What do you think?
Rate this book
Mark Mallen novels #1
Untold Damage
Sometimes the darkest moments of our lives give us the brightest chance at our redemption Estranged from his wife and daughter, former undercover cop Mark Mallen has spent the last four years in a haze of heroin. And when his best friend from the academy, Eric Russ, is murdered, all the evidence points to Mallen as the prime suspect. Now Mallen’s former colleagues on the force are turning up the heat and Russ’s survivors are in desperate need of answers. But if he wants to serve justice to the real killer, Mallen knows he’ll have to get clean. Turning a life around is murder for a junkie, especially when two low-life thugs want him dead. Bruised, battered, and written off by nearly everyone, Mallen must make amends for his damaged past and restore hope for a better future. "Equally rooted in the struggle for justice and the struggle for sobriety, Lewis' debut makes it clear that there may be no clear right or wrong."― Kirkus Reviews "Robert Lewis gives Mallen a world that is bleak but never hopeless and Lewis truly delivers in this gritty debut weaving tension with loss and revenge for a story where right still beats wrong no matter how murky the battle."―Sophie Littlefield, Edgar Award-finalist and bestselling author of The Stella Hardesty Crime Series
- GenresMystery
278 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2013
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
April 13, 2013
Many years have passed since I've read a crime drama. The last one was a Dick Francis novel (I had read several of his, being a horse person interested in the racing world). Most of my fiction reading, however, is limited to historical novels. But recently I picked up the debut novel, Untold Damage, by Robert K. Lewis, and I zipped through it in less than two weeks (also very unusual for me).
Lewis, a resident of San Francisco, uses that city for the setting of his novel. It opens by introducing the protagonist, Mark Mallen, as an ex-cop junkie, a man deep into his addiction to heroin yet not so deep that he has totally lost the memory of who and what he once was--a successful undercover narcotics cop with a wife and daughter. When a detective visits him with word of the murder of Mallen's closest friend from his days on the force, Mallen begins a journey to break his addiction and find those responsible for his friend's murder.
The story is well-paced, the characters clearly portrayed. The dialogue rings true as does Lewis's knowledge of his subject. Mallen's struggle to get clean and stay that way is woven throughout the narrative, always there in the background like a dark curtain that threatens to fall over the hero and drag him back to the darkness. The reader easily cheers for him and hopes that he not only stays clean and solves his friend's murder, but that he may someday find happiness again with his estranged family.
I enjoyed the story being set in San Francisco instead of someplace more familiar like New York City or Los Angeles. We see too much of those cities on television crime dramas. Lewis uses the city and its underbelly of crime and drugs like another character in the story.
There are few novels that I've read where I became invested enough in the characters to want to read on after the last page is turned. But I am happy to say that Untold Damage was one of those books. I look forward to Lewis's follow-up novel, Critical Damage.
Lewis, a resident of San Francisco, uses that city for the setting of his novel. It opens by introducing the protagonist, Mark Mallen, as an ex-cop junkie, a man deep into his addiction to heroin yet not so deep that he has totally lost the memory of who and what he once was--a successful undercover narcotics cop with a wife and daughter. When a detective visits him with word of the murder of Mallen's closest friend from his days on the force, Mallen begins a journey to break his addiction and find those responsible for his friend's murder.
The story is well-paced, the characters clearly portrayed. The dialogue rings true as does Lewis's knowledge of his subject. Mallen's struggle to get clean and stay that way is woven throughout the narrative, always there in the background like a dark curtain that threatens to fall over the hero and drag him back to the darkness. The reader easily cheers for him and hopes that he not only stays clean and solves his friend's murder, but that he may someday find happiness again with his estranged family.
I enjoyed the story being set in San Francisco instead of someplace more familiar like New York City or Los Angeles. We see too much of those cities on television crime dramas. Lewis uses the city and its underbelly of crime and drugs like another character in the story.
There are few novels that I've read where I became invested enough in the characters to want to read on after the last page is turned. But I am happy to say that Untold Damage was one of those books. I look forward to Lewis's follow-up novel, Critical Damage.
March 22, 2014
Not a genre I'd normally choose, but I'm glad I chose this book. I'm even looking forward to reading more of this series; not converted yet to the genre, but I've got a bit of a fangirl crush going on with the series protagonist.
I wish I was more familiar with crime fiction so that I could compare Robert K. Lewis with others of his ilk. As it is, I can only compare his spare, almost terse writing to Hemingway.
Our protagonist, Mark Mallen, is a wreck. I rooted for him even though I didn't necessarily like him or the choices he made. And that, I think, I a mark of a good writer.
I wish I was more familiar with crime fiction so that I could compare Robert K. Lewis with others of his ilk. As it is, I can only compare his spare, almost terse writing to Hemingway.
Our protagonist, Mark Mallen, is a wreck. I rooted for him even though I didn't necessarily like him or the choices he made. And that, I think, I a mark of a good writer.
September 26, 2018
Someone really needs a new editor, so many errors in the whole book. Good story.
December 10, 2022
This book is fucking awful. Don’t read it.
April 24, 2013
Untold Damage is the debut novel of Robert K. Lewis and is the first in a planned series.
Lewis's protagonist is Mark Mallen - an ex undercover cop. His job was to infiltrate the drug trade in San Fran. Problem was, he was a little too good at blending in.....he was turfed from the force and has been living in a heroin haze for the last four years.
But, when his friend Eric Russ from his rookie days on the force is found dead with Mallen's name in his pocket, old instincts are reawakened. Determined to beat the needle and find out what happened to his friend, Mark starts investigating on his own.
Lewis is setting the scene for his series in Untold Damage. Much of the story focuses on Mallen's past, his path to his current station and his struggle to remain clean. Although, I do question the portrayal of an addict who thinks he can drink with no problems. Perhaps this will be fodder for future books.
Mark is a good lead character. I liked him and was rooting for him, both in his personal struggle and in his determined search for his friend's killer. I will be interested to see where Lewis takes him in the next book - Critical Damage, due out in April 2014.
Lewis has done a great job setting the scene in the underbelly of San Francisco with lots of dark, gritty descriptions. The Cornerstone Bar is particularly bleak.
Lewis is obviously a fan of crime fiction and he has incorporated all the right elements for a good mystery/detective tale. But some of them seemed formulaic and in need of some polishing.
For example - Mallen meets up with Gato while he's detoxing in jail. This chance meeting leads to a friendship where Gato is willing to 'take care' of things for Mark and supply him with guns. I just never bought this instantaneous friendship. At one point Mallen compares Gato and himself to Spenser and Hawk. (Robert Parker's iconic characters) "He told Gato where he was and Gato told him he was on his way. He sat there for a moment, feel a little like Spenser for Hire, and Gato was steadily turning into his Hawk." Gato seems to appear when a gun or a ride is needed and although his own family troubles are hinted at he never really achieves the depth needed to carry off the sidekick role. This relationship seems very convenient and one sided, but may change in the next book.
The character of cop Oberon Kane is better fleshed out - I think we'll see more of him in future books. The bartender at the Cornerstone has possibilities as well. Other references to Starsky and Hutch (1975), Serpico (1973) tend to date the author and may be missed by younger readers.
"Being undercover was everything he'd ever thought it would be: exciting, dangerous as f***, and way cool. It was like being Serpico, and he had to admit...he loved it."
I found some of the syntax, language and pacing used to be a bit awkward and stilted. I did read from an advance reader's copy, so some of this may have been corrected in the final cut.
Bottom line - Untold Damage was a solid debut and a good intro to a character I think has a future -as does Lewis.
Lewis's protagonist is Mark Mallen - an ex undercover cop. His job was to infiltrate the drug trade in San Fran. Problem was, he was a little too good at blending in.....he was turfed from the force and has been living in a heroin haze for the last four years.
But, when his friend Eric Russ from his rookie days on the force is found dead with Mallen's name in his pocket, old instincts are reawakened. Determined to beat the needle and find out what happened to his friend, Mark starts investigating on his own.
Lewis is setting the scene for his series in Untold Damage. Much of the story focuses on Mallen's past, his path to his current station and his struggle to remain clean. Although, I do question the portrayal of an addict who thinks he can drink with no problems. Perhaps this will be fodder for future books.
Mark is a good lead character. I liked him and was rooting for him, both in his personal struggle and in his determined search for his friend's killer. I will be interested to see where Lewis takes him in the next book - Critical Damage, due out in April 2014.
Lewis has done a great job setting the scene in the underbelly of San Francisco with lots of dark, gritty descriptions. The Cornerstone Bar is particularly bleak.
Lewis is obviously a fan of crime fiction and he has incorporated all the right elements for a good mystery/detective tale. But some of them seemed formulaic and in need of some polishing.
For example - Mallen meets up with Gato while he's detoxing in jail. This chance meeting leads to a friendship where Gato is willing to 'take care' of things for Mark and supply him with guns. I just never bought this instantaneous friendship. At one point Mallen compares Gato and himself to Spenser and Hawk. (Robert Parker's iconic characters) "He told Gato where he was and Gato told him he was on his way. He sat there for a moment, feel a little like Spenser for Hire, and Gato was steadily turning into his Hawk." Gato seems to appear when a gun or a ride is needed and although his own family troubles are hinted at he never really achieves the depth needed to carry off the sidekick role. This relationship seems very convenient and one sided, but may change in the next book.
The character of cop Oberon Kane is better fleshed out - I think we'll see more of him in future books. The bartender at the Cornerstone has possibilities as well. Other references to Starsky and Hutch (1975), Serpico (1973) tend to date the author and may be missed by younger readers.
"Being undercover was everything he'd ever thought it would be: exciting, dangerous as f***, and way cool. It was like being Serpico, and he had to admit...he loved it."
I found some of the syntax, language and pacing used to be a bit awkward and stilted. I did read from an advance reader's copy, so some of this may have been corrected in the final cut.
Bottom line - Untold Damage was a solid debut and a good intro to a character I think has a future -as does Lewis.
July 25, 2013
Untold Damage Mark Mallen is a man on his way back up. Once an undercover cop, his life hit a downward spiral after he became addicted to heroin. I appreciated how realistic Mallen's character was. There is a truth to the way that he functions as a recovering junkie. In fact, it is the struggle that he goes through, both mentally and physically, that makes him so easy to connect with. You don't have to have experience with withdrawals to know what Mark is going through. He shows you.
In the same respect, the underground world of drugs and violence isn't sugar coated. Living in the "Loin" is portrayed as a daily battle. Robert K. Lewis shows the reader how dark things can get in the parts of town other people avoid. However it isn't all darkness. For every person who holds him back, there is one who builds Mallen back up. I rather liked that he had a few guardian angels here and there.
My biggest issue with this read was really just that the majority of it is dialogue. As a less frequent reader of crime thrillers like this, I'm not sure if this is the norm. However I would have liked to see more action, more suspense, and maybe a little bit more of the dark world Mallen had fallen into. I feel like I would have been more immersed.
The ending did surprise me, and I'll admit that upon finishing I was rather intrigued at what is coming next. It seems this is being written as a series! If that's the case, I'd be willing to follow Robert K. Lewis further in. If you are a fan of books that mesh crime thrillers and mysteries, Untold Damage is definitely a book to check out.
In the same respect, the underground world of drugs and violence isn't sugar coated. Living in the "Loin" is portrayed as a daily battle. Robert K. Lewis shows the reader how dark things can get in the parts of town other people avoid. However it isn't all darkness. For every person who holds him back, there is one who builds Mallen back up. I rather liked that he had a few guardian angels here and there.
My biggest issue with this read was really just that the majority of it is dialogue. As a less frequent reader of crime thrillers like this, I'm not sure if this is the norm. However I would have liked to see more action, more suspense, and maybe a little bit more of the dark world Mallen had fallen into. I feel like I would have been more immersed.
The ending did surprise me, and I'll admit that upon finishing I was rather intrigued at what is coming next. It seems this is being written as a series! If that's the case, I'd be willing to follow Robert K. Lewis further in. If you are a fan of books that mesh crime thrillers and mysteries, Untold Damage is definitely a book to check out.
June 12, 2013
Mark Mallen has hit rock bottom. Four years ago he had a glowing future. He was a policeman, one of the best and rising fast. He had a beautiful wife and a daughter he adored. All that disappeared due to his own bravado. Working undercover to bring down a drug ring, he decided that he couldn't play the part without using heroin himself. He quickly became addicted, losing his job, his marriage and his child.
Now Mark just marks time from score to score. He lives quietly, his police pension just enough to keep him going. He expects nothing and has nothing to live for. That is, until he hears the news about Eric. Eric was his best friend on the force. Like Mark, he left the police, got addicted, and even spent some time in prison. But Eric had turned his life around after prison. Mark can't believe he is dead.
Mark decided to try to kick his habit and find out what happened to Eric. He has some help. Detective Kane remembers Mark from his police days and gives him some help. He also gets help from a new friend and some old ones. Other bodies start showing up and Mark realizes he is also targeted. Can he solve Eric's murder before he is killed himself?
Untold Damage is Robert K/ Lewis's debut novel. Mark is a flawed character, but the reader can see through his addiction to the good that still exists inside. The action is fast and furious, and the denouement is satisfying. This book is recommended for mystery lovers.
Now Mark just marks time from score to score. He lives quietly, his police pension just enough to keep him going. He expects nothing and has nothing to live for. That is, until he hears the news about Eric. Eric was his best friend on the force. Like Mark, he left the police, got addicted, and even spent some time in prison. But Eric had turned his life around after prison. Mark can't believe he is dead.
Mark decided to try to kick his habit and find out what happened to Eric. He has some help. Detective Kane remembers Mark from his police days and gives him some help. He also gets help from a new friend and some old ones. Other bodies start showing up and Mark realizes he is also targeted. Can he solve Eric's murder before he is killed himself?
Untold Damage is Robert K/ Lewis's debut novel. Mark is a flawed character, but the reader can see through his addiction to the good that still exists inside. The action is fast and furious, and the denouement is satisfying. This book is recommended for mystery lovers.
June 1, 2013
A disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from its author, an acquaintance of an online group I belong to. He's a nice writer and has put out a good read.
This is a dark mystery, not quite noir but close. The hero is a junkie, Mark Mallen, who sets out to find why a former friend was murdered--while holding onto Mallen's name and address. Mallen's immediately a suspect but the detective is another old acquaintance. He was once with Mallen on the force until Mallen's undercover role became all too real and he turned into a druggie. He lost his wife, home, and job to the needle, and is all but in the gutter.
Somehow, when he lands in jail overnight, Mallen gets up the energy to ask the detective to keep him there as long as possible. He knows this is the only way he'll get clean. The detective obliges. Mallen goes through withdrawal, then sets out to find the killer.
True, there are some false notes. Seems strange a man Mallen meets in jail takes to him and offers him all kinds of assistance so soon. Seems strange that when Mallen keeps telling people, "Trust me," they do with scarcely a second thought.
But overall, it's a nice crime mystery. Anyone who likes Michael Connelly, Andrew Gross or Robert Craig will probably like it.
This is a dark mystery, not quite noir but close. The hero is a junkie, Mark Mallen, who sets out to find why a former friend was murdered--while holding onto Mallen's name and address. Mallen's immediately a suspect but the detective is another old acquaintance. He was once with Mallen on the force until Mallen's undercover role became all too real and he turned into a druggie. He lost his wife, home, and job to the needle, and is all but in the gutter.
Somehow, when he lands in jail overnight, Mallen gets up the energy to ask the detective to keep him there as long as possible. He knows this is the only way he'll get clean. The detective obliges. Mallen goes through withdrawal, then sets out to find the killer.
True, there are some false notes. Seems strange a man Mallen meets in jail takes to him and offers him all kinds of assistance so soon. Seems strange that when Mallen keeps telling people, "Trust me," they do with scarcely a second thought.
But overall, it's a nice crime mystery. Anyone who likes Michael Connelly, Andrew Gross or Robert Craig will probably like it.
May 14, 2013
UNTOLD DAMAGE is a fabulous debut novel, with a raw energy and a fast-paced storyline that are hard to resist. Add a great plot twist and the characters of Mark Mallen and Inspector Kane--Obie, and you're struck reader gold.
This is not my typical reading genre, but I love stories that find hope in darkness. UNTOLD DAMAGE certainly shows us the dark side of the human psyche, but it also shows us good people helping others--despite their own circumstances. I loved the sense of brotherhood between the ex-junkies; I loved that people looked out for each other even in jail and through drug addiction. Which brings me to my favorite part of the novel: recovering junkie and ex-cop, Mark Mallen.
