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City of Lies
John Harper has just made a discovery: the father he believed to be dead for more than thirty years is alive, though lying in a coma in a Manhattan hospital. Returning home to New York brings with it memories of childhood, many of them painful, and yet Harper could never have prepared himself for the truth.
Confronted with the reality of his father's existence, Harper finds himself seduced by a lifestyle that he seems to have inherited--an underworld life of power, treachery, and menace. As he desperately tries to uncover the facts of his own past, he is faced with one lie after another, and with each new discovery he becomes more and more entangled in a dark and shocking conspiracy.
From the acclaimed author of A Quiet Belief in Angels and A Simple Act of Violence, City of Lies is a tense and gripping thriller, each twist and turn more shocking than the last.
Confronted with the reality of his father's existence, Harper finds himself seduced by a lifestyle that he seems to have inherited--an underworld life of power, treachery, and menace. As he desperately tries to uncover the facts of his own past, he is faced with one lie after another, and with each new discovery he becomes more and more entangled in a dark and shocking conspiracy.
From the acclaimed author of A Quiet Belief in Angels and A Simple Act of Violence, City of Lies is a tense and gripping thriller, each twist and turn more shocking than the last.
453 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
22 people are currently reading
616 people want to read
About the author
R.J. Ellory
51 books459 followersRoger began his first novel on November 4th, 1987 and did not stop, except for three days when he was going through a divorce from his first wife, until July of 1993. During this time he completed twenty-two novels, most of them in longhand, and accumulated several hundred polite and complimentary rejection letters from many different and varied publishers.
He stopped writing out of sheer frustration and did not start again for eight years.
In the early part of September 2001 he decided to start writing again. This decision was based on the realization that it was the only thing he had ever really wanted to do.
Between August 2001 and January 2002 he wrote three books, the second of which was called ‘Candlemoth’. This was purchased by Orion and published in 2003. ‘Candlemoth’ was translated into German, Dutch and Italian, and has now also been purchased for translation in numerous other languages. The book also secured a nomination on the shortlist for the Crime Writers’ Association Steel Dagger for Best Thriller 2003. His second book, ‘Ghostheart’, was released in 2004, and his third book, ‘A Quiet Vendetta’, was released in August 2005. In 2006 he published ‘City of Lies’, and once again secured a nomination for the CWA Steel Dagger for Best Thriller of that year. His fifth book – ‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’ - was published in August 2006, and in the latter part of the year it was selected for the phenomenally successful British TV equivalent of the Oprah Winfrey Book Club, the Richard and Judy Book Club.
‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’ went on to be shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction, the 813 Trophy, the Quebec Booksellers’ Prize, The Europeen Du Point Crime Fiction Prize, and was winner of the Inaugural Prix Roman Noir Nouvel Observateur. It has since been voted Best Thriller of 2009 in The Strand Magazine. The book was also optioned for film, and Roger has recently completed the screenplay for Oscar-winning French director, Olivier Dahan.
Following on from ‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’, Roger released ‘A Simple Act of Violence’, again securing a nomination for Best British Crime Fiction of 2008. In late 2009 he released ‘The Anniversary Man’ to rave reviews.
He stopped writing out of sheer frustration and did not start again for eight years.
In the early part of September 2001 he decided to start writing again. This decision was based on the realization that it was the only thing he had ever really wanted to do.
Between August 2001 and January 2002 he wrote three books, the second of which was called ‘Candlemoth’. This was purchased by Orion and published in 2003. ‘Candlemoth’ was translated into German, Dutch and Italian, and has now also been purchased for translation in numerous other languages. The book also secured a nomination on the shortlist for the Crime Writers’ Association Steel Dagger for Best Thriller 2003. His second book, ‘Ghostheart’, was released in 2004, and his third book, ‘A Quiet Vendetta’, was released in August 2005. In 2006 he published ‘City of Lies’, and once again secured a nomination for the CWA Steel Dagger for Best Thriller of that year. His fifth book – ‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’ - was published in August 2006, and in the latter part of the year it was selected for the phenomenally successful British TV equivalent of the Oprah Winfrey Book Club, the Richard and Judy Book Club.
‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’ went on to be shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction, the 813 Trophy, the Quebec Booksellers’ Prize, The Europeen Du Point Crime Fiction Prize, and was winner of the Inaugural Prix Roman Noir Nouvel Observateur. It has since been voted Best Thriller of 2009 in The Strand Magazine. The book was also optioned for film, and Roger has recently completed the screenplay for Oscar-winning French director, Olivier Dahan.
Following on from ‘A Quiet Belief In Angels’, Roger released ‘A Simple Act of Violence’, again securing a nomination for Best British Crime Fiction of 2008. In late 2009 he released ‘The Anniversary Man’ to rave reviews.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
October 6, 2023
Ellory is always a gamble for me - sometimes brilliant, sometimes not so much. Unfortunately this one simply isn't holding my attention. It rambles on over and over the same stuff - hints that the lead character's father is a gangster king, with our lead being the only person in the world who hasn't worked it out yet, endless musings of the lead character about how sexually attracted he is to the mysterious woman who works for his father (which of course he calls love, men being apparently too obtuse to know there's a difference), repetitions about the suicide of his step-uncle when he was a boy. Once is usually enough, twice is always enough. Three strikes and I'm out. Abandoned at 34%.
December 23, 2014
Short and choppy. Fragmented for effect. Predicates lacking subjects. Annoying. Fades in and out for no particular reason. Turns page, hopes it will stop. Doesn't. Then it does. Weird.
Aside from the above annoying device seemingly randomly applied, my main complaint about City of Lies is that it's the literary equivalent of a velodrome bicycle sprint match or a long-distance short-track speed skating race: a whole lot of futzing around that amounts to not much*, until things finally get moving at the end.
Which is too bad, because I really like this author! R.J. Ellory's Candlemoth and A Simple Act of Violence are easily among my favorite books read lately. They were home runs for me, but this one was a bit of a foul ball, I'm afraid.
I just didn't connect with anything beyond the basic storyline here, where usually Ellory's ability to connect plot points to a larger concept is one of my favorite aspects of his writing. This one just didn't hit any thematic notes beyond a somewhat farfetched descent into a world of mafia-esque racketeering violence and a whoooole lotta f-bombs.
If you lopped off 100 pages it might be an entertaining read. It took 125 pages to go much of anywhere, and 200 pages to state the obvious point that we danced around for 28 chapters. (Tune in tomorrow for the continuing story...)
So, while overall the word-craft is nice (there are some nice phrases and passages, a couple on page 97 alone) in the end it just doesn't have much to say, and can't overcome some of its more annoying aspects.
Like those sentences. Short. Raggedly clipped like a cheap haircut. Seems to come and go. Odd decision. Wondering why. Curious.
Three stars.
*( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cL1l... )
Aside from the above annoying device seemingly randomly applied, my main complaint about City of Lies is that it's the literary equivalent of a velodrome bicycle sprint match or a long-distance short-track speed skating race: a whole lot of futzing around that amounts to not much*, until things finally get moving at the end.
Which is too bad, because I really like this author! R.J. Ellory's Candlemoth and A Simple Act of Violence are easily among my favorite books read lately. They were home runs for me, but this one was a bit of a foul ball, I'm afraid.
I just didn't connect with anything beyond the basic storyline here, where usually Ellory's ability to connect plot points to a larger concept is one of my favorite aspects of his writing. This one just didn't hit any thematic notes beyond a somewhat farfetched descent into a world of mafia-esque racketeering violence and a whoooole lotta f-bombs.
If you lopped off 100 pages it might be an entertaining read. It took 125 pages to go much of anywhere, and 200 pages to state the obvious point that we danced around for 28 chapters. (Tune in tomorrow for the continuing story...)
So, while overall the word-craft is nice (there are some nice phrases and passages, a couple on page 97 alone) in the end it just doesn't have much to say, and can't overcome some of its more annoying aspects.
Like those sentences. Short. Raggedly clipped like a cheap haircut. Seems to come and go. Odd decision. Wondering why. Curious.
Three stars.
*( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cL1l... )
May 1, 2014
Nice writing but ditched it after I found out the author wrote his own reviews and wrote bad reviews for authors he saw as competition.
Remember guys - a reader invests in an author as a person not a book as a product.
I enjoyed the words and the author does as good a job as James Hadley Chase did when he was writing books set in the States last century.
But I simply can't bring myself to buy anymore books from authors who try to game the system by cheating with their promotional endeavors.
A shame, really, because the author has great talent.
Remember guys - a reader invests in an author as a person not a book as a product.
I enjoyed the words and the author does as good a job as James Hadley Chase did when he was writing books set in the States last century.
But I simply can't bring myself to buy anymore books from authors who try to game the system by cheating with their promotional endeavors.
A shame, really, because the author has great talent.
June 25, 2022
Omerta de R.J. Ellory, présentation
New-York, avant Noël, un vieil homme en sang est amené à l’hôpital après un braquage.
Il faut faire venir, de toute urgence, son fils. Seules quelques personnes sont au courant de son existence.
John Harper vit en Floride. Il doit faire un reportage. Il reçoit un appel de sa tante qui lui ordonne de revenir à New-York.
Avis Omerta de R.J. Ellory
John Harper a quitté New York à 18 ans. Il vit à Miami où il est journaliste et couvre des petits évènements. Il a écrit un livre qui a été un bon succès. Mais pour le moment, il n’a pas encore réitéré l’écriture d’un roman. John Harper vit seul, n’a pas de petites amies, semble un homme fade, sans réelle avenir, sans réelle ambition. Il est un ancien alcoolique, qui tente d’arrêter de fumer. Après avoir reçu un appel de sa tante, sa vie va changer à jamais car il va apprendre quelques vérités, notamment, en premier lieu, que son père n’est pas mort. Ce dernier lutte contre une balle reçue et est à l’hôpital, dans le coma. Ca, c’est le premier choc. Que sa tante ait caché pendant des années cet élément, vraiment important pour un petit garçon, dont la mère est décédée alors qu’il était jeune.
John Harper va être confronté à plusieurs vérités. Il va tenter de tout savoir, mais il n’est pas au bout de ses surprises, surtout que son oncle refait surface, accompagné d’une très belle femme. Ils le font loger dans un hôtel, lui achètent des vêtements de créateurs. John est également harcelé pour un policier, qui distille quelques informations sur son père, mais pas toutes. John veut tenter de comprendre pourquoi ce policier est obsédé par son père et lui conseille de repartir à Miami.
Une semaine, un peu plus, où John va affronter les démons des uns et des autres, affronter leurs passés et surtout le sien, ce qui lui manque pour être entier. Difficile d’affronter cette réalité, ces vérités. Il doit peser le pour et le contre, se faire réellement son idée et accepter représenter son père dans ce marché conclu. Fatigue, émotions, tumultes, il va passer par toutes les phases et prendre les plus grandes décisions de sa vie. Etre citoyen ou être le digne fils de son père ?
Voilà, un nouvel Ellory lu. Dès qu’un roman est publié, je ne me pose pas de questions. Je l’achète car Ellory fait partie de mes auteurs favoris. Bien entendu, j’apprécie plus ou moins certaines histoires. On ne peut pas plaire tout le temps. Pour ce roman, je retrouve, vraiment, le J.R. Ellory que j’ai découvert et dont les romans ont été des coups de coeur.
Une superbe palette de personnages, qu’ils soient principaux ou secondaires. R.J. Ellory les détaille de façon approfondie, comme toujours, avec leurs forces et surtout leurs faiblesses. Se laisser porter par les évènements, accepter, refuser, jouer le jeu, faire comme les autres ? Lequel remporte la palme ? Je ne peux le confirmer, réellement. Même si j’ai beaucoup aimé John Harper, toutes ses questions, tout ce qu’il découvre, mon choix se porte plutôt vers Cathy. Des histoires de clans, de pouvoirs, de mafia, de chantages, tout ce qui fait le succès et le talent d’Ellory. Il y a aussi ce policier, Duchaunak qui a vécu un drame, qui a ses obsessions mais qui ne veut pas se faire soigner, qui agit en solitaire, en dilettante. Mais a-t-il tort ?
Avec son côté psychologique, le roman et son rythme sont tout de même enlevés, jusqu’à la fin et les évènements qui ont fait l’objet de cet accord. New-York, New-York ! On a beau partir de New-York, la ville fait partie, de ceux qui y sont nés, d’eux à jamais. Se retrouver également au mauvais endroit au mauvais moment.
Coup de coeur assuré ! Vivement le prochain.
New-York, avant Noël, un vieil homme en sang est amené à l’hôpital après un braquage.
Il faut faire venir, de toute urgence, son fils. Seules quelques personnes sont au courant de son existence.
John Harper vit en Floride. Il doit faire un reportage. Il reçoit un appel de sa tante qui lui ordonne de revenir à New-York.
Avis Omerta de R.J. Ellory
John Harper a quitté New York à 18 ans. Il vit à Miami où il est journaliste et couvre des petits évènements. Il a écrit un livre qui a été un bon succès. Mais pour le moment, il n’a pas encore réitéré l’écriture d’un roman. John Harper vit seul, n’a pas de petites amies, semble un homme fade, sans réelle avenir, sans réelle ambition. Il est un ancien alcoolique, qui tente d’arrêter de fumer. Après avoir reçu un appel de sa tante, sa vie va changer à jamais car il va apprendre quelques vérités, notamment, en premier lieu, que son père n’est pas mort. Ce dernier lutte contre une balle reçue et est à l’hôpital, dans le coma. Ca, c’est le premier choc. Que sa tante ait caché pendant des années cet élément, vraiment important pour un petit garçon, dont la mère est décédée alors qu’il était jeune.
John Harper va être confronté à plusieurs vérités. Il va tenter de tout savoir, mais il n’est pas au bout de ses surprises, surtout que son oncle refait surface, accompagné d’une très belle femme. Ils le font loger dans un hôtel, lui achètent des vêtements de créateurs. John est également harcelé pour un policier, qui distille quelques informations sur son père, mais pas toutes. John veut tenter de comprendre pourquoi ce policier est obsédé par son père et lui conseille de repartir à Miami.
Une semaine, un peu plus, où John va affronter les démons des uns et des autres, affronter leurs passés et surtout le sien, ce qui lui manque pour être entier. Difficile d’affronter cette réalité, ces vérités. Il doit peser le pour et le contre, se faire réellement son idée et accepter représenter son père dans ce marché conclu. Fatigue, émotions, tumultes, il va passer par toutes les phases et prendre les plus grandes décisions de sa vie. Etre citoyen ou être le digne fils de son père ?
Voilà, un nouvel Ellory lu. Dès qu’un roman est publié, je ne me pose pas de questions. Je l’achète car Ellory fait partie de mes auteurs favoris. Bien entendu, j’apprécie plus ou moins certaines histoires. On ne peut pas plaire tout le temps. Pour ce roman, je retrouve, vraiment, le J.R. Ellory que j’ai découvert et dont les romans ont été des coups de coeur.
Une superbe palette de personnages, qu’ils soient principaux ou secondaires. R.J. Ellory les détaille de façon approfondie, comme toujours, avec leurs forces et surtout leurs faiblesses. Se laisser porter par les évènements, accepter, refuser, jouer le jeu, faire comme les autres ? Lequel remporte la palme ? Je ne peux le confirmer, réellement. Même si j’ai beaucoup aimé John Harper, toutes ses questions, tout ce qu’il découvre, mon choix se porte plutôt vers Cathy. Des histoires de clans, de pouvoirs, de mafia, de chantages, tout ce qui fait le succès et le talent d’Ellory. Il y a aussi ce policier, Duchaunak qui a vécu un drame, qui a ses obsessions mais qui ne veut pas se faire soigner, qui agit en solitaire, en dilettante. Mais a-t-il tort ?
Avec son côté psychologique, le roman et son rythme sont tout de même enlevés, jusqu’à la fin et les évènements qui ont fait l’objet de cet accord. New-York, New-York ! On a beau partir de New-York, la ville fait partie, de ceux qui y sont nés, d’eux à jamais. Se retrouver également au mauvais endroit au mauvais moment.
Coup de coeur assuré ! Vivement le prochain.
July 4, 2010
Awful I cannot believe that this is the same author who wrote Candlemoth, Ghostheart and the unbelievable A Quiet Belief in Angels!!
June 26, 2017
I've read a few of R.J. Ellory's novels and none of them seem to come up to the standard of a 'Quiet Belief in Angels' which is one of my favourite novels.
'City of Lies' is a thriller which slowly builds to a bloody and violent climax but the build up for me takes to long and I found myself racing through some of the descriptive passages in an effort to find out where the plot was going. Ellory uses a sort of clipped descriptive style in this novel and the dialogue at times feels very stiff and formal. The description of the bloody climax when it comes is also strange as it's described in a very detached, almost journalistic style with little empathy displayed for the characters or victims.
I thought the book was a bit too long as main protagonist John Harper seems to deliberate intensely about all the conflicting evidence that he receives from the different sources who have a vested interest in him. Being a journalist you would have thought that he could have quite easily have found out some of the truths about his father and his 'business empire'. I did consider giving it up a few times but thought the pay back would be worth sticking with till the end but although there was a couple of twists, which I knew there would be, they weren't as surprising as I thought.
I'll probably still continue reading his novels and hopefully there will be another 'classic' in there somewhere ?
'City of Lies' is a thriller which slowly builds to a bloody and violent climax but the build up for me takes to long and I found myself racing through some of the descriptive passages in an effort to find out where the plot was going. Ellory uses a sort of clipped descriptive style in this novel and the dialogue at times feels very stiff and formal. The description of the bloody climax when it comes is also strange as it's described in a very detached, almost journalistic style with little empathy displayed for the characters or victims.
I thought the book was a bit too long as main protagonist John Harper seems to deliberate intensely about all the conflicting evidence that he receives from the different sources who have a vested interest in him. Being a journalist you would have thought that he could have quite easily have found out some of the truths about his father and his 'business empire'. I did consider giving it up a few times but thought the pay back would be worth sticking with till the end but although there was a couple of twists, which I knew there would be, they weren't as surprising as I thought.
I'll probably still continue reading his novels and hopefully there will be another 'classic' in there somewhere ?
February 19, 2014
I won't deny that the dialogues between those characters in the book is authentic and powerful. I also appreciate the author really make an effort to bring the climax progressively and slowly which actually very entertaining. I enjoyed all of that but the twist is not surprising and the last event that occur at the end it's not aggressive enough. The author end the event too quickly in the sense that it gave me the feeling of "That's it?! Damn...." I felt a little bit disappointed that Edward didn't woke up and perhaps there will be a different twist. Don't get me wrong, the twist is not awful but it's just the same old trick that used in most of the crime story nowadays. The description of characters is beautiful and I really enjoyed the dialogues they had in the book. Overall, it's a great book.
April 23, 2011
This was the first Ellory book that I read and it was very enjoyable. He likes to build a story up though so there is little to no action for the first 200 or so pages which works as it creates a tension and a drama which when revealed, is more than worth it.
November 27, 2008
great read, i loved quiet belief in angels and this was just as good. definitely reccommend it
January 20, 2025
John Harper has always been alone. His mother died when he was just seven years old and he was raised in New York by an aunt he barely knew. He never even made his father's acquaintance - a man who died shortly after he was born. After leaving the Big Apple as soon as he was old enough, his life consisted of one moderately successful book, a collection affectionately received newspaper columns and a comfortable existence in Miami. But then all that changed. One liquor store heist that goes wrong turns John's existence on its head. It seems that his father didn't die all those years ago - in fact, he has thrived in the New York underworld. But now the man himself lies critically injured in a Manhattan hospital and it's time for father and son to meet at last. But this is just the start. For it seems that John's father was working on something when he got caught in the heist - something very big indeed. And powerful people all over the city want in on it. The only problem is that the only person with the key to it is John
If I was going to recommend a R J Ellory novel to someone who hadn’t read any of his before it wouldn’t be this one. It is not one of his best. I felt that this book wasn’t as pacy as his other books and the plot did nothing really to keep my interest. The story got a little repetitive at times and there was that many ‘lies’ going about I felt in a muddle myself. The main character John I felt was a bit dim. He was told by several characters including his father to leave New York other wise he would wind up in with the mob. They spelled it out for him with big clues and he didn’t get it. Cathy Hollander we was lead to believe was in that deep she couldn’t get out, but wait for the twist. For her to do what she did, it must have been a very long process, a rather long case ! If I were going to recommend one of his novels it would have to be a Quiet Belief in Angels, or Ghostheart, not this one.
If I was going to recommend a R J Ellory novel to someone who hadn’t read any of his before it wouldn’t be this one. It is not one of his best. I felt that this book wasn’t as pacy as his other books and the plot did nothing really to keep my interest. The story got a little repetitive at times and there was that many ‘lies’ going about I felt in a muddle myself. The main character John I felt was a bit dim. He was told by several characters including his father to leave New York other wise he would wind up in with the mob. They spelled it out for him with big clues and he didn’t get it. Cathy Hollander we was lead to believe was in that deep she couldn’t get out, but wait for the twist. For her to do what she did, it must have been a very long process, a rather long case ! If I were going to recommend one of his novels it would have to be a Quiet Belief in Angels, or Ghostheart, not this one.
September 5, 2022
John Harper a fui New-York à l'âge de 17 ans et s'est installé à Miami. Il y vit modestement entre 2 piges au journal local, la Muse l'a quittée et après le succès d'estime reçu pour un premier roman, Empreintes profondes il n'a plus rien écrit... Seule Miami et au sud les îles jusqu'à Key West le font émerger.. Et il y a eu ce coup de téléphone de sa tante Evelyn reviens toutes affaires cessantes.
Et là il apprend que ce père qu'il croyait mort quand il avait 2 ans est en fait vivant ou plutôt était encore vivant quand il a reçu une balle en pleine poire, depuis il est entre la vie et la mort. Et John se voit pris en charge par once Walt le bras droit de son père escorté de Cathy Hollander, la compagne de son père et se laisse porter par les évènements. Même Frank Duchaunak le flic le harcèle..
Tout va trop vite pour John, il étouffe ne comprend plus , les versions des uns et des autres se contredisent et lui au milieu semble un brin demeuré ,incapable de comprendre que les affaires rutilantes de son père ne sont peut être pas très légales, que New-York était son terrain réservé, que les malfrats y règnent en maitres, qu'un mort n'est rien à leurs yeux et que seul l'argent compte.
Publié en 2006 , City of lies, enfin traduit en français, est à l'image des premiers romans de R.J Ellory . Comme John il a publié un premier roman qui a obtenu un certain succès , puis cela a été la page blanche .. Alors bien sûr depuis les romans se sont succédés , son écriture a évolué, sujets et constructions des intrigues aussi mais cela ne m'empêche pas d'avoir apprécié Omerta, de l'avoir lu d'une traite et d'avoir été une fois encore suffoquée par le final.
J'allais oublier de citer le personnage principal de ce roman: New-York .
Et là il apprend que ce père qu'il croyait mort quand il avait 2 ans est en fait vivant ou plutôt était encore vivant quand il a reçu une balle en pleine poire, depuis il est entre la vie et la mort. Et John se voit pris en charge par once Walt le bras droit de son père escorté de Cathy Hollander, la compagne de son père et se laisse porter par les évènements. Même Frank Duchaunak le flic le harcèle..
Tout va trop vite pour John, il étouffe ne comprend plus , les versions des uns et des autres se contredisent et lui au milieu semble un brin demeuré ,incapable de comprendre que les affaires rutilantes de son père ne sont peut être pas très légales, que New-York était son terrain réservé, que les malfrats y règnent en maitres, qu'un mort n'est rien à leurs yeux et que seul l'argent compte.
Publié en 2006 , City of lies, enfin traduit en français, est à l'image des premiers romans de R.J Ellory . Comme John il a publié un premier roman qui a obtenu un certain succès , puis cela a été la page blanche .. Alors bien sûr depuis les romans se sont succédés , son écriture a évolué, sujets et constructions des intrigues aussi mais cela ne m'empêche pas d'avoir apprécié Omerta, de l'avoir lu d'une traite et d'avoir été une fois encore suffoquée par le final.
J'allais oublier de citer le personnage principal de ce roman: New-York .
August 7, 2023
Si vous aviez oublié qu’il est de ces gens de par le monde, qui peuvent tout se permettre, qui s’octroient absolument tous les droits, jusqu’à celui de venir vous tuer de façon la plus arbitraire, Roger Jon Ellory se fait un plaisir de vous le rappeler dans ce nouveau thriller incroyablement saisissant !
Des effluves de parfum venus de l’inégalable série américaine The Sopranos, m’ont enchantée. Impossible de ne pas y voir certains parallèles au travers de la mafia new-yorkaise et de tous ses entrelacs interlopes.
Ellory dépeint à merveille l’univers du crime organisé et ses membres totalement dépendants et obsédés par l’argent, considérant l’être humain comme un vulgaire insecte à écraser. La cruauté, la nonchalance avec lesquelles ces criminels de haut rang traitent leurs semblables sont férocement restituées.
L’auteur creuse également avec beaucoup d’intelligence et de psychologie, son personnage principal, dont il n’hésite pas à explorer la vulnérabilité et la sensibilité. Ce qui est fort rare à l’égard d’un rôle masculin. Celui-ci est torturé par une partie de son passé qu’il tentait tant bien que mal d’oublier, et se retrouve plongé du jour au lendemain dans la réalité du quotidien d’un des plus grands mafieux de la ville de New-York.
L’immersion est totale, la dimension familiale au sein de la mafia est parfaitement retranscrite, et l’histoire dans son ensemble est des plus addictives car empreinte d’une tension on ne peut plus palpable.
Le dénouement, souvent raté ou décevant dans maints et maints ouvrages, est ici très réussi et conclut ce thriller de la plus minutieuse des manières.
Des effluves de parfum venus de l’inégalable série américaine The Sopranos, m’ont enchantée. Impossible de ne pas y voir certains parallèles au travers de la mafia new-yorkaise et de tous ses entrelacs interlopes.
Ellory dépeint à merveille l’univers du crime organisé et ses membres totalement dépendants et obsédés par l’argent, considérant l’être humain comme un vulgaire insecte à écraser. La cruauté, la nonchalance avec lesquelles ces criminels de haut rang traitent leurs semblables sont férocement restituées.
L’auteur creuse également avec beaucoup d’intelligence et de psychologie, son personnage principal, dont il n’hésite pas à explorer la vulnérabilité et la sensibilité. Ce qui est fort rare à l’égard d’un rôle masculin. Celui-ci est torturé par une partie de son passé qu’il tentait tant bien que mal d’oublier, et se retrouve plongé du jour au lendemain dans la réalité du quotidien d’un des plus grands mafieux de la ville de New-York.
L’immersion est totale, la dimension familiale au sein de la mafia est parfaitement retranscrite, et l’histoire dans son ensemble est des plus addictives car empreinte d’une tension on ne peut plus palpable.
Le dénouement, souvent raté ou décevant dans maints et maints ouvrages, est ici très réussi et conclut ce thriller de la plus minutieuse des manières.
May 15, 2019
This book is fine as a thriller. As an RJ Ellory thriller it’s a disappointment. I’m not sure anything could ever live up to A Quiet Belief in Angels, but it’s also a long way from Candlemoth. Trying to put my finger on quite what the problem is, beyond the fact that it doesn’t live up the best of Ellory's other books, some of it lies in the writing style and some of it with the characters.
Ellory's best books capture such a sense of place and this book has none of that. This book could be set in any city, in fact I had to keep reminding myself that it’s supposed to be set in New York. When I've read previous Ellory novels I’ve often that an English man could create such a sense of place in novels set in the US - yet this book reads like it was written by someone who’s never visited New York.
And the characters - I just don’t understand them. I don’t get Harper and I certainly don’t understand Evelyn or Cathy. If Ellory thinks the ending explains the woodenness of Cathy throughout, it doesn’t, because she surely would never have survived. And it’s the believability of the characters that have always made Ellory's books better than good, it’s what's made them great.
So this book is fine, it’s an OK read, but a disappointment if you're used to Ellory's usual great reads.
Ellory's best books capture such a sense of place and this book has none of that. This book could be set in any city, in fact I had to keep reminding myself that it’s supposed to be set in New York. When I've read previous Ellory novels I’ve often that an English man could create such a sense of place in novels set in the US - yet this book reads like it was written by someone who’s never visited New York.
And the characters - I just don’t understand them. I don’t get Harper and I certainly don’t understand Evelyn or Cathy. If Ellory thinks the ending explains the woodenness of Cathy throughout, it doesn’t, because she surely would never have survived. And it’s the believability of the characters that have always made Ellory's books better than good, it’s what's made them great.
So this book is fine, it’s an OK read, but a disappointment if you're used to Ellory's usual great reads.
October 23, 2019
This book could use a trimming in the first third of it. Too many pages repeating the same things and dragging out the obvious questions that the main character should’ve asked. I actually lost patience and put the book down but then decided to pick it up again. Glad I did bc it does get better. There is suspense and interesting twists which ultimately made the reading worth it. I read reviews that other titles by the same author are really good. Looking fwd to reading them.
December 10, 2017
What a great book. A bit gruesome at times, but a story which kept you interested to the last page. A writer/journalist is called by his aunt to return to New York his birthplace, as his father (whom he believed dead), a notorious gangster has been shot and is dying. He then gets mixed up in the inevitable gang warfare, leading up to a tumultuous climax.
October 22, 2022
Not one I'd keep or recommend. Very much a mob/gangster themed book, so if you're into that sort of thing you might like this. In a nutshell, you have a 30+ year old man who has lived most of his life thinking his father was dead, then comes to learn that his father is actually alive and on his deathbed after a near fatal incident. A father who is part of a network of dangerous New York gangs.
November 26, 2022
Ce roman comporte quelques longueurs et peut parfois être difficile à suivre en raison du passage d’un personnage à l’autre, sans que rien ne l’indique. Par contre, plus on avance dans l’histoire, plus on comprend la personnalité de chacun et on voit où s’en va l’auteur.
Dans le dernier quart, l’action se met en branle et nous pousse a poursuivre la lecture rapidement pour connaître la fin.
Dans le dernier quart, l’action se met en branle et nous pousse a poursuivre la lecture rapidement pour connaître la fin.
Want to read
July 19, 2020elibrary
September 21, 2020
A book with a true sting in its tail. Maybe a bit long-winded, but still very entertaining and suspenseful right up until the very end.
March 25, 2021
Love all I've read of Mr. Ellory's books so far!
October 17, 2022
Magistral!
October 19, 2024
La guerre des gangs à New-York.
Une histoire qui gagne en suspens au fil des pages.
Un bon moment de lecture
Une histoire qui gagne en suspens au fil des pages.
Un bon moment de lecture
December 27, 2024
Bon roman policier, une bonne intrigue et des personnages travaillés.
J'enlève une étoile pour les quelques longueurs durant la lecture
J'enlève une étoile pour les quelques longueurs durant la lecture
February 7, 2025
This book was so infuriating I kept turning the pages to see if it got any better. Don't ask me, cuz I don't know.
December 28, 2025
Pour un auteur de ce calibre, c’était assez décevant. J’ai avancé lentement dans cette lecture truffée de clichés. Le dénouement est excellent, ce qui nous récompense d’avoir tenu bon.
December 13, 2009
There is no doubt that this novel is right outside of my comfort zone,. However as with the three other novels I have read by this author, I was hooked right from the start, and would have finished it much faster had it not been for a very busy week. I am now glad I didn't finish it too quickly as it was a real pleasure to have it keep me company this week. It also seemed very appropriate to be reading it just before Christmas as the story takes place in the days leading up to Christmas Eve in New York. City of Lies is also so well written, the sense of place is wonderful, the constant hum of the city and it's underlying threat a character in itself, brilliantly done.
The world created here by R J Ellory is a tough, urban underworld, where violence come easily to men for whom it is a way of life. Into this world comes John Harper, who has spent the majority of his adulthood in Miami leading a pretty unremarkable life, and totally unaware of this other world. He spends the next week with people like Walt Freiberg a man who has known his father for many years and was a shadowy figure in John's own childhood, Cathy Hollander "the eye candy" who it seems has gone by several different names, his Aunt Evelyn, who is responsible for the lies John grew up with, and knows more than she is telling him, and Frank Duchaunak a crazy cop with a Marilyn Monroe obsession. The characterisation is fantastic, the dialogue is fast paced and authentic, and reminiscent of all the episodes of Hill Street Blues I watched with my Dad in the 1980'.
The world created here by R J Ellory is a tough, urban underworld, where violence come easily to men for whom it is a way of life. Into this world comes John Harper, who has spent the majority of his adulthood in Miami leading a pretty unremarkable life, and totally unaware of this other world. He spends the next week with people like Walt Freiberg a man who has known his father for many years and was a shadowy figure in John's own childhood, Cathy Hollander "the eye candy" who it seems has gone by several different names, his Aunt Evelyn, who is responsible for the lies John grew up with, and knows more than she is telling him, and Frank Duchaunak a crazy cop with a Marilyn Monroe obsession. The characterisation is fantastic, the dialogue is fast paced and authentic, and reminiscent of all the episodes of Hill Street Blues I watched with my Dad in the 1980'.
March 24, 2014
For much of the book, Ellory offers little more than glimpses of characters hidden in mystery and secrecy, half-truths and unbelievable events that coalesce into a nightmare scenario, and a central character so far out of this depth that he's treading water in the South Pacific with no chance of rescue.
What the book does offer is a growing sense of dread, which builds as the novel progresses (think about that annoying whine throughout The Dark Knight). The climax is Tarantino with a conscience - is that a contradiction? A blood bath erupts on the streets of New York and, as in all good fiction, the bad guys get what's coming to them. Our main character, Harper, gets what he's owed - a clear explanation of who he is and the reasons for the tragedies that surrounded his early life.
Not Ellory's best - but I'm not the first to point that out. I suppose what makes it less than great is that the story needs so long to grab hold, and this is probably where the problem lies - in getting the balance between slowly engulfing our hapless character into a situation from which there is no return and running a plotline fast enough to keep the reader's interest. I kept going because the writing is still crisp and highly expressive and the range of characters drawn into the plot are rich and lifelike. Many other readers do not seem able to hang in there for an explosive finale - they missed out.
What the book does offer is a growing sense of dread, which builds as the novel progresses (think about that annoying whine throughout The Dark Knight). The climax is Tarantino with a conscience - is that a contradiction? A blood bath erupts on the streets of New York and, as in all good fiction, the bad guys get what's coming to them. Our main character, Harper, gets what he's owed - a clear explanation of who he is and the reasons for the tragedies that surrounded his early life.
Not Ellory's best - but I'm not the first to point that out. I suppose what makes it less than great is that the story needs so long to grab hold, and this is probably where the problem lies - in getting the balance between slowly engulfing our hapless character into a situation from which there is no return and running a plotline fast enough to keep the reader's interest. I kept going because the writing is still crisp and highly expressive and the range of characters drawn into the plot are rich and lifelike. Many other readers do not seem able to hang in there for an explosive finale - they missed out.
February 10, 2017
Ik heb nu bijna het hele oeuvre van R.J. Ellory gelezen en ik moet zeggen dat ik dit een van zijn minste boeken vind. Dat neemt overigens niet weg dat het een prima verhaal is. Het komt alleen wat traag op gang en de hoofdpersoon vind ik zeker in het begin wel erg naïef. Verder is het in tegenstelling tot andere boeken (A Quiet Belief in Angels, Candlemoth) moeilijk om je te vereenzelvigen met de personages. Aan het eind komt alles ineens in een stroomversnelling en zitten er wat verrassingen verstopt, maar al met al kan deze schrijver beter, veel beter.
January 8, 2015
What a story! This book takes a long time to get going, but the premise is so weird and so wonderfully presented that you have no problem staying with it. The last half to third is just terrific, and the ending is one of the best written you will come across, great twists and turns and loads of action. This book is like a little creek that gets stronger and stronger until a full force rapids takes you over the edge. There is quite a bit of random vilonce mixed in as well, but it feels like just part of the normal activity in this environment. There are lots of interesting characters, great New York scenery and a portrayal of gangster life that goes on and on. This was a wild ride but certainly one worth exploring.
January 4, 2012
A Cidade das Mentiras foi um dos inúmeros livros oferecidos que pululam nas estantes do escritório, e um dos que foi ficando esquecidos, muito pela falta de apelo que nos transmite.
Na realidade é um thriller policial interessante, movimentado q.b., sem se deixar cair muito na rotina habitual do thriller mais moderno. Nomeado para alguns prémios literários, Ellory conta-nos a história de John Harper, que se vê envolvido no mundo do crime do qual a mãe sempre o tentou afastar, para tentar conhecer o passado do pai, que pensava morto.
Quem gosta do género, tem aqui uma proposta interessante para umas horas de leitura.
Na realidade é um thriller policial interessante, movimentado q.b., sem se deixar cair muito na rotina habitual do thriller mais moderno. Nomeado para alguns prémios literários, Ellory conta-nos a história de John Harper, que se vê envolvido no mundo do crime do qual a mãe sempre o tentou afastar, para tentar conhecer o passado do pai, que pensava morto.
Quem gosta do género, tem aqui uma proposta interessante para umas horas de leitura.
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