Rating: 
Summary: Angel of Darkness swoops down for the kill!
Review: Caleb Carr strikes again with his eclectic band of late 19th century American detectives. If you couldn't put Carr's Alienist down, then you are prime for Angel of Darkness. In this sequel to Alienist, the tale is told by an adult Stevie Taggert, who fans will remember as the rag-tag boy who narrowly escaped death in the previous novel. His fresh storytelling is compelling and draws the reader into the decadent world of late 19th century New York City. This is Carr at his best, giving us his unique view of lower Manhattan with such alacrity that we can smell the acrid aromas that accompany a large city during a hot, hazy, hazardous summer. We even get a bit of international intrigue that twists the plot through its serpentine course.An excellent read.
Rating: 
Summary: A bit of a sophomore slump
Review: Having read "The Alienist", I was duly impressed by Caleb Carr's ability to interweave a fascinating story and original characters with a historically accurate look at turn of the century New York and eagerly awaited his next novel. However, I was somewhat disappointed with "The Angel of Darkness". Sara Howard, the investigative team's lone female, seems to have been pulled down into a PC undertow - running her own detective agency and still threatening to shoot any man who irks her. The narrator of this novel is Stevie Taggart and Carr does an admirable job in giving Stevie his own "voice" as well as again using newspaper reporter, John Schuyler Moore, as an "Everyman"; Carr uses Moore to ask the questions the reader needs to know in order to help us understand what Kreizler and the others are portrayed as already grasping. However, in "The Alienist", Moore appeared to be a fairly intelligent man. He actively assisted Kreizler's hunt for Beecham. Taggart's narration in "The Angel of Darkness" portrays Moore as a much more shallow, whiny and thickheaded individual; so much so that, at times, I found myself wondering why Kreizler or any of the others suffered his presence. The courtroom "drama" also slowed down the story. Instead of continuing the feeling of urgency in the search for Ana Linares, the trial slowed the story to a snail's pace, leaving me wondering if anyone remembered Ana. The trial almost seemed more of a device used solely to bring in Clarence Darrow than to advance the plotline any. Despite the points I have outlined above, I would still recommend "The Angel of Darkness" as a tale worth reading. Caleb Carr knows how to set up and deliver a well-written, atmospheric and engrossing narrative. It was on the strength of his first book that I purchased the second and it would be on the strength of those two novels together that I would not hesitate to purchase any of his future works.
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Summary: Caleb Carr does it again!
Review: As thick as this book is I didn't expect to have it read in a day and a half. Well, I also didn't get a lot done today either. This book is told in an off the cuff manner that is hard to put down. Angel of Darkness is as much about the main characters learning about themselves as it is a wonderful murder mystery
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Summary: absolutely amazing
Review: This sequel to The Alienist is told as a flashback by the now-adult Stevie Taggert, who, at age 11, was a former street urchin adopted by Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist (or "psychologist") to work in his Institute in exchange for education in 1890s New York City. One of their cases involves bringing to justice a woman who employs herself as a nanny and then kills her charges. In order to do this before she kills the baby she has currently nabbed -- in this case the child of a diplomat -- they will have to seek out this woman's past in upstate NY to find the patterns of her next move so they can stop her before she makes it. This book is fascinating in its depiction of 1890s New York, crime and gang warfare, and a case taking place in the early days of forensic science, ballistics, and psychological analysis as courtroom evidence. Carr has also painted a graphic portrait of the suspect and her rather violent crimes. Again, don't be put off by the length of Carr's works -- it is an amazing read that you won't want to put down!
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Summary: great until the end
Review: Having read The Alienist (a must if you want to read this book), I was excited to see where the characters were. The book was great and I was completely into the story of Libby Hatch, a sadistic woman who is kidnapping and killing children. Carr only lost me with the ending. The perfect example of a deus ex machina, I was rather dissapointed. To have followed the book all the way through only to be presented with a substandard ending was a let down. But I would still recommend this book because the concepts it presents are still very interesting.
Rating:
Summary: Very Good, Despite The Flaws
Review: It pains me to say anything derogatory about a Caleb Carr novel, as no one was more lavish in his praise of The Alienist than I was. First of all, while The Alienist was told by a journalist, this one is told by a former street urchin/hoodlum, Steve Taggart, nicknamed "Steve Pipe" for the weapon that saved him from being raped by a prison guard. It's a wonderfu idea to switch narrators, but it soon contradicts itself when Stevie says he's a simple man, so a simple way of telling things is the approache he'll take. Then he proceeds to write like Henry James channeling through Caleb Carr, using language and images that are far from simple. And the first several chapters are slow, over written, and the ending is a bit unsatisfying. All the said, there are still the marvelous Caleb Carr trademarks: the depth and breadth of New York society, complex plots, story twists and turns, and a feel that were are really there, walking down Broadway and riding through Gramercy Park and meeting another wonderful cast of characters. Like Robert Harris, whose brilliant Enigma was followed up by what I thought was a far inferior Pompeii, Mr. Carr has set his personal bar so high that matching himself is a great challenge. This book is long, detailed, will require some effort. But Caleb Carr's "B" game is better than many writer's "A" games, and when I finished, I would not have missed it. Just push yourself through the first few chapters and see if it hooks you like it did me and most of my reader friends.
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Summary: I thought it was a Masterpiece
Review: One of the few books I have ever read twice. It may get a third read soon. My only problem now is how do I go back to the tripe that somehow gets on those "best seller" lists.
It seems there was a small hint in this book that perhaps, we may have another in this two book series. In one of Stevie's lines regarding Sara Howard. It would be neat to have a book written with Miss Howard telling the tale.
Probably not for everybody but I would be surprised that very many would not find it an enjoyable read.
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Summary: Worthy Sequel to the Alienist
Review: Caleb Carr's book the Alienist was one of the best books of the nineties, a wonderfully evocative detective novel that took place in 1890's New York. The premise of the book: that a very diverse and unusual group of detectives would be recruited by New York City's new Police Commissioner, Theodore Roosevelt, was a bit of a stretch, but Carr made the characters so interesting it wasn't important that improbability was outweighed by entertainment.
In this second installment, Roosevelt's in Washington, serving as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and even Dr. Kreizler is somewhat annoyed by Roosevelt's attitude toward the Spanish and the possibility of war. Things are complicated when the wife of a Spanish diplomat approaches one of our band of detectives, the redoutable feminist investigator Sara Howard. Her daughter has been kidnapped, and her husband beat her when she announced that the child must be found. As if this isn't enough, there's an investigation into Dr. Kreizler's hospital, and as a result he's been ordered to stay away from that institution for two months.
The whole story is recounted by Stevie Taggart, and (as others have noted) this leads to the novel's few difficulties. The grammar is somewhat eccentric, and I liked the one criticism that this book is written as if an educated person was trying to sound ignorant. Stevie is an interesting character, though, and his viewpoint is fun, if the voice isn't completely convincing vernacular-wise.
Carr keeps the plot rocketing along, and there are some interesting diversions along the way. In addition to Roosevelt (who makes a cameo late in the book) we meet Elizabeth Cady Stanton and a young Clarence Darrow. We also meet a pair of interesting characters who are fictional: Rupert Picton, a prosecutor, and El Nino, a pygmy from the Philippines who's skilled with poison arrows and interesting throwing knives.
I enjoyed the book, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in historical books or detective novels. Though it does have a few faults, it's still an entertaining book.
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Summary: Carr's inimitable style strikes again... Suspenseful & more
Review: A Mesmerizing Tome, ANGEL OF DARKNESS is a sequel to Carr's "The Alienist". This reader, as am sure there are others, appreciate continuity in writings that carry forward some of the same characters, even though the narrator is a different person -- the street youth whom Dr. Kriezler "adopted", and rescued from a life of crime -- Stevie Taggart. After all, proteges are developed by other narrators, and in other fields as well - this slant in THE ANGEL OF DARKNESS is no exception. I have an appreciation for authors who bring in true-to-history participants -- e.g., Clarence Darrow; Theodore Roosevelt; & Mrs. Cady Stanton. -- after all, didn't they play a part in history?
Author Carr is a master storyteller, with hard-to-put-down books, very engaging trade dialogue with a style of 'teller to listener'. Added are the glimpses with a clear visual field from a window on life during the early 20th century New York City time period.
ANGEL OF DARKNESS is a riveting tale of a tormented murderess, facing crime & punishment for actions applicable to latter 19th century. Albeit an evil, cunning female would be difficult to believe in that era of history, with the "feminine" roles women were assigned then - more so than today.
Libby Hatch compares in stature with villain John Beecham. Added spice is a first-rate mind that is always calculating the next move; Mr. Carr enfolds readers with examples of dark society, with excellent, poignant, & some humorous dramatization. The author raises this story to a plateau of the black underside of human psyche, including madness, frailty of the human mind & development of socio-political forensic science methods, combining criminology & psychology with deepening nooks and crannies creating a suspenseful read.
As with any book of this nature, plot, scope and length there are bound to be a few flaws... however, the reader becomes entranced with the story's path that flaws matter none. The narrative style contains some inconsistencies in which no single character nor sub-plot is given the in-depth development it could have been assigned, but perhaps readers can then expand their imaginations?!
This reader boasts proudly of having met Caleb Carr at his signing at the famous NY theme -- "NEW YORK IS BOOK COUNTRY" -- Annual Book Fair, 5th Avenue... Biblioholic heave! This review is based on hardcover first edition 1997. Be sure to read author Carr's KILLING TIME.)
(This reader also recommends a same century read: CITY OF LIGHT by Louise Balfour, set in burgeoning Buffalo, NY and Niagara Falls with Pan Am Expo & other historical events, cast of note.)
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Summary: The Angel of Darkness Evaluation
Review: I truly enjoyed The Angel of Darkness. I found the novel to be very interesting and suspenseful. So suspenseful in fact that at times I didn't want to put the book down. Caleb really out did him self in this novel, he took the book to a plateau of the dark underside of human psyche. Caleb was really able to show the madness and Macomb of the human mind. Caleb as well as doing that was able to throw some forensic science methods which at that time were just starting to become popular. Caleb's ability to tie those two components together is what really made me fall in love with this book. I recommend this book to anybody and on a scale 1-5 I give it a 7 it is amazing. By Matt McCallum
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