As a reader, I'm all about character, and Mallen has stolen my heart. I loved the glimpses into his battle with The Need, and I loved every decision he made. (I hate spoilers, but one small thing that he does in relation to his ex-wife shows us what a stand-up guy he is.) Basically, I loved his moral compass. I'm waiting for novel two and the Mallen fan club T-shirt.
Robert Lewis--write faster.
This is not my typical reading genre, but I love stories that find hope in darkness. UNTOLD DAMAGE certainly shows us the dark side of the human psyche, but it also shows us good people helping others--despite their own circumstances. I loved the sense of brotherhood between the ex-junkies; I loved that people looked out for each other even in jail and through drug addiction. Which brings me to my favorite part of the novel: recovering junkie and ex-cop, Mark Mallen.
As a reader, I'm all about character, and Mallen has stolen my heart. I loved the glimpses into his battle with The Need, and I loved every decision he made. (I hate spoilers, but one small thing that he does in relation to his ex-wife shows us what a stand-up guy he is.) Basically, I loved his moral compass. I'm waiting for novel two and the Mallen fan club T-shirt.
Robert Lewis--write faster.
May 15, 2013
Mark Mallen is the protagonist of the book. He is an ex uncover cop who became a dope addict just like the people he was supposed to put away. Despite his move to the dark side, he is likeable and has the reader in his corner, hoping he will be successful in beating the dope and getting his life straightened out. The reason for him to lay off the dope is finding out his former partner and friend has been murdered and had Mark's name and address in his pocket when he died. Mark is thought to be his killer and he desperately wants to find the real killer. The writer is obviously talented and definitely writes so well about the life style and the part of town where Mark lives that I felt I could visualize it. However, the book is absolutely full of vulgar language. Yes, I know some people speak like that,especially ones who live as Mark is. Having said that, it is certainly unnecessary as it adds not one good thing to the story. Rather, it detracts from it greatly. Without that language, I would have rated it at 5 stars and would have put this author on my list to look for more of his books. But, I'll not read another one of his and that's a shame because of his talent.
April 22, 2013
I enjoy a good crime drama, and Robert K Lewis did not disappoint. The past several years I've read nearly all of John Connolly's Charlie Parker series. But Mark Mallen is a different breed of former cop, and his troubled past leaves a more physical mark. In many ways Mallen also is more believable than Parker, as he bears a "there but for the grace of God go I" attribute that most readers can relate to, even if we haven't spent the past four years riding the horse. Lewis demonstrates he'll be heard from again is his ability to make every character count. Gato, Bill the bartender, Oberon Kane, the Tenderloin of San Francisco: each is well drawn and will surely be back in subsequent novels. One of the other places in which Lewis succeeds is by demonstrating that Mallen is regularly tempted to succumb to The Need, and Mallen doesn't choose to forgo all vices. He's got quite a hefty tab at the Cornerstone, I imagine, though Bill seems ready to give him a way to work it off in the next Mallen novel. I look forward to it.
October 26, 2014
Robert K. Lewis is an online friend from a group that scholars many years from now may refer to as the Moveable Feast of the 21st Century. We all right in different styles, have wildly different tastes, and work in different markets - but we all started together.
It is such a pleasure to read a book that I've heard about for years. Robert lights this dark story with the candle of hope. So many authors present darkness as sad, depressed, people who have given up on life. That is no fun to read.
Robert's characters are all fighting to better themselves, and it is that struggle - the struggle we all feel everyday - that makes his stories uplifting. There is a light in the darkness. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. It is hope, and it guides this story every step of the way.
Enjoy the noir.
It is such a pleasure to read a book that I've heard about for years. Robert lights this dark story with the candle of hope. So many authors present darkness as sad, depressed, people who have given up on life. That is no fun to read.
Robert's characters are all fighting to better themselves, and it is that struggle - the struggle we all feel everyday - that makes his stories uplifting. There is a light in the darkness. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. It is hope, and it guides this story every step of the way.
Enjoy the noir.
June 9, 2014
Deliciously noir, with a good dose of right and wrong, the law be damned, UNTOLD DAMAGE is a brilliant debut by Robert K. Lewis. After devouring UNTOLD DAMAGE, I can't wait to read his second novel, CRITICAL DAMAGE!
August 15, 2013
Robert Lewis is a brilliant writer! What a honest and insightful main character Mark Mallen is. I look forward to the next book!
June 13, 2013
Great book. A real small press gem.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews