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Sam Acquillo Hamptons Mystery #8
Tango Down
A routine visit to one of Sam Acquillo’s job sites becomes anything but. The home’s owner, Victor Bollings, is lying in a pool of blood, the back of his head bashed in. One of Sam’s closest friends in the cabinetry trade is quickly behind bars as the obvious suspect. For the cops, this is all standard operating procedure. But as it turns out, nothing about the case is routine, obvious or standard in any way.
Sam and defense attorney Jackie Swaitkowski are used to an uneasy, though often reciprocal, relationship with law enforcement. But when the chief of police tells Sam to stay the hell away, this time he really means it. For Sam and Jackie, words like this are highly motivational, until strange new forces emerge from the shadows. Forces from well beyond the borders of Southampton, from worlds as sinister as they are unfathomable.
That doesn’t mean Sam and Jackie still don’t have a job to do. And a responsibility to defend the utterly defenseless: a Colombian immigrant with no legal status, no political power and no alibi, with the full weight of the judicial system—local, state, national and international—arrayed against him.
The eighth edition of the Sam Acquillo Mystery Series disrupts the illusion that the Hamptons are safely immune from the struggles that enflame much of the world. It’s an examination of how fear of the unknown ignites prejudice and hate, overturning norms of decency and principle.
For Sam and Jackie, it’s also a lesson in the interconnectedness of evil.
Sam and defense attorney Jackie Swaitkowski are used to an uneasy, though often reciprocal, relationship with law enforcement. But when the chief of police tells Sam to stay the hell away, this time he really means it. For Sam and Jackie, words like this are highly motivational, until strange new forces emerge from the shadows. Forces from well beyond the borders of Southampton, from worlds as sinister as they are unfathomable.
That doesn’t mean Sam and Jackie still don’t have a job to do. And a responsibility to defend the utterly defenseless: a Colombian immigrant with no legal status, no political power and no alibi, with the full weight of the judicial system—local, state, national and international—arrayed against him.
The eighth edition of the Sam Acquillo Mystery Series disrupts the illusion that the Hamptons are safely immune from the struggles that enflame much of the world. It’s an examination of how fear of the unknown ignites prejudice and hate, overturning norms of decency and principle.
For Sam and Jackie, it’s also a lesson in the interconnectedness of evil.
288 pages, Hardcover
Published November 30, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 7, 2018
First Sentence: I was trying to maneuver my way across the muddy construction site when Frank Entwhistle ran up to my old Jeep Cherokee and slapped on the windshield.
Sam Acquillo has been building cabinets for the new home of wealthy New Yorker Victor Bollings. When Bollings’ body is found on the job site, Colombian illegal Ernesto Mazzoti, a finish carpenter, and Sam’s friend is arrested as the obvious suspect. The murder weapon contains Ernesto’s fingerprints, but Sam isn’t buying it. With the help of Jackie Swaitkowski, a defense attorney who, courtesy of billionaire Burton Lewis, takes the cases of those who can’t afford to pay, Sam works to prove Ernesto innocent.
It is nice when an author starts straight in with the crime. Sam is a great character with a fascinating background and unexpected skills. Just when his machismo starts becoming a bit strong, it is tempered by his caring for others. His lover, Amada, and dog, Eddie Van Halen, round out the character nicely. It is also nice that Knopf’s writing is wonderfully intelligent and that he provides a good sense of Eastern Long Island with its marked contrast between the extremely wealthy, primarily summer people, and the working-class people who live there year-round.
A well-done metaphor is always a pleasure to read—“Then I used a few other traditional calibrating tools to reset the table saw. … The result was perfect and true, like the heart of a young lover before disappointment upends her soul.”
The storyline of undocumented workers couldn’t be more timely or accurate. That the investigation involves multiple agencies, and a jaunt to the Virgin Islands adds dimensions to the story. So too is that of the issue with which Amanda is dealing which is emotional and adds yet another layer to the plot as well as the characters.
“Tango Down” is intelligent, complex, multi-layered, and has a realistic ending. It is also really, really good; it is always surprising that Knopf is not more widely known and read.
TANGO DOWN (PI-Sam Acquillo -Long Island, NY-Contemp) - Ex
Knopf, Chris – 8th in series
The Permanent Press – December 2017
Sam Acquillo has been building cabinets for the new home of wealthy New Yorker Victor Bollings. When Bollings’ body is found on the job site, Colombian illegal Ernesto Mazzoti, a finish carpenter, and Sam’s friend is arrested as the obvious suspect. The murder weapon contains Ernesto’s fingerprints, but Sam isn’t buying it. With the help of Jackie Swaitkowski, a defense attorney who, courtesy of billionaire Burton Lewis, takes the cases of those who can’t afford to pay, Sam works to prove Ernesto innocent.
It is nice when an author starts straight in with the crime. Sam is a great character with a fascinating background and unexpected skills. Just when his machismo starts becoming a bit strong, it is tempered by his caring for others. His lover, Amada, and dog, Eddie Van Halen, round out the character nicely. It is also nice that Knopf’s writing is wonderfully intelligent and that he provides a good sense of Eastern Long Island with its marked contrast between the extremely wealthy, primarily summer people, and the working-class people who live there year-round.
A well-done metaphor is always a pleasure to read—“Then I used a few other traditional calibrating tools to reset the table saw. … The result was perfect and true, like the heart of a young lover before disappointment upends her soul.”
The storyline of undocumented workers couldn’t be more timely or accurate. That the investigation involves multiple agencies, and a jaunt to the Virgin Islands adds dimensions to the story. So too is that of the issue with which Amanda is dealing which is emotional and adds yet another layer to the plot as well as the characters.
“Tango Down” is intelligent, complex, multi-layered, and has a realistic ending. It is also really, really good; it is always surprising that Knopf is not more widely known and read.
TANGO DOWN (PI-Sam Acquillo -Long Island, NY-Contemp) - Ex
Knopf, Chris – 8th in series
The Permanent Press – December 2017
November 11, 2017
Not all illegal immigrants are created equal in Christ Knopf’s latest Sam Acquillo novel, Tango Down. But Sam knows the accused in the crime that starts this novel. He likes him. He knows he’s innocent. There again, not all innocence is created equal either.
Meanwhile, healthy lives and relationships fail to age equally, and author Chris Knopf cleverly combines two powerful storylines—one of a woman struggling silently for her health, and the other of an immigrant struggling for his freedom. Two futures are threatened, and an older, calmer, but still very active Sam Acquillo looks for order in increasing chaos.
Local anti-immigrant sentiment and personal tragedy are pitted against global evil in this tale, where Sam and defense attorney Jackie Swaitkowski follow a tangled web hiding secrets bigger than either of them have imagined. But tiny secrets might hold the greater threat.
Tango Down reads like a dance with the devil, even when the meaning of the phrase is made clear. The protagonist’s narration is natural and consistent. His balance between global and local fear is convincing—sometimes even heartbreaking. And the clever intersection of the storylines is hauntingly real. Sometimes to gain freedom, freedom truly must be sacrificed. But which sacrifice will Sam be called upon to make? And what freedom will he find?
Disclosure: I was given a preview edition by the publisher and I offer my honest review.
Meanwhile, healthy lives and relationships fail to age equally, and author Chris Knopf cleverly combines two powerful storylines—one of a woman struggling silently for her health, and the other of an immigrant struggling for his freedom. Two futures are threatened, and an older, calmer, but still very active Sam Acquillo looks for order in increasing chaos.
Local anti-immigrant sentiment and personal tragedy are pitted against global evil in this tale, where Sam and defense attorney Jackie Swaitkowski follow a tangled web hiding secrets bigger than either of them have imagined. But tiny secrets might hold the greater threat.
Tango Down reads like a dance with the devil, even when the meaning of the phrase is made clear. The protagonist’s narration is natural and consistent. His balance between global and local fear is convincing—sometimes even heartbreaking. And the clever intersection of the storylines is hauntingly real. Sometimes to gain freedom, freedom truly must be sacrificed. But which sacrifice will Sam be called upon to make? And what freedom will he find?
Disclosure: I was given a preview edition by the publisher and I offer my honest review.
January 30, 2018
From the publisher: A routine visit to one of Sam Acquillo’s job sites becomes anything but. The home’s owner, Victor Bollings, is lying in a pool of blood, the back of his head bashed in. And one of Sam’s closest friends in the cabinetry trade is quickly behind bars, the obvious suspect. For the cops, this is all standard fare. But as it turns out, nothing about the case is routine, obvious, or standard in any way. Sam and defense attorney Jackie Swaitkowski are used to an uneasy, though often reciprocal, relationship with law enforcement. But when the chief of police tells Sam to stay the hell away, this time he really means it. For Sam and Jackie, words like this are highly motivational, until strange new forces enter the fray. Forces from well beyond the borders of Southampton, from worlds as sinister as they are unfathomable. That doesn’t mean Sam and Jackie still don’t have a job to do. And a responsibility to defend the utterly defenseless: a Colombian immigrant with no legal status, no political power, and no alibi. With the full weight of the judicial system - - local, state, national, and international - - arrayed against him. For Sam and Jackie, it’s also a lesson in the confluence of all evils. When the murder weapon is determined to be a gold club given to Ernesto Mazzotti by the dead man when the latter was giving Ernesto golf lessons, he becomes the only suspect, and is promptly arrested. It doesn’t help matters any when Ernesto’s criminal record becomes known, to wit: he had gotten off on a charge of assault and battery, “beat a guy to within an inch of his life,” a rich customer with whose wife Ernesto was involved.
Jackie, now the defense attorney for Ernesto, convinces Sam to take the required test and get his private investigator’s license, thus enabling him to act officially as Jackie’s staff investigator who can act as her proxy. “Jackie had to declare that I’d been her assistant in investigations for at least three years. She hadn’t paid me, since it was usually hard to tell who was working for whom, but she knew a guy at the governing commission who gave us dispensation.” (Sam is told “If you think innocence is a criterion for defense attorneys taking a case, you don’t know much about how the law works.”” One more thing he can now add to his resume, which already included having been a professional boxer earlier in his life. A prominent creature in the narrative is Sam’s dog [his only companion in his home after he “blew up his marriage and professional life”] named Eddie Van Halen, who Sam refers to as a “forty-pound ball of fur.” As Sam says: “we lived in the same house, in a congenial arrangement where I fed him and gave him a place to sleep, while he hung around when I was there . . . Unlike other dogs I’d known, he often looked me directly in the eye, as if assessing my reliability in continuing the relationship, understandable since he’d spent his formative years as a feral animal, as had I.”
For this reader, the wonderful writing is always a highlight of this author’s work. Another is his passion for baseball [one which I happen to share]. In discussion with the Southampton Town detective, they make “a preliminary assessment of the Yankees’ prospects - - a frothy brew of irrepressible hope and thwarted expectations. Though we had to admit, the highs had exceeded the lows over the years, and for the thousandth time thanked the Lord we hadn’t been born in Boston or Philadelphia. ‘Or God forbid, Chicago,’ said Sullivan.” Another aspect ripped from the headlines is the fact that Ernesto, born and raised in Colombia, is still undocumented in the US, giving rise to the rampant anti-immigrant hordes who periodically gather to make their feelings known. The investigation, and the novel, are masterfully wrapped up, and this is one more novel by Chris Knopf that I can heartily recommend.
Jackie, now the defense attorney for Ernesto, convinces Sam to take the required test and get his private investigator’s license, thus enabling him to act officially as Jackie’s staff investigator who can act as her proxy. “Jackie had to declare that I’d been her assistant in investigations for at least three years. She hadn’t paid me, since it was usually hard to tell who was working for whom, but she knew a guy at the governing commission who gave us dispensation.” (Sam is told “If you think innocence is a criterion for defense attorneys taking a case, you don’t know much about how the law works.”” One more thing he can now add to his resume, which already included having been a professional boxer earlier in his life. A prominent creature in the narrative is Sam’s dog [his only companion in his home after he “blew up his marriage and professional life”] named Eddie Van Halen, who Sam refers to as a “forty-pound ball of fur.” As Sam says: “we lived in the same house, in a congenial arrangement where I fed him and gave him a place to sleep, while he hung around when I was there . . . Unlike other dogs I’d known, he often looked me directly in the eye, as if assessing my reliability in continuing the relationship, understandable since he’d spent his formative years as a feral animal, as had I.”
For this reader, the wonderful writing is always a highlight of this author’s work. Another is his passion for baseball [one which I happen to share]. In discussion with the Southampton Town detective, they make “a preliminary assessment of the Yankees’ prospects - - a frothy brew of irrepressible hope and thwarted expectations. Though we had to admit, the highs had exceeded the lows over the years, and for the thousandth time thanked the Lord we hadn’t been born in Boston or Philadelphia. ‘Or God forbid, Chicago,’ said Sullivan.” Another aspect ripped from the headlines is the fact that Ernesto, born and raised in Colombia, is still undocumented in the US, giving rise to the rampant anti-immigrant hordes who periodically gather to make their feelings known. The investigation, and the novel, are masterfully wrapped up, and this is one more novel by Chris Knopf that I can heartily recommend.
August 14, 2018
Sam Acquillo is a hard-drinking, smart alecky, tough guy private eye with a resume that's a little too good to be believable. Kid from the Bronx , former pro boxer, MIT graduate who became engineering V.P. of a major corporation, and by the time of this book anyway, a cabinetmaker and sailboat owner in ritzy Southampton, N.Y. This is the 9th Sam Acquillo mystery, but my first, so I've no doubt left out a lot of the backstory.
The homeowner for whom Sam is making cabinets is murdered by way of blows to the head from a golf club. The police arrest Ernesto, a Colombian immigrant in charge of the construction crew. His fingerprints are on the murder weapon. He claims the victim was teaching him to play golf and loaned him the club. Of course Sam believes him to be innocent and sets forth to prove it. Jackie, Sam's friend and nominal employer is Ernesto's attorney and Amanda, Sam's beautiful neighbor, is Sam's main squeeze. The rest you can work for yourself. the book is all about style, not plot, fortunately, because the former is quite good while the latter, not so much. The repartee is at least B+ quality. For a tough guy mystery the book is refreshingly free of the excessive gore, swearing, and lurid debauchery that typifies the style. It was not until about page 100 that the F-bombs started flowing, and even then it was merely a trickle. Needless to say, Sam figures things out before the local police, the FBI, and the CIA, all of whom get entangled, but as a former G-man I appreciated the fact that the author didn't make any of them look corrupt, ill-intentioned, or incompetent, just not as smart as Sam. Sam can handle himself in a fistfight, of course, and there's an excursion to Latin America so the title and cover image can be wedged preposterously into the story line. The very pedestrian solution doesn't arrive until the last four or five pages, but it didn't matter since as I said it was all about enjoying the style. Sam gets to cruise around the Little Peconic Bay on his sailboat with a beautiful half-naked woman drinking vodka and enjoying the sunset and seabirds when he's not out beating up the evil-doers of the world while exchanging witty bon mots with his interlocutors. Enjoy it for what it's worth.
The homeowner for whom Sam is making cabinets is murdered by way of blows to the head from a golf club. The police arrest Ernesto, a Colombian immigrant in charge of the construction crew. His fingerprints are on the murder weapon. He claims the victim was teaching him to play golf and loaned him the club. Of course Sam believes him to be innocent and sets forth to prove it. Jackie, Sam's friend and nominal employer is Ernesto's attorney and Amanda, Sam's beautiful neighbor, is Sam's main squeeze. The rest you can work for yourself. the book is all about style, not plot, fortunately, because the former is quite good while the latter, not so much. The repartee is at least B+ quality. For a tough guy mystery the book is refreshingly free of the excessive gore, swearing, and lurid debauchery that typifies the style. It was not until about page 100 that the F-bombs started flowing, and even then it was merely a trickle. Needless to say, Sam figures things out before the local police, the FBI, and the CIA, all of whom get entangled, but as a former G-man I appreciated the fact that the author didn't make any of them look corrupt, ill-intentioned, or incompetent, just not as smart as Sam. Sam can handle himself in a fistfight, of course, and there's an excursion to Latin America so the title and cover image can be wedged preposterously into the story line. The very pedestrian solution doesn't arrive until the last four or five pages, but it didn't matter since as I said it was all about enjoying the style. Sam gets to cruise around the Little Peconic Bay on his sailboat with a beautiful half-naked woman drinking vodka and enjoying the sunset and seabirds when he's not out beating up the evil-doers of the world while exchanging witty bon mots with his interlocutors. Enjoy it for what it's worth.
March 13, 2018
Tango Down is a bit out of my favorite genre only because I prefer female protagonists, but it was gifted to me at a holiday event. When I learned it was #8 in a Sam Acquillo Mystery series, I was reluctant to come late to the party, afraid I wouldn’t know anyone, but thought I’d read a few pages to give it a shot.
I was drawn into the story on page one with realistic characters, the plot hook, and crisp natural dialog:
“What’s up?”
“Don’t know,” he huffed out as we ran up the stairs. “Something bad. They were afraid to tell me.”
Now I want to know what happened. What is Sam going to do about it, and why is he the guy to do it? Author Chris Knopf handles backstory and plot so masterfully, Tango Down can stand alone. I enjoyed the Southampton setting—near enough to NYC with all its possibilities, yet far enough for a coastal, small town feel and characters—and Sam’s tangled relationships with those around him.
I would give the highest rating to Tango Down except for two personal issues. The language, though accurate and suited to the characters, was rougher than what I’m accustomed to. And I was a little confused at the very end about who was who and what just happened, though I accept some blame because I put the book down for a few days. That said, I finished reading more than two weeks ago and still think about the characters.
Tango Down is a great read—a gritty mystery, captivating characters, sharp-witted humor. I will definitely read more from Chris Knopf because the writing is so darn good.
I was drawn into the story on page one with realistic characters, the plot hook, and crisp natural dialog:
“What’s up?”
“Don’t know,” he huffed out as we ran up the stairs. “Something bad. They were afraid to tell me.”
Now I want to know what happened. What is Sam going to do about it, and why is he the guy to do it? Author Chris Knopf handles backstory and plot so masterfully, Tango Down can stand alone. I enjoyed the Southampton setting—near enough to NYC with all its possibilities, yet far enough for a coastal, small town feel and characters—and Sam’s tangled relationships with those around him.
I would give the highest rating to Tango Down except for two personal issues. The language, though accurate and suited to the characters, was rougher than what I’m accustomed to. And I was a little confused at the very end about who was who and what just happened, though I accept some blame because I put the book down for a few days. That said, I finished reading more than two weeks ago and still think about the characters.
Tango Down is a great read—a gritty mystery, captivating characters, sharp-witted humor. I will definitely read more from Chris Knopf because the writing is so darn good.
October 27, 2018
When a friend of Sam Acquillo, a Columbian immigrant, is arrested for murder, and Sam is told to stay out of the case it could be disastrous for him to intercede in the situation. But when more factors enter the already touchy case, Sam decides to take a hand in unraveling the mystery and solving the murder.
The plot centers around undocumented workers falsely accused of crimes they didn’t commit, giving honest workers from South of the Border a bad name. I found this comical in the reality of the crimes many undocumented workers do commit, while straining our educational and medical systems. But it is fodder for good fictional crime novels. The author is a good writer, and this is a good mystery for the fan. Although I’ve never cared much for his dialog, his plots are certainly topnotch. Highly recommended.
The plot centers around undocumented workers falsely accused of crimes they didn’t commit, giving honest workers from South of the Border a bad name. I found this comical in the reality of the crimes many undocumented workers do commit, while straining our educational and medical systems. But it is fodder for good fictional crime novels. The author is a good writer, and this is a good mystery for the fan. Although I’ve never cared much for his dialog, his plots are certainly topnotch. Highly recommended.
April 3, 2018
another great book in the sam series with the dog eddie. this one finds sam and his lady neighbor in trouble again. he was working construction and the boss was killed. one of the workers was arrested. sam got his rich friend to get a attorney and provide a safe place for the mans family to live. good thing as the house was burned down
sams neighbor got 2 brain tumors, they operated and hope she will be ok. they told each other they loved each other
sam went to other countries to find out about the man that was killed (he was deep undercover)
eddie was a little more active in this book, but still would like to see him more a part of the next book. he is a good dog and let them know when the bad guys were at the house!
sams neighbor got 2 brain tumors, they operated and hope she will be ok. they told each other they loved each other
sam went to other countries to find out about the man that was killed (he was deep undercover)
eddie was a little more active in this book, but still would like to see him more a part of the next book. he is a good dog and let them know when the bad guys were at the house!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 9, 2025
Sam Acquillo - in fine form!
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2025
In his cottage on the bay, former boxer, engineer, MIT grad & anger management class dropout, Sam Acquillo has settled into the semblance of a peaceful life & work as a fine carpenter & cabinetmaker. Equally comfortable among the Hamptons hoi polloi in their mansions and the hard-working locals who build, repair & police them, Sam is certain that the arrest of a worker on his job site - a man who just happens to be an undocumented immigrant – for murder, is wrong.
What starts as a simple tale of crime and punishment on Long Island’s East End, evolves in Knopf’s highly imaginative telling into a terrific tale of international, corporate and government dark ops. Highly recommended!
Reviewed in the United States on August 9, 2025
In his cottage on the bay, former boxer, engineer, MIT grad & anger management class dropout, Sam Acquillo has settled into the semblance of a peaceful life & work as a fine carpenter & cabinetmaker. Equally comfortable among the Hamptons hoi polloi in their mansions and the hard-working locals who build, repair & police them, Sam is certain that the arrest of a worker on his job site - a man who just happens to be an undocumented immigrant – for murder, is wrong.
What starts as a simple tale of crime and punishment on Long Island’s East End, evolves in Knopf’s highly imaginative telling into a terrific tale of international, corporate and government dark ops. Highly recommended!
March 19, 2018
I have "read" (listened to on audible) all of the Sam Acquillo series and this was my least favorite. There were not enough characters developed so it was pretty obvious what was happening throughout. Entertaining, fast-read, but too much was spent on Sam's adventures in the book and not enough on developing sufficient characters for the underlying event. Will continue to read the series, but a disappointing recent installment.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 12, 2018
Read as an audiobook performed by Keith Szarabajka. This is the 8th story in the Sam Acquillo Hamptons Mysteries and the first for me. Reading the book summary--construction site, Hamptons, immigration issues--I almost didn't pick this one. I was pleasantly surprised to find an enjoyable and quick-paced mystery, with interesting and well-developed characters. I would recommend this story and performance for a 7-8 hours listen.
February 15, 2018
Tango Down is the first Chris Knopf book I’ve read and it certainly won’t be the last. There’s a seductive fluidity to his writing that draws you in and sweeps you along much like white-knuckled white water rafting—only you hang on knowing you’ll be able to step onto dry land at the end. There are no guarantees for his engaging characters. Thoroughly enjoyed the ride. I’m a fan.
June 27, 2024
8th book in series about Sam, an MIT graduate and previous head of research at a big company who now lives in his childhood shack on Long Island and is a skilled custom cabinet maker. One of the immigrant skilled carpenters is accused of murder and Sam works to help him. International intrigue is involved. Good series but too much alcohol involved.
December 14, 2017
Chris Knopf does it again. Love the Sam Acquillo series–it just keeps getting better.
April 18, 2018
See my upcoming review on my website (unsungartistsmusic.com).
July 11, 2018
This one is a bit darker than the usual Sam Aquilo books -- but well done and enjoyable.
September 2, 2019
Excellent entertainment.
I really enjoyed this book, as I have enjoyed many others by Chris Knopf.His writing and plotting are always outstanding and a pleasure to read.
I really enjoyed this book, as I have enjoyed many others by Chris Knopf.His writing and plotting are always outstanding and a pleasure to read.
May 17, 2024
A lot of interesting twists in this one. Well-written, with an engaging subtext regarding prejudice against undocumented laborers and the plights they face, I found this one quite enjoyable.
December 14, 2017
This was my first time listening to a book in this series and while I liked the story, the narrator’s voice was nothing like what I’ve imagined Sam’s to be.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews