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While he investigates a questionable suicide, Detective Bert Kling begins to buckle under from the stresses of his personal life--he is afraid his wife is having an affair and he is being hunted by a psychopathic ex-convict
Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1981
83 people are currently reading
471 people want to read
About the author
Ed McBain
715 books671 followers"Ed McBain" is one of the pen names of American author and screenwriter Salvatore Albert Lombino (1926-2005), who legally adopted the name
Evan Hunter
in 1952.
While successful and well known as Evan Hunter, he was even better known as Ed McBain, a name he used for most of his crime fiction, beginning in 1956.
He also used the pen names John Abbott, Curt Cannon, Hunt Collins, Ezra Hannon, Dean Hudson, Evan Hunter, and Richard Marsten.
While successful and well known as Evan Hunter, he was even better known as Ed McBain, a name he used for most of his crime fiction, beginning in 1956.
He also used the pen names John Abbott, Curt Cannon, Hunt Collins, Ezra Hannon, Dean Hudson, Evan Hunter, and Richard Marsten.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews
April 17, 2015
As the title suggests, this installment in the 87th Precinct series takes place during a stifling heat wave that simply will not let up. The heat and humidity are torturing everyone as are the problems, both professional and personal, confronting the Precinct's detectives.
As the book opens, detectives Steve Carella and Bert Kling are called to a death scene. A woman has arrived home from a week-long trip to London to discover the body of her husband decomposing on the floor of their apartment. The air conditioner in the apartment has been turned off and the temperature inside the apartment is 109 degrees. The guy has been dead for some time and so, needless to say, things are a bit ripe.
The dead man was an alcoholic and not a very nice person generally. There are no signs of violence and twenty-nine Seconal tablets are missing from the medicine cabinet. It appears that the man has committed suicide, but the law requires that the death be investigated as a possible homicide until officially ruled a suicide. Everything points in that direction, but Carella can't help wondering why the air conditioner was turned off in the middle of a heat wave.
As they investigate the case, Kling tells Carella that he fears that his wife Augusta, a beautiful and highly-paid fashion model, is having an affair. Carella counsels that the best thing to do would be for Kling to discuss his suspicions with Augusta. Kling promises to do so, but instead begins a private investigation into his wife's life. Obviously, this is an action that could have any number of potentially very bad outcomes.
The death investigation is one of the more interesting ones in this series and one feels for poor Bert Kling, who is clearly suffering the tortures of the damned. Together, the two investigations make for a very entertaining read--another good entry in this long-running series.
As the book opens, detectives Steve Carella and Bert Kling are called to a death scene. A woman has arrived home from a week-long trip to London to discover the body of her husband decomposing on the floor of their apartment. The air conditioner in the apartment has been turned off and the temperature inside the apartment is 109 degrees. The guy has been dead for some time and so, needless to say, things are a bit ripe.
The dead man was an alcoholic and not a very nice person generally. There are no signs of violence and twenty-nine Seconal tablets are missing from the medicine cabinet. It appears that the man has committed suicide, but the law requires that the death be investigated as a possible homicide until officially ruled a suicide. Everything points in that direction, but Carella can't help wondering why the air conditioner was turned off in the middle of a heat wave.
As they investigate the case, Kling tells Carella that he fears that his wife Augusta, a beautiful and highly-paid fashion model, is having an affair. Carella counsels that the best thing to do would be for Kling to discuss his suspicions with Augusta. Kling promises to do so, but instead begins a private investigation into his wife's life. Obviously, this is an action that could have any number of potentially very bad outcomes.
The death investigation is one of the more interesting ones in this series and one feels for poor Bert Kling, who is clearly suffering the tortures of the damned. Together, the two investigations make for a very entertaining read--another good entry in this long-running series.
November 28, 2020
Isola is having a heat wave, and an artist is found in his apartment, dead from suicide...or murder. Carella investigates, but his partner, Kling, is too busy worrying that this wife is sleeping around to focus.
Not bad, but the twist is a bit dated.
Not bad, but the twist is a bit dated.
June 8, 2024
Another satisfying and entertaining police procedural with several great diversions from the main story. Deals with deception and trust very well. Still amazed with the realness of the dialog and characters.
In the introduction to a 1989 reprint of Cop Hater, McBain said he envisioned the 97th Precinct would have “a squad room full of cops, each with different traits, who when put together would form a conglomerate hero”. This is my third 97th Precinct novel and so far, I think he executed his plan well.
I’ve taken the task of reading all the used 97th Precinct novels that I could find at my local. The question for me is. Does McBain get better over time? I read Cop Hater (1956) and The Mugger (1956) first. Heat (1981) is very dependable for its genre. I can't say it's miles better because the first two books were so good. Thankfully, it shows a vast improvement regarding the issues with chauvinism and racism in the first two books.
The female characters in Heat (there were a lot of females in Heat, probably half the cast) have agency, income, and talent. They’re not simply the pin ups and bimbos that women were in Cop Hater and The Mugger. In fact, blatant leering of an interviewee by one of the detectives is looked down upon by a fellow detective.
Racist incidences in the 97th continue in this book though not as extensively and McBain doesn’t let himself get away with them completely. For example, there are two characters, one black and one white, who spent a lot of time together in prison. After prison, the two characters treat each other with respect. However, the same white character is disrespectful to other blacks.
Is McBain showing that a person can’t be racist if they know the other person? Well, knowing another person does erase a lot of isms and phobias. But, what about the strangers you meet? You don’t know them. How do you treat them? I think McBain was trying to show how ridiculous the white guy was. If that was true, a lot of trust is given to the reader to make that connection.
Notes
*Excellent use of fingerprints.
*Good examples of getting to the root of testimony and evidence by checking every single detail.
*McBain shows through one of the detectives how easy abuse of police power can be.
In the introduction to a 1989 reprint of Cop Hater, McBain said he envisioned the 97th Precinct would have “a squad room full of cops, each with different traits, who when put together would form a conglomerate hero”. This is my third 97th Precinct novel and so far, I think he executed his plan well.
I’ve taken the task of reading all the used 97th Precinct novels that I could find at my local. The question for me is. Does McBain get better over time? I read Cop Hater (1956) and The Mugger (1956) first. Heat (1981) is very dependable for its genre. I can't say it's miles better because the first two books were so good. Thankfully, it shows a vast improvement regarding the issues with chauvinism and racism in the first two books.
The female characters in Heat (there were a lot of females in Heat, probably half the cast) have agency, income, and talent. They’re not simply the pin ups and bimbos that women were in Cop Hater and The Mugger. In fact, blatant leering of an interviewee by one of the detectives is looked down upon by a fellow detective.
Racist incidences in the 97th continue in this book though not as extensively and McBain doesn’t let himself get away with them completely. For example, there are two characters, one black and one white, who spent a lot of time together in prison. After prison, the two characters treat each other with respect. However, the same white character is disrespectful to other blacks.
Is McBain showing that a person can’t be racist if they know the other person? Well, knowing another person does erase a lot of isms and phobias. But, what about the strangers you meet? You don’t know them. How do you treat them? I think McBain was trying to show how ridiculous the white guy was. If that was true, a lot of trust is given to the reader to make that connection.
Notes
*Excellent use of fingerprints.
*Good examples of getting to the root of testimony and evidence by checking every single detail.
*McBain shows through one of the detectives how easy abuse of police power can be.
August 17, 2025
★★★★
HEAT
I really enjoyed this entry in the series. The main mystery, followed by Carella, revolves around an apparent suicide during a sweltering spell. The investigation at times seemed to drag, frustrating in the same way the heat presses down without relief, yet the ending came together in a way that was satisfying even if a little abrupt.
Another strand follows a man recently released from prison who is set on revenge against Kling. This storyline intersects with the main personal drama involving Kling and Augusta, adding tension and suspense throughout the book.
I read the novel during a heatwave, with the levanter blowing through my city. This natural phenomenon traps heat and makes the nights heavy, humid and airless. McBain captures this perfectly in Isola, where the heat almost becomes a character, pressing down on every scene and adding a sense of suffocation that mirrors the unfolding drama.
A big part of the book’s tension comes from Kling’s personal storyline. He behaves obsessively, but I could completely understand him. As he wrestles with suspicion over Augusta, I felt the same restlessness, agitation and sense of being on edge that he must have endured. Even before the reveal, I shared his almost unbearable anxiety, and his pain at the end when he walked into the bedroom was deeply affecting.
The book has a slightly soapy edge, but that works perfectly here. By now McBain has built a fully realised world and a cast of characters I really care about, so the personal dramas hit just as strongly as the cases. It shows how invested I’ve become in the 87th Precinct and why the more intimate storylines are genuinely compelling.
HEAT
I really enjoyed this entry in the series. The main mystery, followed by Carella, revolves around an apparent suicide during a sweltering spell. The investigation at times seemed to drag, frustrating in the same way the heat presses down without relief, yet the ending came together in a way that was satisfying even if a little abrupt.
Another strand follows a man recently released from prison who is set on revenge against Kling. This storyline intersects with the main personal drama involving Kling and Augusta, adding tension and suspense throughout the book.
I read the novel during a heatwave, with the levanter blowing through my city. This natural phenomenon traps heat and makes the nights heavy, humid and airless. McBain captures this perfectly in Isola, where the heat almost becomes a character, pressing down on every scene and adding a sense of suffocation that mirrors the unfolding drama.
A big part of the book’s tension comes from Kling’s personal storyline. He behaves obsessively, but I could completely understand him. As he wrestles with suspicion over Augusta, I felt the same restlessness, agitation and sense of being on edge that he must have endured. Even before the reveal, I shared his almost unbearable anxiety, and his pain at the end when he walked into the bedroom was deeply affecting.
The book has a slightly soapy edge, but that works perfectly here. By now McBain has built a fully realised world and a cast of characters I really care about, so the personal dramas hit just as strongly as the cases. It shows how invested I’ve become in the 87th Precinct and why the more intimate storylines are genuinely compelling.
September 15, 2021
A pretty solid entry in the series about the cops of the 87th Precinct.
August 10, 2017
An apparent suicide with some unexplained factors is the main case for Carmella and Kling, operating in a major heatwave. And Kling has something else on his mind
March 19, 2019
Another good mystery with a dark heart. Only Carella’s determination to make sense of things pushes the case towards conclusion. The B plot has poor Bert Kling running all over town to try and prove his wife’s been unfaithful. It’s a bit soapy for McBain, but Kling’s such a lovable chump that I went with it hoping for a happy ending.
April 25, 2010
Even before Evan Hunter--alias Ed McBain--died, I started collecting his 87th Precinct novels. He writes well, and tells a good story. Because the books are all about a certain group of policemen, there is that continuity--like a reunion with well known characters. In this one, there is a suicide--or is it a homicide, and Bert Kling's wife, the lovely Augusta, may be cheating on him.
September 2, 2021
A bit longer than most so far and therefore a more in depth story. There is one main case with two side stories, both of which revolve around Detective Burt Kling.
The main story did seem to end a bit suddenly for my taste but it was a decent puzzler for most of the book. One of the side stories is yet another episode in Burt Kling's love life. These are always entertaining and make an overreaching story arc that crops up every few books.
Another good solid entry in the series.
The main story did seem to end a bit suddenly for my taste but it was a decent puzzler for most of the book. One of the side stories is yet another episode in Burt Kling's love life. These are always entertaining and make an overreaching story arc that crops up every few books.
Another good solid entry in the series.
June 30, 2013
The murder mystery here was a little too predictable as an alcoholic is found dead of an apparently suicide by pills, except that he is deathly afraid of pills, there is a bolt-locked door, and the thermostat and pill bottle are wiped clean of prints. Also, a paroled murderer decides to get even with Detective Bert Kling after his daughter tells him she hates him for killing her mother. Meanwhile, Bert Kling is agonizing and obsessing over whether his beautiful wife, Augusta, is having an affair.
April 26, 2018
This entry in the 87th precinct series finds Detective Carella investigating an apparent suicide. As you might expect, things aren't as they seem. A subplot finds Bert Cling wondering if his wife is faithful to him.
Some of the later entries in this series seem to focus only on the mysteries; not much time is spent on the interaction between the detectives. While that's true here, I was very happy to see some attention given to Cling's personal life. This series was groundbreaking because it included glimpses into the lives of the detectives and it showed what it was like to work in the 87th. I hope that trend continues in the books I still need to read.
There is one reason this book didn't get a higher rating from me. There is a character here who is extremely bigoted. McBain chose to demonstrate this by having him use a particular racial slur over and over again. I have no doubt that the dialogue was true to the character, but it became annoying and distracting. I wish McBain found a better way to show this.
Still, if you enjoy this series, "Heat" is a worthy entry.
Some of the later entries in this series seem to focus only on the mysteries; not much time is spent on the interaction between the detectives. While that's true here, I was very happy to see some attention given to Cling's personal life. This series was groundbreaking because it included glimpses into the lives of the detectives and it showed what it was like to work in the 87th. I hope that trend continues in the books I still need to read.
There is one reason this book didn't get a higher rating from me. There is a character here who is extremely bigoted. McBain chose to demonstrate this by having him use a particular racial slur over and over again. I have no doubt that the dialogue was true to the character, but it became annoying and distracting. I wish McBain found a better way to show this.
Still, if you enjoy this series, "Heat" is a worthy entry.
May 31, 2020
Carella and Kling are called to an apparent suicide but Carella has concerns while Kling has suspicions about his wife Augusta. Meanwhile, Halloran is out of jail after 12years and is gunning for someone at the 87th,
As usual, this is an all action book with everything happening at once. All good stuff for the avid fan. A good 4 star read in the still bleak times when we want some diversion.
As usual, this is an all action book with everything happening at once. All good stuff for the avid fan. A good 4 star read in the still bleak times when we want some diversion.
July 26, 2024
Found it in an airbnb. Thought it was the DeNiro/Pacino movie- it wasn’t and it was racist, sexist and dire.
July 24, 2020
I was entertained by this 87th Precinct novel, although, it drives me nuts when the cops fail to gather any solid evidence and the perp saves them by blabbing an admission.
September 1, 2018
Another juicy 87th Precinct book. Great dialogue, a nice plot in this one, with ongoing soap operatic elements of the characters you know and love. I have read many of these books from all over the series, never in order. So it's great fun to be going through these in order, one by one. I had the distinct impression I'd read this one before, as I went through it. The ending caught me totally by surprise, so I guess I hadn't read it before.
May 29, 2016
Friends, you are going to see a lot of these, only without reviews, most likely. I've recently stumbled onto Ed McBain's work and it's turning out to be like potato chips--I can't have just one. I like the stories. The characters are well drawn. The books are fast, well written, and continue to surprise me. Guilty pleasures, I suppose.
January 25, 2021
a rock solid entry in his 87th Precinct series. It features a nicely tricky, central mystery, a lunatic ex-con out for revenge on one of the 87th’s finest and a well handled domestic sub-plot.
It’s all wrapped up with McBain’s pitch perfect dialogue and humour and grips from page 1.
It’s all wrapped up with McBain’s pitch perfect dialogue and humour and grips from page 1.
May 1, 2025
There are several kinds of heat. First it's summer and the city is boiling hot. The air conditioner in Carella's car isn't working. Second, the air conditioner in a murder scene is turned right down, so the corpse decomposes fast enough to make deciding the time of death extremely difficult. Third, there's the heat of anger: a killer whom Kling put behind bars is now free again, and planning to get revenge on the cop who nabbed him. And finally there's the heat of sex, which is naturally associated with red hair.
Although ... I feel aggrieved with McBain for giving Bert Kling a woman with red hair. In McBain, red hair is always accompanied by green eyes. In Augusta's case, they're jade green and this is long before contact lenses. I come from a family of redheads. Even my nieces and nephew have red hair. None of us has green eyes. Mine are an acceptable hazel colour i.e. there is green in them. My sister (also red hair) had beautiful clear blue eyes. But not green. These green eyes belong to a character dreamed up by an author.
I wasn't happy with Augusta's physical description from the start. She's a model, of course. So naturally she's beautiful. But can you visualise this face? "She had high cheekbones, the lady, eyes slanting up from them, fiercely green against the tan, tilted nose gently drawing the upper lip away from partially exposed, even white teeth."
Tilted nose drawing the upper lip away from the teeth? This is weird, no?
And the poor girl likes going to parties, but when she gets home she goes through a nightly exercise routine (none of the physically tough detectives seem to do anything whatsoever to keep fit). She does sit-ups, leg stretches and push-ups, mainly to give the reader (via Kling) some voyeuristic titillation (she had no choice; McBain forced her).
Here she is doing the leg exercises: "As he turned to go back to the chair, the auburn hair covering her crotch winked for just an instant, and then her legs closed, and opened again, the flaming wink again, and closed again." Meanwhile, the temperature outside the flat is about to "hit a high of somewhere between ninety-eight and ninety-nine" (that's Fahrenheit, folks).
Apart from her nose pulling her top lip away from her teeth, Kling's wife of two years perfectly conforms to McBain expectations of feminine perfection ("long red hair, and green eyes and a deep suntan)". Did I mention that redheads don't tan? Redheads have very fair, very sun-sensitive skin. "Her sweater swelled over breasts firm without a bra". She won't be modelling brassieres, then. All attractive women in McBain have "firm breasts" and I confess this is starting to get to me. Silicon breasts are also pretty firm, I believe. And babies don't suckle cheerfully from firm breasts either.
Anyway, {spoiler alert} neither Augusta nor Kling come out of all this honourably, and Kling (who looks like a young Robert Redford) deserves better. So does Augusta. Perhaps she'll be able to lay off the henna and get on with having a normal life now.
Although ... I feel aggrieved with McBain for giving Bert Kling a woman with red hair. In McBain, red hair is always accompanied by green eyes. In Augusta's case, they're jade green and this is long before contact lenses. I come from a family of redheads. Even my nieces and nephew have red hair. None of us has green eyes. Mine are an acceptable hazel colour i.e. there is green in them. My sister (also red hair) had beautiful clear blue eyes. But not green. These green eyes belong to a character dreamed up by an author.
I wasn't happy with Augusta's physical description from the start. She's a model, of course. So naturally she's beautiful. But can you visualise this face? "She had high cheekbones, the lady, eyes slanting up from them, fiercely green against the tan, tilted nose gently drawing the upper lip away from partially exposed, even white teeth."
Tilted nose drawing the upper lip away from the teeth? This is weird, no?
And the poor girl likes going to parties, but when she gets home she goes through a nightly exercise routine (none of the physically tough detectives seem to do anything whatsoever to keep fit). She does sit-ups, leg stretches and push-ups, mainly to give the reader (via Kling) some voyeuristic titillation (she had no choice; McBain forced her).
Here she is doing the leg exercises: "As he turned to go back to the chair, the auburn hair covering her crotch winked for just an instant, and then her legs closed, and opened again, the flaming wink again, and closed again." Meanwhile, the temperature outside the flat is about to "hit a high of somewhere between ninety-eight and ninety-nine" (that's Fahrenheit, folks).
Apart from her nose pulling her top lip away from her teeth, Kling's wife of two years perfectly conforms to McBain expectations of feminine perfection ("long red hair, and green eyes and a deep suntan)". Did I mention that redheads don't tan? Redheads have very fair, very sun-sensitive skin. "Her sweater swelled over breasts firm without a bra". She won't be modelling brassieres, then. All attractive women in McBain have "firm breasts" and I confess this is starting to get to me. Silicon breasts are also pretty firm, I believe. And babies don't suckle cheerfully from firm breasts either.
Anyway, {spoiler alert} neither Augusta nor Kling come out of all this honourably, and Kling (who looks like a young Robert Redford) deserves better. So does Augusta. Perhaps she'll be able to lay off the henna and get on with having a normal life now.
July 13, 2022
Hot in the city, While Carella and Kling are on the case. Another quality entry in the 87th series.
Carella leads the charge on this one, an apparent locked door, suicide by an alcoholic. The glaring clue throughout this case is the fingerprint-free A/C unit during the heatwave, and that is it in the "off" position when the body is discovered. Cop intuition at its finest. McBain runs Carella through his paces, displays the difficulties of evidence processing and legalities, and plays out the red herrings right up until the end. Sad commentary on today's marriages. Alas, that brings us to Bert Kling.
I believe we are up to love interest (girlfriend/fiance/wife) #3 for Kling, and the personal touches/stories that make it a driving force behind the success of these books. Mrs. Kling, Gussie, is a model, and a knockout to boot, while Kling is everyman's cop. Expect the worst and it will appear. Poor Bert. I am more invested in Kling's marriage than the hunt for clues in the prime plot.
And McBain provides us a tertiary callback/segment character harking back to "Ax", a felon who murdered his wife, coincidentally arrested by Kling, just got out and is looking for payback. This final story is concurrent with the other two and gets a measure of closure.
Nothing over the top, but firmly grounded in police work. Makes for one of the better books.
Thanks for reading.
Carella leads the charge on this one, an apparent locked door, suicide by an alcoholic. The glaring clue throughout this case is the fingerprint-free A/C unit during the heatwave, and that is it in the "off" position when the body is discovered. Cop intuition at its finest. McBain runs Carella through his paces, displays the difficulties of evidence processing and legalities, and plays out the red herrings right up until the end. Sad commentary on today's marriages. Alas, that brings us to Bert Kling.
I believe we are up to love interest (girlfriend/fiance/wife) #3 for Kling, and the personal touches/stories that make it a driving force behind the success of these books. Mrs. Kling, Gussie, is a model, and a knockout to boot, while Kling is everyman's cop. Expect the worst and it will appear. Poor Bert. I am more invested in Kling's marriage than the hunt for clues in the prime plot.
And McBain provides us a tertiary callback/segment character harking back to "Ax", a felon who murdered his wife, coincidentally arrested by Kling, just got out and is looking for payback. This final story is concurrent with the other two and gets a measure of closure.
Nothing over the top, but firmly grounded in police work. Makes for one of the better books.
Thanks for reading.
September 18, 2022
The 35th book in Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct series sees the author playing to his considerable strengths. Three plots are interwoven, with two of them linked in that they involve Detective Bert Kling. The main plot, in which Detective Steve Carella investigates an apparent suicide with a number of unanswered questions leads him to consider a more sinister scenario. This is played out in the straightforward procedural format McBain had established from book 1. Alongside this, we have Kling using his detective skills to expose his wife’s infidelity, whilst he himself is being tailed by an ex-con with a taste for revenge. The Kling/Augusta storyline continues McBain’s increasing domestic angle to his books to fill out a required higher page count. Kling’s run of misfortune has been a frequent interlude for the series and here McBain puts his young detective through the wringer once more. McBain uses the framework very effectively and the reader is taken along on Kling’s emotional rollercoaster ride as he pieces together his wife’s affair. The book is also peppered with McBain’s trademark slick dialogue and doses of humour, which lend the detectives a human quality sometimes lacking in the genre. After a couple of more experimental books, here McBain shows the way forward for the series in a changing market where readers were becoming more demanding.
October 8, 2025
Yet another good novel in my binge reading of Ed McBain's 87th precinct. This is a fine example of police procedure with a personal tale of suspected wife-cheating thrown in.
The main focus centers on the investigation into the death of Jerry Newman, an artist who was found dead in a blistering hot apartment after he was suspected of taking a load of sleeping medication. Was it a suicide or homicide? Detective Steve Carella pursues it doggedly and it makes for a really good offering in police procedural novels. The other storyline is on Bert Kling who suspects his wife is cheating on him. He does a lot of things police normally would not do because of the emotions he's feeling.
It builds up. Meanwhile, someone is trying to kill him.
The ending of the Kling tale is totally unfinished and I should drop this rating to a 3.5-star. The library does not have the next book in this series. In fact, it doesn't have the next 10 or so, so I'll not know what really happened in the end. If anyone does know, feel free to respond here with a Spoiler alart for those who may not like reading spoiler stuff.
The main focus centers on the investigation into the death of Jerry Newman, an artist who was found dead in a blistering hot apartment after he was suspected of taking a load of sleeping medication. Was it a suicide or homicide? Detective Steve Carella pursues it doggedly and it makes for a really good offering in police procedural novels. The other storyline is on Bert Kling who suspects his wife is cheating on him. He does a lot of things police normally would not do because of the emotions he's feeling.
It builds up. Meanwhile, someone is trying to kill him.
The ending of the Kling tale is totally unfinished and I should drop this rating to a 3.5-star. The library does not have the next book in this series. In fact, it doesn't have the next 10 or so, so I'll not know what really happened in the end. If anyone does know, feel free to respond here with a Spoiler alart for those who may not like reading spoiler stuff.
October 10, 2020
Obávám se, že už mám zlatá McBainova léta za sebou. Už poslední knížka byla slabší a tady to v nastoleném trendu pokračuje. Základní případ není moc zajímavý, takže jsou k němu přilepené nějaké další epizody. Z nich je jedna výborná, ale krátká (zátah na drogové dealery), druhá střední a v podstatě zbytečná (z vězení propuštěný chlápek, co se chce pomstít) a třetí dlouhá a mizerná. Ta je o tom, jak Bert Kling odhaluje svou nevěrnou manželku. A tohle nefunguje fest, zvláště když člověk čte knihy těsně po sobě a vidí, jak se najednou zcela přešaltuje charakter postavy. Netuším, jestli prostě McBainovi nejde psychologie, ale jeho scény z rodinných životů jsou obvykle hrozné. Buď absolutně idylické, nebo se všichni chovají jako totální idioti.
A pak – mizí humor. V předcházejících knihách, i přes depresivní témata, jsou zábavné popisy s nadhledem. Tady je všechno na vážno.
Tak jsem zvědavý, jak moc bude sešup pokračovat.
A pak – mizí humor. V předcházejících knihách, i přes depresivní témata, jsou zábavné popisy s nadhledem. Tady je všechno na vážno.
Tak jsem zvědavý, jak moc bude sešup pokračovat.
January 13, 2024
Evan Hunter (nato Salvatore Albert Lombino, figlio di immigrati italiani di Ruvo del Monte, in Basilicata, cambiò legalmente il suo nome nel 1952) è stato scrittore prolifico e sceneggiatore: suo il copione del celebre thriller Gli uccelli, da un adattamento di un soggetto di Daphne Du Maurier, portato sul grande schermo da Alfred Hitchcock. Con lo pseudonimo di Ed McBain ha firmato la serie di polizieschi - che conta oltre 50 romanzi e che ha ispirato telefilm come Hill Street giorno e notte e dalle cui trame sono state tratte alcune puntate del popolare Colombo - incentrati sulle indagini e sulle vite degli agenti di un ipotetico 87° distretto di polizia del quartiere “Isola” - dietro cui si nasconde la Manhattan di una New York reimmaginata ruotandone di 90 gradi la piantina -, fissando i cardini di quel sottogenere del poliziesco che viene denominato “Police procedural”…
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July 21, 2023
Ed McBain novels are the definition of page-turners. Hard boiled cops from Isola, a city that's clearly a barely-disguised New York. His novels are very accurate, with procedure and banter right out of 70s and 80s police departments and crime scenes. I read this years ago but remembered nothing about it so it was a brand new story as far as I'm concerned.
So why not five stars? The third story, about an escaped convict going after Carella's partner Kling doesn't really fit with the rest of the story. I get how it gave some depth and allowed for a deeper slice of city life, but without a clear motive the payoff wasn't there. Of course without it though you'd have a very short novel.
Fun, old fashioned crime stuff and an easy summer read.
So why not five stars? The third story, about an escaped convict going after Carella's partner Kling doesn't really fit with the rest of the story. I get how it gave some depth and allowed for a deeper slice of city life, but without a clear motive the payoff wasn't there. Of course without it though you'd have a very short novel.
Fun, old fashioned crime stuff and an easy summer read.
July 22, 2020
Excellent. This is one of the few I remember from my first read through. Not so much the main story but the main side plot, which really shocked me in my youth. Second time round the impact was reduced but it's still painful and disturbing to read.
All three stories have a dark, negative view of love, and marriage. The human nature on display here is ugly and brutal. All the more so because it's tackled with some understanding and compassion.
McBain back close to his best after a couple of ropey books, imo.
All three stories have a dark, negative view of love, and marriage. The human nature on display here is ugly and brutal. All the more so because it's tackled with some understanding and compassion.
McBain back close to his best after a couple of ropey books, imo.
August 22, 2022
“But the heat in that goddamn apartment still bothers me. Doesn’t it bother you?”
That apartment being the one in which a man is found dead and bloated, “…an apartment as hot and as stinking as the corridors of Hell.” Murder or suicide? The 87th Precinct is on the case!
This might be the first book in this series where I thought the main plot wasn't as good as the storylines within it. I really liked the subplot story of Halloran! Creepy! And I did not like the subplot with Kling’s wife. Still, I love the series and I enjoyed reading this installment!
That apartment being the one in which a man is found dead and bloated, “…an apartment as hot and as stinking as the corridors of Hell.” Murder or suicide? The 87th Precinct is on the case!
This might be the first book in this series where I thought the main plot wasn't as good as the storylines within it. I really liked the subplot story of Halloran! Creepy! And I did not like the subplot with Kling’s wife. Still, I love the series and I enjoyed reading this installment!
January 14, 2024
I attempted to start the 87th Precinct series at the beginning and left remarkably disappointed with what was a bland and formulaic (even in it's first volume!) Book.
Fast forward about 25 years to the 18th book in the series and it's not much better. The prose has liberalized somewhat, but only to include heaps of racial slurs thrown haphazardly around.
Serviceable and better than the first one, but this'll be the last 87th book I'll read.
Fast forward about 25 years to the 18th book in the series and it's not much better. The prose has liberalized somewhat, but only to include heaps of racial slurs thrown haphazardly around.
Serviceable and better than the first one, but this'll be the last 87th book I'll read.
July 23, 2019
McBain begins writing longer books in the series, and in this one, McBain has one really touching story and one average story. I wish McBain could have extended the better story into the full novel, but I’ve seen it too many times: a short, good novel with one story, or, a longer novel that combines two stories. One long story in one long novel seems to be pretty tough.
October 11, 2019
Pretty standard 87th Precinct fare. Carella is trying to establish whether he is dealing with a suicide or a murder, though Kling slowly losing the plot as a result of marital issues takes things in a slightly different direction to normal. Not the best in the series, but still well worth reading if, like me, you like McBain's novels.
July 9, 2023
This is one of the best old style detective series around. The characters are all fully developed and each story has different lead characters. Heat is true to form, crimes occur, investigations progress and personal issues get in the way. A nice movie used this book as it's plot so you have two ways to enjoy.
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