Rating: 
Summary: A Wild Ride!
Review: I happened on this latest installment of Butch Karp's adventures by Robert Tanenbaum more or less by accident and was surprised by the amazing characters. The book was hard to put down and I am now looking forward to going back and reading all the other books in the series. What a great discovery! I note that the reader reviews are not at all consistent, and tend to be either 'love it' or 'hate it.' Well, put me down in the 'love it' category. I liked Butch and Marlene, and their strong relationship. Lucy and Tran were my favorites, though. I also enjoyed El Chivato as one of the most colorful killers in my recollection.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing special, poorly written
Review: I have to wonder if he is getting revenue based on the number of commas used in the book. I actually found 1 page that only has two (very long, convoluted) sentences! Reading this is about as entertaining as wading through hip deep mud, and equally as frustrating. Much time is spent on garbage which has no direct bearing on the plot (kitchen design & cooking habits) - way beyond what is needed to develop the plot. Not enough 'meat' in this one to hold my attention.
Rating: 
Summary: Great (Audio) Book-- Terrible Reading
Review: I've read all of Tanenbaum's books about Butch Karp & Marlene Ciampi and enjoyed them thoroughly, so I was looking forward to listening to this book on tape.What a disappointment! James Daniels reads the characters with amazingly bad accents (and there are a LOT of accents), mispronounces the names of NYC landmarks (Zabars, most prominently) and has a flat reading style that gnaws at the listener the entire time. Ruined what could have been a very enjoyable book.
Rating:
Summary: Great (Audio) Book-- Terrible Reading
Review: I've read all of Tanenbaum's books about Butch Karp & Marlene Ciampi and enjoyed them thoroughly, so I was looking forward to listening to this book on tape. What a disappointment! James Daniels reads the characters with amazingly bad accents (and there are a LOT of accents), mispronounces the names of NYC landmarks (Zabars, most prominently) and has a flat reading style that gnaws at the listener the entire time. Ruined what could have been a very enjoyable book.
Rating:
Summary: It Didn't Work For Me
Review: Tanenbaum is a favorite writer, but this one just did not "rise to the level of"!
Rating:
Summary: People Magazine: Beach Book Of The Week
Review: Tanenbaum scores again with the further adventures of Ass't DA Butch Karp, wife Marlene and daughter Lucy. For the latest hardcover, Act Of Revenge, from HarperCollins, Publishers' Weekly opined this dysfunctional family will provide wonderful sequels for years to come. If you haven't read Tanenbaum, you are missing a great series. Get started!
Rating: 
Summary: Lots of glitches in details ruined the story for me.
Review: This story takes place in 1981; however, the child prodigy has already seen the Star Wars Trilogy (!!!) and the au pair listens to REM (debut album released in 1983). I'm not a car buff, but I can't remember ever seeing a gold Nissan Maxima in 1981. There are other gaffes that make this book very annoying. Sloppy.
Rating:
Summary: Great (Audio) Book-- Terrible Reading
Review: Three young Arabs seriously wound a Jewish elderly shopkeeper and murder his wife. Why? Because they have been ordered to by Ibn-Salemeh, a powerful Arabian megalomaniac. The reason is to start a holy war in New York City pitting the Jews against the Arabs, in what the Arabs hope will make themselves into martyrs. Deputy D.A. Butch Karp is assigned to the case. His job is to solve it, while keeping racial tensions from exploding in the city. More murders are to follow, all related to the Arabian cause. Even Mexican drug lords get tied into the crime spree, as the Arabs do much of their underground business with them to finance their holy war. Sound exciting? It could be, however, Tannebaum's lack of literary skills sure puts a damper on what could have been a good book. First of all, Tannebaum introduces too many characters too soon in the story, and then he neglects to develop those characters. As you read, it becomes difficult to remember who is who and what their role in the story is. I found myself frequently having to flip the pages backwards to refresh my memory of people and events. Also, there is no distinguishable characters in this book. Personalities are rather bland and the dialogue used is in monotone voices. As one reader pointed out, there are mistakes in the book that don't correspond with the book's time frame of 1981. The reader was correct in those errors he pointed out. Another one to add is that there is a scene where two girls sit down and watch the video Purple Rain. That movie wasn't released in theatres until 1984. While those mistakes may not bother some readers, I think it is important to note the carelessness. There are many areas in the story where Tannebaum goes into unnecessary detail on things that are not relevant, while in other parts of the story where clarification is needed, his writing lacks depth and the reader is left in the dark as to what point the writer is trying to convey. On a positive note, there is a good action scene at the end of the book that involves a huge car chase/shootout/bombing in downtown Brooklyn. However, it doesn't make up for the many dull pages that you must plow through to get there. If you are looking for a fast, easy, and fun thriller to read, I'd suggest you look elswhere.
Rating:
Summary: Fair plot, but the writing is weak
Review: Three young Arabs seriously wound a Jewish elderly shopkeeper and murder his wife. Why? Because they have been ordered to by Ibn-Salemeh, a powerful Arabian megalomaniac. The reason is to start a holy war in New York City pitting the Jews against the Arabs, in what the Arabs hope will make themselves into martyrs. Deputy D.A. Butch Karp is assigned to the case. His job is to solve it, while keeping racial tensions from exploding in the city. More murders are to follow, all related to the Arabian cause. Even Mexican drug lords get tied into the crime spree, as the Arabs do much of their underground business with them to finance their holy war. Sound exciting? It could be, however, Tannebaum's lack of literary skills sure puts a damper on what could have been a good book. First of all, Tannebaum introduces too many characters too soon in the story, and then he neglects to develop those characters. As you read, it becomes difficult to remember who is who and what their role in the story is. I found myself frequently having to flip the pages backwards to refresh my memory of people and events. Also, there is no distinguishable characters in this book. Personalities are rather bland and the dialogue used is in monotone voices. As one reader pointed out, there are mistakes in the book that don't correspond with the book's time frame of 1981. The reader was correct in those errors he pointed out. Another one to add is that there is a scene where two girls sit down and watch the video Purple Rain. That movie wasn't released in theatres until 1984. While those mistakes may not bother some readers, I think it is important to note the carelessness. There are many areas in the story where Tannebaum goes into unnecessary detail on things that are not relevant, while in other parts of the story where clarification is needed, his writing lacks depth and the reader is left in the dark as to what point the writer is trying to convey. On a positive note, there is a good action scene at the end of the book that involves a huge car chase/shootout/bombing in downtown Brooklyn. However, it doesn't make up for the many dull pages that you must plow through to get there. If you are looking for a fast, easy, and fun thriller to read, I'd suggest you look elswhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Now You Have To Pay Attention
Review: You've really got to keep your wits about you when you're reading this story. There are about 5 different threads of storylines that are gradually woven together tighter and tighter until something just has to give. And when it does, the effects are devastating. It's New York City, 1981 and the racial tensions between the Arabs and the Jews are simmering. A plot is being hatched and put into place by a small Arab group to start a holy war by bombing the Jewish part of town. Separate to this, yet delicately connected are a couple of Mexican brothers who have been arrested and charged with murdering an undercover officer during a drug bust. This is where Deputy D.A. Butch Karp comes into the picture, he's interested in getting a conviction, you see. Marlene Ciampi, Butch's wife is a private detective, specialising in protecting abused women and is also tenuously drawn into the picture after an Arab girl flees the family home. Now just add a murder or two, stir and let the fun begin.
| 
