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Every Man a Menace
Patrick Hoffman burst onto the crime fiction scene with The White Van , a bank heist thriller set in the back streets of San Francisco and a finalist for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award. Now he returns with his second novel, Every Man a Menace , the inside story of a ruthless ecstasy-smuggling ring.
San Francisco is about to receive the biggest delivery of MDMA to hit the West Coast in years. Raymond Gaspar, just out of prison, is sent to the city to check in on the increasingly erratic dealer expected to take care of distribution. In Miami, the man responsible for getting the drugs across the Pacific has just met the girl of his dreams—a woman who can't seem to keep her story straight. And thousands of miles away in Bangkok, someone farther up the supply chain is about to make a phone call that will put all their lives at risk. Stretching from the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia to the Golden Gate of San Francisco, Every Man a Menace offers an unflinching account of the making, moving, and selling of the drug known as Molly—pure happiness sold by the brick, brought to market by bloodshed and betrayal.
San Francisco is about to receive the biggest delivery of MDMA to hit the West Coast in years. Raymond Gaspar, just out of prison, is sent to the city to check in on the increasingly erratic dealer expected to take care of distribution. In Miami, the man responsible for getting the drugs across the Pacific has just met the girl of his dreams—a woman who can't seem to keep her story straight. And thousands of miles away in Bangkok, someone farther up the supply chain is about to make a phone call that will put all their lives at risk. Stretching from the Golden Triangle of Southeast Asia to the Golden Gate of San Francisco, Every Man a Menace offers an unflinching account of the making, moving, and selling of the drug known as Molly—pure happiness sold by the brick, brought to market by bloodshed and betrayal.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published October 4, 2016
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About the author
Patrick Hoffman
4 books178 followersPatrick Hoffman is a novelist and private investigator based in Brooklyn, NY.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 253 reviews
March 3, 2017
Every Man a Menace consists of several set pieces all having to do with the delivery of a huge shipment of ecstasy from Thailand to San Francisco. Two nightclub owners from Miami are to manage this shipment, which will wind up with a Filipina woman in San Francisco. Masterminding part of the operation is a prison inmate named Arthur, and as the book opens, Arthur sends a prison buddy named Raymond Gaspar, who is just getting released, to check up on the operation in the Bay area.
The story is told in five discrete parts, each from the point of view of a different set of characters. The sum of the five parts provides a harrowing look into a violent, murky world in which lots of people are on the make, each one looking for an edge over everyone else. Probably needless to say in a book like this, no one knows who they can really trust.
The characters are believable; the settings are well done, and there's plenty of action. Hoffman writes very well, and I was a big fan of his debut novel, The White Van. If I have a problem with this book it was, simply, that I really couldn't engage with any of the characters. None of them has any socially (or other) redeeming features, and so I really had trouble caring about what happened to any of them. This may be my fault more than the author's; perhaps I just wasn't in the right mood for this book, or perhaps my expectations were simply too high after reading his first novel. Hoffman is clearly a talented writer but, for whatever reason, I didn't enjoy this book as much as I had hoped.
The story is told in five discrete parts, each from the point of view of a different set of characters. The sum of the five parts provides a harrowing look into a violent, murky world in which lots of people are on the make, each one looking for an edge over everyone else. Probably needless to say in a book like this, no one knows who they can really trust.
The characters are believable; the settings are well done, and there's plenty of action. Hoffman writes very well, and I was a big fan of his debut novel, The White Van. If I have a problem with this book it was, simply, that I really couldn't engage with any of the characters. None of them has any socially (or other) redeeming features, and so I really had trouble caring about what happened to any of them. This may be my fault more than the author's; perhaps I just wasn't in the right mood for this book, or perhaps my expectations were simply too high after reading his first novel. Hoffman is clearly a talented writer but, for whatever reason, I didn't enjoy this book as much as I had hoped.
August 24, 2016
The best thing about "Every Man A Menace" is that it's strictly a CRIME novel. There is no detective or inquisitive Good Samaritan trying to solve or stop the illegal activities because this isn't a traditional story of good and evil. It's a fascinating fictional look at how modern drug organizations work, and the motivations and situations that attract their participants. The book is thought provoking because it leaves you impressed by the varying types of intelligence displayed by the criminals, while also leaving you sad/vexed at their chosen application of said intelligence and the ramifications of that choice. It's an exciting, different and strangely emotional read, which I highly recommend.
October 22, 2016
Every Man A Menace reads like a Quentin Tarantino movie if in book form.
This novel is broken up into five main parts and when reading the first part, I had no idea where the novel was heading. It was like climbing into a car being driven by some rambling kook, not knowing which direction the trip would be heading (this metaphor being a good, entertaining thing).
On the one hand, I don't know how to describe the plot other than in the broad sense, the book is basically a tale about international drug trafficking and the byzantine world of who can you trust and who you can't trust and never being able to know for one hundred percent.
The novel is really not that long - a little over 17o pages - however, with the character development and number of characters, its length is misleading and in one way, it sort of reads like an epic tale.
I enjoyed the book and highly recommend it (I have not read too many Elmore Leonard novels - but plan to - and imagine, readers of Leonard will like this book). One interesting part of the book is the section dealing with a character after taking LSD. It's written in such a way to be believable in its clarity a capture of what an episode is possibly like.
This novel is broken up into five main parts and when reading the first part, I had no idea where the novel was heading. It was like climbing into a car being driven by some rambling kook, not knowing which direction the trip would be heading (this metaphor being a good, entertaining thing).
On the one hand, I don't know how to describe the plot other than in the broad sense, the book is basically a tale about international drug trafficking and the byzantine world of who can you trust and who you can't trust and never being able to know for one hundred percent.
The novel is really not that long - a little over 17o pages - however, with the character development and number of characters, its length is misleading and in one way, it sort of reads like an epic tale.
I enjoyed the book and highly recommend it (I have not read too many Elmore Leonard novels - but plan to - and imagine, readers of Leonard will like this book). One interesting part of the book is the section dealing with a character after taking LSD. It's written in such a way to be believable in its clarity a capture of what an episode is possibly like.
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January 13, 2018My first DNF of the year.
Fifty pages in, & nothing of substance has happened, & I don’t care about any of these characters, & I’m not impressed with anything about the author’s style.
I’m moving on. Maybe I’ll circle back later.
Fifty pages in, & nothing of substance has happened, & I don’t care about any of these characters, & I’m not impressed with anything about the author’s style.
I’m moving on. Maybe I’ll circle back later.
May 28, 2017
Man, crime seems super stressful.
I don't really care at all about the intricacies of the drug trade -- the mechanics of it. To be honest, I find that whole world really boring. But Hoffman crafts his narrative around a group of fascinating characters: complex, oddly sympathetic, and flawed flawed flawed. (Bonus points for several really interesting ladies. And a variety of gay men. And Jews! This is kind of my personal trifecta.) Anyway, it was enough to make me discover that, at least within the world of this book, I did care, after all.
I don't really care at all about the intricacies of the drug trade -- the mechanics of it. To be honest, I find that whole world really boring. But Hoffman crafts his narrative around a group of fascinating characters: complex, oddly sympathetic, and flawed flawed flawed. (Bonus points for several really interesting ladies. And a variety of gay men. And Jews! This is kind of my personal trifecta.) Anyway, it was enough to make me discover that, at least within the world of this book, I did care, after all.
September 16, 2016
Fantastic crime novel. It was a great read and flowed like a movie script. The door was even left open for a follow up novel. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an easy read about gangsters and the lives the live. 4.5 stars.
October 2, 2020
I'd give this book 10 stars if I could. One of the best crime novels I've read in years!! Love the way it's told
September 19, 2024
it’s got glide
Nothing uphill about reading this novel. It’s zippy but its calories are far from empty. A classic example of someone who heeded Elmore Leonard’s dictum: “Leave out the parts that people tend to skip.”
Nothing uphill about reading this novel. It’s zippy but its calories are far from empty. A classic example of someone who heeded Elmore Leonard’s dictum: “Leave out the parts that people tend to skip.”
December 26, 2016
I feel like I enjoyed this book overall. For the first half of the book, it felt like I was reading two different stories, but I knew there had to be a connection somewhere, and as the story went on I was excited to see what that connection was. Then, as I got into part three, the plot really picked up pace, and I loved seeing how all of the characters were connected and how parts one and two were related. This book took on the whole domino effect idea, and I think Patrick Hoffman did a great job exploring it and creating a good story.
However, parts one and two were long - both 70 pages - and I found myself a little bored. I knew we were getting to a juicy ending, but it felt like it took so long to get there at times, and had I not felt like the payout was going to be worthwhile, I might have stopped reading. I've also not been in a reading mood lately. This book is only 280 pages with a larger font size, but it still took me nearly two whole weeks to read. Not the book's fault at all, but coupling my slump with a slower start meant that it took me a looooong time to get into this book. But once I did, I pretty much flew through.
Like I said, overall I enjoyed it. But at the same time, the beginning was slow, and I still felt like something was lacking. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I wish there had just been something more somewhere. I think had I not been so out of the reading mood, this book would have gotten 4 stars, but for now it'll have to be 3 stars. It's too bad GR doesn't have half-star rating options because I'd definitely give 3.5 if I could. I think one day, once I've kinda forgotten the plot of this book and when I'm really into reading again and not so stressed out about other parts of life, I'd like to try to read this book again and see if I feel differently under different circumstances. I'd still recommend.
However, parts one and two were long - both 70 pages - and I found myself a little bored. I knew we were getting to a juicy ending, but it felt like it took so long to get there at times, and had I not felt like the payout was going to be worthwhile, I might have stopped reading. I've also not been in a reading mood lately. This book is only 280 pages with a larger font size, but it still took me nearly two whole weeks to read. Not the book's fault at all, but coupling my slump with a slower start meant that it took me a looooong time to get into this book. But once I did, I pretty much flew through.
Like I said, overall I enjoyed it. But at the same time, the beginning was slow, and I still felt like something was lacking. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I wish there had just been something more somewhere. I think had I not been so out of the reading mood, this book would have gotten 4 stars, but for now it'll have to be 3 stars. It's too bad GR doesn't have half-star rating options because I'd definitely give 3.5 if I could. I think one day, once I've kinda forgotten the plot of this book and when I'm really into reading again and not so stressed out about other parts of life, I'd like to try to read this book again and see if I feel differently under different circumstances. I'd still recommend.
May 4, 2017
This is the second novel from Patrick Hoffman and it's a whole lot different from his debut, The White Van, which I read and also enjoyed.
In this novel Hoffman tells the story of a large drugs haul of ecstasy which is being shipped from the Far East and bound for Miami. The story is told in five distinct parts but the stories intertwine to complete the whole story. The five parts of the novel are also not linear, so that we go back and forth in time with the story and the characters.
I must admit that I loved this novel and I read it in a very short space of time, as I couldn't wait to see where the story went next. I found that I got totally engrossed in the situations that the various characters found themselves in and was desperate to see if they could extricate themselves from the circumstances. I also thought that we sometimes got a different perspective on the different characters as we progressed through the different parts of the novel and my attitude towards them also changed as the story evolved.
This'll will be a hard novel for Hoffman to improve on, as far as I'm concerned but already looking forward to see wirer he'll take us next.
In this novel Hoffman tells the story of a large drugs haul of ecstasy which is being shipped from the Far East and bound for Miami. The story is told in five distinct parts but the stories intertwine to complete the whole story. The five parts of the novel are also not linear, so that we go back and forth in time with the story and the characters.
I must admit that I loved this novel and I read it in a very short space of time, as I couldn't wait to see where the story went next. I found that I got totally engrossed in the situations that the various characters found themselves in and was desperate to see if they could extricate themselves from the circumstances. I also thought that we sometimes got a different perspective on the different characters as we progressed through the different parts of the novel and my attitude towards them also changed as the story evolved.
This'll will be a hard novel for Hoffman to improve on, as far as I'm concerned but already looking forward to see wirer he'll take us next.
January 10, 2020
If you're looking for a 'good guys win' novel or a linear crime story, Patrick Hoffman's "Every Man a Menace" ain't that kind of party. If I wanted to give you a comparable, the only thing I could think of would be Tarantino's 'Pulp Fiction'. It's a story that starts near its end, folds back on itself a few times, and ends not too far along from where it began.
"Every Man..." begins with a man's release from prison. Raymond had been 'protected', while in the joint, by a real criminal mastermind/badass, Arthur, who sort of ran the place. To repay this kindness Raymond agrees to get involved as an 'observer' in a drug operation Arthur is involved in remotely from his prison cell. That's where the fun begins. Raymond is thrust into the middle of a complex set of criminal relationships involving a Filipino woman kingpin (Gloria), Israelis, Chinese, Burmese, Thais, and a few good ol' white boys. Of course, having a guy just released from the can show up to begin 'observing' the operation doesn't go over well with anyone. They all fear Arthur's reach from prison, Gloria is a world-class ball-buster, and the rest of the supply chain is a collection of very bright, effective, and ruthless sociopaths. The action bounces back at a certain point to paint the picture of what was going on in the operation prior to Raymond's release from several different perspectives. It certainly isn't pretty. There's a bit of a twist at the end but it's consistent with the cutthroat nature of the business that's being transacted.
Hoffman's first two novels, the first being "White Van", are both excellent with great writing, inventive plots, and lots of action. "Every Man a Menace" goes to the top of my 'favorites of the year' shelf, though it's still early.....
"Every Man..." begins with a man's release from prison. Raymond had been 'protected', while in the joint, by a real criminal mastermind/badass, Arthur, who sort of ran the place. To repay this kindness Raymond agrees to get involved as an 'observer' in a drug operation Arthur is involved in remotely from his prison cell. That's where the fun begins. Raymond is thrust into the middle of a complex set of criminal relationships involving a Filipino woman kingpin (Gloria), Israelis, Chinese, Burmese, Thais, and a few good ol' white boys. Of course, having a guy just released from the can show up to begin 'observing' the operation doesn't go over well with anyone. They all fear Arthur's reach from prison, Gloria is a world-class ball-buster, and the rest of the supply chain is a collection of very bright, effective, and ruthless sociopaths. The action bounces back at a certain point to paint the picture of what was going on in the operation prior to Raymond's release from several different perspectives. It certainly isn't pretty. There's a bit of a twist at the end but it's consistent with the cutthroat nature of the business that's being transacted.
Hoffman's first two novels, the first being "White Van", are both excellent with great writing, inventive plots, and lots of action. "Every Man a Menace" goes to the top of my 'favorites of the year' shelf, though it's still early.....
November 30, 2016
In short, it's a book about amateur drug deals in over their heads. The plot lines are confusing and not well explained. The characters were under developed and uninteresting. This isn't the genre for me, which probably contributes to the tone of this review, but it just wasn't a hit. At the end of the book I felt unsatisfied - no justice, just people haphazardly killing people who threaten them without full understanding of the situation. and no closure - i want to know more about Isaak and his involvement in the whole situation. Confusing and underdeveloped. Definitely a bit bummed that I chose this as my BOTM.
December 2, 2016
Somehow Hoffman makes you care about these characters even though they are all vile criminals. You know these guys are bad and yet you don't want them to get killed. Arrested maybe would be ok. It is fast paced and gritty. The setting is worldwide: Bangkok, San Francisco, Miami. The ingenuity of the drug smugglers in the packaging and transportation of their products across the world is most interesting. Their ruthlessness is unbelievable.
December 11, 2016
I liked this book a lot more than I thought I would. it appealed to me in the same way Breaking Bad did: it was gritty, fast-paced, and ruthless. Extra props for the badass female characters. Gloria was my favorite.
October 8, 2016
I can't wait to see the movie. Great book! Was captivated the entire time.
December 21, 2019
I wasn't a big fan of how this story was told, but I did like that it knew what it's plot was and stuck to it. I hope that makes sense
January 21, 2023
I got this in a subscription box, so it's not something I would have chosen. It is an easy read despite the story being based around drug dealing and the people involved in the moving and selling of drugs.
The book is divided into 5 sections, with each part looking at one bit of the drug moving process. The people are linked across the 5 parts well and it all came together cleverly in the end
The book is divided into 5 sections, with each part looking at one bit of the drug moving process. The people are linked across the 5 parts well and it all came together cleverly in the end
August 4, 2016
My review appeared in the Aug. 1, 2016 edition of Library Journal:
For his second novel (after The White Van), private investigator-turned-novelist Hoffman spins a complex, globe-spanning tale of the ecstasy trade that plays with time and perspective in striking ways. Raymond Gaspar is released from prison with instructions to moderate a rumored rift in the San Francisco MDMA pipeline, which runs through Gloria Ocampo, a well-dressed grandmother in her 50s. Hoffman then moves his story line back three months to introduce Miami club owner Semion Rosenstein, whose involvement in ecstasy smuggling takes a dark turn when he wakes up with the blood of a woman he'd become infatuated with on his mattress. That woman will reemerge, with a different name, as a free agent looking to cash in on Gloria's next shipment, which has become significantly more lucrative thanks to some fateful decision-making from Semion's contact in Bangkok. The novel's ambitious architecture is fun to work out and lends the final section a surprising amount of tension as all the pieces collide, but it comes at the cost of character development. None of them truly resonate once their final fates are sealed; then again, perhaps we're not supposed to connect too much to these scam artists. VERDICT A solid addition to most crime fiction collections from a promising author to watch.
Copyright ©2016 Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. Reprinted with permission.
For his second novel (after The White Van), private investigator-turned-novelist Hoffman spins a complex, globe-spanning tale of the ecstasy trade that plays with time and perspective in striking ways. Raymond Gaspar is released from prison with instructions to moderate a rumored rift in the San Francisco MDMA pipeline, which runs through Gloria Ocampo, a well-dressed grandmother in her 50s. Hoffman then moves his story line back three months to introduce Miami club owner Semion Rosenstein, whose involvement in ecstasy smuggling takes a dark turn when he wakes up with the blood of a woman he'd become infatuated with on his mattress. That woman will reemerge, with a different name, as a free agent looking to cash in on Gloria's next shipment, which has become significantly more lucrative thanks to some fateful decision-making from Semion's contact in Bangkok. The novel's ambitious architecture is fun to work out and lends the final section a surprising amount of tension as all the pieces collide, but it comes at the cost of character development. None of them truly resonate once their final fates are sealed; then again, perhaps we're not supposed to connect too much to these scam artists. VERDICT A solid addition to most crime fiction collections from a promising author to watch.
Copyright ©2016 Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. Reprinted with permission.
January 25, 2017
Gritty and realistic, this book made me think about the importance of having full information. Because someone didn't know that drug producers were scaling up, bad things happened. The middle managers didn't know where the drugs were going and more bad things happened. The poor schlubs at the bottom didn't know why everyone around them was on edge and worse things happened. This book made me want to chase down the author's first novel. This book also made me think about how heartless and pitiless people can be when there's money involved - the story seemed real enough to me to be sobering. I'd have given more stars if the story arcs had been arranged differently, and if there'd been more ambiguity about the fates of some of the characters.
May 1, 2019
I have to admit I wasn't into this one. Every Man a Menace benefits from short declarative and perfunctory sentence structure. It's pace is quick and it moves well. Based in five parts from five different points of view, the book works backward in time, with the first part introducing the character of Raymond Gaspar, a recently released prisoner who has a simple job to perform for his protector on the inside. He needs to figure out which of two people involved in the drug trade have lost their edge. It becomes obvious early on that Raymond is being played by both the distributor, Gloria, and the dealer, Shadrack who are not too keen on letting Raymond in on their well run enterprise. We are told a lot that Raymond is frightened or scared. And then he's dead.
Part two steps back in time to before Raymond's death to tell us about the two Miami club owners who are the importers of the ecstasy eventually distributed and sold in San Francisco by Gloria and Shadrack. Isaac and Semion are old friends from the Israeli army who have landed in Miami and have cut a nice niche for themselves in the ecstasy game. We are told when their Belgian supplier falls through, they start to wholesale out of Thailand. Determined to remain small, Semion is at odds with Isaac who has grander plans. So we know that's not going to work out well for Semion who is eventually set up and played by a "crazy" Brazilian woman who he knows is lying to him, but doesn't seem to care.
Step back in time to their contact in Thailand, a man who's name I cannot now recall has also been set up by the police as a shake down for a bribe after his grindr date ends up being a plant (by the police). He calls in a favor from the manufacturer of all this ecstasy and the favor ends up being called in right away in the form of forcing the contact to get Semion and Isaac to agree to a bigger order.
So the last part of the book then fast forwards through all this back to Raymond and Gloria and Shadrack to make some kind of sense of who is cutting out who in this cut throat industry of the drug trade. The book is gritty without texture and full of interesting characters that are a complete blank.
I'm good with non linear timelines. I'm good with morally bankrupt characters. I like diversity among characters. Check, check, check. But here, it felt like EMaM was merely checking off boxes as I have done here on a list, without taking the necessary steps to weave anything together. The extra piece is missing here to turn this from a page turning crime drama into something in which to become invested.
Part two steps back in time to before Raymond's death to tell us about the two Miami club owners who are the importers of the ecstasy eventually distributed and sold in San Francisco by Gloria and Shadrack. Isaac and Semion are old friends from the Israeli army who have landed in Miami and have cut a nice niche for themselves in the ecstasy game. We are told when their Belgian supplier falls through, they start to wholesale out of Thailand. Determined to remain small, Semion is at odds with Isaac who has grander plans. So we know that's not going to work out well for Semion who is eventually set up and played by a "crazy" Brazilian woman who he knows is lying to him, but doesn't seem to care.
Step back in time to their contact in Thailand, a man who's name I cannot now recall has also been set up by the police as a shake down for a bribe after his grindr date ends up being a plant (by the police). He calls in a favor from the manufacturer of all this ecstasy and the favor ends up being called in right away in the form of forcing the contact to get Semion and Isaac to agree to a bigger order.
So the last part of the book then fast forwards through all this back to Raymond and Gloria and Shadrack to make some kind of sense of who is cutting out who in this cut throat industry of the drug trade. The book is gritty without texture and full of interesting characters that are a complete blank.
I'm good with non linear timelines. I'm good with morally bankrupt characters. I like diversity among characters. Check, check, check. But here, it felt like EMaM was merely checking off boxes as I have done here on a list, without taking the necessary steps to weave anything together. The extra piece is missing here to turn this from a page turning crime drama into something in which to become invested.
August 31, 2019
Patrick Hoffman’s Every Man a Menace is everything I want from a crime novel: suspenseful, dialogue that cuts yet isn’t cute, and an attempt at a realistic plot. It has all of those things and more. Writers can take note.
A beloved work from the guys at The Watch podcast, where I’ve gotten many a good recommendation, this book never takes its foot off the gas. But not in a pulpy, cheap thrills kind of way. These characters are real, the circumstances are legit, and the atmosphere claustrophobic. Everything centers around this massive drug shipment that’s coming in from overseas to San Francisco. The tension builds ’til the last page.
At the heart of it, Every Man a Menace is a book about how the ecosystem of drug dealing gets shifted around. You know the guy on the street is probably not acquiring his wares straight from the biggest cartels. There are layers to the system that moves from how it gets made to how it gets used. The book looks at the players in the system, from the lowliest hustlers to the biggest kingpins and how their stories intertwine around the shipments.
If I have a knock on the book, it’s the structure. It’s told in a 5-part way with different POVs for each part (some parts have multiple character POVs). Just when I feel like I’m getting invested in a character, I get jerked out of the story for the next one. Not sure that style worked as effectively as Hoffman wanted it to. Or maybe he’s just so good at writing characters that I miss them when I’m finished. At any rate, this is an awesome book with a chance to wind up on my end-of-the-year “Best Of” list.
A beloved work from the guys at The Watch podcast, where I’ve gotten many a good recommendation, this book never takes its foot off the gas. But not in a pulpy, cheap thrills kind of way. These characters are real, the circumstances are legit, and the atmosphere claustrophobic. Everything centers around this massive drug shipment that’s coming in from overseas to San Francisco. The tension builds ’til the last page.
At the heart of it, Every Man a Menace is a book about how the ecosystem of drug dealing gets shifted around. You know the guy on the street is probably not acquiring his wares straight from the biggest cartels. There are layers to the system that moves from how it gets made to how it gets used. The book looks at the players in the system, from the lowliest hustlers to the biggest kingpins and how their stories intertwine around the shipments.
If I have a knock on the book, it’s the structure. It’s told in a 5-part way with different POVs for each part (some parts have multiple character POVs). Just when I feel like I’m getting invested in a character, I get jerked out of the story for the next one. Not sure that style worked as effectively as Hoffman wanted it to. Or maybe he’s just so good at writing characters that I miss them when I’m finished. At any rate, this is an awesome book with a chance to wind up on my end-of-the-year “Best Of” list.
August 6, 2018
This was an Audible Daily Deal. This and the San Francisco setting were the only reason I downloaded it, as I've had a taste for crime thrillers lately. I didn't know the author, but was willing to give it a try.
Every Man a Menace is a straightforward plotty tale about several POV characters, from the guy just out of prison sent to check on some deals by his patron, to an Israeli dealer who finds himself in over his head with Asian triads, to a Brazilian-born con-woman of many accents and many schemes.
All their stories tie together with deals, double-deals, misunderstandings and betrayals, and a lot of people winding up dead, with the central MacGuffin being a $50 million shipment of MDMA ("Molly") to San Francisco. There is sex and violence and drugs, and the plot winds together effectively.
Ultimately, however, I failed to really care about the outcome. After the first few chapters, it's clear there is no "protagonist" per se - we're just getting different parts of a larger story told to us from the perspective of several different actors. No one is a hero here (everyone is a criminal), and no one is immune to getting a bullet in the head. The technique is effective, it just didn't work for me.
Quick listen but mostly forgettable.
Every Man a Menace is a straightforward plotty tale about several POV characters, from the guy just out of prison sent to check on some deals by his patron, to an Israeli dealer who finds himself in over his head with Asian triads, to a Brazilian-born con-woman of many accents and many schemes.
All their stories tie together with deals, double-deals, misunderstandings and betrayals, and a lot of people winding up dead, with the central MacGuffin being a $50 million shipment of MDMA ("Molly") to San Francisco. There is sex and violence and drugs, and the plot winds together effectively.
Ultimately, however, I failed to really care about the outcome. After the first few chapters, it's clear there is no "protagonist" per se - we're just getting different parts of a larger story told to us from the perspective of several different actors. No one is a hero here (everyone is a criminal), and no one is immune to getting a bullet in the head. The technique is effective, it just didn't work for me.
Quick listen but mostly forgettable.
July 28, 2017
I've read lots of books about drugs, but this was the first that really went in depth and focused on the operation as a whole. Hoffman provides fascinating insight, back stories, insider knowledge, and twists and turns to make this a fascinating and dark read. 5 separate, yet related, short stories intertwine to put together the puzzle of a complex ecstasy smuggling operation that spans continents. Flawlessly executed and plotted this is a must read for crime fiction readers. This would also make an excellent movie adaptation.
January 9, 2022
Very enjoyable read - like Grand Theft Auto: The Book. Dropped from 4* to 3* as I felt the ending left too many threads dangling and characters without resolution. I like to picture Hoffman just saying 'fuck it, that will do,' which, to be honest, is a sentiment I connect with on an almost spiritual level.
September 7, 2020
Like a quick-burning cigarette, filthy and addictive. Can't wait for the next one.
January 19, 2021
Fast paced tale of drug dealer’s intricate web that spans the globe. The story is unveiled cleverly and the characters had a cold, raw edge to them. Gritty look at the ruthless nature of drug trafficking.
January 29, 2021
I liked the pace and the spins. However when I finished the novel and felt no closure.
August 8, 2021
Very enjoyable read. First I’ve read by Patrick Hoffman but will read his others.
April 8, 2017
I really wanted to love this novel but it was just meh... Something just wasn't working.
May 17, 2017
This slender crime novel is a prime example of the oft-abused advice to writers to 'Show, don't tell'. The quality of writing is stellar, almost literary. Packed with characters, and plot twists - all under 300 pages! The dialogue is brilliant, right on the money. Highly recommended.
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