Brothers and Bones

by James Hankins

Charlie Beckham is a rising star among federal prosecutors until, on the morning of the most important court day of his career, a deranged homeless man turns Charlie’s life upside with a single word. He calls Charlie by a secret nickname known by only one other person in the world—Charlie’s brother Jake, who went missing thirteen years ago. Could the homeless man have information about Jake’s whereabouts after all these years? Is it possible that the long-haired, bearded vagrant actually is Jake? Charlie has a hundred questions but the homeless man disappears before Charlie can ask a single one.

So begins Charlie’s search for answers, and for his brother, a search that leads him down Boston's darkest streets, into its blackest alleys, and, finally, into its criminal underworld. But if Charlie wants answers he'll have to get them from some of the most feared and ruthless people in the city.

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

314 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 24, 2012

About the author

USA Today bestselling author James Hankins's newest novel of suspense, A BLOOD THING, came out on June 5, 2018. Each of his previous thrillers (including THE PRETTIEST ONE, SHADY CROSS, BROTHERS AND BONES, and more) spent time in the Kindle Top 100 and became Amazon #1 bestsellers, while THE PRETTIEST ONE reached #1 across all categories in the Kindle Store. SHADY CROSS received a coveted starred review from Publishers Weekly and Kirkus Reviews gave BROTHERS a starred review and named it to their list of Best Books of 2013. (PLEASE NOTE that there are others who publish under the name James Hankins, so please see James's website for a complete list of his books.)

Reviews

[James Hankins]

I wrote BROTHERS AND BONES, and though I'm not rating or reviewing the book, I thought I'd write about what made me come up with the idea for the story. It was a single moment several years ago. I was working as a lawyer in Boston and every day after work, as I walked to the subway station, I would pass the same man. He was likely homeless. He dressed in rags. Long hair, long beard. He never asked for money. Most strikingly, he was usually talking to himself -- or seemingly to a mailbox or a parking meter. Sometimes these dialogues were heated. One day, I imagined walking past him and having suddenly look up and say, very clearly and lucidly, "Hi, James," before returning to his animated self-dialogue. I found the thought to be creepy and I wondered what could be behind such a moment. And BROTHERS AND BONES was born.

[Judy Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Hankins takes readers to the darkest alleys and streets, the homeless, the ruthless, and a criminal underworld for a complex and twisted crime thriller with BROTHERS AND BONES, keeping you glued to the pages, to learn about the mystery surrounding Charlie’s brother.

Charlie Beckham is a federal prosecutor for US Attorney’s office in Boston. A driven and successful attorney, he is engaged to his boss’ daughter. Charlie Beckham’s brother, Jake, a former investigative reporter went missing thirteen years ago, and he has been obsessed over the years trying to locate him.

Now, one morning on his way to court on the subway, he encounters a deranged homeless man, and the man calls him by a secret nickname-- only known by his brother Jake. He is astounded!

From this point on, Charlie is obsessed with this homeless man, Bonz. Could he be Jake, or does he know him? During his frantic and desperate search for this homeless man, he gets more than he bargained for.

Without giving away too much, Bonz was tortured by some evil men and has pretty much lost his mind; however, when he sees Charlie, some of his memory starts returning and could he possibly know what happened to Jake? There is a tape which is hidden and the bad guys want it. Think legal, mobs, thugs, hackers, mafia, corruption, homeless, conspiracy, and a brother's survival. . . good versus evil.

When I was approved for an ARC of James Hankins’ upcoming SHADY CROSS, 2/24/2015--due to date being further out, wanted to read a few of his previous books first. I really enjoyed Hankins’ inspiration for BROTHERS AND BONES, as he recalls working as a lawyer in Boston, and as he walked to the subway station daily, he frequently ran into a homeless man talking to himself and imagined what it would be like to have a conversation, thus the novel was born.

Charlie, the obsessed prosecutor joins forces with a homeless man against a murderous and dangerous conspiracy for a roller coaster suspenseful ride-- Hankins delivers a complex and riveting suspense thriller, mixed with sarcasm and humor!

The audiobook was narrated by John Rubinstein, and even though he did a good job, I kept wishing it was Peter Berkrot, my favorite thriller performer which would have taken it up another notch. Looking forward to reading more from this author. Hankins’ writing reminds me a little of J. Carson Black and Daniel Palmer, which I enjoy.

JDCMustReadBooks

[Tracy P. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie discovered the true meaning of what the word "brother" means, not only from the selfless acts of love his brother showered him with, but more poignantly, when he had to put his faith and life in the hands of a complete stranger.

The unlikely banding together of a federal prosecutor (Charlie) with an unpredictable, haggard homeless man, (Bones) led to the forging of an unflappable bond. Proving that sometimes being brothers is much more than sharing the same bloodline. These two unlikely confidants seamlessly formed the ultimate "brotherhood" when the only person who had their backs was each other.
#thick as thieves.

*Originally posted on audible (02/05/18). Titled: "Brotherhood: Blood Not Required"

[Monnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually, make that 4-1/2 stars; this book, named to Kirkus Review Best Books of 2013, is a winner in my book as well. And apparently I'm not alone; as I write this, it had earned a rather impressive average of 4.3 stars from 1,236 reviewers at Amazon.com and spent more than three months in the Top 100 in the Kindle Store - primary reasons I didn't hesitate when I had a chance recently to snag it for 99 cents through BookGorilla.com.

The story begins as Charlie Beckham, a Boston federal prosecutor just starting as lead attorney on a case that should shoot him to the top of the career ladder, runs into a grungy homeless man who calls Charlie by a nickname known only by one other person - Charlie's much-older brother Jake, who turned up missing 13 years ago and is presumed dead (by everyone except Charlie, that is).

Long obsessed with finding out what really happened to Jake (to the point of seeing a psychiatrist ever since the disappearance), Charlie goes off the deep end trying to find the homeless man - threatening his successful career and jeopardizing his relationship with his fiance, Jessica, who happens to be the daughter of a powerful head federal prosecutor and Charlie's boss. But Charlie is certain the homeless man has important information about the missing Jake - it's even possible, Charlie reasons, that the guy is Jake in disguise.

Of course, finding the man is far from easy, and the chase takes Charlie into seedy parts of the city and puts him directly in the crosshairs of some of the criminal underworld. Will Charley find the homeless man before either or both of them end up dead? And if he does, will he learn what really happened to Jake? Ah, I'll never tell - if you want to find out, you'll just have to read this one for yourself. I don't think you'll be sorry you did!

[Toniarw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ich war positiv überrascht. Es war wirklich mal was anderes. Zwischendurch aber wirklich ein wenig unrealistisch. Auch fand ich das Ende wirklich gut, da es halbwegs logisch war und die beiden nicht komplett ungestraft davon kamen.

[Billy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Brothers and Bones is the first book I ever hate-read. That is, I read the whole book just to post a review and warn other readers just how terrible this book is. I read this book just to see how much I spent on it and get mad at myself.  Brothers and Bones is a tragic waste of time for any reader.  It is poorly written, illogical, and full of gaping plot holes.

It is the story of Charlie Beckham, a federal attorney who is starting a trial against a mob boss.  He is engaged to his boss' daughter (of course) and about to start the biggest trial of his life when a homeless man mentions a nickname that only his brother Jake - who disappeared thirteen years ago - knows. What ensues is a supposed thriller where Charlie has to avoid both mob and police with his only help coming from his new friend.

I think most people that read mystery novels want the writer to be smarter them, because they want to be stumped and have the final revelation make sense, even if they didn't think about it themselves. That moment never comes when reading Brothers and Bones.  The book is full of plot holes and the characters act in ways that seem to be only motivated by the whim of the author.  For instance, Charlie, despite being a federal prosecutor acts and sounds nothing like an attorney.  Even though he narrates the novel, his voice is false and unbelievable.

One of the biggest plot holes is the timing. It has been thirteen years since brother Jake has disappeared and yet as the story moves forward, there seems to be no rhyme or reason for things to come to a head at this time. It is one thing for Charlie to be haunted by the disappearance of his brother. It is another for the majority of the characters to be actively tied as well.  And when the reader finally learns the by reveal, it is a complete an utter letdown and you are left wondering what was the big deal.

One last thing to say about this book is the dialogue is absolutely atrocious.  None of the characters speak with an authenticity.

I wasn't expecting a lot going into Brothers and Bones, but even what little I wanted I didn't receive. Don't even bother.

[Jennuineglass · Rating 1 out of 5]

Every now and then you take a chance on a book. Picking it up from the junk bin, or grabbing a daily deal. In some cases it is a regretful relationship, and other times you are rewarded your your literary bravery.
From the moment I clicked purchase, I knew this was such a case. The reviews are wildly varied...an average of three stars built from 1 star and 4/5 star ratings.

This book gets the rare classification of too bad to finish. Money wasted, thrown down the tube. I revisited the book twice...but after the third failed attempt to enjoy it. I. Just. Couldn't. Continue.
The plot, is not bad. The idea, is solid. The writing, is horrible. Pull you out of the story, make you snort, laugh and chuckle...horrible. I wonder what publisher gave the greenlight on this thing? I wonder if that publisher is still employed.
If I can figure out if my Kindle version has a loan out feature, I will loan it to you...because I know that now you are probably tempted to read it, for surely it can't be that bad. For me, it was. But for others (there are a lot of four stars) they really liked it...so perhaps it is a good read. Just not for this gal.
Happy reading!

[Claire Englewood · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a huge disappointment, given other reviews. My first main criticism, that kept nagging me throughout the book, it reads as if it were intended as a screenplay; at the end, I found out that is the author's original occupation. It seemed like every chapter had a few paragraphs that repeated what had happened earlier, just the way a weekly TV drama gives the viewer a few minutes of catchup scenes from last week as the opener. Most often this is done by the main character rethinking events to come up with a strategy; this destroys the reader's faith in the character as he is supposed to be a high IQ semi-genius - until later in the book when he admits to having cheated on the IQ test. The plot is terribly predictable, even overdone for a Mob vs. Legal system story, down to the subplot of the main character's involvement with the boss' daughter. There is not a single surprise twist in the entire book and I only kept reading to the end because I couldn't believe there wouldn't be just one. One question: How did this manuscript get published?

[John Bunyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it despite the serious flaws. It starts out great, draws you in and moves pretty well. But the balance between comedy and tragedy is off. The first and maybe best example of this is that the main character's parents were killed by a KFC bucket.
But the biggest issue is that a man who was 13 years homeless and crazy is suddenly Batman. And the conspiracy and the reason behind the main character's predicament stretches credulity. Also, it's ridiculous how many times guys are knocked out with one punch or a bonk on the head. I initially gave this a 3.5 but it really doesn't deserve that. A 3 May be too high, but I liked it.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, looking forward to reading more from this author!

[John Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book that I almost did not finish. I found the early chapters to be just strings of words and sentences that seemed to have no purpose. But I kept at it and on the whole found the book enjoyable. The ending was almost fairy tale in nature but the plot twists seem to take it there.

[Wendy O'connell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The concept for Brothers and Bones jumped out at me because of it’s every man appeal. Who couldn’t like a story about an orphaned brother who desperately wants to find the other after he’s been missing for thirteen long years? The story has heart and it never stops. I fell in love with the main character, a lawyer named Charlie Beckham who searches for his brother, Jake, and not just because of the sad luck story, but the raw unbending passion in Charlie. He wouldn’t give up. Sure, he makes some poor choices throughout the book, but that made him flawed, and nothing beats a hero with a little grit on him.
By the end, Charlie started to look like Bonz, the homeless man who became an unlikely helper in helping him find his brother. I loved Bonz, a bit more of an onion than Charlie. Bonz’s layers kept peeling off as the plot unfolded. Bonz never gave up, having a great set of reasons for doing so, even though the stakes kept getting higher for Charlie and him.
The pacing of the book was exquisite, starting out with the right amount of mystery to lure you into the main plot of finding Jake and then, slowly building up until it became a fast paced ride down the biggest granddaddy of all roller coasters. Even then, when the pacing elevated there were valleys of rest, smaller ones, yes, but places where the reader and main character relaxed. I recently read a terrific book titled, “Techniques of the Selling Writer,” where it discusses how to keep the action rising and how to create peaks and valleys.
In the end, Brothers and Bones worked for me. The plot tied together from beginning to end, no loose strings and the characterization of the main characters Bonz and Charlie is excellent.

[Nenette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve always loved legal thrillers, and lately, there’s been a wide range of authors to choose from for this genre. This is the first that I’ve read one of James Hankins, and I’m now encouraged to check out his other works.

The story’s got such a hold on me that when I got stuck in an unusually heavy Monday morning traffic today, I pulled my Kindle out and read while driving at a pace of an inch per minute. I almost finished it, but I had to stop when I got past the bottleneck.

On the writing style, I already said part of it – couldn’t put it down….Though I wonder why there had to be too many chapters – what would have sufficed as a just another paragraph became a chapter division. On the story itself – I am wondering until now how Charlie was able to come up with his bluff story like he did, without any knowledge yet on what was supposed to be on the tape, and without getting hold of his brother’s letter where all the crucial information were. If it was explained somewhere in the novel, then I have missed it. Though this is one important part that I believe should have been laid out well, the lesson of the story more than compensates: love between brothers and the importance of integrity.

It was a good read overall, and again, I will definitely read more from this author.

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was traveling and wanted a mystery to escape into. After browsing through Kindle offerings, I selected this one based on the Amazon blurb. The idea of an attorney and a homeless man teaming up to solve a mystery sounded interesting. This is not a mystery. It is a beat-em-up thriller. I was not thrilled. I'm allowing it two stars because I am not a fan of thrillers so can't judge the genre well enough to give it a single star. I suspect some thriller fans will like this book because plenty of people get beat up and shot. If you are looking for more than blood, gore, bruises, cuts, concussions and broken bones, this is not a book for you. The personalities of characters turn on a dime and it is difficult to like any of them. The mystery seems to just be a thin thread to hang the violence on. I normally read a mystery in 2 to 4 days. I lost interest in this one several times and finally finished it after 8 weeks by skipping through the last half.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK. It's not the best written book, but the story is compelling and grabs you in right away. You gotta admit some random homeless person calling you by a secret nickname that no one but your brother knows, a brother who's been missing for 13 years, is pretty interesting. This would make a fun action film.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fast moving story of Charlie Beckham's search for his brother, who has been missing for thirteen years. Mobsters, attorneys, a homeless guy named Bonz (pronounced like Fonz you know). Loved the characters and the story.

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book seemed to have been written in a hurry. It needed some editing, and some parts needed rewriting to be a bit more plausible and fit together better. However, the same could be said of all of Dan Brown's books which have been wildly successful.

[Nicole Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a GREAT read.

Like others, I found myself up all night reading, wondering, gasping, wondering, laughing a bit, thinking, hoping, raging, and being thoroughly captivated.

One thing I liked about this suspenseful book was the humor and sarcasm weaved into the story.

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was serviceable though I'm not exactly knocking over things to add it to my re-read list. It's an interesting yarn but a bit predictable. If you've got some hours to fill, go for it but your life won't be missing anything if you haven't read it.

[Dosha (Bluestocking7) Beard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave this one 3.5 because it was so very good for the first half, then it just started being too tedious. Good story though. I love mob stories, that it took place in my hometown didn't hurt. It has put me in the mood for more mob stories.

[Keli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book! It has many twists and turns and very well developed characters.

[Carmen · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit too much like a way too busy action movie. The Hero's had amazing, super strength and could outwit and kill armoured gangsters on no sleep and without any weapons. Bit too exhausting to read

[Maťa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tak, kniha úspešne za mnou. A viete čo? Síce sa mi čítala pomalšie a príbeh miestami viazol, tak tie zvraty, čo autor prichystal stáli za to :)

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent story, surprising plot twists. Suspenseful. Good character development.

[LuAnn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, okay characters. Maybe a little more drawn out than it needed to be.

[Dorrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great suspense novel. Will read more from this author.

[Maryann Hornbaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

What A Great Crime Novel

I really had a hard time putting this book down when necessary.
Charlie is a good lawyer on his way up in the attorney general office. Plus he’s engaged to the daughter of the states top attorney general. Some people seem to wonder if he’s really that good or is it because he’s engaged to the top dogs daughter.

Charlie had a sad childhood. He was raised by his older brother. His parents died while he was very young. His older brother was 11 years older than him, but spent all his time and effort raising his young brother. When Charlie was still young his brother died, but somehow with money, his brother had put aside for him he made his way through law school. But when his brother died or so, they thought he really hadn’t died officially. He was just missing Charlie vowed to find out exactly what happened to his brother if he was still alive or was he really dead.

As Charlie was obsessed with the uncertainty of what happened to his brother. Was he dead or alive somewhere? It drove Charlie crazy trying to figure that out.

One day on the subway a homeless man kept bugging him, and then referred to Charlie as Wiley. That drove Charlie crazy. It was the nickname his brother always called him that started a chain of events that would lead Charlie down the path of danger and murder.

Charlie goes through the impossible task of finding this homeless man. The epic story that unfolds after this point will keep you reading well into the night. Charlie gets involved in the mob and murder and Mayham. But eventually you know he will find out what happened to his brother, and so many surprises and so many dead criminals later it all comes to pass.

Read this book and enjoy every minute. I must warn you there are some pretty graphic fights. And many many tense moments. If you’d like crime mysteries, you’ll love this one.

[Brina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thriller haben es bei mir in letzter Zeit wirklich schwer, denn ich habe festgestellt, dass ich bei dem Genre immer wählerischer werde und nur noch von wenigen Thrillern wirklich begeistert bin. "Brothers and Bones: Blutige Lügen" klang jedoch mal wieder nach einer sehr guten und spannenden Geschichte, sodass ich James Hankins' neuestes Werk eine faire Chance geben wollte.

Der Autor hat mit Sicherheit Talent und konnte dies zum Großteil hier auch unter Beweis stellen. Problem ist jedoch, dass die Geschichte oftmals viel zu langatmig erzählt wird, sodass man manchmal das Gefühl bekommt, dass die Geschichte auf der Stelle steht und einfach nichts passiert. Es war zwar nicht unbedingt langweilig, allerdings habe ich mir deutlich mehr Spannung gewünscht, die bei den vielen Umschreibungen und Erklärungen leider deutlich flöten ging.

Gleiches gilt leider auch für die Dialoge, die einfach so vor sich hinplätschern. Ich bekam hierbei oftmals das Gefühl, als würden sich sämtliche Figuren grundlegend langweilen, denn hier fehlt bei den Dialogen die nötige Pfiffigkeit. Dennoch sollte man sich von der Kritik nicht verschrecken lassen, denn der Autor hat hier tatsächlich sein Können bewiesen. Hätte er nur ca. einhundert Seiten weggelassen und dafür alles etwas actionreicher und schneller erzählt, hätte die Geschichte deutlich mehr Biss gehabt.

Obwohl mir keine der Figuren wirklich sympathisch war, muss ich dennoch sagen, dass der Autor diese gut ausgearbeitet hat. Man lernt sie zwar nicht unbedingt gut kennen, allerdings habe ich dies hierbei auch nicht erwartet, sodass mir die Beschreibung von ihnen vollkommen ausgereicht hat. Charlie, der hier als eine Art Held dargestellt wird, ist ganz nett, allerdings hat mir bei ihm als Staatsanwalt die nötige Härte und der Biss gefehlt. Dennoch habe ich die Suche nach seinem Bruder Jake sehr gerne verfolgt, auch wenn diese oftmals zu ausschweifend war. Allerdings wird die Suche nach ihm wirklich gut und authentisch dargestellt, sodass mir die Geschichte im Großen und Ganz ganz gut gefallen hat.

So sehr ich auch die Langatmigkeit stellenweise kritisiert habe, muss ich sagen, dass mir die Auflösung am Ende ganz gut gefallen hat. Hier hat der Autor noch einmal alles gegeben und gezeigt, was er tatsächlich drauf hat. Eine schnelle Auflösung mit vielen Antworten, so habe ich es mir gewünscht und so habe ich es auch bekommen. Schade, dass es nicht das gesamte Buch über so verlaufen ist.

Das Cover ist ein richtiger Hingucker und hat mich direkt angesprochen. Besonders die Farbgestaltung hat mir sehr gefallen. Gleiches gilt für die Kurzbeschreibung, die meiner Meinung nach sehr gelungen ist und die Geschichte äußerst spannend präsentiert.

Insgesamt hat mir "Brothers and Bones: Blutige Lügen" ganz gut gefallen, auch wenn ich leider zugeben muss, dass die Geschichte dann doch weit weniger spannender und langatmiger war, als ich im Vorfeld erhofft habe. Dennoch: Fans des Genres und diejenigen, die sich für die Mafia interessieren, sollten unbedingt einen Blick auf das Buch werfen.

Merged review:

Thriller haben es bei mir in letzter Zeit wirklich schwer, denn ich habe festgestellt, dass ich bei dem Genre immer wählerischer werde und nur noch von wenigen Thrillern wirklich begeistert bin. „Brothers and Bones: Blutige Lügen“ klang jedoch mal wieder nach einer sehr guten und spannenden Geschichte, sodass ich James Hankins‘ neuestes Werk eine faire Chance geben wollte.

Der Autor hat mit Sicherheit Talent und konnte dies zum Großteil hier auch unter Beweis stellen. Problem ist jedoch, dass die Geschichte oftmals viel zu langatmig erzählt wird, sodass man manchmal das Gefühl bekommt, dass die Geschichte auf der Stelle steht und einfach nichts passiert. Es war zwar nicht unbedingt langweilig, allerdings habe ich mir deutlich mehr Spannung gewünscht, die bei den vielen Umschreibungen und Erklärungen leider deutlich flöten ging.

Gleiches gilt leider auch für die Dialoge, die einfach so vor sich hinplätschern. Ich bekam hierbei oftmals das Gefühl, als würden sich sämtliche Figuren grundlegend langweilen, denn hier fehlt bei den Dialogen die nötige Pfiffigkeit. Dennoch sollte man sich von der Kritik nicht verschrecken lassen, denn der Autor hat hier tatsächlich sein Können bewiesen. Hätte er nur ca. einhundert Seiten weggelassen und dafür alles etwas actionreicher und schneller erzählt, hätte die Geschichte deutlich mehr Biss gehabt.

Obwohl mir keine der Figuren wirklich sympathisch war, muss ich dennoch sagen, dass der Autor diese gut ausgearbeitet hat. Man lernt sie zwar nicht unbedingt gut kennen, allerdings habe ich dies hierbei auch nicht erwartet, sodass mir die Beschreibung von ihnen vollkommen ausgereicht hat. Charlie, der hier als eine Art Held dargestellt wird, ist ganz nett, allerdings hat mir bei ihm als Staatsanwalt die nötige Härte und der Biss gefehlt. Dennoch habe ich die Suche nach seinem Bruder Jake sehr gerne verfolgt, auch wenn diese oftmals zu ausschweifend war. Allerdings wird die Suche nach ihm wirklich gut und authentisch dargestellt, sodass mir die Geschichte im Großen und Ganz ganz gut gefallen hat.

So sehr ich auch die Langatmigkeit stellenweise kritisiert habe, muss ich sagen, dass mir die Auflösung am Ende ganz gut gefallen hat. Hier hat der Autor noch einmal alles gegeben und gezeigt, was er tatsächlich drauf hat. Eine schnelle Auflösung mit vielen Antworten, so habe ich es mir gewünscht und so habe ich es auch bekommen. Schade, dass es nicht das gesamte Buch über so verlaufen ist.

Das Cover ist ein richtiger Hingucker und hat mich direkt angesprochen. Besonders die Farbgestaltung hat mir sehr gefallen. Gleiches gilt für die Kurzbeschreibung, die meiner Meinung nach sehr gelungen ist und die Geschichte äußerst spannend präsentiert.

Insgesamt hat mir „Brothers and Bones: Blutige Lügen“ ganz gut gefallen, auch wenn ich leider zugeben muss, dass die Geschichte dann doch weit weniger spannender und langatmiger war, als ich im Vorfeld erhofft habe. Dennoch: Fans des Genres und diejenigen, die sich für die Mafia interessieren, sollten unbedingt einen Blick auf das Buch werfen.

[Jule · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eigentlich ein gar nicht so übler Thriller. Der Plot war gut aufgebaut, die Spannung definitiv ständig da. Mafia, Korruption in höchsten Justiz-Ämtern, Geheimnisse, Verrat - alles, was das Krimiherz begehrt. Leider typische Unterhaltungsliteratur voll mit steifen Dialogen, ex machina Konfliktlösung, flachen und unrealistischen Charakteren, Unwahrscheinlichkeiten und unrealistischem Verständnis von Anatomie und Physik. Ein durchwachsener Stil, der manchmal mit augenzwinkerndem Humor und klugen Beobachtungen glänzte, dann wieder mit schiefen Metaphern und ständigen Wiederholungen Schauder hervorrief. Und das kann nicht alles dem deutschen Übersetzer in die Schuhe geschoben werden! Am Ende nicht mehr wert als ein "Ramschkiste"/"Urlaubslektüre" Rating von 2/5 Sternen.

[Marianne Scholer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hang Onto Your Hat

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, hated to put it down. The story began with a lovely hook - a homeless man calls the central character by a nickname used only by the protagonist's missing brother - and it is off to the races. The bad guys are so ghastly in their evildoings, the main character Charlie is so human in his stumbling yet trusting courage and the plot track will tie you up in knots. The author was also kind enough to give us the character Bonz. Will be reading more from this author.