Accelerant

by Marcus Sakey

Chicago is burning. A rash of arsons decimates the city, especially the gang-ravaged south side. Newly home from Iraq and still reeling from his “other than honorable" discharge, Jason Palmer wants nothing to do with the violence in his neighborhood. But when his eight-year-old nephew witnesses a brutal murder, Jason isn’t just the boy’s only remaining family—he’s all that stands between an innocent child and the killers who will stop at nothing to find him. Now, one damaged man must find a way to become a soldier again…or lose everything worth fighting for. Hailed as “nothing short of brilliant” by the Chicago Tribune, ACCELERANT is a blistering thriller of love, greed, redemption, and the costs of our deepest bonds.

(Previously published as "AT THE CITY'S EDGE")

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

452 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Marcus Sakey is the bestselling author of nine novels, including the Brilliance Trilogy, which has sold more than a million copies.

His novel AFTERLIFE (July 18, 2017) is soon to be a major motion picture from Imagine Entertainment and producers Ron Howard and Brian Grazer. His novel Good People was made into a film starring James Franco and Kate Hudson.

Marcus lives in Chicago with his wife and daughter.

Review Quotes

"Ridiculously good...Sakey makes you grin at high-flying feats of imagination, and then grin harder because he sticks the landing. The master of the mindful page turner."
-Gillian Flynn

"Nothing short of brilliant."
-Chicago Tribune

"It's depth and intelligence and passion and emotion that set Sakey apart."
-Lee Child

"Sakey reminds me why I keep reading."
-Cleveland Plain-Dealer

"One of our best storytellers."
-Michael Connelly

Reviews

[Syndi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly not feeling connected tot he story. The writing is also not my cup of tea.

2 stars

[Mike Finn]

I'm almost halfway through this book and I'm setting it aside. It's a competently written thriller and it confronts some of the realities of gangs in Chicago but I'm not finding it compelling.

The main male character, an ex-soldier who decides to take on the gangs and find his brother's killer all by himself doesn't seem real to me. I'm not invested in what happens to him.

The rest feels familiar in a have-I read-this-already? way that is OK but doesn't make me want to know what happens next.

It would make an OK movie in of the '21 Bridges' type of action movies that Amazon likes

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Explosive high octane thriller taking place in the south side of Chicago, author Marcus Sakey's, "At The City's Edge", pairs an inner city cop with a "other than honorable" war vet to find answers to a horrible crime. After seven years in the Army, Jason Palmer was sent home from the Iraq war certainly less than a hero. Jason's brother Michael who owns a local tap room/ bar, has taken up the cause of reducing gang violence in the city. Michael was working with organizations and officials to shine light on the gang problem. However, Michael's bar is burnt to the ground with his body left inside in an apparent gang retaliation. Michael's son 8 year old Billy turns up on uncle Jason's doorstep after the fire. As Jason decides he's going to bring the killers to justice he finds himself a target as well as Billy. Jason teams up with gang intelligence officer Elena Cruz to go after the "Gangster Disciples". Dion "C-Note" Wallace the leader of the Disciples, has killers after Jason and Cruz. Jason is forced to hide Billy with the "Lantern Bearers", who help get kids out of gangs. Dr. Washington Matthews,43 once a powerful gang leader runs the Lantern Bearers and promises to keep Billy safe. With some crazy car chases and machines guns roaring this yarn never takes it's foot off the gas as this thriller twists and turns confusing the reader as it goes. Jason and Cruz bond as they battle gangsters, crooked cops, crooked politicians, as the police force is obviously is overwhelmed. Jason and Elena do finally admit there is a romantic chemistry between them as they flee for their lives. In a riveting story running just over 320 pages, "At The City's Edge", is the second book I've read from author Marcus Sakey. I certainly did like this yarn more than his first book, "The Blade Itself". Although "Blade" was a solid four star book I really liked, "At The City's Edge" better. It was clearly a five stars out of a possible five star book. Author Marcus Sakey is a really good story teller. I'm excited to start his "Brilliance" trilogy in the near future. "City's Edge" is most certainly a do not miss read. If you haven't checked out any thrillers from author Marcus Sakey you're missing out. His first two books are very enjoyable thrillers.

[Norm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess my expectations were too high for this book.

Marcus Sakey was at the Feb 08 Love is Murder writers conference, and the other writers were drooling over him, the book blurbs were gushers of praise, but, well ... the book doesn't quite match the hype for me.

He turned some awesome phrases, the Chicago gangland setting was well laid out and the story was readable, but for me there was no 'wow' factor. I figured out the bad guy a quarter way through the book and though Sakey gamely tried to set up enticing cliffhangers, I wasn't surprised as often as I was supposed to be ... and it ain't cuz I'm so smart.

Anyway, a nice read, but I'm not overwhelmed.

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Sakey's best work but still a good and strong crime novel with an intriguing story and fully realized characters.

[Craig Barner · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the City’s Edge offers insight into what might be happening to Chicago’s burned-out neighborhoods. It’s also a ripping good crime story about gang bangers, hit men, the police and ex-soldiers. The novel is wry, tough, wise and fast-paced. If there is any weakness to the work, it’s that the high-octane thriller is almost too exhaustive in sections. Special thanks to my friend Eric Benderoff who gave the novel a high rating under its previous name, Accelerant, for the suggestion.

Author Marcus Sakey concocts a murder mystery that is linked to the fate of Chicago’s beleaguered neighborhoods on the South and West sides of the city. He develops a plausible story that their distressed situation isn’t an accident or the due to the decades-old sins or racism, economic disinvestment and political extremism. Someone is destroying these areas for a reason. Wait to you find out why. His idea is a plausible one, and it will be in the back of my mind as I traverse "Chicago, that somber city". Sakey has changed my view of my hometon with this novel. That’s a sign of a great work of imagination.

Though the author is not native to Chicago, Sakey has imbibed the worldview and outlook of its residents. He knows the working class, the gangbangers, the exhausted police and ethnic groups that make up the metropolis. I could almost hear my relatives speaking and see their world coming to life. Studs Terkel would have approved.

Sakey likes to end a chapter that points to the next by hinting at what's to come with a single sentence or quick synopsis. It's a good strategy, but he almost uses it to excess. As I approached the end of a chapter, I started to expect this.

Imagination is more powerful than research, but its’ hard to tell the difference in At the City’s Edge. Sakey employs both tools generously. He doesn’t merely use facts and knowledge about the city to illustrate his story. Sakey appears to start with facts about Chicago and then spins it into something else with his wide-ranging imagination. He is a rich story teller, writer and novelist.

Sakey is a great new discovery. I’ll have to visit his world again, though I already live there.

[Melissa Dinwiddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Thrillride

Marcus Sakey is a master of creating impossible situations for his protagonists. The fun is watching them fight their way out, using brains, brawn, and a little bit of luck. The stakes are high (sheesh, an eight-year-old boy is being hunted by ruthless killers!), and as with his Brilliant series, a badass woman is integral to the plot, and to the protagonist's survival and success (go Sakey! Thank you for your badass female characters!)

This book did not help me get to sleep at night, but it did keep me turning pages!

[Steve Wratten · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Sakey's writing style. He cleverly crafts metaphors (analogys?) into his writing to bring visual images about his characters and their circumstances. The story here is a good one, even though perhaps a little time worn, about a soldier that returns from war and has to fight new battles at home to protect his family. As you might expect, the plot proceeds to a climax and pleasant resolution. Sakey gets a little preachy by the end, leading to 4 stars rather than 5.

[nomsayin · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was a gripping thriller with well placed moments of sexual tension, gut-wrenching revelations, and heart-stopping action. I became attached to the protagonist and his brother, and rooted for those around him.
Until it became a lesson in real estate, then I tuned out cos I don't want to think about my letting agent or where my council tax is going while I'm tryna relax on the smelly train between home and work. Great premise but I think it went downhill in the last third of the book.

[Shanna Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The endless cycle.

This book is excellent. It is fast paced, heartbreaking as well as profound. The cycle of violence in the inner cities struggle to break free of poverty and broken families is a problem that is worldwide. If only we could all come together to find a peaceful solution.

[Tory · Rating 5 out of 5]

It felt like a very long book to read but everything Marcus Sakey writes is great. He writes like you're the character going through all these internal and external conflicts. There's always a lover and you're always the hero. All his books have very similar story lines but somehow all are told differently

[Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredibly Sakey-esque

Dairy has a terse and concise style that invokes great imagery while also creating vivid characters. This book is no exception to that. A well structured story that keeps the reader enthralled for all of it

[Nanette Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dynamic plotting

Enjoyed the in between history to fill out the characters and realistic viewpoint of a returning soldier forever changed by what his eyes have seen

[Judy LaVern · Rating 5 out of 5]

True to life story.

Very believable storyline. Good use of descriptions of the characters. I have read many books by Mr. Daley and he has become one of my favorite authors.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good; a page turner.

[Kayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. I could tell where the story was going to go. It was a nice read but I wouldn't recommend it.

[Michael Haglöf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rätt så bra faktiskt. Högt tempo.

[Kelley Zanfardino · Rating 3 out of 5]

needlessly complex.

[BlackKat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael et Jason sont frères.
Jason s’est engagé sous les drapeaux pour combattre à l’étranger, loin de son pays. Il est soldat.
Michael combat la gangrène mafieuse de son quartier, quartier pauvre dans le South Side de Chicago. Il est père.

Quand Jason se perd entre femmes et alcool comme exutoire pour oublier les horreurs de la guerre, à son retour de Bagdad, Michael élève seul son fils et se rallie à ceux qui veulent éradiquer la corruption et l’influence des gangs.

Et quand Michael est tué dans l’incendie de son bar, Jason va reprendre les armes pour obtenir justice, replonger dans les horreurs d’une autre guerre.

Se rabaissera-t-il à la violence que la vengeance lui inspire ou obtiendra-t-il gain de cause sans qu’une goutte de sang ne coule? Saura-t-il être digne de l’amour de Billy, son neveu qui n’a plus que lui au monde, ou cédera-t-il à ses démons intérieurs?

Elena Cruz, flic en disgrâce, va se placer sur son chemin car elle aussi a des comptes à régler, des choses à prouver. Sera-t-elle un obstacle ou une alliée précieuse?

Il n’y a pas à dire… la plume de cet auteur me chatouille systématiquement le neurone!
Pourquoi?
Parce qu’il écrit à divers degrés: il ne se contente pas d’échafauder une excellente intrigue, il l’enrichit d’une certaine étude sociologique qui pousse le lecteur à se questionner, à effectuer une introspection et à s’ouvrir à d’autres horizons.
Les romans de Marcus Sakey ont tous ce point en commun: ce mélange de récréatif et d’instructif.

Instructif car l’auteur ne se contente pas de brosser un tableau, d’instaurer un décor et d’y planter quelques personnages! Il analyse le contexte qui est un élément primordial de l’intrigue: quand on arrive dans le South Side de Chicago, ce n’est pas qu’une image, on le respire, on le transpire, on le vit. Et le temps d’un roman, on aborde les véritables problèmes de ces quartiers, de ces gangs de gamins qui dépassent rarement la vingtaine, on les comprend et on les regarde avec un oeil neuf. Notre vision d’une tranche de la population américaine s’en trouve durablement transformée, longtemps après avoir refermé le bouquin.

Récréatif car nous sommes entraînés dans un thriller ultra rythmé, fort en rebondissements et revirements de situation. L’intrigue est riche, sans concession, se tissant au fil des pages jusqu’au paroxysme du suspens et s’effilochant doucement vers les ultimes révélations.
C’est un roman d’action, de violence, d’affrontements, de vices et de corruption, de courses-poursuites, de traques et de dangers.
Les descriptions sont très précises et visuelles. C’est une immersion totale! Il ne manque plus que l’odeur de la poudre!
Et mon étonnement n’a guère été grand quand, lors d’une petite recherche sur l’auteur, j’ai appris que les trois thrillers en date (Désaxé, Seulement les morts et Des gens bien) étaient l’objet d’adaptations cinématographiques.

L’action, l’adrénaline et la violence ne suffisent pas à me faire adorer cet auteur!

Dans Seulement les morts, la psyché des personnages est passionnante: on aborde l’état d’esprit de l’homme qui est un soldat, doit servir la cause de son pays mais doit composer également avec son tempérament. Jason n’en sort pas indemne, se noie un temps dans l’alcool et le sexe. Pour oublier. C’est la sensibilité masculine qui est mise à l’honneur, entre les impulsions de violence aveugle et l’honneur.
C’est aussi l’homme qui devient père et cesse de penser à son nombril pour essayer d’offrir un avenir et un monde meilleur à son enfant. Michael se lance dans un combat au quotidien et prend des risques, trop de risques, pour affronter la décadence ambiante de son quartier.
Nous avons aussi la touche féminine avec Elena Cruzz, femme dans un métier majoritairement masculin, en butte avec le mépris, la condescendance et les vices de ses pairs. Elle représente la Loi, est en première ligne dans les affrontements inter-raciaux et les drames quotidiens, doit se préserver, se battre davantage pour construire sa carrière, et assumer son statut de policier et de femme.
Et puis nous avons tous les personnages dits « secondaires »: les flics corrompus, les politiciens, les membres de gangs, les membres de gangs repentis, ceux que la misère sociale pousse lentement mais sûrement dans la délinquance et le trafic, ceux qui choisissent le sang et le meurtre tout comme ceux qui nourrissent vaille que vaille l’espoir d’un jour meilleur, d’une éthique saine, d’un lendemain apaisé et heureux.

Arrêtez-moi sinon je continue sur des pages et des pages!
Vous l’aurez compris: j’adore Marcus Sakey. Ses romans sont un savant dosage d’émotions, d’actions, d’intrigues et de suspens. Jamais d’excès.

Vivement le prochain!

[Paul Pessolano · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great follow-up to Marcus Sakey's first book, "The Blade Itself", and gives credence to this young man's ability to write excellent mysteries. As with his first book, this story also takes place in Chicago.

Jason Palmer is back from Iraq and has left the Army under less than desitable circumstances. His brother, Michael, owns a bar in an area of Chicago that is controlled by gangs and is definately on the low side of the economic ladder. There have been several fires set to businesses and the possibility of a breakout of gang warfare.

Michael, who is trying to keep the neighberhood together, finds that there is more underlying reasons for everything bad that is happening in the neighborhood. However, before Michael can expose his findings, he is murdered and it is made to look like a gang hit.

Michael's young son, Billy, becomes a target because he has seen too much. Jason now becomes involved with trying to unravel the mystery and, at the same time, being a father to Billy.

In his attempt to avenge his brother's death, Jason becomes involved with a disgraced policewoman, corrupt policeman, gangbangers, a corrupt businessman, and corrupt politicians.

I have to say it, "It sounds like Chicago to me."

This is a very well told story with its basis in real life. There is plenty of action and suspense. In his author's notes, at the end of the book, Marcus Sakey, asks the reader to goggle "MS-13", to get an idea of the gang problem we are facing in this country. I did, and was amazed at how big a problem it is, and how scary these people are.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jason Palmer, recently discharged from the Army, returns to his native Chicago as a man in search of himself. He spends most of his time running, drinking, and sleeping around. When his brother, Michael, is murdered, Jason takes it upon himself to find the killers and look after Michael’s 8-year-old son. As you can expect, Jason finds himself pulled into a world of gang warfare, political corruption, and corporate greed.

After reading his first book, I became a big fan of Marcus Sakey. The quality of his writing is present in his second novel, but I can’t help but feel a little bit of a letdown. The plot hums along just fine and there are a fair number of twists and big reveals. For the most part, the characters are mainly stock characters and never rise above that. Disgruntled army vet? Check. Sexy ethnic love interest? Check. Crooked cops? Check. Wire-inspired gangbangers? Check. In The Blade Itself, the characters started off as recognizable types, but Sakey was able to breathe extra life into them and make them real people. Of course, he does a phenomenal job painting a portrait of the city of Chicago. Maybe since I visited there this year, the locales really jumped off the page.

Still, in the hands of a capable author like him, Sakey’s prose tends to downplay some of the negatives. Not as good as his debut, but an entertaining read nonetheless.

[Matt Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Accelerant is a slow-burning character piece with plenty of tension. It made me realize I'm going to be reading Sakey for a while.

Perhaps Sakey's greatest strength, and it's on full display in Accelerant, is that he can create a sense of presence in almost every scene he writes. His tactile, visual, and audial details put you right there, frequently splashing you down right in the emotions of the character. A reader finds it much easier to sympathize with the story's central characters--it strengthens the narrative and makes up for weaknesses elsewhere.

Those weaknesses aren't many--or glaring--but sometimes noticed. The dialogue doesn't sparkle like the detail in Sakey's scenes. The supporting cast doesn't flourish quite the way the main characters do. In a couple of key points, the law of economy of characters made it a bit obvious what character was working behind the curtains by being the only one left not eliminated, although it would be equally fair to say that Accelerant surprised me pleasantly a couple of times too.

Sakey can set the pieces. He's the kind of writer you can see getting better and better. I'm very interested to read his more recent work--he's got a fantastic imagination.

Recommended for thriller readers who like gritty stories with that cinematic flash. Sakey's been optioned for the silver screen more than once and it's very easy to see why.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I go back and forth on whether to rate this at 4 or 5 stars. It has some slight weaknesses; compared to his first book, the plot is more conventional. It doesn't surprise me that it's been optioned to be made into a movie. It's got the standard action movie elements: the underdog hero, the cute kid in peril, the muy caliente female cop, villians driven by greed or plain old sociopathy, car chases, and lots and lots of automatic weapons. Some writers might turn this mix into something cheap and tacky, with a lot of cheap thrills and not much story to it, but Markus Sakey works these elements pretty well.

The writing is good and the characters are well-developed. The protagonist is a veteran of the war in Iraq, and I found his struggles to come to terms with the recent past and the way it almost destroyed him to be especially compelling. From my own experience, Sakey did a good job of capturing the inner dilemmas faced by many returning soldiers. Also, Sakey does a great job of conveying the scary awefulness of street gangs and the neighborhoods that they infest.

In the end, I decided that I enjoyed it, and that's the main thing when reading fiction, really. I look forward to more by this author.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jason Palmer is back from Iraq. He bears the memory of a mistake he made which cost one of his men their lives.
He's now jogging and someone stops him to talk about what his brother Michael is doing. There is a confrontation and the people who wanted to talk are left behind, embarassed and without their leader's gun.
Michael is a crusader, his wife was killed by a 13 year old in a stolen car. Now he cares for his 8 year old son, Billy, and volunteers at the Washington Matthew's gang recovery program.
Jason asks what Mike is up to. He doesn't get an answer and soon after, Michael is killed and his tavern burned down.
Michael's son saw the killers and now he is in danger. Jason tries to protect him and he is joined be Officer Elena Cruz who is a street cop who works on the anti gang unit.
Working together, they find that something is up between neighboor gangs. They are being pitted against each other and someone is supplying weapons to them.
Sakey is a good writer. The characters have flaws but are believable and Jason, as a character is well developen. The story has been told before with varying shades of change. I found myself waiting to get to the action and when it did, I didn't care.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jason Palmer loved being a soldier. But after returning home from the war in Iraq with an "other than honorable" discharge, he finds rebuilding his life the toughest battle yet. While he loves his nephew, he continually argues with his brother. Elena Cruz is a talented policewoman, the first woman to make Chicago's prestigious Gang Intelligence Unit. She's ready for anything that the job can throw at her. When Jason's brother, a prominent community activist, is murdered in front of his own son, Jason and Elena must unite and unravel a conspiracy that stretches from the darkest alleys of the ghetto to the manicured lawns of the city's power brokers. While Jason's brother's murder appears to be a gang related murder, there is more to it, because afterall this is Chicago, where everything is related to politics. In a world where corruption and violence are simply the cost of doing business, Jason and Elena are all that stands between an innocent child and the killers who will stop at nothing to find him. Suspense builds all the way through the story, and there is a somewhat surprise ending. Everything is not what it seems.

[Lou Fletcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has been re-titled 'Accelerant' (At the City's Edge).
I was introduced to Marcus Sakey's work several years ago when I attended a workshop he was giving at the Midwest Writers Conference in Muncie, IN. In addition to being an informational, entertaining and caring instructor, I found his work to be everything I love in a mystery: complex characters, a strong, well-developed plot and suspense that builds, taking the reader on a thrill ride that will keep the pages turning. The only downside is arriving at the end, out of breath only to look for the next title. 'Accelerant' does all of this and more. There are politicians, gang bangers (sometimes one and the same) and neighborhoods in and around the author's hometown of Chicago that are so robustly described I felt as though I had been there. Then there is the story of a good guy risking his life by going toe to toe with a corrupt big-city machine and the awful consequences that follow. Definitely a great read!

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was just ok. This was a quick read. Jason Palmer is a recently returned veteran who had been discharged in "other than honorable" fashion. He has a drinking problem, as do a few others in the book. Jason's brother is murdered and things aren't what they seem. Jason is left to take care of his nephew, and also find out who killed his brother and why. It becomes complicated, and unnecessarily so. I guess for the novel to exist, the over-complexity is a necessity. This wasn't nearly as good as the first one, one, which was a little better than ok. Towards of the end, things just started to get a little silly.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Sakey's first book better. This one is set in Chicago (yea!) and tells the story of an "other than honorably" discharged soldier who teams up with a cop (female and hot, of course) to get revenge for his brother's murder. We get a lot of flashbacks to Iraq. (Eh, don't add to the story much. Just distracting and not memorable.) Our soldier's main nemesis is a gang on the South Side. I'm just not that into the gang theme. Of course there are dirty politicians involved - you couldn't have a Chicago story without them. OK, but not great. And weird that the soldier insisted on "being a soldier" well after he was cut loose.

[Sheila · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did really like this book. To understand the mind of Jason, with his background and problems he already is dealing with, take much of the book. In the end, I think he's now more comfortable with himself and the world and his responsibilities and hopeful future. It is mostly done with his new "partner" Elena who is with the police force and caught up in his problems as well. I did like the way it wound up fairly neatly actually. There is lots of gang fighting and action if you do not prefer that kind of story. If so, enjoy

[Molly Weston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set just before and after the Macy's Thanksgiving parade, CITY is told from multiple viewpoints, including that of Allie Donovan who first witnesses a shooting and then becomes a victim. I love the way each new character's FBI profile is listed on its own page. Many are written by FBI profiler Eve Rossi (the main protagonist), but others are from members of her team--there's even one on Eve. This is a fast-paced thriller perfect for long winter evenings or plane travels! Edgar winner Stefanie Pintoff knows how to please readers.