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Killing Ground
A young English schoolteacher, Charlotte Parsons, is invited to reume her job as nanny to the children of a well-to-do Sicilian family. But this time Charley is the central figure in a desperate plot by the US Drug Enforcement Agency to trap Mario Ruggerio, would-be head of the Sicilian Mafia, the man who masterminds a multi-billion dollar international drugs trade. Charley is to be the bait in the trap and, in deciding to return to the Ruggerio family in Palermo, is about to enter the killing ground...
576 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
17 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Gerald Seymour
98 books285 followersGerald Seymour (born 25 November 1941 in Guildford, Surrey) is a British writer.
The son of two literary figures, he was educated at Kelly College at Tavistock in Devon and took a BA Hons degree in Modern History at University College London. Initially a journalist, he joined ITN in 1963, covering such topics as the Great Train Robbery, Vietnam, Ireland, the Munich Olympics massacre, Germany's Red Army, Italy's Red Brigades and Palestinian militant groups. His first book, Harry's Game, was published in 1975, and Seymour then became a full-time novelist, living in the West Country. In 1999, he featured in the Oscar-winning television film, One Day in September, which portrayed the Munich Olympics massacre.
Television adaptations have been made of his books Harry's Game, The Glory Boys, The Contract, Red Fox, Field Of Blood, A Line In The Sand and The Waiting Time.
The son of two literary figures, he was educated at Kelly College at Tavistock in Devon and took a BA Hons degree in Modern History at University College London. Initially a journalist, he joined ITN in 1963, covering such topics as the Great Train Robbery, Vietnam, Ireland, the Munich Olympics massacre, Germany's Red Army, Italy's Red Brigades and Palestinian militant groups. His first book, Harry's Game, was published in 1975, and Seymour then became a full-time novelist, living in the West Country. In 1999, he featured in the Oscar-winning television film, One Day in September, which portrayed the Munich Olympics massacre.
Television adaptations have been made of his books Harry's Game, The Glory Boys, The Contract, Red Fox, Field Of Blood, A Line In The Sand and The Waiting Time.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
August 8, 2020
It's a slow simmering thriller from Mr. Seymour that has a powerful blast at the end! You are gripped by the variety of characters that are introduced and by the vivid depiction of Sicily and Palermo. It seems Mr. Seymour likes to write big fat books about the mafia because this one, the "Killing Ground", "The Collaborator" and his other one, "The Untouchable" are almost all 500 to 600 pages long. But, I don't mind reading them! They are awesome! This one is an excellent story about the Sicily "La Costra Mafia" that has vividly described the characters, the city of Palermo and it's the countryside, coastline, some mafia history and even Mondello beach gets a mention. You feel as though you're walking with the crowds of tourists that come to see the sights knowing that somewhere not to far the LA Costra are there too.
But the more you read the story, the more it feels like as though, somehow, you are allowed to move from the crowds of onlookers and tourists and peer over the shoulder of Charlie to see how they, the mafia, live and spend each day. You begin to see the sad and depressing Angela who stays in bed a lot and takes pills and tablets to get her through the day. Then, there are the children who don't really know yet what their father, their uncle and their 'family' as whole do for a living. Then there's Mario, Salvatore, Peppino and a few others that form the inner sanctum of 'The Family'. They are the killers. They butcher and they are brutal, especially Mario, the godfather. For example, his preferred way to kill people was to simply strangle his victims with his bare hands because it is less messy and it leaves less evidence for the Direzione Investigativa Anti-Mafia to find.
While, on the other side of the fence, there are the Carabiniere (the Italian drug enforcement agency) that have the troubled and below par Pasquale, Axel Moen- the pony tailed American, Giancarlo from surveillance, Benetto or Benny to his friends and also the good judge, Dr. Tardelli just to fly a few names around. If that's not enough, then there is Det. Serg. Harry Crompton from the NCIS gets involved and there is a journalist who somehow has no idea who the mafia are or where to find them. To cap it all off, with all that going on, there's the usual banter between the intelligence agencies too. So, it's with little wonder that the book is just a smidge under 500 pages.
Mr. Seymour, however, doesn't get bogged down in so much detail that he loses the plot line, no sir. As an accomplished writer, he gets about halfway through the book and moves on from story detail to story line and then slowly builds up the tension. By the end of the story, you wonder what will happen to Charlie because 'they' know and people start to go missing. She goes literally from the 'vipers home' so to speak, into the 'viper's pit'. Mr. Seymour was able to build up and build up the tension so much that it became almost unbearable, but I must admit that you'll have makeup your own mind about the ending. It wasn't what I was expecting and I can't say that I agree with it very much. But, that said and done, it was a real pleasure reading this story from Mr. Seymour! Five Stars!
(I'm not sure if this has been released in the US yet because I bought this copy in Australia off the book shelf for a whopping $23! Australia is a very nice place, nice people and nice scenery and the food is great too, but the prices are certainly on the expensive side of things. Anyway, it was worth the money and it was a good reminder of Sicily even though it was bought in Australia and read in Japan!?).
Gerald Seymour has been writing thrillers for more than thirty five years. Here are a few ranked accordingly:
5 Stars ~ ‘A Line in the Sand’ and ‘Home Run’.
4 Stars ~ ‘The Waiting Time’, ‘Holding the Zero’, ‘The Dealer and the Dead’, ‘’No Mortal Thing’, The Outsiders’, ‘A Deniable Death’, ‘A Damn Serious Business’, ‘Archangel’, ‘No Mortal Thing’, ‘The Collaborator’ and ‘Killing Ground’ ,’ The Journeyman Tailor’, ‘Field of Blood’ and ‘Harry’s Game’.
3 Stars ~ ‘A Song in the Morning', 'In Honour Bound’ & ‘The Untouchable’
2 Stars ~ ‘The Corporals Wife’ & 'The Unknown Soldier’.
Other similar authors that this person has read include: John le Carre, Len Deighton, Graham Greene, Alan Furst, Mick Herron, Ted Allbeury and Robert Ludlum who focused on spy novels, conflicts or on espionage.
But the more you read the story, the more it feels like as though, somehow, you are allowed to move from the crowds of onlookers and tourists and peer over the shoulder of Charlie to see how they, the mafia, live and spend each day. You begin to see the sad and depressing Angela who stays in bed a lot and takes pills and tablets to get her through the day. Then, there are the children who don't really know yet what their father, their uncle and their 'family' as whole do for a living. Then there's Mario, Salvatore, Peppino and a few others that form the inner sanctum of 'The Family'. They are the killers. They butcher and they are brutal, especially Mario, the godfather. For example, his preferred way to kill people was to simply strangle his victims with his bare hands because it is less messy and it leaves less evidence for the Direzione Investigativa Anti-Mafia to find.
While, on the other side of the fence, there are the Carabiniere (the Italian drug enforcement agency) that have the troubled and below par Pasquale, Axel Moen- the pony tailed American, Giancarlo from surveillance, Benetto or Benny to his friends and also the good judge, Dr. Tardelli just to fly a few names around. If that's not enough, then there is Det. Serg. Harry Crompton from the NCIS gets involved and there is a journalist who somehow has no idea who the mafia are or where to find them. To cap it all off, with all that going on, there's the usual banter between the intelligence agencies too. So, it's with little wonder that the book is just a smidge under 500 pages.
Mr. Seymour, however, doesn't get bogged down in so much detail that he loses the plot line, no sir. As an accomplished writer, he gets about halfway through the book and moves on from story detail to story line and then slowly builds up the tension. By the end of the story, you wonder what will happen to Charlie because 'they' know and people start to go missing. She goes literally from the 'vipers home' so to speak, into the 'viper's pit'. Mr. Seymour was able to build up and build up the tension so much that it became almost unbearable, but I must admit that you'll have makeup your own mind about the ending. It wasn't what I was expecting and I can't say that I agree with it very much. But, that said and done, it was a real pleasure reading this story from Mr. Seymour! Five Stars!
(I'm not sure if this has been released in the US yet because I bought this copy in Australia off the book shelf for a whopping $23! Australia is a very nice place, nice people and nice scenery and the food is great too, but the prices are certainly on the expensive side of things. Anyway, it was worth the money and it was a good reminder of Sicily even though it was bought in Australia and read in Japan!?).
Gerald Seymour has been writing thrillers for more than thirty five years. Here are a few ranked accordingly:
5 Stars ~ ‘A Line in the Sand’ and ‘Home Run’.
4 Stars ~ ‘The Waiting Time’, ‘Holding the Zero’, ‘The Dealer and the Dead’, ‘’No Mortal Thing’, The Outsiders’, ‘A Deniable Death’, ‘A Damn Serious Business’, ‘Archangel’, ‘No Mortal Thing’, ‘The Collaborator’ and ‘Killing Ground’ ,’ The Journeyman Tailor’, ‘Field of Blood’ and ‘Harry’s Game’.
3 Stars ~ ‘A Song in the Morning', 'In Honour Bound’ & ‘The Untouchable’
2 Stars ~ ‘The Corporals Wife’ & 'The Unknown Soldier’.
Other similar authors that this person has read include: John le Carre, Len Deighton, Graham Greene, Alan Furst, Mick Herron, Ted Allbeury and Robert Ludlum who focused on spy novels, conflicts or on espionage.
January 22, 2025
Funny enough, I read this book immediately after Timebomb by the same author (a pretty good one); funny enough, the plots overlap in many respects. In both cases we have an undercover agent (professional in the former, a dilettante in this one) embedded into the life of a High Value Target (Russian mafia in the former, Italian mafia here). The main difference is that here the plot is thinner (simple and linear) and the intensity of the story lower.
Moreover, while the subject matter was definitely well researched, I was rather annoyed by several context inaccuracies and editing errors.
Just one example: the author sees people going to church "carrying their bibles": he might not know that Italy is a Catholic country and for them the Holy Gospel is what the Bible is for Protestants; you'll never see an Italian going to church with a Bible.
Plus, the smooth flow of the storytelling is kind of affected by some literary mannerisms that the author uses profusely; just a couple of examples.
One: the author chooses to make extensive use of the rethorical figure of "anaphora"; case in point:
"His shirt was elegant. His coat was elegant. His trousers were elegant. His shoes were elegant." This to make us understand that the guy was an elegant person...This happens with such a frequency to become irritating.
Two: the author indulges in the whim to use quite a lot of Italian words, which makes sense for a story set in Italy, but you would expect that in this case an editor for the Italian language is used (or at least a google translator). Instead, there are so many spelling errors, some even rather gross, to make it annoying to those having some knowledge of the language. By the way, Mr Seymour, any google page, from Wiki down, will tell you that the name of the Sicilian mafia is "Cosa Nostra" (not La Cosa Nostra).
Moreover, while the subject matter was definitely well researched, I was rather annoyed by several context inaccuracies and editing errors.
Just one example: the author sees people going to church "carrying their bibles": he might not know that Italy is a Catholic country and for them the Holy Gospel is what the Bible is for Protestants; you'll never see an Italian going to church with a Bible.
Plus, the smooth flow of the storytelling is kind of affected by some literary mannerisms that the author uses profusely; just a couple of examples.
One: the author chooses to make extensive use of the rethorical figure of "anaphora"; case in point:
"His shirt was elegant. His coat was elegant. His trousers were elegant. His shoes were elegant." This to make us understand that the guy was an elegant person...This happens with such a frequency to become irritating.
Two: the author indulges in the whim to use quite a lot of Italian words, which makes sense for a story set in Italy, but you would expect that in this case an editor for the Italian language is used (or at least a google translator). Instead, there are so many spelling errors, some even rather gross, to make it annoying to those having some knowledge of the language. By the way, Mr Seymour, any google page, from Wiki down, will tell you that the name of the Sicilian mafia is "Cosa Nostra" (not La Cosa Nostra).
April 13, 2021
I have been reading Seymour since the late 70's and at one point I would have regarded him as the best thriller writer in the world although I feel in the last 10 years his powers have waned.
This book was written when he was at the height of his powers and after the Northern Ireland trilogy that ends with The Journeyman Tailor I rate this as his best novel.
A gripping and powerful thriller that provides a multi layered plot gives an insight into the life of a Mafia boss and the extended family around him.
What makes this so powerful are the other principal characters the simple English girl used as a pawn by the dedicated American agent with his own strong sense of morality but what sets this apart is the details around the Judges close protection team.
One can almost feel the sweat, dirt and fear amongst the team seen through the eyes of a new recruit who is struggling to make the grade.
Like all Seymour's books don't expect a generic happy ending but as always it has its own strange moral compass
One of the best thrillers I have ever read and a prime example of what at one stage put Seymour apart from his contemporaries.
Moving, powerful, page turning with brilliantly observed realistic characters whom the reader can recognise as real people
This book was written when he was at the height of his powers and after the Northern Ireland trilogy that ends with The Journeyman Tailor I rate this as his best novel.
A gripping and powerful thriller that provides a multi layered plot gives an insight into the life of a Mafia boss and the extended family around him.
What makes this so powerful are the other principal characters the simple English girl used as a pawn by the dedicated American agent with his own strong sense of morality but what sets this apart is the details around the Judges close protection team.
One can almost feel the sweat, dirt and fear amongst the team seen through the eyes of a new recruit who is struggling to make the grade.
Like all Seymour's books don't expect a generic happy ending but as always it has its own strange moral compass
One of the best thrillers I have ever read and a prime example of what at one stage put Seymour apart from his contemporaries.
Moving, powerful, page turning with brilliantly observed realistic characters whom the reader can recognise as real people
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 9, 2023
I like Gerald Seymour's books very much, there's usually a lot of history to learn and his stories are rarely predictable - this is one of the best. I particularly enjoyed how Seymour describes a 'civilian' (Charley) being 'used' by the US Drug Enforcement Agency in an entrapment attempt against the Mafia. Very tense, especially as you always have in the back of your mind the fact that Charley is a civilian, and not an agent of law enforcement. Very taut and beautifully crafted plot.
March 25, 2025
A deep, complex, and thought-provoking intrigue.
Gerald Seymour evokes the horror of tackling the Cosa Nostra in Sicily and the sinister menace of the Mafia. He portrays the battle of law enforcement 'true believers' fighting corruption, systemic jealousy, and infighting so that it feels real.
This book had me on edge. I was so immersed in the story and invested in the outcome, that I couldn't put it down.
Gerald Seymour evokes the horror of tackling the Cosa Nostra in Sicily and the sinister menace of the Mafia. He portrays the battle of law enforcement 'true believers' fighting corruption, systemic jealousy, and infighting so that it feels real.
This book had me on edge. I was so immersed in the story and invested in the outcome, that I couldn't put it down.
January 30, 2018
It took me a really long time to finish is book. I did not hate it but I found the plot to be dull. At times the book was difficult to read. There were a lot of characters and little happening. None of the characters appealed to me. I was kind of hoping Charly would be die in the end, just to make things interesting.
November 11, 2018
A gripping and powerful thriller from Gerard Seymour. An incredible insight into the life of a Mafia boss and the detailed and dangerous plan to arrest him. At 600+ pages it’s a big book, but it hooked me from the start. I read this book when it was first released and read it again a few years ago, such is the regard I hold for it. In my mind one of Gerald Seymour’s top 3 books.
December 21, 2021
Great plots, you know Mr S knows what he's on about. The style is so different to most though, which normally I can adapt to. Not this one though. Long chapters, tedious and sometimes boring. The story got there in the end and sure, the way it comes in at different angles in cleverly done. Just not for me I guess.
September 11, 2019
So many characters, so many unwanted dailouge between those characters. The story stay at the same place and with the boring pace. I couldn't finish it completely.
👎
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May 31, 2021
Good story, but a bit slow
November 4, 2023
Dated, lacking drama and manufactured story
June 10, 2024
Set in Sicily in 1996, mafia . Charlotte is an interesting character. Not really a page turner
October 22, 2024
Not my cup of tea
Read
August 27, 2015I gave this book two stars, really I wish it could be a star and 1/2. I didn't despise this book and I didn't hate it enough not to finish it but I certainly can't say I liked it. My first issue with this book is the number of characters and almost each paragraph dealt with their story. That's all well and good in a movie but not here. You really had to write down all these characters and their part in the story to really follow it. I didn't care enough to follow it that closely. Another issue I had is that the author tried to inject a small amount of a love story in it...either do it or don't do it, otherwise its just an annoyance to ride the line.
The book was pretty long (probably because it had to follow the actions of all 120 characters). I never did understand what Charley's main goal was. It was never made clear, I just assumed she was looking for some thing to help incriminate the mafioso. The whole time I was waiting for this to happen and it never did. There wasn't much mystery or action. Looking back on it I don't really know what filled up most of the pages of the book.
As a side note, not only were the number of characters large, they all seemed to have nicknames so in addition to following 120 people you had to keep up with their nicknames (at this point a person needs to keep an Excel spreadsheet). It wasn't until the end that I realized who these agents were really trying to arrest.
Maybe I just wasn't intelligent enough to keep up with all the different story lines or maybe I just missed certain points because I wasn't really that interested. Either way its going in to my "give away" box of books.
The book was pretty long (probably because it had to follow the actions of all 120 characters). I never did understand what Charley's main goal was. It was never made clear, I just assumed she was looking for some thing to help incriminate the mafioso. The whole time I was waiting for this to happen and it never did. There wasn't much mystery or action. Looking back on it I don't really know what filled up most of the pages of the book.
As a side note, not only were the number of characters large, they all seemed to have nicknames so in addition to following 120 people you had to keep up with their nicknames (at this point a person needs to keep an Excel spreadsheet). It wasn't until the end that I realized who these agents were really trying to arrest.
Maybe I just wasn't intelligent enough to keep up with all the different story lines or maybe I just missed certain points because I wasn't really that interested. Either way its going in to my "give away" box of books.
January 1, 2014
It really was a slog to finish this book. Too many peripheral characters that added nothing to the story (special mention to 'journalist on a plane' in this category) other than confusion as Seymour jumps back and forth between them at break neck speed.
The base premise was great, the execution poor. What should have been suspenseful was just long winded. And the attempt at creating a "romance" between two main characters who barely saw/spoke to each other was really stretched. Sexual attraction/animal magnetism I get, but the whole "he's come back to me, I can throw a watch in the sea" scene was frankly cringe worthy.
The base premise was great, the execution poor. What should have been suspenseful was just long winded. And the attempt at creating a "romance" between two main characters who barely saw/spoke to each other was really stretched. Sexual attraction/animal magnetism I get, but the whole "he's come back to me, I can throw a watch in the sea" scene was frankly cringe worthy.
November 13, 2024
Heel erg spannend boek met een licht warrig doch goed einde al komt er nooit een einde aan dit soort misdaad. Vier in plaats van vijf sterren omdat lijfwachten geen bodiegarden zijn. Die hoerige onderhorigheid van Hollandse vertalers aan het Engels is storend.
September 8, 2011
Am only about 70 pages in to this book and so far I don't like it. Maybe it will improve.
June 14, 2019
Well plotted an executed thriller.
July 14, 2012
Too slow for my liking...
December 30, 2013
Incredibly slow, very little to engage reader . Found it a real push to read. Disappointing.
May 13, 2014
a bit slow
July 29, 2015
22 year old English girl takes on the Sicilian Mafia. It's trite, tedious, waffling and extremely silly. Should be a ZERO.
Read
August 7, 2016This is a great read. An undercover plot to trap down the Sicilian Mafia-an international drug trade master-minder. I want more of this story.
December 23, 2016
A nice easy paced tense thriller from one of the master's of the genre.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews