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Mafiya: a novel of crime
"Stella is a kind of obscene Ring Lardner, finding a lean, rancid poetry in his characters' vernacular, and rendering it with flawless precision and humor."- The Washington Post Book World A hooker gone straight, the street-smart Agnes Lynn declares vengeance on the Mafiya when her best friend turns up dead and mutilated, only to find herself enmeshed in grim plots with Russian mavericks on both sides of the law. Charlie Stella 's first novel drew favorable comparison with such masters of the crime novel as Mario Puzo and Elmore Leonard. Mafiya is his sixth novel. Stella lives in New Jersey.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2008
About the author
Charlie Stella
24 books27 followersCarmelo Stella is an author long familiar with the street life of New York City, which figures substantially in his writing. His work includes plays, performed off-off-Broadway, his debut novel called Eddie's World and Jimmy Bench-press, also published by Hale. He lives in New Jersey.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 11, 2014
I love Charlie Stella's work, and this is one of his absolute best. It's a dark, bloody tale of a former call girl marked for death by the Russian mob after the brutal snuff-film murder of her best friend. Great characters (the Russian detective was my favorite); direct, no-nonsense prose; and a fast moving story make this a great read. Highly recommended.
April 28, 2021
This is a really good and dark book on the Russian mob. The violence is brutal so you really want the bad guys to pay. Multiple storylines that keep you intrigued and also manages to be super entertaining. Really enjoyed it.
September 29, 2013
Read the full review post on my blog: http://justaguywholikes2read.blogspot...
Rachel Wilson is a single mother putting her kids through school and food on the table the only way she knows how - hooking. Agnes Lynn, her best friend, is temping as a lackey to a sleaze lawyer having given up the life. Now in their thirties, the two women find themselves as different ends of the social spectrum.
When Rachel tells Agnes of a big money play she's about to make, Agnes tries to talk her out of it. Even with sparse details, the job screams danger, yet Rachel is a veteran of the street and evades Agnes pleas to give up the life. It's the last conversation the friends have.
What follows is a deadly game of turf wars and mob assassinations as a snuff film brings down more than the victim with tensions between the Italians and Russians running red hot. Complicating matters is Agnes, out for answers and revenge, her boyfriend and former cop Jake, a wealthy Saudi weapons dealer, and a corrupt cop with retirement to the good life in his sights.
MAFIYA has been on my radar for a while now and I cant pin point why this one slipped through the cracks until 2013. It was so entertaining and engrossing I read it pretty much in a single sitting. The characters leaped off the page, the plot kept ticking away at a frenetic pace, and the action rivaled a Hollywood blockbuster.
Rachel Wilson is a single mother putting her kids through school and food on the table the only way she knows how - hooking. Agnes Lynn, her best friend, is temping as a lackey to a sleaze lawyer having given up the life. Now in their thirties, the two women find themselves as different ends of the social spectrum.
When Rachel tells Agnes of a big money play she's about to make, Agnes tries to talk her out of it. Even with sparse details, the job screams danger, yet Rachel is a veteran of the street and evades Agnes pleas to give up the life. It's the last conversation the friends have.
What follows is a deadly game of turf wars and mob assassinations as a snuff film brings down more than the victim with tensions between the Italians and Russians running red hot. Complicating matters is Agnes, out for answers and revenge, her boyfriend and former cop Jake, a wealthy Saudi weapons dealer, and a corrupt cop with retirement to the good life in his sights.
MAFIYA has been on my radar for a while now and I cant pin point why this one slipped through the cracks until 2013. It was so entertaining and engrossing I read it pretty much in a single sitting. The characters leaped off the page, the plot kept ticking away at a frenetic pace, and the action rivaled a Hollywood blockbuster.
September 12, 2009
Really wasn't as impressed with this as I thought I would be. Sure, the climax was pretty fast-paced with decent amounts o' gunplay, but I couldn't get over how dated some of the dialogue seemed. When was the last time you remember hearing one woman say to another "You go, girl"? Maybe it's a New York thing... The Russian bad guys were pretty cookie cutter too. The author's research into the Russian Mafia didn't seem to go beyond a couple of google searches and a viewing of Eastern Promises. Again, a bit of a letdown.
August 11, 2015
Time wasted
Starts okay but then goes downhill pretty fast. I couldn't even get to the middle of the book and I really tried. Chopped up plot, characters are not believable, poorly written. Total waste of time and money.
Starts okay but then goes downhill pretty fast. I couldn't even get to the middle of the book and I really tried. Chopped up plot, characters are not believable, poorly written. Total waste of time and money.
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April 22, 2009The heroines name is Agnus, shes an ex hooker. Need I say more?
May 15, 2010
Enjoyed the book. Read it in two days, so it was fast paced. Not real deep, fairly linear single plot. A decent beach read.
July 29, 2011
fast paced and fairly interesting but doesn't dig into the dark world of the russian mafia enough.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews