Rating: 
Summary: The Toughest Crime Novel I Have Read - OUTSTANDING!!
Review: "Strega" is Andrew Vachss' second novel starring Burke, the hard-boiled, in-your-face, ex-con detective, who still isn't sure on which side of the law he prefers to operate. Abandoned at birth, father and mother unknown, Burke has no real first name. "Baby boy" is the name on his birth certificate. The novel is set 1980s NYC, before Mayor Guiliani came to office and cleaned up the mean streets - or tried to. "Strega" is also the first Andrew Vachss book I have read. I must say, I am very impressed by his writing style and storyline. Most of the Burke series deals with hunting down and prosecuting child molesters, as does this novel. Mr. Vachss has selected a noble cause, and deals professionally and knowledgeably with the topic. The author is a lawyer, specializing in prosecuting child abuse cases, so he certainly has the expertise to be an advocate. He openly admits that he writes about the abuse of children because he wants to raise people's awareness of what's going on, and he'll reach a wider audience with fiction.
P. I. Burke is the narrator. And the narrative, at times, goes off on a tangent, like Burke's thought processes. The PI is a careful guy. He always returns to make his point. I think this occasional stream of consciousness is extremely effective and enhances the detective's persona. Vachss still manages to maintain a tight writing style throughout. Everything and everyone comes under Burke's cynical, seen-it-all scrutiny. I have never learned more about the underworld and life behind bars than in this novel. I find the descriptions of the seamier side of life, the one "citizens" rarely observe, to be fascinating. Burke's expert eye takes in details of life on the street that I never would. "The streets were quiet, but if you look close, you could see things. Two guys standing against the wall of a darkened gas station - the wool caps on their heads would turn into ski masks when they pulled them down, hands in their pockets. A lonely prostitute in a fake-fur coat with a white mini-skirt underneath, looking to turn one last trick before she called it a night. A van with blacked-out windows driving by slowly, watching the woman while the two men in the shadows watched the van. In New York, the vultures work close to the ground."
Vachss populates his world with a colorful assortment of characters: Max the Silent, a mute Mongolian version of Conan the Barbarian with creative ways of communicating; Pansy, a vicious 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; the Prophet, a scam artist who has done too much time behind walls to care; Mama Wong, group doyenne and Chinese restaurateur, "keeps her prices high and the ambience foul to discourage yuppies." She cares for the gang and holds Burke's stash; Michelle, a gorgeous transvestite who needs to "break out;" and Immaculata , Max's Vietnamese love interest, a child therapist. I should add here that our hero drives a souped-up Plymouth, another important character. It usually looks like it's been painted with rust. That's the fresh coat of primer it almost always sports - "the Mole makes sure to change the car's color after it is used on a job."
Julio, a big-shot mob figure and acquaintance of Burke's, strong-arms the PI to take a new case. Julio's close family friend, Gina, is an Italian princess with lots of charisma. She is desperate to recover an obscene photograph of a little boy. The child, Scotty, is her six-year old daughter's playmate. Gina calls herself "Strega," ("a witch-bit*h you could lust after or run from. You could be in the middle of a desert and her shadow would make you cold."), is not above manipulation or anything else that will assist her in getting her way.
The search for the Polaroid picture will take Burke and his band of men to the dark side, to a world they never wanted to know, filled with the anguish and pain of children.
Realistic - some of the toughest prose I've read - amazingly lifelike characters - riveting! What more can I say??
JANA
Rating:
Summary: another classic
Review: Andrew Vachss is a great writer and a crusader for children's rights.
Rating: 
Summary: Another hard-boiled thriller from Vachss
Review: Andrew Vachss takes the reader on another journey with his well-known cast of characters embroiled in another child pornography ring crime. Burke's sense of right and wrong remains unerring and Vachss ability to make the reader turn that page is unscathed. Unfortunately, the book loses steam at the end - an all too often problem with Vachss' work. Even so, worth it if you enjoy his other Burke works
Rating:
Summary: Vachss and Burke at Their Best
Review: As a mystery writer with my debut novel in its initial release, I've always considered STREGA as Andrew Vachss's best book. This novel is the most noirish of the Burke novels. It is well written and dark. Burke's world is a tough place, and one has to be tough to endure. The plot is strong and takes some surprising turns. The characters fit their purposes perfectly. If you can only read one book by Andrew H. Vachss, make it STREGA.
Rating:
Summary: Vachss and Burke at Their Best
Review: As a mystery writer with my debut novel in its initial release, I've always considered STREGA as Andrew Vachss's best book. This novel is the most noirish of the Burke novels. It is well written and dark. Burke's world is a tough place, and one has to be tough to endure. The plot is strong and takes some surprising turns. The characters fit their purposes perfectly. If you can only read one book by Andrew H. Vachss, make it STREGA.
Rating:
Summary: The 2nd book in the Burke series
Review: Ex-con Burke is hired by a mob princess for vengeance against
perverted day-care workers who scarred her friend's young son;
soon he finds himself under her spell, and ultimately
learning what made her the witch-- or "strega"-- that she is.
Rating:
Summary: First Book by Vachhs I had ever read, and I was HOOKED!
Review: I picked this book up, intriqued by the cover, and title...After just the first few pages, I was hooked on Andrew Vachhs's styleof writing!! His Burke books give the average "citizen" a peek into the seamier side of life... The things that John Q. Public never notices, or Chooses not to notice, yet Should be noticed, if only to make us aware of the horrors that exist, that NEED to be made right! He let's us see the beauty of an ugly thing, the genious in a madman, the warmth that exists in a streewalker, and the hope that lies in a childs eyes.... Mike Hammer, step aside... there's a NEW killer on the side of right.. his name is "BURKE"
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Summary: A tour that you might not want to go on...
Review: In Strega, Mr. Vachss has written one of the great works of modern noir. Many people can find fault with it's depiction of New York's assorted demons (from pimps to child pornographers) or the sometimes crudeness of the language. IT'S NOIR!!! It's also the noir of today. It would be nice if the harshest thing a woman could be called was a whore or the worst crime was murder in todays society. They're not and Mr. Vachss's avenging angel (?) Burke lives and breathes in the darkest of the underbelly. In this novel, he is hired to find a picture. I won't even tell you of what so's not to offend delicate sensibilities. Crawling into the muck with him are his faithful comanions, the Prof (or Prophet), the Mole, and Max The Silent (one of my favorite characters in a looooong time). As he delves further he finds himself deeply intertwined with Strega, the woman who has hired him. (Strega is the Italian term for a sexual witch. You do the math) Once again not for the kids or the faint of heart. Like noir? Get this book. Easily offended? Read The Bridges of Madison County and SHUT UP!!! I may be reading too many hard boiled novels. Ya think?
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Summary: A manual of the truest of evil...
Review: Mr. Vachss has practically written a manual to monsterdom with Strega. As it stands, Strega is a small chapter in true horror--- not just fictional crime. Although laced with his short, sometimes crude sentencing, it punches hard and leaves you wondering if Mr. Vachss could possibly be Burke, the main, and eerie character himself. Max, the silent giant, gives you chills as he snaps bones, then slips between the shadows like a shark. The Mole, a eccentric junkyard whiz. Every character has been well thought out--- again, leaving you to wonder... Strega leaves you scared.., fearing who that sweet old lady across the street really is... Why does she stay up all night, and what are those sounds? Strega.., definately brings out a horrific feeling, but it's one that everybody should be aware. Vachss is willing to do what most won't.., make a stand against the truest of all evil. He did amazingly well with Strega.
Rating:
Summary: Burke is hard boiled mix of Doc Savage and George Smiley
Review: Set in New York City in the 8o's, in this hard-boiled plot about Child Pornography, we get a good sense of the realism behind the criminal mind and behavior as well as a realistic graphic depiction of the darker side of New York City.I guess my big problem with the main character Burke is that he is such a self-righteous goodie two-shoes as are his dysfunctioanl band of cohorts cut from the pages of Doc Savage and Smiley's People. His heart of gold meshed with his criminal background doesn't seem to cut real for me. The ending too, was a bit dissappointing and not completely shocking since there are plenty of precursors to let you know there is something wrong with Strega. I think alot more could have been done with it.
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