Rating: 
Summary: Thank heaven for another writer of "Page-Turners"
Review: I thought it was just me! I see a lot of these reviews are describing "The Butcher's Boy" as a page-turner, a novel they couldn't put down, a book they inhaled in 4 hours! That was my precise reaction: "Thank heaven I've found another author of page-turners!" It doesn't happen to me often enough. What I can't figure out is how Perry writes with such enjoyable economy and still manages to create that magic of gluing the reader to the text. If you are a writer yourself, this question is worth getting to the bottom of. A mesmerizing tale of a professional killer going about the business of evading his pursuers, "The Butcher's Boy" is a novel that will send you in search of more Thomas Perry books.
Rating:
Summary: Thank heaven for another writer of "Page-Turners"
Review: I thought it was just me! I see a lot of these reviews are describing "The Butcher's Boy" as a page-turner, a novel they couldn't put down, a book they inhaled in 4 hours! That was my precise reaction: "Thank heaven I've found another author of page-turners!" It doesn't happen to me often enough. What I can't figure out is how Perry writes with such enjoyable economy and still manages to create that magic of gluing the reader to the text. If you are a writer yourself, this question is worth getting to the bottom of. A mesmerizing tale of a professional killer going about the business of evading his pursuers, "The Butcher's Boy" is a novel that will send you in search of more Thomas Perry books.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent first book.
Review: If you've liked any of Thomas Perry's books, especially the Jane Whitehead series, you'll enjoy this debut novel. There's even a very memorable female character who is obviously a precursor to the Jane Whitehead character. Once I started reading, I went almost non-stop, despite being in a distracting environment.
Rating:
Summary: Quick thriller, well-constructed but flawed
Review: My library branch head boss likes to recommend the classics of a genre. Before this, she recommended Ken Follett's "Eye of the Needle". Then she thrust this one into my hands after my coworker's son returned it, who had read it in four hours. Although I must admit my more deliberate pace, I will say this is a quick read. This book is similar to Ken Follett's "Eye of the Needle" in several ways. Both are fast paced thrillers that feature main characters who are methodical professionals, but professions (spy, hit-man) that require ruthlessness--both characters are kind of like evil MacGyvers. While their characters are flat, their pursuers have a human side. The storytelling switches between killer and pursuer, which paces nicely. While "Eye of the Needle" ends with a dramatic clash between two characters, "Butcher's Boy" side-steps the collision of killer and pursuer with a bit of the deus ex machina (the killer just happens to run into the person who has the 2 separate pieces of information he needs, an insane amount of money, and the means to frame his pursuers). Despite this flaw, the real joy comes from watching the Butcher's Boy achieve impossible objectives and extricating himself from certain demise by preparing for multiple situations while simultaneously improvising solutions. Therefore, I highly recommend this to any business school student, aspiring lawyer, or wannabe evil MacGyvers.
Rating: 
Summary: A Signature Style
Review: THE BUTCHER'S BOY, Thomas Perry's first in a long line of first-rate thrillers, introduces the reader to Perry's signature style. Characters with keen self awareness and superlative observational skills anticipate the behavior and actions of others based upon their knowledge of human nature. Perry has carved himself a niche that is both insightful and entertaining. Read this and all his others for pure escapist fare.
Rating:
Summary: Sympathy for the Devil
Review: This is a wonderfully fast paced novel of suspense and murder, which, like Sleeping Dogs, puts you in the uncomfortable position of rooting for a contract killer, or, at least, not wanting him to get caught. Like all of Perry's novels, it's a clever and irresistible can't-put-down.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Read
Review: This is an excellent book. I enjoy reading mysteries and this one had more depth than the current run of the mill bestsellers. Even though it was written a good while back, you cannot tell it.
Rating:
Summary: A mile stone of new era of Thriller.A MUST READ!
Review: This is one of the greatest books I've ever read in the last twenty years! Find it anyway you could and after finished it, try to find the sequal SLEEPING DOGS, kill both with one shot, please! This book almost became a bible to modern day thriller writers and it's plots and scenario had been sneakly if not consciously copied by many recent writers such J. Finder(the Zero Hour) and B. Branon(Devils hole). Thomas Perry is one of the great treasures in American literature(although I don't like this serious word). Mr. Perry is a most talented but sometimes with weird writing directions. If you enjoyed his BUTCHER'S BOY/SLEEPING DOGS, then please try to read his new DISAPPEARING ACT series, you will be so happy to find a great writer who obviously never lost his MUSE to find a different Hero or Heroine to entertain himself and us. A MUST READ ALL WRITER!
Rating:
Summary: Good Planning
Review: This is the story of a professional killer who is hired to perform several killings to avoid an investigation. The fun of the book is watching the killer react when his plan goes awry. He cleverly with exquisite execution defuses the situation.
The FBI agent who is pursuing him adds very little to the effort. I keep waiting for her to add some significance to the narration but it never happens.
The character of the hit man who for some reason Mr. Perry only names once in the book is engaging. We forget that he is a cold blooded killer until we are reminded by an FBI agent. The second wonderful part of the book is the description of Las Vegas. I have shared it with a friend of mine who lived and worked in Las Vegas for several years and from her description it was right on.
Lastly and this may be carping. The book would have been better without the last two pages.
Rating:
Summary: A fitting comparison to "Day of the Jackal"...
Review: This was one shrewd story. Accurately compared to "The Day of the Jackal", Perry puts the reader in the uncomfortable position of rooting for the green Justice Department analyst who is pursing a possible hit man on paper, as well as the flesh-and-blood hit man as he tries to escape from double-dealing employers and dumb old bad luck. Perhaps it is because said hit man is clearly bright and has such careful habits and such a will to survive. You wouldn't want a wolf in your back yard, but you do admire their skill, cunning, and life force. It seems that there are many mysteries set in and around Las Vegas lately but this one really does capture the seediness behind the scenes and the grainy textures of the life there. It is a complex, well-told story that is really quite unique in its approach and deserves a read if you're able. I had to scour the used bookstores for my copy - it is out of print.
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