Breakdown

V.I. Warshawski #15

by Sara Paretsky

Carmilla, Queen of the Night, is a shape-shifting raven whose fictional exploits thrill girls all over the world. When tweens in Chicago's Carmilla Club hold and initiation ritual in an abandoned cemetery, they stumble on an actual corpse, a man stabbed through the heart in a vampire-style slaying.

The girls include daughters of some of Chicago's most powerful families: the grandfather of one, Chaim Salanter, is among the world's weathiest men; the mother of another, Sophy Durango, is running for the United States Senate.

For V.I. Warshawski, the questions multiply faster than the answers. Is the killing linked to a hostile media campaign against Sophy Durango? Or to Chaim Salanter's childhood in Nazi-occupied Lithuania? As V.I. struggles to answer these questions, she finds herself fighting enemies who are no less terrifying for being all too human.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Detective, Thriller, Audiobook

431 pages, Hardcover

First published January 3, 2012

About the author

Sara Paretsky is a modern American author of detective fiction. Paretsky was raised in Kansas, and graduated from the state university with a degree in political science. She did community service work on the south side of Chicago in 1966 and returned in 1968 to work there. She ultimately completed a Ph.D. in history at the University of Chicago, entitled The Breakdown of Moral Philosophy in New England Before the Civil War, and finally earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. Married to a professor of physics at the University of Chicago, she has lived in Chicago since 1968.

The protagonist of all but two of Paretsky's novels is V.I. Warshawski, a female private investigator. Warshawski's eclectic personality defies easy categorization. She drinks Johnnie Walker Black Label, breaks into houses looking for clues, and can hold her own in a street fight, but also she pays attention to her clothes, sings opera along with the radio, and enjoys her sex life.

Paretsky is credited with transforming the role and image of women in the crime novel. The Winter 2007 issue of Clues: A Journal of Detection is devoted to her work.

Her two books that are non-Warshawski novels are : Ghost Country (1998) and Bleeding Kansas (2008).

Reviews

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 'V.I. Warshawski' books by Sara Paretsky were one of the first mystery series that I began reading years ago. I'd stopped reading for a few years, then when I picked 'em up again, I'd somehow forgotten this one. I added it to my TBR and recently decided to get caught up this summer. After the first chapter, I thought... 'oh no, this isn't very good.' But I persisted and forced myself to finish it while procrastinating about packing for a trip. By about 10% in, I was hooked again. I'm happy to share my feedback on this book, and if you've struggled with the first few chapters, push yourself to get past them. It'll be worth it.

Warshawski is a tough-as-nails Chicago private eye, reminiscent of the Golden Age detectives from nearly a century ago... with one difference: V.I. is a woman! Tougher than Kinsey Millhone but with a feminine side and a tenderness for some of her family, Victoria Iphigenia is the person you'd want to find the killer. It doesn't matter if she gets beaten up, shot, drugged, tortured, or stabbed, V.I. always pulls through in the end. In this novel, her cousin, Petra, is running a book group for preteens, and the latest craze is a YA vampire / paranormal series. When some of the girls act out a ritual in the nearby cemetery, they're unfortunately in for a lot more than expected. Another private eye is stabbed with a stake by a murderer who reminds the girls of a vampire. Throw in a few parents with political ambitions, a wealthy international business mogul, some Nazi / Polish immigrant histories, and a few vengeful but loving mothers, and you've got quite a story.

At first, the vampire angle threw me off. I felt like it was gimmicky and silly, not the Warshawski I knew. But once it began settling out, and I ignored the way the preteen girls behaved (seriously, one was just a witch because she didn't want to get in trouble--and with a murder ten feet from her, what kind of parenting led to that abomination of a child who thought it acceptable to act so spoiled and lie for such reasons!) Then the subplots began to take over, and I felt like the meat and substance were front and center. I enjoyed the twisty path, the historical connections to wars of the past, and the methodical approach to solving the crime.

I'm glad I picked up the series again and will order the next one when I return from vacation. There are 4 more before I'm current, so I can finish them this summer... then what will I read if all my tough female detective series are up to date!?!?! If you haven't read these before, you don't necessarily have to go in order, as V.I.'s life is fairly low-key. A few people that die in later books might be alive in earlier ones, so the order could be confusing, but never in regard to the main mystery. Onward I go...

[Phrynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read all of Paretsky's V.I Warshawski series in order up to this one and have to admit they vary in quality. I was not really happy with #14 but because I know Vic so well by now I carried on to the next book anyway. I am glad I did!

Breakdown was back to strength and even though there was a little bit too much political comment I was prepared to make allowances for that and just enjoy the story. There was lots of action including multiple murders and a very complicated mystery regarding who actually 'dunnit'. Vic managed to control her temper better than usual and also knuckled down occasionally and performed fee paying work. The main case was as usual pro bono. I am not sure why this author always does that and does not kick off the main mystery with the occasional fee paying client.

I absolutely loved the ending. I cannot say more because it would be the spoiler to end all spoilers but it is totally unexpected, smart and satisfying. So good. If it was not for the political comment I would have given this book 5 stars.

[Barbara K · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this up looking forward to getting lost in one of Paretsky’s convoluted plots during a week when I need distractions. It begins with a group of tween girls meeting in a cemetery as part of an initiation ceremony for a club devoted to the fictional shape-shifter Carmella. Not your usual fare for a V.I. Warshawski story, but I was happy to see where it went.

Hah! The next thing you know, detective Warshawski is fighting some characters that could be taken from today’s news: racist, anti-Semitic, xenophobic, creationist politicians and TV personalities. I considered putting the book aside (I really didn’t need anything to ramp up my anxieties right now), but I was soon lost in the story.
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As usual, Paretsky manages to weave together multiple plot lines, some new and some going back decades, and it all makes sense at the end even though the connections are not at all obvious early one. At times it seemed as though both Vic and I were putting together a jigsaw puzzle and just when we thought we had it done, we realized there was a piece left over. Or missing.

The recurring tropes in Paretsky’s books never really become stale for me: she gets pulled into a case at the request of a friend/relative; she has a love-hate relationship with a cop and/or journalist; she stumbles on a chatty neighbor who shares an important tidbit of info; she knows (or meets) someone with an arcane skill that helps her decipher a clue. There is always so much else to absorb in the plots that I’m happy to go along with these standard methods of moving the plot forward.

And besides, it’s always nice to spend time with Vic as she fights the good fight.

[Obsidian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not going to write a long review. This was not a good book. Seriously just skip it and if you really do want to read it, borrow it from the library.

Once again we have VI investigating something no one asked her to and I had a really hard time with most of the characters in this one. They all felt way too cartoonish to me.

And VI's love life is limping along with a guy who does not seem up to her level.

I should have put this down once I saw that Petra was littered all over this one.

Paretsky could have shined a light more on the problem with the 24 hour news cycle and some far left and far left personalities attacking each other via the media to score points with their followers. However, this book seemed to have everyone who did not agree with VI as the enemy. We eventually have people sitting around listening to a Holocaust victim's memories and the whole thing made me uncomfortable. Not because of the subject, but because we had VI demanding that she somehow be told about what was a painful period in his life. At that point, I was 100 percent done with this character. I will probably pick up the remaining books in this series some other time. But as of now, I need a break from VI.

[Luanne Ollivier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picking up the latest Sara Paretsky book is like sitting down with an old friend to hear a new story. Paretsky penned her first book featuring private investigator V.I. Warshawski in 1982. Nearly thirty years later, the newly released Breakdown is the fifteenth book in this long running series.

V.I. receives a frantic call from her cousin Petra late one night - a group of girls holding a initiation ceremony based on their favourite author's vampire books get more than they bargained for when they stumble across a corpse - staked through the heart. And these aren't just any teens - they're the offspring of some of Chicago's wealthiest and politically powerful families. Rescuing the girls makes V.I. late for a meeting with her old friend Leydon Ashford. By the time V.I. makes their meeting, it's too late - either troubled Leydon has jumped from a balcony or she was pushed. In a coma, she is unable to let anyone know what happened. As V.I. decides to investigate further into both of these seemingly disparate occurrences, she is warned off - by more than one party. Of course, that only fuels V.I.'s fire....

What has made this such an enduring series? V.I. has aged and her life has progressed in real time. She was a character I liked from the first book and my opinion hasn't changed. She's true to her principles and beliefs, always with an eye towards justice. Now, that's not to say that she won't bend the rules just a bit to get the results she needs. And she's tough, having taken more than her fair share of hard knocks. But she gives as good as she gets. She says what she thinks, she's smart, loyal and someone you'd want on your side. "...sometimes you are so single-minded in your search for answers that you don't always think of the consequences."

Paretsky's plotting is always good - the mysteries are intricate and not easily solved. It is the personal issues and plot lines that elevate this series beyond a simple whodunit. It almost feels like V.I. and her friends and family are real people. The writing and reading flow effortlessly.

You can certainly read Breakdown without having read any of the others in this series, but I bet you'll be hunting down her backlist once you discover this fantastic female protagonist!

