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Sully Carter #1
The Ways of the Dead
The electrifying first novel in a new crime series from a veteran Washington, D.C., reporter
When the teenage daughter of a powerful Washington, D.C., judge is found dead, three local black kids are arrested for her murder—but reporter Sully Carter suspects there’s more to the case. From the city’s grittiest backstreets to the elegant halls of power, wry yet wounded Sully pursues a string of cold cases, all the while fighting against pressure from government officials, police, suspicious locals, and his own bosses at the newspaper. Based on the real-life 1990s Princeton Place murders, Neely Tucker’s debut novel is a pitch-perfect rendering of a fast-paced newsroom and a layered, edge-of-your-seat mystery sure to please fans of Elmore Leonard and George Pelecanos.
When the teenage daughter of a powerful Washington, D.C., judge is found dead, three local black kids are arrested for her murder—but reporter Sully Carter suspects there’s more to the case. From the city’s grittiest backstreets to the elegant halls of power, wry yet wounded Sully pursues a string of cold cases, all the while fighting against pressure from government officials, police, suspicious locals, and his own bosses at the newspaper. Based on the real-life 1990s Princeton Place murders, Neely Tucker’s debut novel is a pitch-perfect rendering of a fast-paced newsroom and a layered, edge-of-your-seat mystery sure to please fans of Elmore Leonard and George Pelecanos.
352 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2014
41 people are currently reading
2153 people want to read
About the author
Neely Tucker
13 books113 followersThe third novel in the Sully Carter series, "Only the Hunted Run," publishes on Aug. 30, from Viking. Publishers Weekly, the first to file a review, dubs it "provocative...a terrifying thriller."
Sully, one of the few reporters stuck in Washington in the August doldrums in the summer of 2000, is filling in for a colleague when shooting breaks out in the Capitol building. The killer, Terry Waters, kills a congressman from Oklahoma by stabbing him through the eyes with a pair of ice picks. He also manages to escape.
Sully, the only surviving witness, soon finds himself being tracked down by Waters. This pursuit eventually leads both men to St. Elizabeths, the gothic mental hospital in Southeast D.C, which scars everyone it touches -- if it doesn't bury them.
Based on a real-life shooting at the Capitol in 1997, "Hunted" follows "The Ways of the Dead" and "Murder, D.C." As always, the streets of the city, from the power of K Street to the deadly avenues just a few blocks away, are as central to the story as the characters.
The previous Sully novels have drawn extensive praise. The Daily Mail (U.K.) dubbed "Murder" one of 2015's Best Three Crime Novels. Kirkus: "There’s no more satisfying sight than a writer who knows exactly what he’s doing—and only gets better at what he does.” The Miami Herald, said of "Ways, "This book is worthy of Elmore Leonard’s legacy…an exciting first novel that echoes the best writing of Pete Hamill and George Pelecanos, mixed with a bit of The Wire and True Detective.”
Tucker was born in Lexington, Miss., one of the poorest places in America, in 1963. He has filed stories from more than 60 countries or territories and is currently assigned to the 2016 Presidential campaign.
His memoir, "Love in the Driest Season," was named one of the Top 25 Books of 2004 by Publishers Weekly. It has been published in the U.K., Germany, Australia and Brazil. It has twice been optioned for film development in Los Angeles.
Sully, one of the few reporters stuck in Washington in the August doldrums in the summer of 2000, is filling in for a colleague when shooting breaks out in the Capitol building. The killer, Terry Waters, kills a congressman from Oklahoma by stabbing him through the eyes with a pair of ice picks. He also manages to escape.
Sully, the only surviving witness, soon finds himself being tracked down by Waters. This pursuit eventually leads both men to St. Elizabeths, the gothic mental hospital in Southeast D.C, which scars everyone it touches -- if it doesn't bury them.
Based on a real-life shooting at the Capitol in 1997, "Hunted" follows "The Ways of the Dead" and "Murder, D.C." As always, the streets of the city, from the power of K Street to the deadly avenues just a few blocks away, are as central to the story as the characters.
The previous Sully novels have drawn extensive praise. The Daily Mail (U.K.) dubbed "Murder" one of 2015's Best Three Crime Novels. Kirkus: "There’s no more satisfying sight than a writer who knows exactly what he’s doing—and only gets better at what he does.” The Miami Herald, said of "Ways, "This book is worthy of Elmore Leonard’s legacy…an exciting first novel that echoes the best writing of Pete Hamill and George Pelecanos, mixed with a bit of The Wire and True Detective.”
Tucker was born in Lexington, Miss., one of the poorest places in America, in 1963. He has filed stories from more than 60 countries or territories and is currently assigned to the 2016 Presidential campaign.
His memoir, "Love in the Driest Season," was named one of the Top 25 Books of 2004 by Publishers Weekly. It has been published in the U.K., Germany, Australia and Brazil. It has twice been optioned for film development in Los Angeles.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
February 4, 2018
The next read in my determination to catch up on some of my backlog of purchased novels saw me picking up Neely Tucker's "The Way's of the Dead" which was recommended to me a while ago - and with good reason because it was beautifully done noir with an authentic twist.
We follow reporter Sully Carter, an engaging and well layered main protagonist as he investigates the underbelly of Washington DC - when a prominent judge's daughter is killed in a low rent neighbourhood, full resources are thrown into the investigation, not the case with local missing girls and Sully believes there may be a hidden killer at work.
The plot is cleverly woven to create maximum effect - it is unpredictable and wonderfully addictive - at the same time Neely Tucker examines some hugely relevant social and political themes, bringing a vivid and vibrant tone to the settings and to the people.
Great writing, great plotting, a genuine sense of place, The Ways of the Dead has made me determined to read more from this author.
Recommended.
We follow reporter Sully Carter, an engaging and well layered main protagonist as he investigates the underbelly of Washington DC - when a prominent judge's daughter is killed in a low rent neighbourhood, full resources are thrown into the investigation, not the case with local missing girls and Sully believes there may be a hidden killer at work.
The plot is cleverly woven to create maximum effect - it is unpredictable and wonderfully addictive - at the same time Neely Tucker examines some hugely relevant social and political themes, bringing a vivid and vibrant tone to the settings and to the people.
Great writing, great plotting, a genuine sense of place, The Ways of the Dead has made me determined to read more from this author.
Recommended.
March 14, 2015
3.5/5 Stars
The Ways of the Dead is set in 1999, during a time when the internet had yet to take over the media, and newspapers are still the primary source for news. After the teenage daughter of a high-powered Washington, DC judge is killed in an inner-city alley, the murder seems pretty open and shut after three black boys are arrested for the slaying. Of course they did it, right? But a head-strong DC Metro reporter smells something fishy and suspects a link between this case and a number of unsolved murders of minority women in the neighborhood.
It was a refreshing change to read about a newspaper reporter doing the legwork and using his skills to solve the crime, instead of your usual private dick or police officer. The book is the debut novel of Neely Tucker, who is himself a Washington DC area reporter, who uses his knowledge to lend a real authenticity to the day to day work of the newsmen in the book. I also love reading books set in DC, as I lived there while going to college. This one was especially enjoyable as I lived in the Park View area that is prevalent in the novel.
There are two things that make this book worth reading. The first: Tucker has a great knack for writing dialogue that sounds the way that real people talk. It flows, feels totally authentic, but has a little extra flair. His writing style reminds me the most of Richard Price, with a little hint of George Pelecanos, two of my favorites. The second, and probably the most impressive thing about the book is the main character, Sullivan "Sully" Carter. I got a kick out of reading about him and he definitely deserves a series. Sully was blown up when reporting on the war in Bosnia (with the scars and limp to prove it), lost his true love there, drives a Ducati sports bike he didn't exactly acquire on the straight, would prefer to drink bourbon for every meal of the day, has contacts all over the city from city prosecutors to urban gang lords, and has a dogged determination in his work.
But the major problem with this novel is the plotting. Just like the bland, uninspired title, the plot itself is nothing special and seems no different than any other run of the mill modern mysteries. The pacing is uneven and there are also too many coincidences and convenient plot points set to push the story forward. Sully is conveniently the only person in the story who believes that there is more than meets the eye in the murder, even though it seems pretty obvious. This prevented me from enjoying the book fully, but I believe with Tucker's talent for dialogue and armed with a great character like Sully, he could turn out some great work in the future if teamed up with a solid story.
The Ways of the Dead is set in 1999, during a time when the internet had yet to take over the media, and newspapers are still the primary source for news. After the teenage daughter of a high-powered Washington, DC judge is killed in an inner-city alley, the murder seems pretty open and shut after three black boys are arrested for the slaying. Of course they did it, right? But a head-strong DC Metro reporter smells something fishy and suspects a link between this case and a number of unsolved murders of minority women in the neighborhood.
It was a refreshing change to read about a newspaper reporter doing the legwork and using his skills to solve the crime, instead of your usual private dick or police officer. The book is the debut novel of Neely Tucker, who is himself a Washington DC area reporter, who uses his knowledge to lend a real authenticity to the day to day work of the newsmen in the book. I also love reading books set in DC, as I lived there while going to college. This one was especially enjoyable as I lived in the Park View area that is prevalent in the novel.
There are two things that make this book worth reading. The first: Tucker has a great knack for writing dialogue that sounds the way that real people talk. It flows, feels totally authentic, but has a little extra flair. His writing style reminds me the most of Richard Price, with a little hint of George Pelecanos, two of my favorites. The second, and probably the most impressive thing about the book is the main character, Sullivan "Sully" Carter. I got a kick out of reading about him and he definitely deserves a series. Sully was blown up when reporting on the war in Bosnia (with the scars and limp to prove it), lost his true love there, drives a Ducati sports bike he didn't exactly acquire on the straight, would prefer to drink bourbon for every meal of the day, has contacts all over the city from city prosecutors to urban gang lords, and has a dogged determination in his work.
"You never stopped moving. That was the thing. You just kept pushing, driving, asking, sticking your nose in people's faces, taking the shit, the insults, fighting back the depression and the sense of hopelessness and then, out of the void, sometimes somebody told you something."
But the major problem with this novel is the plotting. Just like the bland, uninspired title, the plot itself is nothing special and seems no different than any other run of the mill modern mysteries. The pacing is uneven and there are also too many coincidences and convenient plot points set to push the story forward. Sully is conveniently the only person in the story who believes that there is more than meets the eye in the murder, even though it seems pretty obvious. This prevented me from enjoying the book fully, but I believe with Tucker's talent for dialogue and armed with a great character like Sully, he could turn out some great work in the future if teamed up with a solid story.
June 14, 2014
This is a hard hitting, well written start to a new crime series. Investigative reporter Sully, is battle scared in body and soul, he is the stereotypical type of the old school journalists, who believed that getting the right story is all that matters. He does not smoke incessantly, but boy does he drink. The crime takes place in the underbelly of Washington D.C., not in the part that the tourists see, not the area around the capitol building. This is only a few blocks away but it is in an area where white is not the prevalent color, where crack is king and prostitutes are available for little money.
The investigation starts here after a young, white girl is killed. That it is a judges daughter, maybe the next supreme court appointee, makes this a very hot case. Sully, does not look for easy answers, he is in your face and questioning whomever he needs to, often in the past this has caused him problems. Of course when rocks are overturned often snakes slither out and so it goes......
I loved this character, one can tell that the author has made good use of his background in writing this novel. The atmosphere is pervasive, the writing amazing. From the beginning I knew I was in good hands with this author and that this is his first novel is unbelievable. So glad this will be a series and can't wait for the next one.
ARC from publisher and NetGalley.
The investigation starts here after a young, white girl is killed. That it is a judges daughter, maybe the next supreme court appointee, makes this a very hot case. Sully, does not look for easy answers, he is in your face and questioning whomever he needs to, often in the past this has caused him problems. Of course when rocks are overturned often snakes slither out and so it goes......
I loved this character, one can tell that the author has made good use of his background in writing this novel. The atmosphere is pervasive, the writing amazing. From the beginning I knew I was in good hands with this author and that this is his first novel is unbelievable. So glad this will be a series and can't wait for the next one.
ARC from publisher and NetGalley.
February 22, 2016
Now THAT'S how you write crime fiction with a twist.
I love how every now and then a novel comes along the ups the game of everything around it, I especially love it when that comes from new talent. The Ways of the Dead is a cut above your average crime thriller, oh yes indeed.
So, what's it about basically?
The body of the teenage daughter of a powerful Federal judge is discovered in a dumpster in a bad neighbourhood of Washington, DC. It is murder, and the local police immediately arrest the three nearest black kids, bad boys from a notorious gang.
Sully Carter, a veteran war correspondent with emotional scars far worse than the ones on his body, suspects that there's more to the case than the police would have the public know.
With the nation clamouring for a conviction, and the bereaved judge due for a court nomination, Sully pursues his own line of enquiry, in spite of some very dangerous people telling him to shut it down.
My Review:
Most crime thrillers are written from either a police perspective or the killer's perspective, not so with this fantastic novel. The refreshing change comes in the form of Sully Carter, a Journalist with a nose for a story out of the ordinary and the tenacity to hunt it down until he gets answers.
Set in a bad area of Washington DC the scene is set early when the body of a white Federal Judge is found in an alleyway, a media frenzy begins and soon three young black men are in custody with all eyes and hearts pinning the murder on these three. Wrong time, wrong place? Sully wants to know what the real story is, something is not sitting right in it all for him.
He has some surprising tactics for obtaining information that other Journalists are not getting close to, including an interesting relationship with one of the crime lords that oversees this particular area of Washington DC. Hey, they even hang out together. Sully wants to use this man's local knowledge and ears and eyes on the ground to find some answers.
What he uncovers is nothing less than breathtaking, this book twists and turns as the truths gradually reveal. Sully is looking for connections to other crimes, he's looking under every rock and crevice (literally). He ignores warnings that he's messing on dangerous political and powerful ground. He doesn't care, he's a bit maverick is our Sully. He's an exceptional character, I liked him, a whole lot. I like the way he operates.
Just when I shouted "I knew it!" once I thought I had this novel all worked out, I was twisted and tossed around once more as the story revealed more secrets and lies. The final outcome left me more speechless than anything, I was like "huh?, how come I did not work that out, I am really good at working things out!" But it's clever writing.
Neely Tucker has a way of making the characters in this novel so raw, real and tangible, I could practically smell the sweat on Sully as he frantically and deliberately puts himself in situations many would not in the search for answers and the truth.
This is a refreshing change to the standard crime novel. The plot is brilliant, the characters unique, the twists and turns keep you interested and on your toes right up to the last word in the book. I am keen to see more from author Neely Tucker and hope he might revive Sully in further novels in future.
The truth is out there, you just have to read and see. Top notch crime writing, just read it. Loved it. Classy fiction, a cut above the average.
I received a copy of this novel thanks to the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, my thanks for the opportunity.
I love how every now and then a novel comes along the ups the game of everything around it, I especially love it when that comes from new talent. The Ways of the Dead is a cut above your average crime thriller, oh yes indeed.
So, what's it about basically?
The body of the teenage daughter of a powerful Federal judge is discovered in a dumpster in a bad neighbourhood of Washington, DC. It is murder, and the local police immediately arrest the three nearest black kids, bad boys from a notorious gang.
Sully Carter, a veteran war correspondent with emotional scars far worse than the ones on his body, suspects that there's more to the case than the police would have the public know.
With the nation clamouring for a conviction, and the bereaved judge due for a court nomination, Sully pursues his own line of enquiry, in spite of some very dangerous people telling him to shut it down.
My Review:
Most crime thrillers are written from either a police perspective or the killer's perspective, not so with this fantastic novel. The refreshing change comes in the form of Sully Carter, a Journalist with a nose for a story out of the ordinary and the tenacity to hunt it down until he gets answers.
Set in a bad area of Washington DC the scene is set early when the body of a white Federal Judge is found in an alleyway, a media frenzy begins and soon three young black men are in custody with all eyes and hearts pinning the murder on these three. Wrong time, wrong place? Sully wants to know what the real story is, something is not sitting right in it all for him.
He has some surprising tactics for obtaining information that other Journalists are not getting close to, including an interesting relationship with one of the crime lords that oversees this particular area of Washington DC. Hey, they even hang out together. Sully wants to use this man's local knowledge and ears and eyes on the ground to find some answers.
What he uncovers is nothing less than breathtaking, this book twists and turns as the truths gradually reveal. Sully is looking for connections to other crimes, he's looking under every rock and crevice (literally). He ignores warnings that he's messing on dangerous political and powerful ground. He doesn't care, he's a bit maverick is our Sully. He's an exceptional character, I liked him, a whole lot. I like the way he operates.
Just when I shouted "I knew it!" once I thought I had this novel all worked out, I was twisted and tossed around once more as the story revealed more secrets and lies. The final outcome left me more speechless than anything, I was like "huh?, how come I did not work that out, I am really good at working things out!" But it's clever writing.
Neely Tucker has a way of making the characters in this novel so raw, real and tangible, I could practically smell the sweat on Sully as he frantically and deliberately puts himself in situations many would not in the search for answers and the truth.
This is a refreshing change to the standard crime novel. The plot is brilliant, the characters unique, the twists and turns keep you interested and on your toes right up to the last word in the book. I am keen to see more from author Neely Tucker and hope he might revive Sully in further novels in future.
The truth is out there, you just have to read and see. Top notch crime writing, just read it. Loved it. Classy fiction, a cut above the average.
I received a copy of this novel thanks to the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, my thanks for the opportunity.
August 1, 2014
I had a sneaky eye on this one from the minute it arrived into the bookstore where I work, due to the temptation of a cover recommendation from Michael Connelly, and a Washington setting promising echoes of George Pelecanos. To be honest, I could not have been any more delighted with this book, as it not only delivered in spades from this starting point, but also imbued all the social critique and wry humour of The Wire too. I know. You’re intrigued now too aren’t you?
I will immediately put my hands up and confess that I do usually do a slight bodyswerve when reporters carry the weight of a crime book. With a few exceptions, I sometimes find that the plot overshadows the characterisation of such protagonists, and they merely become a conduit for whatever browbeating issue/murder investigation ensues. Not this one. Oh no. What Tucker delivers is not only an enthralling murder investigation (based on the real life case of the 1990’s Princeton Place murders), but a plot that is strengthened and illuminated by two of the best characters I have read for some time- reporter Sully Carter and his cohort, the streetwise gangster Sly Hastings, whose intimate knowledge and personal involvement with the seedy underbelly of Washington provides a regular source of information for Sully. Sully is a weary, cynical, PTSD suffering, former war reporter, physically and mentally scarred by his experiences. A little too keen on the drink, but a harbinger of not only a strong moral core, but a tenacity for justice and truth that shines through in his mercurial personality. I loved his character, whether dealing sensitively with bereaved families, facing up to the arrogant David Reese (father of the initial murder victim) who has tried to sink Sully’s career before, and his pure obstinancy when berated and sidelined by those intent on scuppering his investigation. Equally, Sly is a gem of a character, sassy, bursting with street smarts and possessed of an almost charming disposition that belies the violence he is so capable of meting out, and the fear he instils in others. Together, their exchanges are pure gold with Sully attempting to squeeze information out of Sly, and Sly pretty much only volunteering what suits him, but equally, very capable of a few surprises…
Despite the very character driven nature of the book, not only with Sully and Sly, but with the police officers, Sully’s work colleagues, local residents and the associates and families of the victims, the plot stands solidly throughout. Not only does it bring into focus the political power and wrangling inherent in Washington, but perhaps more ardently, puts into the spotlight the undercurrents of racial tension, urban crime and poverty that underscore the nation’s capital. In his writing, Neely Tucker gives a voice to the dispossessed and the ignored, especially in relation to his character’s linking of a series of murders where the victims cannot hope for the same pursuance of justice afforded to the likes of Sarah Reese, as the daughter of an influential figure. Through Sully Carter these voices resonate loudly in the book and it is gratifying to see that one man embodies the dogged determination to bring their killer to justice.
So with such a glowing review, there is little for me to add, except, you should buy this book. Free up some quality reading time, get yourself comfortable and prepare to be gripped and enthralled in equal measure. A great debut and I think Michael Connelly succinctly sums it up: “If this is Tucker’s first novel, I can’t wait for what’s coming next.”
I will immediately put my hands up and confess that I do usually do a slight bodyswerve when reporters carry the weight of a crime book. With a few exceptions, I sometimes find that the plot overshadows the characterisation of such protagonists, and they merely become a conduit for whatever browbeating issue/murder investigation ensues. Not this one. Oh no. What Tucker delivers is not only an enthralling murder investigation (based on the real life case of the 1990’s Princeton Place murders), but a plot that is strengthened and illuminated by two of the best characters I have read for some time- reporter Sully Carter and his cohort, the streetwise gangster Sly Hastings, whose intimate knowledge and personal involvement with the seedy underbelly of Washington provides a regular source of information for Sully. Sully is a weary, cynical, PTSD suffering, former war reporter, physically and mentally scarred by his experiences. A little too keen on the drink, but a harbinger of not only a strong moral core, but a tenacity for justice and truth that shines through in his mercurial personality. I loved his character, whether dealing sensitively with bereaved families, facing up to the arrogant David Reese (father of the initial murder victim) who has tried to sink Sully’s career before, and his pure obstinancy when berated and sidelined by those intent on scuppering his investigation. Equally, Sly is a gem of a character, sassy, bursting with street smarts and possessed of an almost charming disposition that belies the violence he is so capable of meting out, and the fear he instils in others. Together, their exchanges are pure gold with Sully attempting to squeeze information out of Sly, and Sly pretty much only volunteering what suits him, but equally, very capable of a few surprises…
Despite the very character driven nature of the book, not only with Sully and Sly, but with the police officers, Sully’s work colleagues, local residents and the associates and families of the victims, the plot stands solidly throughout. Not only does it bring into focus the political power and wrangling inherent in Washington, but perhaps more ardently, puts into the spotlight the undercurrents of racial tension, urban crime and poverty that underscore the nation’s capital. In his writing, Neely Tucker gives a voice to the dispossessed and the ignored, especially in relation to his character’s linking of a series of murders where the victims cannot hope for the same pursuance of justice afforded to the likes of Sarah Reese, as the daughter of an influential figure. Through Sully Carter these voices resonate loudly in the book and it is gratifying to see that one man embodies the dogged determination to bring their killer to justice.
So with such a glowing review, there is little for me to add, except, you should buy this book. Free up some quality reading time, get yourself comfortable and prepare to be gripped and enthralled in equal measure. A great debut and I think Michael Connelly succinctly sums it up: “If this is Tucker’s first novel, I can’t wait for what’s coming next.”
January 5, 2017
Sully Carter is a former war correspondent who now works for the local paper in Washington DC. He carries scars, both physical and emotional, from his work in a war ravaged Bosnia and he makes no bones about his use of alcohol to get through his days. He has few personal attachments, and the ones he has are starting to fray at the edges, and even fewer personal interests. What he does have, however, is a strong penchant for the truth. When the daughter of a prominent judge is murdered and the developing theories and news stories don't add up, Sully's instincts kick in as he leads the reader on a news trail that back tracks and twists in on itself more than once.
I really, really enjoyed this book. It has a sympathetic male protagonist who is both flawed and head strong but not so much that it would keep you from rooting for him (or wanting to befriend him). The look into the world of newspaper journalism was interesting and seeing as how the book is set in the late 1990s despite being published in 2014 makes the relevancy of print news more believable. The story was well paced and suspenseful. The last third or so was especially so because just when I thought the story was going to zig it zagged. And then it did it again! I'm definitely signing up for more breaking news with Sully Carter.
I really, really enjoyed this book. It has a sympathetic male protagonist who is both flawed and head strong but not so much that it would keep you from rooting for him (or wanting to befriend him). The look into the world of newspaper journalism was interesting and seeing as how the book is set in the late 1990s despite being published in 2014 makes the relevancy of print news more believable. The story was well paced and suspenseful. The last third or so was especially so because just when I thought the story was going to zig it zagged. And then it did it again! I'm definitely signing up for more breaking news with Sully Carter.
May 30, 2021
The Ways of the Dead introduces Washington, DC newspaper reporter Sully Carter. Sully is battle-scarred – literally – both physically and emotionally from his war reporting in Bosnia. He has nightmares – so he sleeps little - also anger management issues and problems with authority – starting with his boss. He carries a gun, “dates” a younger woman, rides a motorcycle and drinks beer for breakfast with his eggs – it’s bourbon pretty much the rest of the day – so our hero is hung over a lot.
After a federal judge’s teenage daughter is murdered in a questionable part of town, Sully begins to investigate. (Oh by the way, Sully and the judge – an authority figure - have a history.) Sully is the perfect man for this job because DC law enforcement – besides the select few who are at best over-worked – consists of a bunch of dolts and morons – and will never figure out what Sully suspects – there’s a serial killer loose in DC.
Sully has pieced together this complex puzzle by assembling a “murder map” of DC, talking to the sister of one of the victims – something the police never thought of doing - and following the direction/lead of a local crime boss – the latter consistently several steps ahead of Sully, the police and federal authorities.
Putting aside the choice of protagonist, i.e. in this day and age – or even 15 years ago – this story takes place in late 1999 - does a newspaper reporter have the wherewithal to solve a crime let alone track a serial killer? – this is fiction after all so I made that leap. Ironically – considering the author’s background - the weak point of this novel for this reader is Sully. The “troubled tough guy/no one knows the trouble I’ve seen” characterization so heavy-handed/ham fisted, it comes across as caricature. I found his “source”, crime boss Sly Hastings, much more intriguing - an anti-hero hero.
Bottom line – mechanically this debut is sound, i.e. the foundation is set with a cast of characters for a series – which I understand is already in the works. There’s an engaging story-line here to keep one reading – The “case” loosely based on the mid-1990’s DC Princeton Place murders. What will prove interesting is where future plot-lines will come from and whether Sully’s “development” will become a little more credible as he deals with his sizeable/over the top personal baggage.
After a federal judge’s teenage daughter is murdered in a questionable part of town, Sully begins to investigate. (Oh by the way, Sully and the judge – an authority figure - have a history.) Sully is the perfect man for this job because DC law enforcement – besides the select few who are at best over-worked – consists of a bunch of dolts and morons – and will never figure out what Sully suspects – there’s a serial killer loose in DC.
Sully has pieced together this complex puzzle by assembling a “murder map” of DC, talking to the sister of one of the victims – something the police never thought of doing - and following the direction/lead of a local crime boss – the latter consistently several steps ahead of Sully, the police and federal authorities.
Putting aside the choice of protagonist, i.e. in this day and age – or even 15 years ago – this story takes place in late 1999 - does a newspaper reporter have the wherewithal to solve a crime let alone track a serial killer? – this is fiction after all so I made that leap. Ironically – considering the author’s background - the weak point of this novel for this reader is Sully. The “troubled tough guy/no one knows the trouble I’ve seen” characterization so heavy-handed/ham fisted, it comes across as caricature. I found his “source”, crime boss Sly Hastings, much more intriguing - an anti-hero hero.
Bottom line – mechanically this debut is sound, i.e. the foundation is set with a cast of characters for a series – which I understand is already in the works. There’s an engaging story-line here to keep one reading – The “case” loosely based on the mid-1990’s DC Princeton Place murders. What will prove interesting is where future plot-lines will come from and whether Sully’s “development” will become a little more credible as he deals with his sizeable/over the top personal baggage.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2014
It's very rare that I give five stars to a mystery, but this one outshines others in every way. The writing is superb, the plot line had me riveted and guessing until the end, and the characterizations are outstanding.
Sully is a Washington, D.C. journalist. He has been severely injured by explosives during his time reporting in Bosnia and Croatia. He walks with a limp, has scars on his face and reminisces about his lover, Nadia, who died while he was overseas. He has a bad alcohol problem and starts drinking early in the morning and continues to keep his blood alcohol level high throughout the day and evening.
The novel starts out with the murder of Sarah Reese, the daughter of the chief judge of the U.S. District Court. Sarah was shopping in a small neighborhood store in a bad section of D.C. after her dance lessons. Three black kids harassed her and she left through the back door of the store to get away from them. She was killed outside, her throat slit. The police are looking for the three black teen-agers but Sully doesn't think this is the right track. He believes that they are not the murderers. Is the murder a random event, does it have something to do with her father's position? Or is it part of a pattern?
Sully goes to Sly Hastings, a neighborhood tough guy who has his ear to the ground and knows what's happening in the hood. Sly helps Sully find out the truth about what transpired. It does not take long for Sully to realize that several women have disappeared or been killed in a very small radius. Could there be a serial killer on the loose?
The novel has many twists and turns and the characters are fleshed out well. Tucker is a wonderful writer and this reads like literary fiction and is a page-turner as well. I ordered his first book because I loved this one so much. I look forward to his future writings. I'll be sure to read them.
Sully is a Washington, D.C. journalist. He has been severely injured by explosives during his time reporting in Bosnia and Croatia. He walks with a limp, has scars on his face and reminisces about his lover, Nadia, who died while he was overseas. He has a bad alcohol problem and starts drinking early in the morning and continues to keep his blood alcohol level high throughout the day and evening.
The novel starts out with the murder of Sarah Reese, the daughter of the chief judge of the U.S. District Court. Sarah was shopping in a small neighborhood store in a bad section of D.C. after her dance lessons. Three black kids harassed her and she left through the back door of the store to get away from them. She was killed outside, her throat slit. The police are looking for the three black teen-agers but Sully doesn't think this is the right track. He believes that they are not the murderers. Is the murder a random event, does it have something to do with her father's position? Or is it part of a pattern?
Sully goes to Sly Hastings, a neighborhood tough guy who has his ear to the ground and knows what's happening in the hood. Sly helps Sully find out the truth about what transpired. It does not take long for Sully to realize that several women have disappeared or been killed in a very small radius. Could there be a serial killer on the loose?
The novel has many twists and turns and the characters are fleshed out well. Tucker is a wonderful writer and this reads like literary fiction and is a page-turner as well. I ordered his first book because I loved this one so much. I look forward to his future writings. I'll be sure to read them.
June 28, 2014
I should be asleep. Friday night tonight, the casino will be busy and I have to be clocked in by 2200. After wrestling with this book, and losing hours I could have been resting, I had to get up and write this review.
This is an Amazing (with a capitol A) book. A mystery that is worked upon and chewed upon by a reporter not a law enforcement officer. When a girl is murdered in a seedy D.C. neighborhood a reporter begins to see connections to girls missing in the past. And now the hunt is on.
At first bite this book seemed like a very heavy and complex dish. One that I felt might be a bit too heavy. As I continued on into the story the spices and aromas became more complex and richer. Drawing me in to take yet another bite, and another, until like a man possessed I could not put my fork down. Upon completion of this short book (at only 288 pages this one comes out much shorter than some) I felt as if I had dined on the finest five course meal.
There really is a lot to offer here. The author is to be commended for doing a fantastic job of taking the reader along every twist and turn in this richly complex novel. And often the reader will find himself getting thrown off the track and not even know it until the author smacks him in the head with another twist. Great book for anyone who enjoys a good mystery.
This is an Amazing (with a capitol A) book. A mystery that is worked upon and chewed upon by a reporter not a law enforcement officer. When a girl is murdered in a seedy D.C. neighborhood a reporter begins to see connections to girls missing in the past. And now the hunt is on.
At first bite this book seemed like a very heavy and complex dish. One that I felt might be a bit too heavy. As I continued on into the story the spices and aromas became more complex and richer. Drawing me in to take yet another bite, and another, until like a man possessed I could not put my fork down. Upon completion of this short book (at only 288 pages this one comes out much shorter than some) I felt as if I had dined on the finest five course meal.
There really is a lot to offer here. The author is to be commended for doing a fantastic job of taking the reader along every twist and turn in this richly complex novel. And often the reader will find himself getting thrown off the track and not even know it until the author smacks him in the head with another twist. Great book for anyone who enjoys a good mystery.
September 14, 2016
Sully Carter is a newspaper reporter with a nose for the news. He also has a problem with alcohol and anger management after returning to Washington, D.C. after being stationed in Bosnia. He has seen much more than anyone could imagine.
Sarah Reese is the teen-aged daughter of a D.C. judge. Her body is found behind a convenience store. Three young black men are arrested, although Sully has it on good authority that these kids were set up.
When Sully investigates, he finds that there have been other young women found murdered in the same general area. Their cases were barely looked at.
And someone doesn't want the truth printed.
This is a very well written mystery that takes the reader from the alleys and streets to the reporter's desk. Violence and corruption are the co-stars in this book. As a journalistic reporter, Sully must pick apart what he thinks and what he knows to get to the real story... and it just might kill him.
From Book Blurb: Inspired by the real-life 1990s Princeton Place murders and set in the last glory days of the American newspaper, The Ways of the Dead is a wickedly entertaining story of race, crime, the law, and the power of the media.
Many thanks to the author and Goodreads Giveaways for an ARC.
Sarah Reese is the teen-aged daughter of a D.C. judge. Her body is found behind a convenience store. Three young black men are arrested, although Sully has it on good authority that these kids were set up.
When Sully investigates, he finds that there have been other young women found murdered in the same general area. Their cases were barely looked at.
And someone doesn't want the truth printed.
This is a very well written mystery that takes the reader from the alleys and streets to the reporter's desk. Violence and corruption are the co-stars in this book. As a journalistic reporter, Sully must pick apart what he thinks and what he knows to get to the real story... and it just might kill him.
From Book Blurb: Inspired by the real-life 1990s Princeton Place murders and set in the last glory days of the American newspaper, The Ways of the Dead is a wickedly entertaining story of race, crime, the law, and the power of the media.
Many thanks to the author and Goodreads Giveaways for an ARC.
July 3, 2016
Brilliantly plotted, with a unique sense of place. It probably deserves a 4/5 for the way it is crafted and the way it pulls the reader in and guides her thinking; however, I didn't like the characters and did not really care what happened to them.
I recognized the author's byline from the Post when I saw a great review for the sequel. Perhaps I will lend this to my father and see if he can handle the dark tone.
I recognized the author's byline from the Post when I saw a great review for the sequel. Perhaps I will lend this to my father and see if he can handle the dark tone.
June 26, 2018
Another meh book. This book was super boring, very political and it was a super weird dynamic to see it told from a journalists point of view rather than a Police officer/detective.
The ending was pretty anti-climactic and nothing to what I was expecting. The book felt pretty rushed, it had a beginning, a plot that didn't quite fit and then an extremely confusing ending in which made you say WTF?
This was a book with I wish to say potential but it was just a hot mess. I live for crime thrillers and this one was one of the worst books in any genre that I have ever read.
The ending was pretty anti-climactic and nothing to what I was expecting. The book felt pretty rushed, it had a beginning, a plot that didn't quite fit and then an extremely confusing ending in which made you say WTF?
This was a book with I wish to say potential but it was just a hot mess. I live for crime thrillers and this one was one of the worst books in any genre that I have ever read.
September 3, 2016
http://www.mybookishways.com/2014/06/...
15 year old Sarah Reese is dead in D.C., found in a dumpster with her throat slashed, and three young men are the suspects. A white girl murdered with three black suspects will get attention enough, but she also happens to be the daughter of a prominent D.C. judge, David Reese, and speculation is all over the place. Was it random, a crime of opportunity, or was it a message for David Reese? These are all questions that Sully Carter, former war reporter, now news reporter, is determined to answer.
So, Sully asks questions, a lot of them, and in the process starts to remember other girls that have gone missing or were killed in the same area. He begins to connect the dots, literally, in fact, using a pinboard at the newsroom to track deaths in the area, and too many girls are dead, or have gone missing, in such a small area, for it to be a coincidence. But, of course, what could a prominent judge’s daughter have to do with a prostitute, or a dancer from the wrong side of the tracks. More than you might think, actually. A trail of corruption and scandal soon emerges, and Sully is determined to see justice done for all of these girls, not just for Sarah Reese. If he can do that with his reputation, and job, intact, even better.
Neely Tucker is a former war correspondent and journalist, and he puts his vast knowledge (seriously, read his bio-it’s fascinating) of the profession to great use in this superb debut. Sully is injured not only physically (he carries a prominent limp and visible scars), but also in his heart, still mourning the death of Nadia, a woman he’d fallen in love with overseas. He’s been carrying on a relationship with a woman for about a year, and she cares about Sully, but even she doesn’t like competing with a ghost. Sully’s melancholy is palpable, and he’s still carrying the aftershocks of his overseas work. He tends to drown his dark memories in a bottle, but he’s very good at what he does, and he’s shocked at the number of disappearances and killings of women that have gone ignored until the daughter of a prominent man (who he has a bit of dark history with), is found dead.
This Clinton era thriller packs plenty of punch: the pace is brisk, the dialogue is very smart, and the author never insults his reader’s intelligence in the process of unfolding the labyrinthine plot. It’s obvious that he knows what readers look for in good suspense, and he’s certainly got a handle on the breakneck speed at which the news business can make or break a person. I’ve always been fascinated with the lives and work of investigative journalists, and this book definitely satisfies that curiosity, to very entertaining effect. Pick up this book for the murder mystery, and stay for the excellent portrayal of a very specific time and place with an emphasis on the racial and class divide, a broken, rough-edged hero that’s well worth rooting for, and a helluva ending. I’m definitely looking forward to more from this author-his next book can’t come soon enough!
15 year old Sarah Reese is dead in D.C., found in a dumpster with her throat slashed, and three young men are the suspects. A white girl murdered with three black suspects will get attention enough, but she also happens to be the daughter of a prominent D.C. judge, David Reese, and speculation is all over the place. Was it random, a crime of opportunity, or was it a message for David Reese? These are all questions that Sully Carter, former war reporter, now news reporter, is determined to answer.
So, Sully asks questions, a lot of them, and in the process starts to remember other girls that have gone missing or were killed in the same area. He begins to connect the dots, literally, in fact, using a pinboard at the newsroom to track deaths in the area, and too many girls are dead, or have gone missing, in such a small area, for it to be a coincidence. But, of course, what could a prominent judge’s daughter have to do with a prostitute, or a dancer from the wrong side of the tracks. More than you might think, actually. A trail of corruption and scandal soon emerges, and Sully is determined to see justice done for all of these girls, not just for Sarah Reese. If he can do that with his reputation, and job, intact, even better.
Neely Tucker is a former war correspondent and journalist, and he puts his vast knowledge (seriously, read his bio-it’s fascinating) of the profession to great use in this superb debut. Sully is injured not only physically (he carries a prominent limp and visible scars), but also in his heart, still mourning the death of Nadia, a woman he’d fallen in love with overseas. He’s been carrying on a relationship with a woman for about a year, and she cares about Sully, but even she doesn’t like competing with a ghost. Sully’s melancholy is palpable, and he’s still carrying the aftershocks of his overseas work. He tends to drown his dark memories in a bottle, but he’s very good at what he does, and he’s shocked at the number of disappearances and killings of women that have gone ignored until the daughter of a prominent man (who he has a bit of dark history with), is found dead.
This Clinton era thriller packs plenty of punch: the pace is brisk, the dialogue is very smart, and the author never insults his reader’s intelligence in the process of unfolding the labyrinthine plot. It’s obvious that he knows what readers look for in good suspense, and he’s certainly got a handle on the breakneck speed at which the news business can make or break a person. I’ve always been fascinated with the lives and work of investigative journalists, and this book definitely satisfies that curiosity, to very entertaining effect. Pick up this book for the murder mystery, and stay for the excellent portrayal of a very specific time and place with an emphasis on the racial and class divide, a broken, rough-edged hero that’s well worth rooting for, and a helluva ending. I’m definitely looking forward to more from this author-his next book can’t come soon enough!
June 25, 2015
A good mystery set in Washington D.C., featuring a reporter who probably has PTSD from coverage of war in Bosnia, where he was severely wounded, and turns mostly to alcohol to get through his days and nights. This was 3 and a half stars read for me.
June 21, 2022
D.C, in the Clinton era, and Sully Carter, a physically and psychically damaged war reporter is stateside, working the crime beat for his newspaper, unable to fully connect these days, back to drinking after a stint in rehab, and when the white 15 y.o daughter of the chief judge of the federal district court in DC (who is rumored to be a shoe-in for nomination to the Supreme Court should the Republicans be voted in at the next election) is killed in a lousy neighborhood, DC and the nation are shocked, and Sully begins to investigate. What he finds is a series of dead girls, brown and black, all in the same neighborhood. A bird's eye view into newspaper reporting, cop and detective beats, well-plotted, with a near-surprise of a twist at the end. Not sure how this book came into my world, but it was a quick and taut read, a well-done example of the genre. I'm actually going to read the other books in this series.
April 16, 2017
Author Neely Tucker is a staff writer for "The Washington Post," and was the paper’s D.C. Superior Court reporter when Darryl Donnell Turner was indicted for murders committed in the 1990’s in a two-block area along Princeton Place in Washington, D.C. The case stayed in his mind, and he decided to write a novel - this one - based on what happened.
The reporter in the novel, Sullivan “Sully” Carter, is, like the author, also a former war correspondent, but one who struggles with PTSD and alcoholism after traumatic experiences in Bosnia that left him scarred both physically and emotionally. Now he works a crime beat that he considers much safer, if discouraging at times:
"You never stopped moving. That was the thing. You just kept pushing, driving, asking, sticking your nose in people’s faces, taking the shit, the insults, fighting back the depression and the sense of hopelessness and then, out of the void, sometimes somebody told you something.”
When a wealthy and connected young white girl, Sarah Reese, gets killed in the blighted area in which she takes dance lessons, other reporters are convinced the murder of fifteen-year-old was related to her having been the daughter of the chief judge of the federal judge and putative next Supreme Court nominee. However, Sully isn’t so sure. It happened in the same small geographical area as recent crimes against some other women, who, however, were residents and thus much lower on the socioeconomic scale. But the police never found the fate of the other women are worth investigating. As one neighborhood denizen explains to Sully:
"‘That Hispanic girl, she got killed last year. [A black girl] went missing? I didn’t read nothing ‘bout that in the newspaper.’ He kept going, white girl gets it, lookit the TV cameras, white girl gets it, lookit the papers…”
To help him figure out what happened to the girls of Princeton Place, Sully joins forces with Sly Hastings, the informal “boss” or warlord of the street’s Park View neighborhood. Sly doesn’t like anything going on in his turf about which he doesn’t know or control, so he seems interested in helping Sully figure out who committed the crime(s). In any event he is the best source for intel on the street. Sully doesn’t fear guys like Sly - he “didn’t even have a machete.” In Sully’s experience, there is much worse in the world, or so he thinks.
Discussion: Tucker’s writing draws obvious comparisons to his fellow D.C. crime writer George Pelacanos. Tucker provides enough detail to make you appreciate his familiarity with the area, but the location details don’t dominate the story like they do in the Pelacanos books. The work of Pelacanos is also a bit more situated in the underside of D.C. life, whereas Tucker’s focus is on newspeople who cover that underside. Nevertheless, this book (dedicated to Elmore Leonard) has its share of noir elements and the dialogue is a good mix of insider jargon, cynical shorthand, and gritty realism.
Tucker has an interest in exposing the very interesting and stark contrast between the class and race divides in D.C., evident even in his telling description of the blatant differences between the federal courthouse and the local bench. Most tourists are unfamiliar with the large part of D.C. that is not in the immediate area of the gleaming white monuments, pink cherry blossoms, and chichi offices of law firms and lobbyists of the downtown area. The city makes a concerted effort to keep hidden the reality of the gangs, poverty and crack houses of certain areas like the 4th, 7th, and 8th Districts. (An anonymous American official in Kenya was quoted in the papers claiming that some towns in Kenya are safer than some neighborhoods in Anacostia in D.C.).
In any event, the power, money, and press attention in the city tends to concentrate on the federal - rather than local areas, and many crimes - especially when the victims are poor and black, just get ignored. (Tucker reported that at the time of the Princeton Place crimes - from 1984 to 1994, at least 1,800 people ages 15 to 44 died in the city under circumstances that “were not established” . . .) Thus the situation encourages corruption, cynicism, prejudice, and despair.
He also has plenty to say, through his characters, about the way the D.C. police force is run. Neely goes into detail, explaining just why and how bad decision-making and poor administration have resulted in “two out of three killers in the city . . . literally getting away with murder….”
Evaluation: Good dialogue, pacing, and an interesting plot with unexpected twists allow astute socioeconomic commentary to slip seamlessly into the narrative. Fans of hard-boiled crime fiction, especially those who like D.C. settings, will welcome the turn of this talented reporter to the genre. In spite of some of the depressing themes of the book, you come away feeling like you had a good read.
The reporter in the novel, Sullivan “Sully” Carter, is, like the author, also a former war correspondent, but one who struggles with PTSD and alcoholism after traumatic experiences in Bosnia that left him scarred both physically and emotionally. Now he works a crime beat that he considers much safer, if discouraging at times:
"You never stopped moving. That was the thing. You just kept pushing, driving, asking, sticking your nose in people’s faces, taking the shit, the insults, fighting back the depression and the sense of hopelessness and then, out of the void, sometimes somebody told you something.”
When a wealthy and connected young white girl, Sarah Reese, gets killed in the blighted area in which she takes dance lessons, other reporters are convinced the murder of fifteen-year-old was related to her having been the daughter of the chief judge of the federal judge and putative next Supreme Court nominee. However, Sully isn’t so sure. It happened in the same small geographical area as recent crimes against some other women, who, however, were residents and thus much lower on the socioeconomic scale. But the police never found the fate of the other women are worth investigating. As one neighborhood denizen explains to Sully:
"‘That Hispanic girl, she got killed last year. [A black girl] went missing? I didn’t read nothing ‘bout that in the newspaper.’ He kept going, white girl gets it, lookit the TV cameras, white girl gets it, lookit the papers…”
To help him figure out what happened to the girls of Princeton Place, Sully joins forces with Sly Hastings, the informal “boss” or warlord of the street’s Park View neighborhood. Sly doesn’t like anything going on in his turf about which he doesn’t know or control, so he seems interested in helping Sully figure out who committed the crime(s). In any event he is the best source for intel on the street. Sully doesn’t fear guys like Sly - he “didn’t even have a machete.” In Sully’s experience, there is much worse in the world, or so he thinks.
Discussion: Tucker’s writing draws obvious comparisons to his fellow D.C. crime writer George Pelacanos. Tucker provides enough detail to make you appreciate his familiarity with the area, but the location details don’t dominate the story like they do in the Pelacanos books. The work of Pelacanos is also a bit more situated in the underside of D.C. life, whereas Tucker’s focus is on newspeople who cover that underside. Nevertheless, this book (dedicated to Elmore Leonard) has its share of noir elements and the dialogue is a good mix of insider jargon, cynical shorthand, and gritty realism.
Tucker has an interest in exposing the very interesting and stark contrast between the class and race divides in D.C., evident even in his telling description of the blatant differences between the federal courthouse and the local bench. Most tourists are unfamiliar with the large part of D.C. that is not in the immediate area of the gleaming white monuments, pink cherry blossoms, and chichi offices of law firms and lobbyists of the downtown area. The city makes a concerted effort to keep hidden the reality of the gangs, poverty and crack houses of certain areas like the 4th, 7th, and 8th Districts. (An anonymous American official in Kenya was quoted in the papers claiming that some towns in Kenya are safer than some neighborhoods in Anacostia in D.C.).
In any event, the power, money, and press attention in the city tends to concentrate on the federal - rather than local areas, and many crimes - especially when the victims are poor and black, just get ignored. (Tucker reported that at the time of the Princeton Place crimes - from 1984 to 1994, at least 1,800 people ages 15 to 44 died in the city under circumstances that “were not established” . . .) Thus the situation encourages corruption, cynicism, prejudice, and despair.
He also has plenty to say, through his characters, about the way the D.C. police force is run. Neely goes into detail, explaining just why and how bad decision-making and poor administration have resulted in “two out of three killers in the city . . . literally getting away with murder….”
Evaluation: Good dialogue, pacing, and an interesting plot with unexpected twists allow astute socioeconomic commentary to slip seamlessly into the narrative. Fans of hard-boiled crime fiction, especially those who like D.C. settings, will welcome the turn of this talented reporter to the genre. In spite of some of the depressing themes of the book, you come away feeling like you had a good read.
September 13, 2014
Back in the day, when someone asked me if I was a journalist, I'd typically respond,
"A Journalist? Hell no, I work in television."
Well, it's writing like Neely Tucker's that impressed me then and impresses me now. I put the book down when I was about half-way through and thought, "Man, this is what my book wants to be when it grows up." I'm not putting down "Courier," but Sully, the anti-hero in "The Ways of the Dead" rides a Ducati! I mean, the son of a bitch even has a better bike than I do!
This is a flat-out great book. It's a classic noir with a beaten-up, scarred, drunken hero in the beaten-down, scarred, and broken city of Washington DC back in the 90s when you'd have thought there was a new murder on every edition of the Washington Post. I don't mean every day's paper, but one for the Suburban, the Metro, the Sports Update, and even the Bulldog. (that's the next-day edition that comes out at 11pm the night before. I used to be sent to buy a couple of copies from an old guy who stood in front of the Mayflower Hotel. He only charged a quarter but I always paid 50 cents because it was cold out there.)
Tucker knows this rat-infested world of peeling paint and front porch steps covered with green fake grass. Sully moves (on that damn Ducati) through the city from the mahogany offices of the white and powerful to the dingy crack houses way up in Northeast. The descriptions are dead-on, the dialog is pitch-perfect, and the picture of the Washington DC that real people really live in is as accurate as the pictures on television are false.
Sully Sullivan, a reporter of course, has more than a passing resemblance to the Continental Op or Sam Spade--a man alone, moving through a dark and evil world, and trying to maintain his personal set of values. A murder that everyone else solves through the easy answer of "it's gotta be young black street punks," Sully sees as something deeper and far worse. He follows that trail through the mud and rats of abandoned basements in Petworth and past the arrogant attitudes of the Ivy League editors who run the newspaper. In the end...
Well, you've got to buy it and see for yourself. It's a great book with the sort of writing that slips between knocking you back with grand literary language and pissing you off with off-pitch renditions of street talk. It just slides down easy; you don't even notice how good it is until you put the book down and then it's just a deeply satisfied feeling--like an excellent dinner in a local diner.
I still hate him for the Ducati though.
"A Journalist? Hell no, I work in television."
Well, it's writing like Neely Tucker's that impressed me then and impresses me now. I put the book down when I was about half-way through and thought, "Man, this is what my book wants to be when it grows up." I'm not putting down "Courier," but Sully, the anti-hero in "The Ways of the Dead" rides a Ducati! I mean, the son of a bitch even has a better bike than I do!
This is a flat-out great book. It's a classic noir with a beaten-up, scarred, drunken hero in the beaten-down, scarred, and broken city of Washington DC back in the 90s when you'd have thought there was a new murder on every edition of the Washington Post. I don't mean every day's paper, but one for the Suburban, the Metro, the Sports Update, and even the Bulldog. (that's the next-day edition that comes out at 11pm the night before. I used to be sent to buy a couple of copies from an old guy who stood in front of the Mayflower Hotel. He only charged a quarter but I always paid 50 cents because it was cold out there.)
Tucker knows this rat-infested world of peeling paint and front porch steps covered with green fake grass. Sully moves (on that damn Ducati) through the city from the mahogany offices of the white and powerful to the dingy crack houses way up in Northeast. The descriptions are dead-on, the dialog is pitch-perfect, and the picture of the Washington DC that real people really live in is as accurate as the pictures on television are false.
Sully Sullivan, a reporter of course, has more than a passing resemblance to the Continental Op or Sam Spade--a man alone, moving through a dark and evil world, and trying to maintain his personal set of values. A murder that everyone else solves through the easy answer of "it's gotta be young black street punks," Sully sees as something deeper and far worse. He follows that trail through the mud and rats of abandoned basements in Petworth and past the arrogant attitudes of the Ivy League editors who run the newspaper. In the end...
Well, you've got to buy it and see for yourself. It's a great book with the sort of writing that slips between knocking you back with grand literary language and pissing you off with off-pitch renditions of street talk. It just slides down easy; you don't even notice how good it is until you put the book down and then it's just a deeply satisfied feeling--like an excellent dinner in a local diner.
I still hate him for the Ducati though.
July 1, 2014
4.5/5 It's no secret that crime novels and thrillers are my favourite type of book to read. I'm always on the lookout for new authors in these genres . And it's always a good bet to see a blurb from one of my favourite authors. Such is the case with Neely Tucker's debut fiction novel The Ways of the Dead.
"If this is Tucker's first novel, I can't wait for what's coming next." - Michael Connelly
I love opening scenes that grab my attention right away and have me wondering what's next...
1999. Teenager Sarah Reese takes lessons from a celebrated dance instructor in Washington, DC. But the studio is on the wrong side of the tracks. And Sarah is in the wrong place at the wrong time.....
Sarah's case garners lots of attention as her father is the Chief Judge of the Federal Court. And it catches the eye of reporter Sullivan Carter as well. But Sully sees a bigger picture - there's more to this story. And no one seems to want him to uncover it....
The best protagonists for crime books are the walking wounded, the ones who buck authority, the ones who just can't let things be or let justice go unserved. Sully Carter fills the bill on every count. He's battling PTSD, alcohol and anger issues, his bosses and manages to step on toes everywhere he goes. He's also a confidant of the one of DC's crimelords. Flawed but driven.
Neely's dialogue is effortless and believable. The plotting was really, really good. Actual events in the 1990's were the inspiration behind the book. But Neely takes his novel in directions I didn't predict. (another big plus)
Neely's background is rich and wide and varied. His own experience as a journalist is evident in his writing. Neely's descriptions of time and place were vivid and I had strong mental images of the streets and back alleys of the neighbourhood.
The Ways of the Dead is gritty, grim and oh so good. I wholeheartedly agree with Michael Connelly's blurb - I too will be watching for the next book in this series.
"If this is Tucker's first novel, I can't wait for what's coming next." - Michael Connelly
I love opening scenes that grab my attention right away and have me wondering what's next...
1999. Teenager Sarah Reese takes lessons from a celebrated dance instructor in Washington, DC. But the studio is on the wrong side of the tracks. And Sarah is in the wrong place at the wrong time.....
Sarah's case garners lots of attention as her father is the Chief Judge of the Federal Court. And it catches the eye of reporter Sullivan Carter as well. But Sully sees a bigger picture - there's more to this story. And no one seems to want him to uncover it....
The best protagonists for crime books are the walking wounded, the ones who buck authority, the ones who just can't let things be or let justice go unserved. Sully Carter fills the bill on every count. He's battling PTSD, alcohol and anger issues, his bosses and manages to step on toes everywhere he goes. He's also a confidant of the one of DC's crimelords. Flawed but driven.
Neely's dialogue is effortless and believable. The plotting was really, really good. Actual events in the 1990's were the inspiration behind the book. But Neely takes his novel in directions I didn't predict. (another big plus)
Neely's background is rich and wide and varied. His own experience as a journalist is evident in his writing. Neely's descriptions of time and place were vivid and I had strong mental images of the streets and back alleys of the neighbourhood.
The Ways of the Dead is gritty, grim and oh so good. I wholeheartedly agree with Michael Connelly's blurb - I too will be watching for the next book in this series.
July 12, 2014
This book was great. If you think your modern devices may be giving you ADD, here is your cure.
The author, Neely Tucker, is a feature writer for the Washington Post. I have always liked his writing and found his stories compelling. When I heard he had written a novel loosely based on the Princeton Place serial murders (which he wrote about in the first place, 15 years ago) I got it as soon as I could.
I love books that bring out the non-government side of DC. The plot is there has been a string of missing women and murders. No one cares much until the daughter of a federal judge is killed. The protagonist is a journalist at "the paper". He is a complicated person but seems realistic for a print reporter in the late 90s.
I hope there will be more books with this character. It would be interesting to see both DC and journalism change as time goes on.
The only thing missing was a map to follow the action. Fortunately, Google is there to help.
If you like crime thriller type books and anything to do with DC, get this book.
The author, Neely Tucker, is a feature writer for the Washington Post. I have always liked his writing and found his stories compelling. When I heard he had written a novel loosely based on the Princeton Place serial murders (which he wrote about in the first place, 15 years ago) I got it as soon as I could.
I love books that bring out the non-government side of DC. The plot is there has been a string of missing women and murders. No one cares much until the daughter of a federal judge is killed. The protagonist is a journalist at "the paper". He is a complicated person but seems realistic for a print reporter in the late 90s.
I hope there will be more books with this character. It would be interesting to see both DC and journalism change as time goes on.
The only thing missing was a map to follow the action. Fortunately, Google is there to help.
If you like crime thriller type books and anything to do with DC, get this book.
April 17, 2015
This author's new book is being offered by Penguin's First to Read program and it is the second in a series. I got the digital first in the series from my library to see if I'd be interested in reading the ARC. And, yes, I really want to read the second book. This first one, "The Ways of the Dead" was great. The protagonist is weary, burned-out but still itches to write a decent story that will set everything right. Whatever that is, and he's not always sure what right is for his place and time. He's the best kind of protagonist, the kind that keeps you guessing as much as the plot in a good thriller. And this is a great thriller. The choice of setting and time frame are both ideal for the moodiness and tension that fit this story so well. I can't wait to meet this character again in the next book, which I'm hoping is next week.
July 20, 2016
First, full disclosure - I know Neely professionally (and on social media) and am a fan of his. Both on a basic human "he's a nice guy" level and of his work for the Post.
That said, I'd love this book even if I'd never heard of the guy. It's a tightly paced, smart mystery that provides insight into two worlds I know well enough to care if they'd been misrepresented: D.C. and journalism.
Tucker nails both - his protagonist, Sully Carter is a reporter who is good at his job to the point it's taking over his life. He's dedicated, smart and doesn't mess around. He also drinks, a lot.
The D.C. of the turn of the century is rendered perfectly and remains relevant and pitch perfect today.
Highly recommend to fans of Tana French.
That said, I'd love this book even if I'd never heard of the guy. It's a tightly paced, smart mystery that provides insight into two worlds I know well enough to care if they'd been misrepresented: D.C. and journalism.
Tucker nails both - his protagonist, Sully Carter is a reporter who is good at his job to the point it's taking over his life. He's dedicated, smart and doesn't mess around. He also drinks, a lot.
The D.C. of the turn of the century is rendered perfectly and remains relevant and pitch perfect today.
Highly recommend to fans of Tana French.
October 21, 2019
Sully Carter is a mess. Scarred both literally and figuratively from his time as an embedded war zone reporter, he's an alcoholic with a serious authority problem.
Now back in Washington, DC, he's fending off his bosses after being suspended when a story he got right still managed to blow up in the newspaper's face.
All that takes a back seat when the daughter of a white federal judge favored to be tabbed for the next open seat on the Supreme Court, is murdered in the predominantly black neighborhood where she was taking dance classes.
A pretty white girl killed in a black neighborhood brings the full court press to solving the murder and Sully is on hand to cover the story. But once a quick arrest is made, Sully begins to get curious when tipped off that those arrested had nothing to do with the murder.
Despite being warned away by the cops, the feds and his own bosses at the paper, Sully begins looking for the truth of the story. What he finds is a series of killings and/or disappearances that no one has either noticed or cared enough about to make the connection that the judge's daughter and these other victims were all killed in the same neighborhood in a relatively small area.
Try as he might, Sully can't quite fit all the pieces together at first. People in the neighborhood don't trust the cops and they think barely more about reporters looking for a big story. But Sully taps his sources in the police, the prosecutor's office and with the local neighborhood crimelord to start painting a picture that looks to show that the trio of teens under arrest are not only not guilty of the murder, but there's a possible serial killer at work right under the noses of every law enforcement agency in DC.
Swimming upstream against the apathetic nature of those above him regarding dead hookers and junkies, Sully not only risks his job but soon finds that his life could very well be on the line as well.
As I read 'The Ways of the Dead', I initially thought the story was progressing a little too slowly. But I had to mentally slap myself as a reminder that this was a reporter investigating a story. By its very nature, things were going to be slower moving towards a conclusion. Once I woke up, I settled in to a very entertaining story.
There's little in the way of sugarcoating from Neely Tucker regarding the relative disparity between the investigation of crimes involving white people vs black or Hispanic victims. At times I felt it was coming off a bit too heavy-handed but overall it was pretty well woven into the fabric of the story instead of standing apart from the narrative.
There's no real heroes in this dark noir set in the nation's capital. Those that rush to judgement are bad enough but Tucker leaves no stone unturned and no character unscathed with their actions and the resulting consequences of those actions. Sully Carter is a pretty interesting character, flawed nearly beyond reason but still somehow a dedicated seeker of the truth. This makes him somehow more compelling despite a gnawing desire to yell at him to grow up a little. It would be the wrong tact to take with him of course, but I think the hope for him to get his act together means the reader will want to continue on with the series.
The twists and turns in the investigation as well as the shattering conclusion that denies satisfaction for anyone involved had me eagerly wishing to grab the next book to see where Neely Tucker takes us and Sully next. That to me is a job well done and a book worthy of your time.
Now back in Washington, DC, he's fending off his bosses after being suspended when a story he got right still managed to blow up in the newspaper's face.
All that takes a back seat when the daughter of a white federal judge favored to be tabbed for the next open seat on the Supreme Court, is murdered in the predominantly black neighborhood where she was taking dance classes.
A pretty white girl killed in a black neighborhood brings the full court press to solving the murder and Sully is on hand to cover the story. But once a quick arrest is made, Sully begins to get curious when tipped off that those arrested had nothing to do with the murder.
Despite being warned away by the cops, the feds and his own bosses at the paper, Sully begins looking for the truth of the story. What he finds is a series of killings and/or disappearances that no one has either noticed or cared enough about to make the connection that the judge's daughter and these other victims were all killed in the same neighborhood in a relatively small area.
Try as he might, Sully can't quite fit all the pieces together at first. People in the neighborhood don't trust the cops and they think barely more about reporters looking for a big story. But Sully taps his sources in the police, the prosecutor's office and with the local neighborhood crimelord to start painting a picture that looks to show that the trio of teens under arrest are not only not guilty of the murder, but there's a possible serial killer at work right under the noses of every law enforcement agency in DC.
Swimming upstream against the apathetic nature of those above him regarding dead hookers and junkies, Sully not only risks his job but soon finds that his life could very well be on the line as well.
As I read 'The Ways of the Dead', I initially thought the story was progressing a little too slowly. But I had to mentally slap myself as a reminder that this was a reporter investigating a story. By its very nature, things were going to be slower moving towards a conclusion. Once I woke up, I settled in to a very entertaining story.
There's little in the way of sugarcoating from Neely Tucker regarding the relative disparity between the investigation of crimes involving white people vs black or Hispanic victims. At times I felt it was coming off a bit too heavy-handed but overall it was pretty well woven into the fabric of the story instead of standing apart from the narrative.
There's no real heroes in this dark noir set in the nation's capital. Those that rush to judgement are bad enough but Tucker leaves no stone unturned and no character unscathed with their actions and the resulting consequences of those actions. Sully Carter is a pretty interesting character, flawed nearly beyond reason but still somehow a dedicated seeker of the truth. This makes him somehow more compelling despite a gnawing desire to yell at him to grow up a little. It would be the wrong tact to take with him of course, but I think the hope for him to get his act together means the reader will want to continue on with the series.
The twists and turns in the investigation as well as the shattering conclusion that denies satisfaction for anyone involved had me eagerly wishing to grab the next book to see where Neely Tucker takes us and Sully next. That to me is a job well done and a book worthy of your time.
May 16, 2021
B-R-I-L-L-I-A-N-T.
January 15, 2019
This was... ok. At the moment, I'm not overly interested in reading books where the underlying message is 'everything is awful all of the time' which is exactly the bottom line of this story, but it was a mostly-competent detective drama with an investigative journalist standing in for the traditional hard boiled dick trying to get to the bottom of the whodunit. (Heh, hard boiled dick.) There was some too-convenient laziness in the investigation details and the love interest side story was paper thin and one-dimensional but it was a good quick read that didn't leave me feeling like I wasted my time. So that's... something.
February 14, 2020
3.5 stars actually. This is a fast-paced crime thriller with enough twists and turns to keep the reader engaged throughout. Set in Washington DC and the politics of that capital city, The Ways of the Dead, follows reporter Sully Carter as he unravels the recent murder of a highly-placed judge’s teenage daughter in one of the seedier areas of DC. Sully has turned his focus onto a number of unsolved murders of young women in the area and the author, Neely Tucker, does a great job depicting Sully’s investigation and his slow realization to actually what went down in the death of this teenager and the other murdered women. Although the character of Sully is a bit too hard-boiled and stereotypical for me, the plot of this effective story kept me reading to the end.
June 17, 2014
It seems that I keep finishing books and repeating myself by saying how brilliant they were but that really is the case with this book! Stunningly written with such brilliant and believable characters alongside such an intricately woven and gripping storyline this is one of the most enjoyable crime fiction novels I've read in a long time and has left me very excited at what is to come in the future. Usually I take no notice of the text on the front cover of a book, usually it's exaggerated however 'TRUE DETECTIVE meets HOUSE OF CARDS' did sound pretty exciting and it definitely lived up to that. Tucker has written such an authentic and realistic story (which I found out is based loosely on true events after reading!). Stories like this are all the more enjoyable but also scary because of how believable they are.
My knowledge and familiarity with the darker side of Washington comes only from James Patterson's Alex Cross novels. Whilst nobody is going to argue that series should receive literary awards, Patterson does capture that side of Washington quite well. However Tucker captures it incredibly well. Given his background it's no great surprise but settings wise I haven't read a book that introduced me to a world and made it feel like I was an actual, living part of the book as much as this one did for a long time. Character wise they don't come much better than Sully Carter. In fact every character in this book was really well developed, believable and all had a role to play in the book.
Sully is a reporter and has been for a long time, after a serious incident whilst reporting in a war zone he is no longer able to do the job he once loved and must settle for being a reporter back in the US. With his boss constantly breathing down his neck however it's not a prospect he really relishes and so he appears quite disillusioned. The daughter of a well known judge is found murdered and dumped in the seedier side of Washington. Straight away there is of course huge interest from the police and the press, a hell of a lot more than there was for the murder(s) of black girls which hardly appeared in the press and were soon forgotten. After three young black men are arrested for the murder it appears to be case solved. Sully thinks otherwise however. I always like reading about the characters who refuse to take no for an answer, who fight for what they believe in and go against their superiors when they need to. Sully is that character and takes it upon himself to find out the real truth behind the murders, no matter the cost to himself.
As always it's hard to discuss the book further without giving away plot details. Echoing what I said in the opening chapter crime fiction books do not get much better than this one. I honestly cannot recommend it enough. After starting it a few nights ago at around 10.30pm I was still reading long into the night when I should have been asleep. This book will suck you in, grip you and not let go until you reach the dramatic end (and what an ending!). An absolutely brilliant book and I will be at the front of the queue for Neely Tucker's next one!
My knowledge and familiarity with the darker side of Washington comes only from James Patterson's Alex Cross novels. Whilst nobody is going to argue that series should receive literary awards, Patterson does capture that side of Washington quite well. However Tucker captures it incredibly well. Given his background it's no great surprise but settings wise I haven't read a book that introduced me to a world and made it feel like I was an actual, living part of the book as much as this one did for a long time. Character wise they don't come much better than Sully Carter. In fact every character in this book was really well developed, believable and all had a role to play in the book.
Sully is a reporter and has been for a long time, after a serious incident whilst reporting in a war zone he is no longer able to do the job he once loved and must settle for being a reporter back in the US. With his boss constantly breathing down his neck however it's not a prospect he really relishes and so he appears quite disillusioned. The daughter of a well known judge is found murdered and dumped in the seedier side of Washington. Straight away there is of course huge interest from the police and the press, a hell of a lot more than there was for the murder(s) of black girls which hardly appeared in the press and were soon forgotten. After three young black men are arrested for the murder it appears to be case solved. Sully thinks otherwise however. I always like reading about the characters who refuse to take no for an answer, who fight for what they believe in and go against their superiors when they need to. Sully is that character and takes it upon himself to find out the real truth behind the murders, no matter the cost to himself.
As always it's hard to discuss the book further without giving away plot details. Echoing what I said in the opening chapter crime fiction books do not get much better than this one. I honestly cannot recommend it enough. After starting it a few nights ago at around 10.30pm I was still reading long into the night when I should have been asleep. This book will suck you in, grip you and not let go until you reach the dramatic end (and what an ending!). An absolutely brilliant book and I will be at the front of the queue for Neely Tucker's next one!
July 2, 2015
Review: THE WAYS OF THE DEAD by Neely Tucker
Sullivan "Sully" Carter is a DC journalist, an emotionally downtrodden reporter with addictions to alcohol and adrenaline, veteran correspondent in far too many wars and "conflicts," a man who manipulate the overseas aid system, and faced down warlords. Sully is also the one who perhaps best comprehend the pulse of crime in D.C.; the man who believes homicide is the defining criterion of the human condition. Now he is assigned to a brutal slaying, a fifteen-year-old white girl slaughtered in a black enclave, daughter of a high-powered Federal Justice on fast track to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Before the case, and the neighborhood, explode in facially-motivated violence, Sully determines to uncover the facts and find the killer.
WAYS OF THE DEAD interweaves actual information from the Washington D.C. Princeton Place, which the author covered.
Sullivan "Sully" Carter is a DC journalist, an emotionally downtrodden reporter with addictions to alcohol and adrenaline, veteran correspondent in far too many wars and "conflicts," a man who manipulate the overseas aid system, and faced down warlords. Sully is also the one who perhaps best comprehend the pulse of crime in D.C.; the man who believes homicide is the defining criterion of the human condition. Now he is assigned to a brutal slaying, a fifteen-year-old white girl slaughtered in a black enclave, daughter of a high-powered Federal Justice on fast track to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Before the case, and the neighborhood, explode in facially-motivated violence, Sully determines to uncover the facts and find the killer.
WAYS OF THE DEAD interweaves actual information from the Washington D.C. Princeton Place, which the author covered.
July 9, 2014
I did enjoy this book. The grittiness of the murder case was what drew me in. Also, the fact that this story was drawn from a true crime murder in the 1990s known as the Princeton Place murders was fascinating. Not that the murders are great but I always like to see where an author's imagination goes to when they write a story based on real life facts. Which I thought by the way Mr. Tucker did a good job of writing this book. HIs background as a journalist helped. He got all of the important details down. Which I never once was like "Ok, so what is missing or when am I going to get to the good part".
My issue was that while the beginning of the story was good, it kind of slowed down in the middle but picked up again by the end. I liked Sully and do look forward to reading more books featuring him. I just hope that all of the secondary characters get more interesting. Again this book was a nice showing for a new crime series.
My issue was that while the beginning of the story was good, it kind of slowed down in the middle but picked up again by the end. I liked Sully and do look forward to reading more books featuring him. I just hope that all of the secondary characters get more interesting. Again this book was a nice showing for a new crime series.
October 15, 2014
2-3 stars. Sully is a hardboiled journalist, back from war reporting, physically scarred, emotionally scarred , a barely-functioning alcoholic with a soulless sex life. Despite carrying the weight of all these cliches, he is the only person in an urban population of 5 million who is able to see that the three girls murdered in the same 150 square yards over a year are victims of a serial killer.
So you have to suspend a lot of disbelief to get into this...and then it's pretty well done. (For the most part, journalists turned novelists are pretty reliable craftspeople.) But the ending's something of a mess, so I was back to eye-rolling but for different reasons.
Won't run right out to buy a second novel by him, but he may get better. That happens, sometimes, if the author isn't feeling pressure to crank out a second book immediately.
So you have to suspend a lot of disbelief to get into this...and then it's pretty well done. (For the most part, journalists turned novelists are pretty reliable craftspeople.) But the ending's something of a mess, so I was back to eye-rolling but for different reasons.
Won't run right out to buy a second novel by him, but he may get better. That happens, sometimes, if the author isn't feeling pressure to crank out a second book immediately.
August 4, 2014
5 stars Wow.
*I won this novel through Goodreads First Reads*
I'm not entirely sure what to say. I think my first thought after finishing was Fuck. There was so much I didn't see coming, things I thought I got or understood, but I was wrong. Several twists, i loved the feel of it unraveling, of discovering with Sully.
I won't do this book justice, I'm just not articulate enough, but the it was fantastic. The writing was exceptional. It felt...real. The characters, the city, the streets, everything was vivid and clear. Tension, heartbreak, disgust, irritation, loneliness, the unease, anger--I felt it all.
I would highly recommend this to everyone that enjoys the crime/mystery/suspense genre. I will read anything Neely Tucker writes. Tucker will be auto-buy for me.
*I won this novel through Goodreads First Reads*
I'm not entirely sure what to say. I think my first thought after finishing was Fuck. There was so much I didn't see coming, things I thought I got or understood, but I was wrong. Several twists, i loved the feel of it unraveling, of discovering with Sully.
I won't do this book justice, I'm just not articulate enough, but the it was fantastic. The writing was exceptional. It felt...real. The characters, the city, the streets, everything was vivid and clear. Tension, heartbreak, disgust, irritation, loneliness, the unease, anger--I felt it all.
I would highly recommend this to everyone that enjoys the crime/mystery/suspense genre. I will read anything Neely Tucker writes. Tucker will be auto-buy for me.
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