it will hit both. Nothing like this has ever been tried before. But if it works, the high risk will be rewarded by the greatest prize of all. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

HEART TRANSPLANT - MAKING BULLIES PAY THE PRICE
HEART TRANSPLANT is a uniquely conceived book --- impactful in its prose, visually stunning by virtue of the accompanying illustrations. It's not a straight novel or graphic novel or self-help book, yet elements of all three are combined into the final product. The result has been likened to the words-and-music of a song. The lyrics may be memorable in and of themselves; the tune may be memorable in and of itself --- together they unify to create something even MORE lasting. In this case it is a collaboration of words and illustrations brought together to create an enduring work that addresses one of the biggest problems in our world today: Bullying.

The storyline of HEART TRANSPLANT, as penned by Andrew Vachss, is the tale of Sean, one of the "invisible" children who are noticed only when someone seeks to abuse them in some way. As Sean puts it (in the first-person narrative): "Kids like me ... The only time anyone ever saw us was when they needed someone to make themselves look big. By making us look small."

As the story unfolds, Sean is rescued from this invisible, small-seeming existence when his "parents" (his mother is a fat, lazy, neglectful drunk and his "Daddy"-of-the-moment is a physically abusive lout mooching off her welfare checks and dabbling in petty crime) are murdered, and the boy is taken in by his grandfather. The crusty old Irishman --- Paddy, or "Pops" as Sean comes to call him --- quickly spots the lad's scars and insecurities. But he also recognizes Sean's intelligence and strong heart, something no one else ever took the time to notice. Paddy then opens up his own great heart and begins to impart to the boy his simple wisdom in ways that will eventually draw Sean out of his shadows and help him to realize the strengths about himself that Paddy already knows. Paramount in this teaching is a lesson to Sean about the need to be willing to pay the cost of confronting the kind of bullies who've belittled him all his life and make them understand that they, too, will pay a price EVERY TIME from now on should they attempt to continue.

In the end, looking back as a young man after Paddy has passed on, Sean comes to the full realization of how valuable the old man's lessons, and moreover his love, truly were. When the doctor tries to explain to Sean that Paddy had been suffering from a variety of ailments near the end until finally his heart failed, Sean replies: "you write whatever you want on that paper of yours ... But it wasn't his heart that gave out. It would never be his heart."

The story tht lawyer/best-selling crime novelist Vachss weaves here is basic and straightforward, yet nonetheless immensely powerful. Some may see this as a departure for Vachss, but it really is not. HEART TRANSPLANT is a perfect companion piece to his earlier book, ANOTHER CHANCE TO GET IT RIGHT, and the theme of combating abuses against the young and the weak has become the focal point of Vachss's life work.

The illustrations by Frank Caruso --- renowned cartoonist and VP of Creative Services for King Features --- beautifully amplify the moods and message of the prose. And an anchoring essay at the close of the book --- by Zak Mucha, clinical social worker and supervisor of Chicago's Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program --- adds an insightful overview.

HEART TRANSPLANT is an important work that should be available in every local library and middle school library across the land and should be read and discussed by families everywhere. ... Read more

Product Description
Burke’s newest client is a woman named Flood, who has the face of an angel, the body of a high-priced stripper, and the skills of a professional executioner. She wants Burke to find a monster for her — so she can kill him with her bare hands.

In this cauterizing thriller, Andrew Vachss’s renegade private eye teams up with a lethally gifted avenger to follow a child’s murderer through the catacombs of New York, where every alley is blind and the penthouses are as dangerous as the basements. Fearfully knowing, crackling with narrative tension, and written in prose as forceful as a hollow-point slug, Flood is Burke at his deadliest — and Vachss at the peak of his form.

“An extraordinary thriller. . . . Vachss never flinches from the horror.” — Washington Post Book World

“Burke would eat Spade and Marlowe for breakfast, not even spitting out the bones. [He] is one tough, mean, pray-God-you-don’t-meet-him hombre.” — Boston HeraldAmazon.com Review
Book Description
In Vachss's acclaimed first novel, we are introduced to Burke, the avenging angel of abused children. Burke's client is a woman named Flood, who has the face of an angel, the body of a high-priced stripper, and the skills of a professional executioner. She wants Burke to find a monster -- so she can kill him with her bare hands. In this cauterizing thriller, Andrew Vachss's renegade private eye teams up with a lethally gifted vigilante to follow a child's murderer through the catacombs of New York, where every alley is a setup for a mugging and every tenement has something rotten in the basement. Fearfully knowing, buzzing with narrative tension, and written in prose as forceful as a hollow-point bullet, Flood is Burke at his deadliest -- and Vachss at the peak of his form.

An Interview with Andrew Vachss on Another Life, the Final Book in the Burke Series

Q:There has been some discussion that this might be the last novel in the Burke series. Do you see it that way? And if so, why?

Andrew Vachss: I don't just "see" it that way, I wrote it that way. Another Life is the coda to the Burke novels, the final chapter in a series that has been running since 1985. The timing was no accident. If I was to keep faith to those who gone the distance with me, I had to be true to my original promise: unlike some series in which the protagonist never ages, I set out to have each book show the main characters not only aging, but changing as well. Even dying. This series is all about "Family of Choice." All the members of Burke's family share this truth: The most righteous of parents don't want their children to "follow in their footsteps," they want their children to walk past those footsteps. Burke's family have always walked the outlaw road, and can never walk another. But as the children reach adulthood, it is the family's blood obligation to fork that road for them. And that time has now come.

Q:This is the 18th volume in the Burke series. How has the series changed? How have the issues you address in the novels changed over the years?

AV:I am not sure the series has changed... because all the changes depicted throughout have been part of the original concept. Of all of the descriptions of my books, Sonny Mehta dubbing them "investigative novels" is the one I am proudest of, because I wanted the books to be Trojan horses, a platform from which I could show people a world known only to the "Children of The Secret." I didn't know there was a name for such an intent until I won the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière and a French reporter told me the Burke series was "littérature engageé." My goal was not to raise consciousness, but to raise anger. Ours is a country where anything can be accomplished if enough people get angry... because, in America, we act on our collective anger. If you want proof of how that works, just take a look at how New York State finally closed the hated (and virtually unknown) “incest exception.”When I first wrote about predatory pedophiles modem-trafficking in kiddie porn, reviewers condemned the book as a product of my "sick imagination." Who would say that today? Time and time again what I have written about has "come true." This is not because I am prescient, it is that my work takes me places most citizens never see. So the issues never really change, but as more and more folks become aware of the foundational truth in my "fiction," those issues no longer flourish in the shadows. Years after the series launched, enough folks focused their rage at how children are seen as property in America to form the first PAC (Political Action Committee) solely devoted to child protection.Anyone who says "books don't change anything," or--more commonly--that crime fiction is the wrong genre for promoting social change--should take a closer look.

Q:Burke has a very close family of choice. What drew these people together, and what do you see is the future for them, beyond the series?

AV:It would be easy to say that everyone in Burke's family was a "Child of The Secret," but that would not be true. What they have most powerfully in common is a marrow-deep hatred of humans who prey on children. The rest of the question is actually answered within the book itself, and I'm not a fan of "spoilers."

Q: Over the years, you're consistently ahead of the curve in terms of spotting cultural, political, and criminal trends before they become headlines. How are you constantly able to do this? And is there anything in this new novel that you think is likely to be in tomorrow's headlines?

AV:It's no great trick to spot things you see with your own eyes, which is why I wrote about predatory pedophiles deliberately seeking work in day care centers, or organ trafficking, or cults practicing "baby-breeding"... it's a long list. Most folks had never even heard the word "piquerist" before my novel on the subject. And although it looks as if I "predicted" the use of the Internet to lure children, or what I called "noir vérité," etc., I was functioning far more as journalist than a novelist when I wrote about such things. Burke has two extraordinary skills which set him apart from his contemporaries: the "pattern-recognition software" inside his mind, and his ability to extract information. Another Life is going to showcase both of those skills far more than any previous book. As for "tomorrow's headlines," you have to remember that I wrote the book over a year ago... so some have already surfaced. Ask my scalpel-penciled editor--Edward Kastenmeier--if you doubt my word. Many times we have had to alter a manuscript because what I was "predicting" had just come to pass. I don't know how long it is going to take for some of the truth revealed in Another Life to reach public consciousness. It may be "tomorrow's headlines"... or it may be another year or two. But if you look at my track record, you'll know where to put your money down.

Customer Reviews (50)

Perhaps the best novel in the Burke saga.
This novel is excellent from the first word to the last. Burke is one of the best first person narrator's in modern fiction.The anti-hero is not new, but Vachss takes Burke's character to the next level--and perhaps the best ever. Burke is tough,reminiscent of Raymond Chandler's characters, but has the most tender heart imaginable for the most vulnerable of our treasures: children.Burke is relentless, and so is Vachss.Read Flood, and then you'll have to read the rest of the Burke novels--like Burke protects children of the secret.

This is the one that started it all
I read this book when it first came out some years ago.I recently reread it and it lost none of it's impact.Gritty and exciting, it introduces Burke, a truely original character in the the hard-boiled detective genre, as well as Pansy, Max, Prof, Mole and Michelle. I have read all the Burke novels and enjoyed everyone.This series is highly recommended.

A fine mystery and thriller
Andrew Vachss' FLOOD receives Christopher Lane's smooth narration and background as an award-winning audio reader as it tells of a woman named Flood who wants Burke to find a monster for her - so she can kill him herself. A fine mystery and thriller evolves.

BabyBoyBurke/HardBoiled
I admit it,I am a huge mystery/police/detective genre fan.I have met along the way (and liked) Harry Bosch, Spenser, Lucas Davenport, Lincoln Perry, Elvis Cole, Smokey Barrett, Jonathan Stride, Bill Tasker and Alex Durate, Ray Dudgeon, even Jack Reacher, Myron Bolitar, Doc Ford, Elizibeth Waring and Patrick Bowers, plus I guess there are others.If you too are in my pool, try Andrew Vachss for something different.FLOODstarts the Burke series(always read them in order).Burke, one name, see the birth certificate, is hard boiled action and adventure in the under belly of New York, down and dirty.Burke and his crew, Mama, Max the Silent, the Prof and others, help situations.He is an ex-con and cannot be licensed to investigate, but there is so much more than investigating here.Funny too, a reoccurring theme against child molesters and a favoritism to dogs is very different. Wait till you meet Pansy.Vachss in the real world in a child advocate lawyer and his wife a prosecutor against sex crimes, this ads so much realism to these gutsy stories. If you like things on the dark side, try FLOOD and get hooked to Burke.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

A SIZZLING THRILLER TO HEAT THESE COLD DAYS
Amazing when you think that this iconic thriller was first written some 25 years ago.Since then there have been a number of copycats who have tried to imitate Vachss's tough guy narrative or replicate the jaw-dropping cast of characters who dwell in hero Burke's netherworld, but it can't be done.Vachss set the pace when he introduced his quixotic hero, a guy with a record and standards he's set for himself.Burke is a street wise (or more accurately dark alley wise) misfit who takes on cases that baffle the police.

A gorgeous gal named Flood comes to him asking for help in finding a child killer soas she delicately puts it she"can kill him with her bare hands."The search is on through some of the most dangerous places in New York City and among the lowest of the lowlifes, the desperate depraved denizens of the City.However, while police and other private eyes would be put off by the likes of these, they're people Burke knows and understands.

Vachss writes in a gripping almost staccato style, which is the way actor Christopher Lane narrates the story.It's a task to take on the voices of not only Burke but also his crew of pals, such as a panhandler dubbed the Prof and a genius in electronic who dwells under a pile of junked cars.

If you want a sizzling thriller to heat these cold days, FLOOD is for you.

- Gail Cooke ... Read more

Product Description
Andrew Vachss's implacable private eye has a new client, Strega. She wants Burke to find an obscene photograph—and that search will take him into the ocean that flows just beneath the city, an ocean whose currents are flesh and money, the anguish of children and the pleasure of twisted adults. It is a place that Burke can visit only at the risk of his sanity and his life. But between the power of Strega and his own sense of justice, there is no turning back.

In Strega one of our most acclaimed crime writers gives us a thriller that might have been imagined by Dante. For this is a tour of hell with no stops left out, conducted by a novelist who writes with the authority of the damned. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

A bad attempt at fantasy
One of the other reviewers aptly observed that "Vachss flirts with the risk of undermining his credibility" with the over-the top character portrayals in Strega.

I'd go a little further than that.I'd say that these characters and what they do are too inane to be believed, even in a fiction.

I thought the characters and plot-lines introduced in Flood were really well done and I looked forward to a continuation of that quality of writing in Strega.Unfortunately what I read in Strega sounded more like The King of Hearts, noir style.I kept wondering when the attendants in white coats would appear and tell everyone that fantasy playtime was over and it was time to go back to the psychiatric ward.

I'm just getting started with the Burke series and am still hopeful that some of the things Vachss did with Flood will reappear in the next few books.In fact, if the next entry, Blue Belle, is anything like Strega I'll probably bail on the series right there.

That would be too bad.I appreciate and respect the things Vachss has done in support of abused kids, and I can well understand why he would want to give voice to his agenda in the Burke series.Obviously it's a voice that needs to be heard and Flood was a good platform for it.Unfortunately Strega sounds less like a voice and more like schizophrenic ramblings.

Now at the risk of undermining my own credibility (if it's possible to undermine nothing) I have to break stride here and make an ugly observation about Strega's character.I've struggled to avoid saying this but I just can't resist.

I found Strega's character "too hard to swallow."

Sorry, Andrew.It needed to be done.

UpRight Ape

Great follow up to Flood
This second of the Burke novels introduces us to the witch Strega, ok maybe she is not really a witch but she certainly has witch-like qualites and she needs Burke's help.Once again we are drawn into the gritty underworld inhabited by Burke his loyal dog Pansy and the rest of his "family".Hard bitten crime-noir at it's best.

Brutal look at an ugly world
It's been years since I read any of Vachss' Burke series and picked up STREGA with a memory of a brutal and unblinking look at a rather nasty side of the criminal world, child pornography. There is a definite sense of pure unadulterated evil when Vachss brings Burke into battle against this most heinous of criminal. Burke, a tarnished white knight, becomes an avenger when confronted with the vile corruption of a young boy and takes at first reluctant, then enraged aim at those who prey on the innocent. Having in place the conceits of many crime series, some eclectic partners and a hard-boiled persona camouflaging a soft heart, Vachss separates Burke from the others with a real feel for the rage of the character and the violence of his world. Burke's world is very dark and I think some distance has added to my appreciation for what Vachss accomplishes here, but I wonder how many times you'll want to follow Burke down this particularly dark alley.

THE WITCH
STREGA can be translated, it means a witch and this mob connected woman comes to Burke for help getting a picture bgack.With his crew of effective misfits, Mama, Max the Silent, the Mole, Immaculata and Michelle he take revenge against the child pornagrapher bad guys.Burke book are about the seamier side of New Yok, dark and dangerous.Read the first one, FLOOD, and then jump in here.Highly Recommended

Vachss takes us into a world that Hammett, Chandler, and Spillane never dreamed of.
This is the 2nd time I've read STREGA, first time being several years ago.I don't believe I would want to live in his world, but I do have a morbid fascination with it. I don't think I would want to have characters like Mama, Michelle, Mole, Prof, and Burke himself in my world.Heck, I wouldn't even want a dog like Pansy.Yet, I love visiting them in these novels.Nor do I believe I would honestly want to know Flood or Strega, much less have intimate encounters with them, and yet I find myself dreaming of them.The plot has Burke again on the track of a child pornographer and even on the 2nd living, I lived and breathed for the final encounter. This is a world of sleaze, but it also is a deep insight into the world we are a part of.Read this, do read this, but only if you are prepared to stomach a few hours in this world. ... Read more

Product Description
In this mercilessly compelling thriller, Burke—the private eye, sting artist, and occasional hit man who metes out a cruelly ingenious vengeance on those who victimize children—is up against a soft-spoken messiah, who may be rescuing runaways or recruiting them for his own hideous purposes. But in doing so Burke becomes a target for an entire Mafia family, a whore with a heart of cyanide, and a contract killer as implacable as a heat-seeking missile. Written with Vachss's signature narrative overdrive—and his unnerving familiarity with the sub-basement of American crime—Hard Candy is vintage Burke. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

BURKE # 4A GOOD ONE
HARD CANDY is one of Vachss best books.Candy a high priced call girl comes to Burke, a detective without a license to get her daughter back from a cult.Then throw in hard feelings with assassin Wesley, the mob, NYC's hard streets and violent, nasty underbelly and the reader gets quite and adventure. Burke's running buddies are back, but not as much as some of the other books, Max the Silent his muscle, transvestite Michelle, the Prof, the Mole, and of course Mama. The theme of violence against child abusers and molesters is again the theme.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. Read Vachss in order!This is only book four.

Great noir literature, but do read the first three in the series before tackling this one.
HARD CANDY is so much of a continuation of BLUE BELLE one truly needs to read the earlier novel first. Even better, just start with FLOOD and STREGA. This way, you have the full impact of how Burke is affected by the four title women.This fourth novel emphasizes the individuality of each title character and explains the change in Burke who is in some ways a broken man after the events in BLUE BELLE.However, the series is a big no no for those of weak heart and/or stomach.

Another Winner From Vachss
This is a good page-turner.It follows his earlier books: Flood, Strega, and Blue Belle.It would definitely benefit the reader to have read these three earlier books to understand 'Hard Candy'.

The same wonderful characters appear - - Max the Silent, Mama, the Prof, the mole, Michelle, and of course, Burke.Burke lives on the outside fringes of society, not of of its 'citizens'.He's again caught up in protecting children from sexual predators and dealing with a wide case of wierdos and freaks.

I'm a Vachss fan and I highly recommend his books.

Cults, Child Abduction, Revenge
This is a Burke novel with plenty of turns and surprises.Burke, the ex-con, criminal, gambler, scam artist, private eye gets approached to find the missing daughter of a high class call girl.The trail takes him to a martial artist, Train, who runs a cult full of runaway children.In the mean time, Burke must assist a contract killing to resolve an old debt to a friend and a old gangster.While he tracks down the missing teenager, he has to avoid becoming a target himself.Typical Burke, though always has plans and backup plans to protect himself and his adopted family.It is an insightful story of child use and abuse, cults and molestation, assassination, prostitution, loyal friendship and Burke's known ability to deal out righteous revenge.

Doug Setter, Bsc. author of One Less Victim: A Prevention Guide and Stomach Flattening

Grim and good
If you want to read a feel-good story filled with light humor and zany problems, Andrew Vachss is not the way to go.His series of novels featuring tough guy Burke are, to say the least, grimly hard-boiled, but sometimes it's good to see the dark side of things.Hard Candy, the fourth novel in the series, is as sordid as Vachss's previous books and is, for those who like this sort of stuff, it is quite entertaining.

Hard Candy is clearly a sequel to the previous novel, Blue Belle, and I would not suggest going into this book without having read its predecessor (if you haven't read Blue Belle, don't continue reading this review, as it will have spoilers).The events of Blue Belle have thrown Burke into a state of depression; all his usual pleasures - sex, gambling, ripping off "freaks" - are unappealing to him.Revenge, however, still drives him.

In Blue Belle, Burke killed the vicious Mortay, but he was unaware that Mortay was also targeted for a hit by the Mob.The local don had hired an assassin named Wesley to do the job, but since it was Burke who did the kill, the don refused to pay.This had led Wesley on a vendetta against the Mob, and Wesley is very good at what he does.Burke gets caught in the middle and is also targeted by the Mob.This leads to an alliance of sorts with Wesley, a man Burke has known since childhood and who was for a time, Burke's idol.

Meanwhile, another childhood acquaintance, a cold-as-ice hooker named Candy, has recruited Burke to retrieve her daughter Elvira from the custody of Train.Train seems to be a force of good, taking in runaways and becoming a sort of cult leader to them.Burke senses something else, however, and Train is also a target for Wesley.

Unlike earlier novels, the other members of Burke's "family" have relatively limited appearances with the exception of his "brother", Silent Max.For as much as anything, this book deals with the bond between the two, a bond that was hurt because of the events of Blue Belle.Burke's attempts to fix things with Max and fix his own soul in the process are the real focus of this book.

When depicting his dark version of New York and its denizens, Vachss often walks a fine line between grimness and absurdity.There is something rather surreal about Burke's world, and at times I think this is a weakness in the series.Nonetheless, overall, Hard Candy continues Vachss's string of good books and should please readers of his earlier novels.

... Read more

Product Description
What--or who--could turn a gifted little boy into a murderous thing that calls itself "Satan's Child"? In search of an answer, Burke travels from a festering welfare hotel to a neat frame house where a voodoo priestess presides over a congregation of assassins.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

BURKEHE IS BACK BOOK# 6
SORRY ....you have to read these great crime books in order to get the most out of them.Go back and readFLOOD then work your way to the dark and violentSACRIFICE.I complained, a little about the last book taking Burke, an unlicensed detective, out of the city of New York.He Is Back.And the story is dark and oh so violent .Burke works with Wolfe a hot female DA to save Luke, an eight year old child abuser.He was turned into a small monster by a heinous cult and the cult becomes the target.The old faithful are back, Max the Silent, Burke's strong 'brother', Mama, Michelle and the Mole, the Prof, and of course Pansy.These characters are the best.This story has everything you can look for in a dark city mystery even voodoo.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

vachssfan
to all the bad guys out there, know that burke will be there too.this book is another triumph for andrew vachss character and hero-burke.this book lets the reader escape into a world rarely seen or heard about.new york is burke's domain and with the help of some extraordinary friends new york is a better place with them in it.

Learning how to write.
I started this series with Flood and have worked my way up to Sacrifice. Vachss always was good at plot but the man is learning how to write. I cared about the people in this one. Im looking forward to the next one.

Voodoo enters the asphalt jungle
Vachss delivers another slice of dark urban fiction, with Burke and his crew, as usual, poking their way down the darkest tunnels of human depravity. They've got their hands full, too, with a vicious and deadly child with multiple personalities, Satanists, and a baby-killer on the loose. As if that wasn't enough, Burke can only find his way forward on the case with the help of a Haitian voodoo cult ruled by a clairvoyant Queen, who knows more about Burke than he does himself. Stumbling around in places where even zombies won't go, Burke gathers his entire crew for an apocalyptic and blood-strewn assault of the Satanist headquarters. Violent, powerful and gripping.

Killer child/Child killer
It seems when you watch New York City movies nowadays, it's a town of glitz and wealth, the nice land of posh Manhattan skylines.Not so in the grimmer days of the 1970s when the Big Apple was cinematically a cesspool:look at movies like The French Connection and you'll see what I mean.Though Andrew Vachss's Burke books are written in the 1990s and later, they keep alive a sleazy New York image that hearkens back to a darker but more interesting era.

Certainly, the city remains a pit in Sacrifice, the sixth Burke book.For those unfamiliar with the character, he is a hard-bitten semi-private eye who has no problem operating outside the law.Though he is always up for a good scam, he has nothing for contempt for the freaks, the child molesters and kiddie porn dealers who occupy his metropolis.In Sacrifice, Burke comes to the aid of Luke, a young child who's been so abused that he's actually developed split personalities, one of which is a baby killer.

Burke knows better than to fault Luke for the murders; the actual killers are the ones who damaged Luke, a little coven of molesters who impersonate Satanists but merely use that religion as a cover.While Burke hunts them down, he also has to keep Luke away from the aggressive DA who is even willing to prosecute an eight year old.He also has to contend with a voodoo cult and a separate case of abuser-turned-killer.

As is typical with a Burke novel, the strength is Burke himself, a tough guy who has his own demons to battle with.In addition, Vachss is good at creating a dark world where hope and redemption are rarely found and are even more rarely long-lasting.On the flip side, I continue to be troubled by the supporting cast of Burke's family who are often so off-beat as to be absurd; they are so unreal at times that it hurts the grim reality that Vachss is otherwise trying to portray.Overall, however, this is another good Vachss novel, not perfect but easily meriting four stars. ... Read more

Product Description
After years of carefully working the edges, a blood-commitment forces Burke's return to his former career: "violence-for-money."

Claw, once the shot-caller of a white supremacist prison gang is free . . .and terminally ill--he desperately needs a pile of cash to bet on a long-shot cure. He tells Burke about a punk who once purchased protection from him, a man who claims to know the truth behind a "cold case, " the unsolved rape-murder of a thirteen-year-old girl. The killers are all weathly men today, ideal blackmail marks. But wealth is power, and the informant needs Claw's protection again. Burke decides to roll the dice. A win would give Burke the two things he lives for: Money and Revenge. A loss would turn "terminal"from a diagnosis into a certainly, and not just for Claw. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

Disappointed
I've been a Vachss/Burke fan since the beginning.Unfortunately, I just cannot finish this book.I get the message ... but it's long winded, goes down long bunny trails, and is very hard to follow.

Incomprehensible Waste of Time
This is the first Burke novel I've read and will also be my last. What a colossal waste of time!! The poorly defined characters and lack of coherent plot made this muddled mess a torture for me to get through. I kept hoping it would get better but it never did, in fact the ending was one of the most unsatisfactory wrap-ups I've ever experienced. I got this on a recommendation from the Black Lizard site...I feel let down that they ripped me off by goading gullible me into wasting my money...never again.

Make no mistake...
I'm coming in with a bias. I'm a big fan of Andrew Vachss's books, especially the Burke series. And the short stories. And Shella. And the comics. And ... well, all of it. So, yes, I loved this book. And I love all Vachss's books. But this one, especially. The end had me _very_ impatiently waiting for the next one--and that's all I'll say about that. With the Burke series closed down now, I'm re-reading these, and knowing what follows next book to resolve the end of this one doesn't make the ending any less moving. Read it for yourself--it's worth it.

Promising tale disappears in screed - loses steam.
I have heard that the author has had a significantly positive impact in the area of child exploitation - "he is a true warrior for the protection of children".If that is true, I deeply applaud it.However, this book plods on and on and on, with little diatribes showing up more and more frequently.Filler, really.These are not insightful or balanced opinions on psychotherapy, politicians, zoos, the UN, etc.They are screeds - "a long monotonous harangue".Also, the author seems to assume that you have read all of his other books and understand the vague connections between all of the characters - most of whom are utterly 2 dimensional without any true voice or their own.Some of it is just silly - the "Prof" who always speaks in rhyme (like a dime store '50's hep cat) and rarely says anything of any depth.At times, without knowledge of the back story, I just felt lost.And bored.The plot, initially fairly interesting, races along like a glacier.And the author is so smug and arrogant!Us "citizens" - we are so naive and stupid he reminds us, over and over!!Here is a typical line related to some governmental malfeasance which fills up a page or two without any real purpose in terms of moving the narrative along ("filler")

"Yeah.Citizens read the news.But we know the truth."

Ooh, what an insider!!Wow!I am so impressed.Not.

Here is some more of the author's charming, arrogant, bile:

You know why we hate you?Not because you don't know what we know, but because if you did, you wouldn't give a damn.
So I'm sitting here, waiting to commit extortion [after 207 pages, finally!], and planning a lot worse.I'm what you'd call a career criminal.That's why I'll never be you.And I'm proud of it."

Gee, I guess there are a lot of self hating Vachss fans?Or only career criminals read his books?

Although the characters claim (essentially, we are simply told by the author, who does not possess much finesse as a writer) to be all about protecting children, their behavior and "code" borders on, or is outright, sociopathy. If you feel that the ends always justify the means then you may not object - I found it cold, pretentious and simplistic.This is a tedious book, and by page 181, even a knock out finish won't justify the time spent reading it.Zero humor, always quite dark, not clever - an unpleasant read, and - even worse - a bore.

And that is all of the time I will waste on this one!

Terminal: A Burke Novel
This is the alluring Andrew Vacchs that we long for. As in all the Burke novels, Vacchs teases us with sexy counterculture innuendos and play! Burke is as believable as Vacchs' dark side and I am intriguided by both. A great tale in Vacchs' fashion.PLEASE DO NOT MISS ANY OF HIS TALES!









... Read more

Product Description
It’s been years since Burke has been home, years since he’s seen his “family” and worked in the underbelly of New York City. Although his appearance has changed, his reputation grown dusty and his wallet thin, his skills and his crew remain razor sharp. So when he is contacted by a mob boss to investigate the murder of his illegitimate daughter, Vonni, Burke takes the job and begins searching for an unspeakably brutal killer.

Posing as a casting director looking for tomorrow’s stars, Burke reaches out to the high school students who knew Vonni, and may know the identity of the killer. Before long he unearths a perverse enterprise—a young director pursuing a brutal new type of cinema verité.Amazon.com Review
Andrew Vachss's series hero, an outlaw vigilante named Burke, is on the trail of the man who murdered the teenage daughter of a Mafioso whose secret affairs with a black woman and a gay crime boss make Tony Soprano's sub rosa relationship with his psychiatrist seem inconsequential. More accustomed to committing crimes than investigating them, Burke comes out of retirement and reunites with his New York family, a group of criminals who join him in a clever ruse to unmask the killer. The circuitous trail eventually leads to an underground filmmaker whose disturbing brand of noir vérité was responsible for the girl's death; as usual, Burke metes out vengeance with a steady hand. As usual, Vachss turns in a suitably dark, violent thriller with a strong narrative drive and an explosive conclusion. --Jane Adams ... Read more

Customer Reviews (23)

Terrific
Book Club Review
ONLY CHILD
Andrew Vachss

Our book club's book for August with ONLY CHILD, by Andrew Vachss.Usually we like to keep it light in the dog days of summer (it was 90 degrees when we met, with about 99% humidity), but we'd been talking about authors who "live" their books as opposed to completely making them up.Vachss was discussed, and we discovered that a lot of us had not read him because we didn't think we could handle the brutality for which the Burke novels are known.But that's what a book club is all about, right?--to discover new things and try new authors, so we decided to go for it.

This is a later book in the Burke series.There are parts of it that are occasionally confusing if you haven't read previous installments, but for the most part such understanding really isn't necessary to understand or appreciate the book.(I almost used the word "enjoy" there, but can a Burke novel be truly enjoyed, given its inevitable subject matter?More on that below.)In ONLY CHILD, Burke has returned to New York City, where most of his enemies (including the NYPD) think he is dead.This allows him to connect with his family of choice, most of whom he's saved in earlier books.There's Terry, a teenager he saved from a pimp; two role-playing lesbians, Cyn and Rejji, who have an online live porn business; Mama, who runs a sort of den of thieves from a Chinese restaurant; and Michelle, the leggy transsexual; and others.Burke realizes he has very little money to live on and has to go back to work to make ends meet.His reputation precedes him, and he receives a couple of job offers before he takes one on: The love child of a mafioso has been murdered, and the mafioso thinks the goal is to send him a message/warning.He wants Burke to find the perp.

Our discussion of this book was one of the most interesting and animated we've ever had.Yes, the subject matter is dark, very dark, and maybe that's what makes it so eminently discussable.The people who make up Burke's "family" are troubled, refugees, and in some cases homicidal--and yet they are strangely likable, maybe because they have such a strong sense of loyalty to one another and a feeling of "outsiderness" that ties them all together.They also have a moral code of their own and have no issue with judging others as worthy of being removed from the planet without a trace.While society may consider these people "freaks," Vachss reserves that term of derision for predators (such as pedophiles, rapists, and so forth); the result is that we developed a great deal of sympathy for the type of people who populate a side of life almost none of us ever see.I should mention, though, a few of our members felt that the characters--especially the S&M, sex-crazed lesbians--were more of a man's fantasy than actual people.

Then, too, there is the writing, which is razor sharp.I don't think any of us expected to be as impressed with the writing as we were.The man is simply an amazing stylist, and even those of us who said we couldn't handle more than one Vachss book in a lifetime, agreed that Vachss is impressive.His spare style, his ability to draw a vivid scene in just a few sentences, his way of reducing complexities into cynical one-liners is second to none, we thought.

Finally, we felt we wanted to examine why this series is so successful and so long-running, and we decided it wasn't hart to find an answer.Vachss, like Burke, is a crusader, and their passion is evident on every page.Burke is damaged, but his compassion isn't.He's the savior of the underdog, especially when it comes to children.He's generous, kind, loving--all while being a singularly rough individual.That doesn't mean he can't be ruthless, and therein lies his appeal as a character.I can't go into detail about the ending of the book, but it is really an excellent point of discussion.

Of course there are a few things to criticize.The book takes a while to get off the ground, while Burke gets set up in New York and turns down a couple of cases.Also, the book is a satire on, or consideration of, Hollywood, film-making, and film-mania, and in some ways it almost seems like a caper (more Elmore Leonard than Andrew Vachss).That's a sort of strange admixture at times, but ultimately it didn't affect our enjoyment of the book.Also, for those who worry that Vachss is overly violent--you should know that (at least on the basis of this book), he really isn't.In fact, much of the violence happens off-page or is implied.We have all read much more violent books, with detailed "torture"--which probably made us appreciate Vachss' subtletly even more.

I personally thought the book was terrific, and I'm now a fan.It was sort of amazing, I thought, that a Vachss book has a lot more heart than many cozies I've read lately.

The Dark World of Abusive Film
Burke is back on the trail of child abuse freaks.This time, the predators like to take films with teenagers to violent, even lethal extremes.(As Vachss, himself describes the ease in which someone with no more than a camera can approach teens with the intent of producing violent movies where the teens are hurt and the teens saying, "cool.")

With the aid of his friends, Max the Silent, Terry (who he rescued from a pimp), Michelle the transexual, Mole (genius criminal), the Prof and two beautiful dominatrix workers, Burke sets a trap for a sadistic film maker and his two steroid pumped henchmen.The investigation takes Burke through the sex film industry, separating the harmless from the sick.As usual, Burke enters areas where the police and average citizen cannot go.

This book was hard to put down.

Doug Setter author of One Less Victim: A Prevention GuideStomach Flattening

Only Child
One of the Burke series. Not one of the best, but if you are a fan of the storylines you will enjoy it as it has new developments inside.

Back In The Big Apple!!
Oh, you have no idea how amazingly awesome it is to have Burke back in NYC. And as always, Vachss, does an amazing job of spreading out this despicable underworld and helping us navigate it.

Burke's back. He's got a new hideaway, and he's among his loved ones again. There is still the pain and betrayal that befalls everyone whose paths he crosses, just as there is also his sense of justice, and his determination to bring the worst offenders to their come-uppance.

Read this book!
This book is the greatest! The author's critique of movie worshippers is the best ever. ... Read more

Product Description
In this savagely convincing novel, Burke finds himself in a fading Indiana mill town, trying to clear a boy charged with a series of sexually motivated shootings. He's intent on finding the real sniper--and his unlikely ally is a beautiful woman named Blossom, who has her own reasons for finding the murderer, as well as her own idea of vengeance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

BURKE#5AWAY FROM NYC
I love the Burke series. Love them.And with this book more than ever, read the books in order.Go back and do it, they are so much better that way. This story is away from NYC and his usual crew.That I miss, other than that, BLOSSOM is another great story dealing with a teenager accused of murder. Burke goes to Indiana to help a friend, Virgil, an old cell mate save the child. How can Burke say no when a child is involved.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

A change of locale for Burke works quite well
I will agree with the reviewer who suggests that this isn't a good introduction to Burke.Far better to start earlier in the series.Burke in Indiana does highlight the fact that NYC is Practically a character in its own right in the earlier books and is to be missed, as are the other regulars, this time around.The title character is introduced much later than usual, and if first shown in a way to tantalize the reader who won't quite see how she's going to become an important character in this tale.As usual, the reader should be warned that this is extremely strong stuff and is not recommended for the timid or the faint of heart.

Peopled by Freaks, Both Good and Bad
This is a great read.The novel is peopled with freaks, both good and bad.Vachss' descriptions are like a ground fog rising on a steamy New England day.They're dense, opaque and filled with mystery.

His characters are 'noir'.They're over the top and outside of society in a sub-culture that has real values and true connections that don't exist in the realm of language but belong to a deeper place inside ourselves where words cease to exist.Their connections are through the fog, obscured by the limits of every day existence.

This is the best book Vachss has ever written.I hope it will be followed by more books of this caliber by him.

Burke meets the Lover's Lane Killer
Another Burke novel.Burke is an ex-con, gambler, thief and private investigator who knows the world of predatory criminals.When Burke is approached by a former prison buddy, he is obligated to help out his adopted brother, Virgil.Virgil's nephew is a suspect in a lover's lane killing.Burke has a full plate of tasks at hand: find out if the nephew is lying or is a sex-predator.If the boy is innocent, Burke must re-build the boy's confidence and protect the him from the inmates at the youth detention center.Next, Burke has to find the sex predator.As an ex-con, he can access information not readily available to police.As Burke, he can go places most people will not go.He meets Blossum, the sister of one of the murder victims.Together, they track down the sick-mind of killer.Aside from good crime fiction, writer, Andrew Vachss talks about how sex predators are made and not born.Always entertaining are Burke's friends, the Prof, (street hustler), Michelle (transvestite), Max the Silent(mute martial artist) and Mama (dragon lady/restaurant owner/crime boss).

--Doug Setter author of One Less Victim: A Prevention Guide and Stomach Flattening

Possibly the best of the series
By his own admission, Andrew Vachss isn't a particularly good "writer": his characters are caricatures who we know only by an unusual style of speech or odd clothing; the dialogue often devolves into rambling lectures directed at the reader; the plots are formulaic; and many of his novels (particular the more recent ones) seem focused far more on social commentary than Story . . . why, then, do I feel compelled to read everything he publishes?Because Burke is COOL.I could care less about any of his "crew" of regulars (a little Black man who carries a sawed-off and speaks only in rhymes, a huge Asian man who is the best martial artist alive but speaks only in a made up sign language, a bespectacled Jewish man who provides all sorts of high-tech weaponry free of charge and continually mutters about nazis, a "beautiful" transvestite who is a skilled con artist and talks unendingly about high fashion, and a Jamaican teenager who is a crackshot with a 9mm and makes an occasional comment in his distinctive dialect . . . you get the idea).The other characters are mere background (as well as a lesson to the reader in multicultural tolerance).Burke, however, is the driving force behind this series.An unlicensed private investigator who is a wanted fugitive with nothing to lose.A man with a single mission: make the freaks PAY (if he can save a kid, that's a bonus).

I do not necessarilly think that Blossom is Vachss' best work (that'd be either Shella or Two Trains Running), but it is probably the most accessable and mainstream of all the books in his Burke series.Although it might be advisable to read the earlier volumes first, Blossom stands alone and could be read as your introduction to the series.Since Burke is out of the city and away from his crew, they are less of a distraction.

In short, this is more of a "coming of age" story than the usual Burke theme (VENGEANCE).A teenage boy is accused of being a sex sniper because he lives in the area, is a loner, owns a rifle, and was found to have a stash of pornographic magazines.Burke interrogates him, and decides that he's not the type -- so, being the righteous outlaw that he is -- instead of handing him over to the law (to get beaten and raped by fellow inmates), he conspires to hide him out while Burke tracks the real killer.In the meanwhile, he teaches the immature and inept boy what it means to be a Man (honor, duty, dignity, etc).As it oft seems as if Burke is really Vachss' alter-ego, it's like getting "fatherly advice" from one of the baddest men alive.

I enjoyed this book a great deal, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is unfamiliar with the series. ... Read more

Product Description
They meet in a no–name diner. A shadowy man hands Burke a CD dossier of someone he wants found. Minutes later, as Burke watches from an alley, his client is gunned down by a professional hunter–killer team. Burke slips away, unsure if he’s been spotted. Later, when he examines the dossier, he discovers that the missing woman is Beryl Preston, a girl he’d rescued from a brutal pimp twenty years earlier—when she was only thirteen—and returned to her father. Now he has to find her again—not only because she might be in danger, but also because he has to prove to himself that his rescue mission hadn’t been financed by a predator who wanted his “property” returned. His search will force him to confront a new kind of human ugliness and, finally, to practice the survivalist triage that has marked—and cursed—his life since childhood. In Mask Market, Burke the outlaw investigator finds himself searching for the truth: not only about a girl named Beryl, but also about himself.

This is classic Burke: dark, dangerous, and galvanizing, from the opening scene to the explosive climax.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (34)

Another Burke Novel
So far the book starts with its usual style.
The only thing I would like to know is why the style of the book has changed, and by this I mean the physical appearance?I like the old size and style better.

Burke's back
After a couple of disappointing books Andrew Vachss redeems himself. Do yourself a favor and start with this series at the beginning. Great characters, satisfying endings.

Mask Market
This is another great book for Burke fans.Just when you think that you have a grasp on the world of child-sellers, porn and black mailers, Vachss gives you a look at something even more twisted and corrupt than the tabloid headlines.Since all of Vachss's stories are based on real situations, this one really gets me wondering about a seemingly "decent society," where double cross is a certain as a new day. --Doug Setter, author of One Less Victim

Disappointment
I have read many books by Andrew Vachss.His writing is edgy, and hard.

This book was a disappointment.I read 318 pages of junk to get to six pages of classic Andrew Vachss' prose.When the ending finally came, the one big question was never thoroughly answered.

Typical, but not the best from this author.
I read all of Vachss' books and have decided that his early Burke stories are the best.I'll continue to buy them, though, because his friends are such great characters. ... Read more

Product Description
When his girlfriend, Crystal Beth, is gunned down at a gay rights rally in Central Park, Burke, the underground man-for-hire and expert hunter of predators, vows vengeance.But someone beats him to the task: a shadowy killer who calls himself Homo Erectus and who seems determined to wipe gay bashers from the face of the earth.As the killer's body count rises, most citizens are horrified, but a few see him as a hero, and they hire Burke to track him down...and help him escape.

In Choice of Evil, Burke is forced to confront his most harrowing mystery: the mind of an obsessive serial killer.And soon the emotionally void method behind the killer's madness becomes terrifyingly familiar, reminding Burke of his childhood partner, Wesley, the ice-man assassin who never missed, even when the target was himself.Has Wesley come back from the dead?The whisper-stream says so.And the truth may just challenge Burke's very sense of reality.Expertly plotted, addictive, enthralling, Choice of Evil is Andrew Vachss' most haunting tale to date.Amazon.com Review
With the possible exception of James Ellroy, Andrew Vachss is the mysterywriter with the darkest heart and the most troubled soul. Like his 10other books about the enigmatic outlaw private eye called Burke, Choiceof Evil deals with unpleasant subjects--ritual murder, pedophilia,sexual deviance--the full force of which are never dampened by attempts at tact or taste. Vachss is not an author to look away from the nasty, or try tosoften any of life's lowest blows.

That said, his latest does start off on a light note whenBurke's giant mastiff, Pansy, is grabbed in a police raid. Burke and hismotley crew of helpers--people with names like Mole, Crystal Beth, and Maxthe Silent--stage a raid on the animal shelter, and in a zany scene worthyof Lawrence Block or Donald Westlake, set free a herd of caged canines. Alltoo soon, however, darkness descends as Crystal Beth--Burke's main squeezeand an activist for abused women--is killed at an outdoor rally, apparentlyby someone who hates homosexuals. Following this atrocity, a vigilantecalling himself Homo Erectus declares war on gay bashers, and also onpedophiles who seek to link their cause to gay rights. Burke is hired tofind this vigilante and keep him safe before the cops nab him.

Mentioning pedophilia to Burke is like waving a red flag at a bull: he can(and does) go on for many pages about this particular evil as he and afriendly lesbian dominatrix link Homo Erectus to a supposedly long-deadkiller from Burke's own past.

To absorb the full force of the Burke canon, read other books in the series: Safe House,Blossom, Blue Belle, and False Allegations.--Dick Adler ... Read more

Customer Reviews (45)

REALITY IS SCARY ENOUGH
This is the eleventh novel in the Burke series--which are always written in the first person--but this is the only one in which the antagonist gets center stage. It is truly frighting when he steps into the mind of this individual, and what is even more haunting to know is that such sub-human creatures walk among us everyday. From its first pages you know this one is going to be different, and the Burke series is now starting to move in a direction that takes him out of his comfort zone.

Scary, entertaining, and always truthful. Andrew Vachss says so much with such an economy of words.

Dead and Gone is the next chapter in the Burke series, and it's one hell of a follow-up.

A dark, creepy thriller! Another winner for Vachss!
Man oh man, Mr. Vachss!!! You just refuse to allow your protagonist, ultra anti-hero Burke, more than one novel's worth of happiness in a romantic relationship. You keep killing-off his women! At least allow them to live and love together for 2 books' worth! Imagine my chagrin to find, before page 20 in "Choice of Evil," that you had deep-sixed Burke's latest, Crystal Beth (I keep thinking crystal meth...what were you thinking???). She appeared in your previous bestseller "Safe House," a lovely lady, half Inuit, half Irish, a kind and gentle activist for abused women, determined to stand by her man...and love him no matter what. Tell me, how am I supposed to believe that in what seems to be a drive-by hate shooting at a gay pride demonstration, with 3 dead, that Crystal Beth coincidentally happens to be one of the victims??? You lost credibility with me on that one. I mean, out of hundreds, Crystal Beth manages to get hit? Otherwise, "Choice of Evil" is a terrific book, as always! For readers of this review...I really didn't spoil anything because, as I previously stated, this horrific event occurs by page 20. And... there is much more non-related action which take place before that. Are you curious? I won't tell.There's a Job-like character in the comic strip Lil Abner, "Joe Btfsplk," who walks around with a cloud over his head and jinxes everyone he comes into contact with. More and more I am reminded of Joe when I read about Burke and his romantic counterparts.

In this, Andrew Vachss' 11th Burke novel, our dark hero, who seems to grow more morose with each episode (and can you blame him?), calls vengeance the name of the game. Burke wants to "get" Crystal's killer(s). So does someone else. Enter a shadowy psychopath with Homo Erectus as his/her moniker. He...or she appears determined to wipe all gay bashers and pedophiles from the face of the earth. At first police believe Burke is the "doer." After all, his major hatred is reserved for pedophiles. And gay bashers killed his girlfriend. Gradually, the killer's MO, his signature, is that of Wesley, the ice-man who wouldn't know an emotion if it slammed him in the face. Wesley, a brilliant assassin who never missed, used to be Burke's homeboy. The two met in prison and found they are both past "Children of the Secret." But Wesley is dead. Or is he? As the body count climbs, and it climbs high, Burke is hired to track the serial killer, and of all things, to help him escape.

While not as brilliant as Mr. Vachss earlier novels, "Flood" & "Strega," "Choice of Evil" is well plotted and provides an excellent read. The usual suspects appear here: Max the Silent, a mute Mongolian version of Conan the Barbarian with creative ways of communicating; Pansy, Burke's Neapolitan mastiff, just like the kind that came over the Alps with Hannibal; the Mole, a pasty-faced genius who lives in a bunker beneath a high-tech junkyard; Michelle, a gorgeous former transvestite who recently "took the plunge;" Terry, Mole and Michelle's adopted son; the Prophet, a wise old scam artist who has logged-in too much time behind walls and was Burke's original mentor; Mama Wong, group doyenne and Chinese restaurateur, "keeps her prices high and the ambiance foul to discourage yuppies." She cares for the gang and holds Burke's stash; I should add that our hero drives a souped-up Plymouth, another important character. It usually looks like it's been painted with rust. Strega, a persona from the past, makes a guest appearance here, and former DA Wolfe, for whom Burke has a major jones, returns to tease fans into believing that maybe there's a chance for the two of them to make-it in a relationship...that is if Mr. Vachss doesn't kill Ms. Wolfe off in the next installment.

Another winner for the author, who is a lawyer and major advocate for abused children.
JANA

A good crime novel
As a stand alone novel, it is perhaps too heavy with references to previous novels but the disturbing nature of the story is strong enough to prevent those moments from becoming too distracting. The story is actual a mystery, as Burke (the protagonist) attempts to find the killer of his girlfriend Crystal Beth and discovers that her death is actually a great deal more horrific given who the murderer may be.The plot is not only an exploration of what kind of adult a State run (specifically New York) childcare department can produce but also the seamy criminal culture of pedophiles and serial killers.Be forewarned this book is not a comfortable read.Mr. Vacchs skill is enough that a great deal of the book is read with a fair amount of dread as one damaged character appears after another, with the character Burke being the axle of which this wonder-wheel of strange and unusual individuals revolve.So what's to like about this book?It's a crime genre novel and if you enjoy that kind of book it is well done and swimming with enough criminals and insinuated violence to make your skin crawl.The dialogue reads the way people speak so there is a flow that makes you the 3rd person in the scene, but there can be a bit of a struggle as characters interrupt each other's dialogue to express their own thoughts.In regard to the cast of characters, it's hard not to appreciate the loyalty Burke and his adopted street family share, but it's an uncomfortable appreciation given the nature of many of the relationships between the characters, most of them being practicing criminals.There is enough hints in Burke's thoughts that you know he has been made by his violent childhood circumstance and as an adult he's decided that this is the life he will lead, doing crimes and occasionally killing criminals that fall into the categories he finds abhorrent.Burke seems to be two people, either he is just a criminal with a vengeance streak or he's a victim turned criminal to get close to his source of vengeance.In either case Burke can be a depressing and vengeful character in this novel, as the reader begins to realize it doesn't really matter if he is either of those two people, (vengeful criminal or victim turning to crime for vengeance.One can't help suspecting that no matter what good comes from his actions Burke doesn't have a chance in hell of ever being happy or particularly stable.What this novel did succeed in doing is galvanize me to buy past Burke novels to fill in some of the character gaps.All in all, this book kept me turning the page and wondering what Burke's next novel will be about.

Not The Same Burke
.."Choice of Evil," though full of the urban misery and blues we've come to expect, doesn't pack the same punch.Granted, it would be hard to top "Sacrifice."

Burke's women either leave or die.So, Crystal Beth dies in what seems to be a drive-by at a gay pride rally.We get Burke the Sleuth, but not the Avenging Angel.The online search for the killer teases us with the possibility of Wesley's return..

What I miss in recent Vachss is the destruction of children as a plot element; lately it's left in the background as a short-hand device for character development.True to form, there's the Next Twisted Woman - a dominatrix named Nadine.their dialogue is a departure from the usual Burke-woman banter; Burke seems downright crotchety.His impatience with female posturing is at an all-time high.Nice to see Strega again, though.She still scares Burke 'cause she's a reminder that despite his resignation, he still desires...

As Vachss moves an aging Burke further away from ground-zero vengeance, he moves into Thomas Harris-style psychological intrigue.Give me the hellish terrain of "Sacrifice" and "Hard Candy."Reempower him as the bloody-handed avenger of the Children of The Secret.

A novel of the twisted workings of human hearts
A rally in Central Park to protest against gay bashing encounters a murderous drive-by resulting in five people down and two dead. One of the dead is Crystal Beth, Burke's girlfriend. Claiming responsibility is someone calling themselves "Homo Erectus". Burke is unsurprised when the cops pull him in for questioning because he is homeless, homicidal, a man gun and unable to find the shooters who killed his last chance at love. Choice Of Evil is a novel of the twisted workings of human hearts, the dark side of the human experience, and the bleak life offered marginal men and women caught up in webs of fear, bigotry, violence, and evil. ... Read more

Product Description
"In the first rank of American crime writers. . . . Next to Vachss, Chandler, Cain and Hammett look like choirboys."
--Cleveland Plain Dealer

Burke--ex-con, mercenary, sometime killer--makes his living preying on New York's most vicious predators and avenging their innocent victims. But in Andrew Vachss's mercilessly suspenseful new novel, Burke finds himself working the other side of the street, where guilt and innocence are as disposable as the sheets in a Times Square hotel--and as dirty.

Burke's new employer is Kite, a fanatical crusader who specializes in debunking "false allegationsof child sexual abuse. Kite has a case that may be the real thing, but needs Burke to tell him if it is. And if mere money can't persuade Burke to cooperate, Kite has plenty of other incentives at his disposal--including a fanatical bodyguard with a taste for corsets and brass knuckles. A tour guide to hell written in icy prose, False Allegations is Vachss at his most unnerving.


"Burke is the toughest talking first-person narrator since Mike Hammer."
--Los Angeles Times

"Vachss . . . writes hypnotically violent prose."
--Chicago Sun-Times Amazon.com Review
Vachss and his quasi-hero Burke are definitely not for thesqueamish, dealing largely with stories about abused children. But heis a strong and angry writer who has carved himself out a uniqueterritory in the dark landscape of the thriller. In his 11th Burkenovel, Vachss uses the work of the real Dr. Bruce Perry, the Houstonpsychologist and pioneer researcher into recovered memory, to centerthe story about a shady lawyer who specializes in getting such casesthrown out of court. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

One of Vachss' BEST!
If you're a Vachss fan, by ALL means. ..don't pass this one up. It's one of his best. Even if or, perhaps, especially if you are not familiar with his writing I HIGHLY recommend it!

Childhood trauma and repressed memories
Burke gets hired by a lawyer, called Kite, to investigate the allegation by a woman who was raped as a child. The trouble is, Kite has a specialty of getting rape cases tossed from court.To him, False Allegations are a challenge to his intellect, whether or not they are true.Kite makes a game of a rape vitim's suffering, while Burke works his way through courts, experts, criminals and unusual characters to find out the truth behind childhood traumas, repressed memories and how the media can distort the truth and influence the law.

This Burke novel has the usual cast of interesting characters like Max the Silent, a mongolian martial artist, Mama the restaurant manager and racketeer, Michelle, the transexual, Mole, the genius and Prof, the prophet.

This story is a good action crime thriller with enough social commentary to make the reader stop and think about clergy abuse, truth and justice.

Doug Setter, Bsc. author of One Less Victim: A Prevention Guide and Stomach Flattening

My favorite of the Vachss Burke Books!
Andrew Vachss would have to be considered my favorite writer. He write some of the most hard, heavy, disturbing, graphic, and redemming material I have ever read. This book, was certainly no less.

False Allegations is a story about Burke, a mercanary investigator dredging into whether a child abuse case was fabricated or real. He is hired by a man named Kite, who debunks false "Child Abuse" cases. One thing to note, is that Burke is fanatical in helping children. It is his one honorable and honest trait. Otherwise he is no less a con-man/hit man who presides over a "family" of criminals.

Anyway, this was excellantly written, the plot was really good, the characters were fully explored. Excellant book!

I would strongly recommend this book!

Very Disturbing but quite true
Of all the Burke novels that I have read which would be all of them, this one disturbed me the most.It struck a nerve in me and it scared me because the truth can't be denied.False Allegations is a testimony of how to keep a rape society going. If you are interested in transforming our society than this is the book to read. Burke enters the controversial ground of recovered memories but not for the reasons he thinks he is.He meets Dr. Bruce Perry who is not a fictional person. I have made use of Dr. Perry's research in my career as a teacher of children who have been abused.If you like poetic justice, this book also includes that in such a way that one can't help but cheer. This is not a novel to take lightly.

More truth to "False"
After two mediocre entries in the great Burke series ("Down in the Zero" and "Footsteps of the Hawk") Vachss starts to breath life back into his main charachter again.Burke is reenergized and back atwhat he does best, dealing with abused children and borderline psychoticfemales.Vachss's early Burke novels ("Flood," "BlueBelle," "Blossom" and "Hard Candy") remain thebest of the series.But with "False Allegations" he begins arevival which has carried him through the two most recent novels. Thankfully so.A world without Burke would be a duller world, indeed. ... Read more

Product Description
From a writer whose novels have been acclaimed for their unflinching exploration of evil comes a brilliant collection of short stories—some never before published—that distill dread back down to its essence—and inject it straight into the reader's back brain. Andrew Vachss might have scissored his characters from today's headlines: a stalker prowling around an anonymous high-rise; a serial killer whose transgressions reflect a childhood of hideous abuse; an inner-city gunman who is willing to take out a blockful of victims in order to win a moment of acceptance.

Tautly written and endowed with murderous ironic spin, Born Bad plunges us into the hell that lies just outside our bedroom windows. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Hard to put down crime fiction
More than just entertainment, these tales are social statements unto themselves.Takes the reader into the minds and motivations of serial killers, child molesters and rapists.The stories range from how murder raps are beaten to how righteousness and justice happen outside of the courts.Scarier than any ghost story or vampire novel because all of the stories are based on actual cases. Written with irony, twisted endings and thought-provoking content. Changed the way that I view crime and punishment.

Doug Setter, Bsc.
author of One Less Victim: A Prevention Guide and Stomach Flattening

Vachss, Andrew Vachss
Oooh, I freakin' love this guy.I've read most of Vachss' books, but Born Bad was my introduction to him back in high school(thank you Mr. Piddington) and still remains one of my favorites.Like the title says, it's short stories here.Some are extremely short and play out like single scenes that could come from a kickazz action film.Vachss is not a razzle dazzle wordsmith like Clive Barker, but there's no need to be poetic here.He's more interested in getting down to the nitty gritty, and that's the way he writes.Vachss has knowledge of the things he writes about, he knows the criminal language and throws in enough classic one-liners for twenty Tarantino flicks.The first batch of stories are varying topics, the next batch follow a mercenary called Cross and his crew.Then we get some cool stories about a post-apocalyptic underground society, followed by more mixed topics.This book is a good introduction to Vachss.Most of his books are Burke novels, and you can start with that series if you want, but Born Bad is a great place to start to really get a good taste of Vachss' style.If you dig it, go ahead and try Burke, but if you can't get enough of Cross and the Underground, pick up Everybody Pays which is basically like Born Bad 2.

Streetwise horror stories
Andrew Vachss is a mystery writer whose work often times reads more like horror.Therefore, it is not surprising that his collection of short stories has the punch of classic short horror fiction.These are darkstroies dredged up from the depths of Vachss's fertile imagination. Usually, they deal with the worst impulses of man, especially the sexualpredator.They are not for the faint of heart, but are powerful in theirown way.

what's with the "ball peen hammer" references???
Is there something particularly painful about a ball peen hammer versus, say, a claw hammer? I don't work at Home Depot, but I'd guess that they'd probably do about the same amount of damage to one's head... although theclaw portion appears more menacing than the "peen" (or is it the"ball"???).

multiple punches to the gut and heart at once
If you have read any of Vachss' novels with criminal-cum-savior Burke as protagonist, you should allow yourself the honor of feasting on his short stories.The title is a play on the world's take of how children are bad seeds, i.e., born with a bad streak, prone to be losers, and addled with overripe genes for destruction; this book is a one-man treatise on why that is, summarily, not true and it's done with the usual minimalist and spare style prose Vachss is by now famous for.My preference is for his short stories, and the why of that is simple: it's a shorter, more rapid, and much more heart-wrenching path to the much-welcomed truth that only Vachss seems willing to tell.For me, he is the male counterpart of the Greek mythological character Cassandra--he comes bearing the truth that no one really wants to hear, but the fact is, once heard, you can't take your eyes or ears off of him. For a nonstop, nonpareil ride into the gloom and doom of what child abuse is, where it emanates from, and possibly the solutions to fix its ugly cast upon the world, read these stories; you will weep and you will cry with joy at the sheer simplicity of it, right along with the cutting-edge prose that digs in and plants its tentacles into your heart. ... Read more

Product Description
Vachss has reinvented detective fiction and, in the person of Burke, his haunted, hell-ridden P.I., has given readers a new kind of hero. Investigating an epidemic of apparent suicides among the teenagers of a wealthy suburb, Burke discovers a sinister connection between the anguish of the young and the activities of an elite sadomasochistic underground. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

BURKE BOOK#7
Burke out of NYC and away from his running mates is like a fish out of water.I am a huge fan of Burke but in a weathly area, out of state and mourning from the last novel, well, this wasn't it for me.I will read the next one but this was weakest of the seven.

a step down.
I didn't enjoy this as much as the other books leading up to it. It seemed a good first draft.

No Max The Silent
I purchased this book several years ago and finally got around to reading it this past week.I enjoyed the book though the sex descriptions were a little bit much for me.Maybe I am getting too old.Andrew Vachss writes what I consider literary noir.His books - if made into film - should star someone like a Robert Mitchum.I recommend the book but will not give it a 5 star because I thought the reason for the suicide a little far-fetched.I also miss Max the Silent - he appears only in passing.

Crime in the wealth ghetto
Another Burke novel.This time Burke has to go into a wealthy neighborhood where children are neglected and adolescent suicided is the norm.Burke follows a trail of suicides leading to a medical institution that experiments on depressed teenagers.Enlisting the aid of a beautiful domentrix and a teen boy, Burke finds out the truth of how several wealthy teens are set up to die. Down right creepy in parts.
Doug Setter
Author of One Less Victim and Stomach Flattening

meh...
I'm in the process of reading all the Burke novels (I'm a BIG fan) and this one just didn't do it for me. The story was not very compelling and, unlike in Blossom, taking Burke out of NY made everything feel strange and disorienting. The interactions between Burke and the main female character seemed really fake to me and it felt very out of character for Burke in general.Anyway, not nearly as good as the other Burke novels. ... Read more

Product Description
Eddie starts stealing cars long before he's old enough toget a license, driven by a force so compelling that he never questions, justobeys. After a series of false starts, interrupted by stays in juvenile institutions and a state prison term, Eddie's skills and loyalty attract the attention of J.C., a near-legendary hijacker. When he gets out, Eddie becomes the driver for J.C.'s ultra-professional crew.J.C., the master planner, is finally ready to pull offthat one huge job every con dreams of ... the Retirement Score. But some roads have twists even a professional getaway man couldn't foresee ...

Andrew Vachss, a writer widely acclaimed for breathing new life and death into the crime genre, here presents a classic noir tale, relentlessly displaying and dissecting not guilt, but innocence. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (26)

Lean Style
Andrew Vachss employs his strengths as a writer in this short crime novel.Lean and efficient style as disciplined as ever without an ounce of fattening verbosity.Character development that is engaging and draws the reader outside their social experience into another social milieu yet unknown.Paced action and sufficient plot development.Finally, the sense of a person's work as an integral aspect of character development-- this is Vachss' most compelling theme.Like his characters from the Burke novels, the players in this game want to be good at what they do and make the most out of it.A simple concept but one often missing from contemporary fiction.

I also found the departure from the tragic subject material of the Burke novels an interesting experiment.I knew that Vachss' style and discipline as a writer would show through even brighter.I'm happy for the author that he published this work and would look forward to more novels like this as a reader.

Vachss meets Jim Thompson
Quick and enjoyable. Great flow. Essentially it's a Jim Thompson book with the Vachss obligatory child abusers. This was written back when he was able to stick to the story and work his points into it.

Vanishing Point
Eddie is "The Getaway Man", the kid who started driving before old enough to get a license, doing time in the "kiddies" for stealing cars before his first stint, at nineteen, in the real big-house.But while Eddie may drive fast, he is, to put it kindly, "slow".A kid so clueless and naive that he knows nothing about "dames", renting a video, or making reservations in a restaurant.Andrew Vachss spins this sweet little cherry of a novel in true 50's pulp fiction style, right down to the retro cover.Were it not for modern day references to cell phones and VCRs, I'd swear I was reading Jim Thompson.The ever loyal Eddie hones his driving skills and never questions the orders of the more seasoned pros he crews with, setting himself (and the reader) up for an armored car heist that will allow early retirement.

Vachss' prose isn't simply lean- it is downright gaunt - emaciated by the ruminations coming out of Eddie's mostly empty head.But that's not a criticism, for just as Eddie's naivety begins to grind a bit, the reader begins to wonder just who the talented Vachss is really setting up here.So strap yourself in and lock down for a fast drive through a few curves that are likely to sneak up.And by the way, if you haven't read Jim Thompson's classic "The Getaway", or Duane Swierczynski's updated and more hip "The Wheelman", you'll be missing a great encore.

Good Book But Would Have Omitted the Last 2 Sentences.
Much has been said about the plot below that need not be repeated. I enjoyed this book. Vachss uses simple words and simple descriptions, yet paints a vivid picture.Also, simple words are best suited, perhaps, for a main character who can best be described as "simple." Clearly Eddie is not a complex thinker. His view of life is incredibly naive, but most endearing. As the story evolves, the plot develops nicely and the ending, for me at least, was unexpected. My only complaint is the last two sentences - changed what would have been a perfect resolution into a silly, unsupportable twist.

You can't go wrong with this book
This falls into the category of "one of those books you let people read so they can get hooked on the author". If you like Jim Thompson you will also enjoy this book. The storyline is tight and it has one of the better endings that I can remember. ... Read more

Product Description
Burke is back, but still lurking in the shadows, unable to return home. He is prowling the unfamiliar streets of Portland, Oregon, in search of a runaway teen.By all accounts, Rosebud Carlin is a happy, well-adjusted girl.She doesn’t fit the profile of the runaway kids Burke knows so wellÉand once was.But there’s something about her fatherÉ

Burke knows the street script, but the actors are all strangers. Cut off from his family and his network of criminal contacts, Burke is forced into a dangerous alliance with a renegade group dedicated to providing relief to those in intractable pain by any means necessary. A bargain is struck, and the fuse is lit.Heart-stopping and hard-hitting, Pain Management is the latest bout in Andrew Vachss's thrilling reign as undisputed champ of brass knuckles noir.Amazon.com Review
When last encountered (2000's Dead and Gone), career criminal Burke was on the rebound from a nearly successful assassination attempt, lying low and licking his wounds in Portland, Oregon. Severed from his connections in NYC, Burke survives on jobs--"violence for money" mostly--brokered by his live-in lover, Gem, an Asian beauty with a painful, larcenous past and a present to match.

At hand is a task Burke has done before: the recovery of a runaway, a 16-year-old girl named Rosebud. But Burke, an assassin with scruples, knows when things aren't right. Rosebud's father, Kevin, has a '60s-era contempt of "The Man" that doesn't jibe with his obvious wealth. Mother Maureen limps through life on pharmaceutical crutches. Younger sister Daisy and best friend Jennifer know things but won't share. As his search spirals out from Portland's mean streets, Burke encounters a mysterious young woman, Ann O. Dyne, who offers to help for a price. Her raison d'être is pain management--securing and dispensing medications vital to the terminally ill but held beyond their reach by a largely uncaring cadre of doctors, lawyers, and politicians. Eventually, of course, this plot line connects with Rose's whereabouts.

Andrew Vachss's MO here, as usual, is a mystery (Rosebud's disappearance) plus an actual cause célèbre (humane pain management). It's a risky formula that aims both to entertain and to enlighten. With its believably unbelievable characters, Vachss's spare noir, and steely pacing that counterpoints a bolt-upright climax, Burke's 13th outing is every bit as satisfying as the dozen that came before. --Michael Hudson ... Read more

Customer Reviews (37)

Excellent, as always
Let me tell you - when Burke first lit out for Oregon, I was kind of disappointed. NYC has become such a character in the previous novels, I incorrectly assumed Portland would be a snoozer (I know, I'm such an East Coast-er). Boy was I wrong!

In "Pain Management" Burke is hired to track down a missing 16-year-old. His always on-target instinct tells him that there is something not quite right with the girl's family, and things just go to town from there. Burke manages to come across all types of underbelly characters, and Vachss is able to portray his experiences without making them sound too spy-novel.

Add to the mix a pharmaceutical drug plotline, lots of violence, sex, and a healthy serving of blues and doo-wop, and you've got yet another Vachss masterpiece.

As good as this book is - I really miss Burke's family back in NYC. I've got the next book sitting right here waiting for me, and I can't get to it fast enough.

Touching and inspirational
Pain Management is touching and inspirational.Out of one of the grimmest parts of society, goodness blossoms in an effort to save people from deadly pain.Burke is his endearing self, as always.I recommend the novel as heartily as Andrew Vachss' other books which are also excellent.

Not quite there
I think that _Blue Belle_ was the first Vachss novel that I tried, and after reading that I ripped through his subsequent novels with a sense of discovery and pleasure. To be honest, I lost that interest and amazement a number of books ago. While the first book set in Oregon gave me a glimmer of new hope, this book really isn't there either.

A lot of the problem is that what made Burke so interesting in the first few books was the very real tension between light and dark in the character. He was constantly in balance, and the nastiness made for a really refreshing read after all the weaker characters that you find in detective novels today.Unfortunately, Burke has been around too long, and he's just too much a defender to really believe in the Dark Knight anymore. He's taken on too many good causes and acted too much as protector of the helpless. Good thing in a person, less good if you want to keep the tension of someone strung between good and evil. I'm sure that the continuing novels serve Vachss' not-so-hidden agenda of educating his audience, but they just aren't as interesting to read at this point.

I'm a little troubled with myself for writing this kind of review, as I recognize that there are larger issues with these books than a good escapist read. I applaud Vacchs' determination in the work he does for children and I think he's chosen a nearly ideal vehicle for getting his messages out.

I just wish that I had the same compulsion to read Burke novels as I did with the first.

Anyways, this book (Burke tries to ignore his problematic relationship with Gem, while taking on the case of a 16-year old runaway) is well-written and will probably appeal. Still worth a read, in any case.

Burke returns, in Oregon
Andrew Vachss has to be an interesting individual. You get the idea that Burke, the main character in his novels, is a somewhat nastier version of himself. Burke is a shadowy figure, with only one name (only one was given when he was an orphan) and a mysterious, cloudy, bitter view of the world. He works around the edges of things, making money on the black market, specializing in being untraceable and invisible, or almost. He is almost completely uninterested in the fate of people he doesn't know, and for the most part he's pretty cold. He has a real hatred for criminals who exploit children.

In this outing, he's gone to ground in Portland Oregon. This is a departure for Vachss, who's set almost all of his books in New York City. He bounces around town, establishing a "rep" so that someone can hire him to do something. Eventually a troubled father contacts him, looking for his daughter. Burke agrees to look, and does so with his usual disregard for rules, animosity towards authority figures, and dark, mysterious methods. When he finds the girl, the answers are not at all what you were expecting, satisfying though they are. There's a whole interlude where Burke helps a woman who steals drugs for the chronically ill, and it's from this side-plot that the book gets its title.

I liked the story, about as much as I usually do with Vachss. Everything's very dark (I don't think I could read two of these in a row without contemplating suicide) and murky, and the structure of the book is strange, too. For those who aren't familiar, Vachss has veered between numbering his chapters and not bothering. They're anywhere between a couple of lines and a page or two of text, very short, very choppy. The author seems to just only write part of the story, several lines of dialog, and expect the reader to fill in the rest.

Given that, this is a good book.

The sadness works, but I miss the wrath...
Burke is laying low in Oregon. He's not in his element (New York), and this affects "Pain Management" as it affected "Down in The Zero." For me, a Burke story works best when the villain inspires a gut-deep flash of pure HATRED. I didn't get that fix this time. Also, just the words "New York" carry a seediness integral to the mood of Vachss' work.

Under an alias, Burke agrees to locate a well-heeled hippie's daughter. Things about her disappearance don't add up, and Burke encounters some locals who may or may not help him. They also may or may not be milking him for their own cause - getting pain meds to those in greatest need despite America's short-sighted treatment policies. These two plotlines never really merge. The daughter's family bears a secret that caused her to take off, but it's...well, a more "esoteric" reason than molestation. On the plus side, Vachss offers some intelligent, sympathetic young characters. He reminds us that everyone has the potential to be both Cain AND Abel.

Burke's usual anger and vigilance fall short of his melancholy. Things with Gem are decaying, and this almost becomes a distraction from the plot. His woman troubles don't end there; Ann O. Dyne is the most annoying girl Burke has dealt with since Fancy ("Down in The Zero") or Nadine ("Choice of Evil"). She's not stupid, just annoying. Flood, Blossom and Belle are still the top-tier Burkettes.

Vachss' effort to broaden the scope of issues in Burke novels is commendable. However, it doesn't play to Burke's strengths. Baby Boy Burke is a conman first and a killer first-and-a-half. "Pain Management," while thought-provoking, didn't hit me as hard as earlier works. Burke has the blues six feet deep, and the only effective remedy is to get back to New York and take it out on the lowest of the low. With "Only Child," I hope to see How Burke Got His Groove Back. ... Read more

Product Description
When Another Chance to Get it Right debuted on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1993, Dark Horse was deluged with phone calls as people clamored to buy the book. Now, nearly a decade later, Dark Horse is proud to offer an updated edition of the acclaimed collection of short stories, poetry, and allegory. This new edition boasts an all-new, never before published Vachss-penned prose story called "La Corazón del Niños," along with illustrations and a magnificent new cover by Geof Darrow (The Matrix I, The Matrix Reloaded, and The Matrix Revolutions). The beautiful drawings add a different dimension to this celebration of the potential of parenting, a dimension that's rarely seen in the genre, making it as much inspirational as it is instructional. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Wonderful, honest, challenging
This is a simple book, with a simple premise and wonderful illustrations. It is written in the clear and honest prose for which Vachss is so well known. It also hits home with every story. If you want to know what honor, courage, and love look like, this is your book. Most books, I lend; this one, I buy multiple copies and give them away, over and over again.

Every parent should read...
Every person who ever wants to have children of their own by blood, or the more saintly act of adopting those children who need the love of someone who cares... needs to read this book.I have given a copy to everyone Iknow who has ever had children, including my Mother.

Having met Mr.Vachss and told him my acts of spreading his insights, wisdom, andwarnings, he was delightfully pleased at my efforts.

Every word in thisbook is placed perfectly.Not a phrase can be misconstrued.In itsexecution of prose, there is none in literature refined more to an essenceof purpose than in these 64 pages.Each vignette is more poignant than thelast.

The artwork is extremely appropriate and offers enough to attractyou, draw you in , and keep you connected to each story or lesson.Eachartistic compliment has a specific merit to the story they accompany.Payspecial attention to the "artistic focus effects" from GeofDarrow (Pgs 26-43).They are a masterpiece than should be studied.

Mypersonal favorites in thew collection of prose and pencil/pen are pgs 8-10,and 48-51.One speaks on the philospohical scale of children as a futureand past; and the other is far more personal to the author and reader. Both will leave the interested reader with a great deal of introspection. But the lessons learned within will affect how the reader thinks and actsaround children.Those they know and love, and those they will never know,and never suspect, are hurting.

Lyrical and moving
This book is a beautiful set of stories and essays about how to protect children from abuse.Given the subject matter, it would be easy to pass this book by.It's easy to hold the preconception that there is nothingmore that can be said about child abuse, or that there is nothing we can doto stand against it.

Nothing can be further from the truth, and Mr.Vachss proves it with prose so clean and direct that it reads like thesparest poetry.I've read this book with my own children, and it has giventhem an understanding and sympathy that will serve them well all theirdays.DON'T MISS OUT ON THIS BOOK!

Beautiful Content Presented Beautifully
Read anything by Andrew Vachss--novels, short stories, comics--and you get the picture: Vachss is the antithesis of the Sensitive New Age Guy. It's a sure bet the latest book review will contain some variation of 'Vachssmakes [fill in favorite 'noir' or 'hardboiled' author here] look like[Emily Post...a sewing circle...the minutes of a Cub Scout meeting...etc.etc. etc.].'

Another Chance to Get it Right--a 'children's book foradults'--is an altogether different literary critter.

In a series ofvignettes (with illustrations by noted graphic artists including PaulChadwick, Geof Darrow, Gary Gianni and others), Vachss presents truths bothblunt and bright about the common experiences--and the great diversity--ofchildren and childhood.

If you think Vachss is 'too dark,' this is theperfect starter book to blast your preconceptions. The text is concise andeloquent, and shows a tenderness perhaps unexpected to fans of the Burkenovels, while the accompanying art provides an occasionally whimsical,always powerful complement.

If you have the chance to get thisbook...DO IT. ... Read more

Product Description
Burke is back in his most tightly wound, electrifying thriller to date. In Blue Belle, a savage gang is hunting and killing teenage prostitute. A murderous martial arts expert is trying to set up a deal with Burke's friend Max. And complicating it all is Belle, a voluptuous exotic dancer who has worked her way into Burke's heart. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (27)

Almost bad enough to make you want to quit
The Vachss/Burke combo follows the exploits of a dark, disparate group of misfits in the underbelly of New York. That's the attraction of this series. And the band is back in this third installment but their roles and the basic plot of the novel get diluted when Mr. Vachss deviates into the soft porn genre with the introduction of Belle: an annoying, needy, whiny, woman with a masochist streak in her.
Cut out the repetitive, tiring, boring sections devoted to Burke/Belle's sexual encounters and the book could end up being 100 pages lighter and with a better flowing story. Belle's story could have easily been a 4 page sideline; instead it becomes a second sory that actually detracts from the main story line.
I almost gave up on this but stayed the course in the interest of the continuity of the series. If you are new to the Burke saga, don't start with this one.

BURKE#3 Great Series
I can not figure out why more people don't read Andrew Vachss' Burke series.They are great stuff in the genre, darker, yes, but oh so much fun.BLUE BELLE is the third book; the books stand alone, but are so much better if read in order.This book hits a Vachss theme as Burke goes after a New York City child molester.This guy, Mortay, is really bad and dangerous.But Burke has his crew, Michelle,the Mole, and Mama all return.See New York City's nastier side through Burke's eyes.Oh so much to see.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Vachss always delivers!
The gang's all here doing what they do best.Blue Belle is great.I've been reading the Burke series for years but out of order.It took a while to find Blue Belle but it was worth the wait.

The Good, the Bizarre and the More Bizarre
This book is in the same genre as Flood and Strega.It is very insightful into the dark side of human nature.The dialogue is wonderfully tight with witty one-liners, but somehow it doesn't all hold together.

The basic appeal of Vachss is that his 'good' and 'normal' characters are the unique and the bizarre.There's the prof, an ex-con who only speaks in rhymes.Max the silent is a deaf-mute who is a karate expert.Michelle, is a transvestite who loves her son.Her son lives with the Mole, a German Jew who escaped the death camps and now lives in an underground maze guarded by attack dogs.He's an electronic whiz.All of these folks are fringe people, outside the law but GOOD.It's the system, the bureaucrats, the yuppies who are bad.It is this aspect of his writing that speaks to me.

Subterranean sadists meet their match
The Burke novels present some of the bleakest urban fiction to be found anywhere, and this book is no exception. Burke and his ragged but deadly crew of assistants are up against the Ghost Van, which prowls the mean city streets at night snatching prostitutes and other nocturnal unfortunates, never to be seen again. Furthermore, the Ghost Van is protected by a shadowy death fighter who may even be a match for Burke's compadre Max the Silent.

Burke has to play this one alone, as the Prof is hospitalised by the death fighter, and Max is iveigled out of town. The story loses some of the rich interplay between these characters and becomes a straightforward duel to the death between Burke and the Ghost Van's protector. The loss of character interaction makes the dark violence stand out even more, not to the story's benefit. ... Read more