[Janet Whalen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing that I've been reading about V.I. Warshawski for 30 years! One of the best of the cohort of Kinsey Milhone, Kate Shugak, Anna Pigeon and the other strong women detectives introduced at that time, V.I. has aged gracefully and kept modern. Although the timeline of her life and reality don't mesh exactly, it works. This case takes on via thinly disguised references, the Fox Network, rabid right-wing psycho politicians, the Twilight novels, corruption in the mental health system, how the world is different for the wealthy and the poor, and how people are manipulated to believe the lies they hear on TV. A convoluted plot, V.I.'s usual cast of supporting characters, and her reflections on growing older and the consequences of choices made long ago, topped off with a gut dropping ending make this a book worthy of the accolades Grand Master Sara Paretsky earns for her work. I loved the movie, even if nobody else did (about the character, not this book), and would love to see another. Highly recommended. Yall know my law about reading all series in order, so you might have to read 14 other books first, but I'm sure many of yall have kept up.

[Amy Lignor · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was in 1982 that the world was first introduced to the hot-headed, sarcastic, and extremely independent private investigator from Chicago commonly called Vic by her friends, and known to the rest of us as V. I. Warshawski. In this new release, V.I. is back, showing just as much humor and fire as she always does.

At a party she doesn’t like, dressed in a red dress with her sarcasm meter set on high, V.I. is thrilled when she receives a call from her best friend about a group of young pre-teen girls who’ve gone missing. The background on these charming chicks is that they’re all part of a club that worships a series of novels based on a being by the name of Carmilla, Queen of the Night. Not a vampire, Carmilla is a shape-shifting raven, and the girls believe that once you’re initiated you’ll gain that elusive shape-shifting power.

The girls range from normal ‘tweens’ who love books, to the children of extremely famous and wealthy individuals like the daughter of the Illinois democratic candidate for senate who is determined to bury this incident. Of course, she doesn’t have much luck, since while the girls were doing their little ‘initiation’ in an abandoned cemetery, they discovered the body of a newly murdered individual—a man who looks like he was taken out by a vampire.

V.I. becomes embroiled in slander campaigns against the senatorial candidate. Other murder ‘theories’ take V.I. into the world of an old man and his history in Nazi-occupied Lithuania. Add in a favor that V.I. is doing for her friend who has his own news show and is desperate for more ratings as a new boy seems to be taking the lead with viewers, and V.I. finds herself in a mental hospital that will give readers the creeps.

The action never stops with this particular private investigator, and the real fun is always watching the other characters try to ‘one-up’ her while V.I. turns on her charm and watches them squirm. Another ‘5-star’ novel for the incredible Sara Paretsky.

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

This might have been the best yet from Sara Paretsky, in her series about V.I. Warshawski, a woman detective from Chicago. The latest book was a real page turner that took place in the present. V.I. was using her iPad and every other connected device, and yet she had to use her own brain to solve the mystery. She was drawn into the case because her cousin called her about some missing teens that she had in a book group her cousin was leading. V.I. found them in an old abandoned cemetery conducting a ritual from a vampire book. Unfortunately, one of the girls stumbled on a real corpse that had been stabbed through the heart, like a vampire killing. The girls were from well connected Chicago families, including a mother, Sophie Durango, that was running for the U.S. Senate. A news caster from a large network, like FOX was more than happy to bend distort the"truth" in order to help the conservative candidate that was running against Durango. I found all the details of the story to ring true and be very engaging. She really described the divisive political age we live in. One of her themes was how hard it is for journalists to be truthful and objective when the company that owns the paper isn't. I wasn't able to put this book down right up to the surprise ending.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good entry in the V.I.Warshawski series by Sara Paretsky. While the story initially begins with rescuing young girls trying to initiate themselves into a cult flavored by a tween book, the story quickly moves on from there to involve many levels of Chicago and Illinois society, murders past and present, questions of blackmail, WWII behavior, right wing media and all they typically attack in this country (which can be fairly far flung), and the actions of private investigators. As always Vic is at the center of everything, this time both through accident and intention.

This continues to be one of my favorites series and Paretsky one of my favorite authors. Thank you Ms Paretsky for having a human protagonist who ages and suffers for her causes but still struggles on, has real interests, loves and hates, works for a living, pays bills, and finds time to enjoy some nice music and a ball game.

[Larry Bassett · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I have pursued my back to back experience of this series in the Audible version, I have not listened to this particular book again because I listened to it only months ago earlier this year 2025.
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It has been almost a dozen years since I first read this book and this time I am listening to it in the Audible version. When you last read a book a dozen years ago and you are 78 years old, you don’t have any memory from the first reading. At least I don’t have any memory. This is a pretty long book and I do remember noticing that as the books got further into the series, they got dependably longer for some reason. I have to admit that I thought this book gradually increased the interest level and suspense as the reading time moved along. I also did bump it up from four stars to five stars which I do not in frequently when I listen to a book in the Audible format. They are done so well.
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Breakdown is the fifteenth book in the V.I. Warshawski series that began in 1982. I have been reading this series for a long time and am practically up to date. A lot of things have happened in V.I.’s life (and mine) in those thirty years. The sixteenth book is the most current in the ongoing series, published in 2013. Hardball (#13) I thought was among the best; Body Work (#14), among the worst. Maybe it is just me getting tired of this long running series, ready for Ms. Warshawski to marry and retire to fulltime family life. The problem is, her biological clock has run out and then some!

Sometimes the hints are just too obvious to miss. In this case the dust jacket covers for the last several books in the series are almost identical; different colors, same basic design. There should be a message there for the more discerning of us. But I see from glancing at the reviews that Paretsky still gets some pretty enthusiastic words from readers. I guess fifty-something PIs still have a following. Readers drift in and out. I am among the more dedicated than enraptured. I am determined to see V.I. to the (bitter?) end. I just hope it is sooner rather than later.

I have bought all of my Paretsky books used so her “best seller” label is not on my account! The last several I got at one time at a used book store in “like new” condition for $2.95 each so someone had evidently bailed out at that time and shoveled the books out the door! I may wind up with the entire series; I wonder if the complete set will be worth something on eBay or to my descendants? What do you think? Sara, if you find yourself in the Lynchburg, Virginia area, stop by and sign the copies of a loyal reader! (But I warn you, some of the early ones are ex-library!)

V.I. likes to rub elbows with the upper crust. And some of it rubs off on her. Just imagine her lusting after a thousand dollar espresso machine! (One that doesn’t explode every time you forget it on the stove.) And what about that red silk backless, floor length dress? Classy and elegant unless she resorts to mixing it up – which she is known to do on occasion in spite of her age!

This book has as big a surprise ending as I have ever experienced in this series. It did have me going there for a while: thinking V.I. was dead. The last few chapter titles might have been enough for a reader more astute than me: 51. V.I.’s Last Case; 52. Raising the Dead; 53. Vampires Don’t Kill Easy. And, of course, there was the BIG CLUE that there is a next book in the series! All I can say is, Duh!

Now that I am at a point in the series where I actually have to wait a few months to get the most current book in the series online used for 99 cents, I should acknowledge that I have (finally) come to realize that most “bestselling authors” do not write realistic mysteries. They are all really just graphic comic books in words. And I guess that will just have to be OK with me. But it has taken me a long time to get it!

With my new realization about mysteries as fiction, I sheepishly acknowledge my gullibility and move on. I think it is good that I am closing out my time with Warshawski. Maybe I should check out some “true crime” books in my quest for non-fiction mystery. Any suggestions?

I did find myself reading late into the night as I was finishing Breakdown so I did get sucked in. It was enjoyable as I followed the adventure to a four star conclusion. I am pleased to find myself in four star territory as I move in on what must be the closing episodes of this long running series.

[Jennifer Gifford · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was completely disappointed and regreted even purchasing the book. I've been a Paretsky fan from her first book, and I own every one in the V.I.Warshaski series. I love the character-a strong, opiniated, brassy and bold female who has no dependancy on a man, on social norms. I loved that she played by her own rules. Paretsky is a good writer, but this latest attempt at writing is a farse.

That being said, this is nothing more than a 431 page leftist political rant. V.I. has always been political, and I've never minded it. I liked the fact that V.I. was engaged in social and political topics. But this book is nothing more than a literal hand job to the left.

Paretsky's own political affliations and agenda are blantantly apparent, and its a trifecta of offensive, sad, and comical. It's offensive that someone would lamely group one particular group of people behind one individual clearly meant to be a combination of Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh. The GEN network is clearly FOX, but her over the top, unbelieveable stereotpyes meant to portray the left as all knowning, and the right as Nazi loving, immigrant hating vermon. Its sad because Paretsky didn't learn from Stephan King's comments about bashing one side of the political arena over the other. Remember Ms. Paretsky, sometimes your readers might be the other party. Sometimes readers want a story, not a thinly veiled political rant. It was poorly written, and the over zealous characters is nothing more than an immature attempt to bully the other party. Yet I find it comical that Paretsky leaves no plot, no real story, and expects the readers to just feed off her political and social agenda. Every Republican and conservative is portrayed as a paranoid, crazy, evil liar, setting out to diabolically destroy the fabric of every community.

Sorry, I just wanted another good read with one of my favorite characters. WHat I got was a Chicago based political lesson that I regretably spent money on. Sadly, this will be my last Paretsky novel. If I want to hear political bashing and social manipulation, I can read the paper and watch the news. While its fine to have your characters a part of politics and be engaging, its entirely another to have them preach on about the evils of one political party for nearly 500 pages. THanks, but I didn't buy the book for a lesson, I bought it for a good. Adieu Ms. Paretsky...thanks for ruining a good thing.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first started reading V.I. Warshawski in the 1980's. She and Kinsey Milhone, Sue Grafton's protangist, appeared about the same time and were really quite revolutionary. They were both single, divorced, hard hitting women trained in a police department. They each had no family but had an elderly, male neighbor that provided necessary shoulders and ears. They were both so different from the usual female detecctives of the time. They were strong, independent, smart and operated on their own moral code of justice. After years of Miss Marple, it is hard to describe just how thrilling these protagnists were. Sue Grafton has not aged Kinsey and her new stories are still set in the 80's. Paretsky has aged V.I. and it is like a breath of fresh air to read about a 50 year old woman still making her way in the world.
I love V.I. One minute she is enjoying her new backless, red evening gown and the next she is breaking up a young girl's vampire initiation ceremony in a cemetary. Nearby lies a murdered man with a stake in his heart. As she protects the young girls, she fences with the police, deals with an old friend who has mental problems, deals with an up and coming politician, verbally spars with a billionaire and slowly follows lots of leads until the full story comes out. It's a very complex story which is a speciality of Paretsky. She doesn't disappoint. I felt a little worn out and breathless by the time I finished the book and I enjoyed every minute of the journey.

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[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

V.I. Warshawski is Nancy Drew for grown-up "girls, " down to the chores she does, the wardrobe and grooming, the meals she consumes, and of course the chances she takes,the way she takes charge of her own life. But then there is the story. The twists, the turns, the caring about people, the familiar Chicago locations that bring this homesick girl back again and again. I assume she doesn't get her readers from the evangelical right, but I am so glad to hear her biases, her points of view, her lambasting the pompous people who hold the power, the people who tell lies long enough and loud enough and often enough that they become well known "fact.". Thank you Sara Paretsky for writing those books that I love to wait for and devour. They entertain, catch me into them, and make me feel not so alone in the world. And I love that with each successive book a little more of Sara 's own self and history perhaps comes through. Thanks,

[Harvie · Rating 2 out of 5]

SO disappointing. I love the resourceful, independent protagonist, V.I., and the descriptions of Chicago, the gritty realism of the series is what has kept me hooked on the series. BUT this was not one of Paretsky's best. The plot was convoluted and improbable and long before the end, I knew who the villain was and that justice would be served, but I really didn't care. Paretsky rants against a myriad of social injustices: racism, antisemitism, treatment of the mentally ill, illegal immigration, vicious conservatives in the media - and then of course the Vampire series of books that get the whole plot started. Too many issues for one mystery.
Unfortunately, I think I'll pass on the next installment of this series.

[Eric Cohen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This installment in the V.I Warshawski series is far from Paretsky's best effort. The plot is full of holes and many, many unlikely happenings. The characters are mostly caricatures and the political ranting is annoying and not relevant to the story. Diehard fans of the Warshawski series will find reasons to finish the book (as I did), but others are advised to skip Break Down and wait for the next installment. Readers who are new to the V.I. Warshawski series should start with one of Paretsky's earlier efforts.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sara Paretsky's 12th novel featuring private investigator V I Warshawski begins in a graveyard. While a group of tween girls hold a ritual centered around the shape-shifting heroine from a fantasy series they love, they come across a dead man stabbed through the heart. Instantly you are in the world of girls, cell phones, and secrets.

Enter V I, who must protect the girls, find the murderer, keep her young cousin from getting fired, and stay alive. She becomes embroiled with the rich, the politicians, the shady, and (as you may have suspected due to the title) the mentally ill.

Paretsky's liberal views are on full display but so are her emotions and her smarts. Because V I is in her 50s now, she has to husband her strength but even though the internet sometimes takes the place of physical investigations, it is also a danger because the bad guys are using it as well. Text messages can be hacked. Cell phones reveal any user's location. She also has to watch out for a rival investigator who is as crooked as they come.

Anyone who has read Paretsky knows what a long list of characters people her tales (I make my own list as I read) but she has also reached a new level in Breakdown: super tight plotting and fewer red herrings make this one easier to follow than some of her earlier books. The result is an increase in suspense with not a single lull in the action. V I's very savvy use of the media, that now rules our world, to expose the criminals is evidence that while the author was in her mid-60s when she wrote the book, she is as up-to-the-minute with the modern world as her youngest characters.

That brings me to my last point. The first book in the V I Warshawski series, Indemnity Only, was published in 1982. It involves corruption in the Unions, banks, and insurance companies. Hot topics at the time. All the books are set in Chicago. Reading them in the order they were written, as I have done, delivers a consecutive history of the city, spanning over thirty years. Quite a feat if you ask me.

[Dorian · Rating 4 out of 5]

"V.I. Warshawski is Nancy Drew for grown-up 'girls,'" one of the reviewers commented. I like that description. I enjoy this character and it's nice to see that she's growing older like the rest of us. Keeping up with technology but also doing the necessary footwork, and there is a lot of footwork in this novel. Touches on many current topics: girls' obsession with a vampire fiction series, far right wing bloviators (love that term), the "entitled" 2%, illegal immigrants' fear of deportation, state of public mental health care in this country, and many more. I appreciated that she had a character who was a victim of the Holocaust and told of what he had survived and what he achieved. I notice that at least one reviewer didn't appreciate being lectured to about that terrible time in history but I'm of the opinion that it fit with the story line and one can never have enough reminders about a time that so many want to forget, or worse, claim to have never happened. A history reminder is a good thing and if you don't like it, then you can always close the book.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

V I Warshawski or Vic as her friends call her is like an old friend, I have been reading of her adventures since 1991 (before the movie), and have watched ( in my mind's eye) as she has aged. Her spunk and outspoken manner have not changed, however, and I also like her politics and Chicago location. In this novel, she is on a missing person case foe her cousin Petra, looking for some missing girls, when she finds them performing some kind of ritual in a cemetery. As she is talking to the girls, one of them runs off, and the screams, she saw a dead man in a tomb, V I investigates and finds the daed man still warm to the touch! She hurry's to get the children out safely, and calls then to let the police take over. Of course it is not that easy, and she ends up working a pro bono case that has put the young girls lives in danger, as well as her own. The twists and turns kept me reading way past the hour of slumber on many nights, great book Sara.

[Mal Warwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sara Paretsky's Latest Detective Story Hits Home

You can depend on three things when you pick up one of Sara Paretsky’s novels about private detective V. I. Warshawski: you will encounter a reformer’s perspective on Chicago’s power elite; you will find yourself relentlessly tugged along as Warshawski doggedly pursues the ugly truths that inevitably lurk underneath the surface of the mysteries she sets out to solve; and you will you will feel the heat or the cold, the grit and bustle of Chicago’s streets. And when you can find all this between the covers of a single book, what’s not to like?

Breakdown, Paretsky’s 14th V. I. Warshawski novel, begins with seeming innocence with a gaggle of tweener girls dancing under the moonlight in an abandoned cemetery. Soon enough, however, we find ourselves enmeshed in the myteries of some of Chicago’s wealthiest and most powerful citizens as well as a roomful of others: a Lithuanian Jewish immigrant who has become a billionaire through options trading; a vicious Right-Wing talk show host disturbingly reminiscent of Glenn Beck who holds forth on a network little different in appearance of politics from Fox; a blackmailing private eye; two candidates for the U.S. Senate, one the liberal President of the University of Illinois, the other a Right-Wing drugstore heiress; the lawyers at a white-shoe Chicago firm; the staff and management of a state facility for the criminally insane; and, of course, those tweener girls, who are not exactly as innocent as they might seem.

The story that brings together all these disparate elements is, like so many of Paretsky’s novels, complex. This is no straightforward whodunit where any reasonably intelligent reader is likely to know whodunit midway through the book. Paretsky kept me guessing until the end. Breakdown is a very satisfying read.

Sara Paretsky has been writing since 1982, when the first of her now 15 V. I. Warshawski novels was published. (She has also written or edited eight other books.) Paretsky brings to her work not just a deep understanding of what makes humans tick but also a broad store of knowledge: she possesses a Ph.D. in History and an MBA from the University of Chicago and is married to a professor of physics there.

(From www.makwarwickonbooks.com)

[Elizabeth Fagin · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I could rate this book by section, the first 3/4's would be at least a four star rating. But I was very disappointed in the last fourth of the book.

What I love about Paretsky's character V.I. is that she is smart, tough, sexy and pragmatic. She also has aged realistically over the years - which is nice since she was my age in the early 80's when I first discovered her. I'm grateful that she is still my age (although that might be where the similarity ends - but what else would you expect from an alter-ego?) For most of the book V.I. did not disappoint.

The story throughout the book was a little unbelievable, especially the young girl characters. They seemed at the same time too worldly and too naive - if you can imagine such a combination. The book also leans heavily to the left. I happen to enthusiastically agree with the politics expressed but I can certainly see how annoying it would be to someone who doesn't. If you are a fan of Bill O'Reilly for instance - you should probably just skip this one.

What was a tolerable level of suspended dis-belief in the first part of the book became just too much at the conclusion. It became not only unrealistic but pretty ridiculous. In all - I was pretty disappointed.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always love reading Paretsky because growing up in Chicago I am able to picture all the places she talks about in her novels. She is great at giving detailed descriptions and her characters are always so well rounded and interesting. I love when she talks about Warshawsky and her mother, as well as her family background as she does in this novel. Seems like more of her political views made it into this one but it did not detract from the storyline. Her books are always very evenly paced and her warnings about the state of journalism and how the press will take a rumor and cause havoc with it seems very realistic.

[Mary · Rating 1 out of 5]

I give this book a poor rating too Political more like a history lesson about the mistreatment of Jews and African Americans. Yes that time in history was terrible but I do not read mystery Books to be lectured to. I will not be reading any more of her books. Finally finished what a painful reading experience.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book as a first reads giveaway. I generally would not have picked this up off the shelf, as I am normally not a huge fan of murder mystery novels. That being said, I actually really enjoyed "Breakdown." I found myself engaged with V.I Warshawski's thoughts and actions, and I felt like I was helping to solve the multiple crimes and mysteries that seemed to snowball throughout. I easily forgot that Warshawski was, in fact 50 years old--she talked and acted like a rebellious detective at least half her age--but I was periodically reminded of her age when, in almost every chapter, readers learned how tired she was. V.I. is always exhausted, which becomes someone redundant early on. V.I's blatant liberal views also wore down on my patience at times; while I was interested by the initial political atmosphere of the Salanters and Durangos, and the media versus public\private lives of politicians, the overt political agenda seen throughout was not to my taste (I am not saying that I am against either liberal or conservative views, but I do not pick up fiction novels to be bombarded with views from either side). I was also slightly annoyed by V.I constantly talking about technology--websites, phones, computers, devices...I understand how Paretsky may have included these to not only comment on society's excessive use of technology, but I found that it easily dates the book; in thirty years, it's quite possible no one will have any idea what a Facebook is. There were also quite a few grammatical and spelling errors, but since I received a copy of an uncorrected manuscript, I trust that those will be corrected (or have already been at this point). As I am a 24 year old male, I can assume that I am not the ideal target market for a novel about a 50 year old, female, private investigator. however, I can see the appeal of having a strong character and a feasible central plot line.

[Pamela · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is Paretsky’s 17th novel and features private investigator V. I. Warshawski. In this outing, Warshawski is sent to a local Chicago cemetery one rainy night to find several girls who are out after curfew. Warshawski not only finds them, but a dead body as well. The girls were all members of a book club dedicated to the Young Adult books featuring a vampire and his friends.

Warshawski, of course, wonders if there is any connection between the dead man and any of the girls. As it turns out, one of the girls is the granddaughter of the billionaire Salanter while another is the daughter of woman running for political office. Throw in a muckraking radio commentator, a rabidly conservative woman funding anti-everything organizations, a powerful media mogul, a journalist, and a dead private investigator and you have some of Paretsky’s large cast of characters.

Halfway through this 400+ page book, I realized that (1) I was bored, and (2) I didn’t care about any of the characters. It’s been a while since I’ve read a Warshawsky mystery so I was surprised to be bored. It became abundantly clear that Paretsky didn’t have any more of an idea of where this story was going than I did. The storyline meandered all over the map and the reader meandered along with it through the various neighborhoods of Chicago. All the loose ends, and there were many, were tidily wrapped up in the last pages of the book.

All in all, not one of Paretsky’s best outings.

[Robert · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hmmm, kind of disappointed. Have not read too much mystery - a couple by Louise Penny and Ruth Rendell. They were ok. However after 20 or so pages of "Breakdown" I feel like I'm into a Nancy Drew story or Blair Witch Project. Not drawn to read more.


Have now finihed the book, in spite of my earlier comment. Ms. Paretsky is clearly a gifted author - the book got pretty gripping somewhere in the middle and then kind of petered out as the ending was all wrapped up with an explanantory chapter. Every book can't be ones best.

[John Yelverton · Rating 1 out of 5]

The big was one big bashing of conservatives from beginning to end with thinly veiled caricatures of conservative media figures and politicians. The hatred poured in their direction is so vehement that it borders on vitriol. I want to read a mystery story, and not page after page of straw man cheap shots made against half the country.

[Virginia Walter · Rating 3 out of 5]

V.I. perseveres in a particularly complicated case involving patients in a mental hospital, teenage girls who are fans of a Twilight-like series of books, a rabid right wing TV journalist, and much, much more. I'm a fan, but this is not Paretsky's best effort.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. :(

[Dorothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The famously cranky and snarky Chicago private investigator Victoria Iphigenia Warshawski is back with another quest in search of justice for the powerless and downtrodden. At age fifty, V.I. (Vic) does not seem to have mellowed one whit. Her outrage at injustice burns as brightly as ever. In Breakdown, there is plenty of injustice for her to confront.

The story begins with her being called from a social gathering she's attending with her friend Murray. Her young cousin, Petra, is worried about a group of pre-teenage girls who were in her care. It seems that, under the spell of Carmilla, Queen of the Night, a fictional magical shape-shifting character who is a hero to the girls, they have slipped out at night to an old abandoned cemetery to perform an initiation ritual. Vic leaves her party and goes to the cemetery to round up the girls, but there, she finds more than she bargained for. Near where the girls are performing their ritual is the body of a murdered man with a stake through his heart lying on a tomb. And thus the adventure begins.

One of the girls in the group was the granddaughter of a billionaire survivor of the Holocaust. He is supporting a liberal candidate, a family friend, for the U.S. Senate in Illinois. On the opposite side of the political divide is a cable news network that specializes in giving a radical right-wing slant to all its "news" stories. Its biggest star is Wade Lawlor, a Glenn Beck type character, who rants and rages and cries on camera and has a huge and devoted following. The "news" network and Lawlor are out to destroy Chaim Salanter, the Holocaust survivor, and his candidate for the Senate. To bring about that destruction, they are trying to dig up dirt from the past of Salanter.

Vic gets involved further when a call from an old friend, a brilliant but mentally erratic lawyer, brings her to a meeting, but she arrives too late and finds her friend crumpled in a heap and almost dead, apparently having jumped from a high place. But something doesn't add up and Vic keeps digging which brings her to a state mental hospital where her friend had been a recent resident. Her investigation keeps turning up anomalies and strange links between events and she begins to suspect that everything is related.

Sara Paretsky's plots are always complicated and are overlaid with a strong political point of view. It's one of the things that I enjoy most about her writing. Moreover, her V.I. Warshawski has changed and grown over the years. She has constructed an extended "family" for herself consisting of Mr. Contreras her elderly neighbor, the dogs Mitch and Peppy, her young cousin Petra, and Jake her neighbor with whom she has established a fairly stable (for her) romantic relationship. And, of course, there are always Lotty and Max, themselves Holocaust survivors, who are Vic's oldest and staunchest friends and Murray Ryerson, the journalist with whom she has long worked and who is now being pushed out of his job by the news mogul who owns the right-wing network. All of these characters play strong roles in the present mystery.

Paretsky is a very good writer and her stories always seem torn from today's headlines. It's been that way from the beginning of this series in 1982 with Indemnity Only. I've read all eighteen of the books in the series and it has been fascinating to watch the progression of V.I. Warshawski's life and career. Throughout it all, now thirty years later, she and her creator have retained their edge.

Paretsky's is not really escapist fiction, but stories that are designed to make the reader stop and consider what is actually happening in the real world. It's the kind of fiction which one probably either loves or hates. I happen to love it.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent book in the V.I Warshawski series. V.I. really is one of the most interesting female protagonists going. Born of immigrant parents: a beautiful, opera-singing Italian mother and a Polish father who had the rep of being one of the best cops ever, V.I. highly proud of her heritage, grew up tough in the industrial and immigrant part of Chicago. Hot -headed with a heart of gold, V.I. (Victoria Iphigenia) is smart, tough, loyal and fiercely protective should anything threaten her friends and family. In this story, she jumps to help her cousin Petra who's running a reading group for some twelve year olds through the non-profit organization where she works. Girls of the group are found conducting some kind of initiation session in a cemetery right next to the dead body of another PI. The complex plot line brings in contacts and family of this dead PI, a bipolar friend of VI's from law school, the staff at a mental hospital and highly placed politicians and their wealthy supporters. The story flows seamlessly, the twist at the end is unpredictable and VI once again, shows how dogged persistence, intelligence and toughness solves the crime and prevents others from getting hurt. Well worth the read.