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The Butcher #1
Kill Quick or Die
Book by Jason, Stuart
Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
About the author
Stuart Jason
79 books2 followersA pseudonym used by Michael Avallone and Francesca Greer.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 3, 2011
#11/2011 ... Ok, so my recent fascination is with 1970s/early 80s Men's Action/Adventure novels. They're filled with cheese and sleaze and violence and vixens. They're exploitative and very un-PC, and written at a furious rate, which, of course, shows in the writing. Nonetheless, their rough draft nature, their blue-collar beauty shines through. And I'm a complete sucker for the artwork. I'll be reading several this year so hopefully you'll get a taste of this oft-maligned art form. These covers are typically collage affairs, the staples being a scantily clad vamp with various forms of explosions in the background; a profile of a dude with a weapon or frogman decked out in scuba gear hinting at some underwater Bond-esque chicanery. A plethora of series started in the 70s with titles like The Executioner, The Penetrator, The Destroyer, and, the protagonist of Kill Quick or Die, The Butcher. The Butcher went on to star in 35 books. Oh what reading pleasure I have before me...
May 9, 2015
Another men's adventure series. This time a man, the top killer in the mafia, tries to quit the mob and is on the run. A government agency picks him up to be their top operative in special missions. Tons of violence, gore and sex in this series, recommended
June 15, 2017
Ultra violent, ultra sleazy, and ultra sadistic. This kind of book was incredibly common in the 60's-80's, becoming known as "Men's Adventure Fiction". The main character seems to be some sort of mob god, taking down every single enemy in the book without breaking a sweat, no matter what strength the opponent has or even if they have the drop on "The Butcher". Especially if he gets to use his quick-draw technique, which is faster than light, apparently.
This book is about a ex-mobster who is drafted by a secret government organization to find a scientist who has developed an incredible micro transformer.
But it all boils down to "The Butcher" mutilating various mobsters and goons, either with his brass knuckles, a switchblade, his fists, or his silenced Walther P-38, which rips up mobsters in such over-the-top fashion, that it might as well be just be a way for "The Butcher" to rip apart his enemies from a distance.
The book is incredibly enjoyable, there's plenty of action, violence, and other exploitative things.
I also found the book to be written well, and enjoyed the tangents into the minds of whatever mob extra "The Butcher" ran across.
6/10
This book is about a ex-mobster who is drafted by a secret government organization to find a scientist who has developed an incredible micro transformer.
But it all boils down to "The Butcher" mutilating various mobsters and goons, either with his brass knuckles, a switchblade, his fists, or his silenced Walther P-38, which rips up mobsters in such over-the-top fashion, that it might as well be just be a way for "The Butcher" to rip apart his enemies from a distance.
The book is incredibly enjoyable, there's plenty of action, violence, and other exploitative things.
I also found the book to be written well, and enjoyed the tangents into the minds of whatever mob extra "The Butcher" ran across.
6/10
July 24, 2020
Vintage men's adventure trash.. I love it! I've been looking for a series like like this for a while after reading a few of The Executioner books... The Butcher is similar but more violent, more sleazy, gritty, etc. Not politically correct at all. 100% trash. 100% entertaining. I couldn't put this down. Has some truly memorable scenes, it would make an incredible film.
November 23, 2016
Observations: I never read The Butcher in the '70's when books like this were the next step up from comic books. Pleasantly surprised to find it better written than some others in the men's action genre. I enjoyed it. Cheesy action movie in prose format. Good stuff, Maynard!
December 14, 2024
This book is alright. Not good, not bad, just alright.
Here's what I liked: There are some incredible descriptions of gore and violence, some of which made my toes curl, which I do find fun. The decision to hop between perspectives is interesting and threw me off at first, but it lets you get to know just what kind of sleaze balls Bucher is dealing with so you don’t feel guilty when they get mowed down. The action is also really fun and generally pretty fluid.
Here's what I didn't like: Bucher handles every obstacle that comes his way without breaking a sweat, so there’s no tension. Sometimes the action is unclear, which is bad news in an action book. Sometimes I thought a character was literally doing something when they were just figuratively doing something or vice-versa, or I thought some objects were located in such a way in a room when they were actually somewhere else, or it takes a page and a half to establish that this nightclub is totally empty. Again, these aren't things you want your audience to be unclear about in an action book like this.
Here's what I'm not sure about: The antagonist is dealt with in an... interesting way and I can't tell if I love it or hate it. Spoiler:
Do I recommend this book? If you're itching for some action and some beautifully vivid descriptions of brutality worthy of a Saw movie, I'd say yes. It's a fun thriller and also pretty short, so you can easily get through it in a few days no problem. There is some stuff that hasn't aged very gracefully so be prepared for that. If that, or any of the other cons I mentioned are going to be too much for you, then you can skip this one.
Here's what I liked: There are some incredible descriptions of gore and violence, some of which made my toes curl, which I do find fun. The decision to hop between perspectives is interesting and threw me off at first, but it lets you get to know just what kind of sleaze balls Bucher is dealing with so you don’t feel guilty when they get mowed down. The action is also really fun and generally pretty fluid.
Here's what I didn't like: Bucher handles every obstacle that comes his way without breaking a sweat, so there’s no tension. Sometimes the action is unclear, which is bad news in an action book. Sometimes I thought a character was literally doing something when they were just figuratively doing something or vice-versa, or I thought some objects were located in such a way in a room when they were actually somewhere else, or it takes a page and a half to establish that this nightclub is totally empty. Again, these aren't things you want your audience to be unclear about in an action book like this.
Here's what I'm not sure about: The antagonist is dealt with in an... interesting way and I can't tell if I love it or hate it. Spoiler:
Do I recommend this book? If you're itching for some action and some beautifully vivid descriptions of brutality worthy of a Saw movie, I'd say yes. It's a fun thriller and also pretty short, so you can easily get through it in a few days no problem. There is some stuff that hasn't aged very gracefully so be prepared for that. If that, or any of the other cons I mentioned are going to be too much for you, then you can skip this one.
April 10, 2024
Kill Quick or Die is a men's adventure novel akin to James Bond or Jason Bourne. The main character, Bucher, "The Butcher," is an absolutely ludicrous character. He is an ex-mafia enforcer kingpin who leaves the life of crime to be then recruited by a top-secret government cabal. He is also allowed to play by his own rules, as no authority can contain him. He is allowed to kill without consequence because he is too valuable, and, dammit, he is just too good at what he does. The author builds up an enemy as the fastest draws the mafia's got, but Bucher draws on him before the mobster twitches an eyelash. The author will create a seven-and-a-half-foot behemoth but he won't lay a meaty finger on Bucher as he is pummeled to disfigurement. He's handsome and intelligent, has Spidey sense, and even has a third leg *wink*. He has no weaknesses and never once has to come back from a losing fight; he wins from the get-go. Well, he has one weakness: other people, and maybe caring about them, but just a little bit, in a manly, macho way.
The violence hits hard. The brutality is described in grotesque detail. The racism, too, well, there is a lot. It was written in the 1970s and when Bucher goes to Cairo, wow. Bucher isn't a good guy; he is, at best, an antihero, but even then, it is hard to see how this was acceptable.
It was interesting to read this as a time capsule. The descriptions were fun, and it was a weird ride of a book. It is a pulp book and not an impressive one. Read it or don't read it. Just don't expect much from it.
The violence hits hard. The brutality is described in grotesque detail. The racism, too, well, there is a lot. It was written in the 1970s and when Bucher goes to Cairo, wow. Bucher isn't a good guy; he is, at best, an antihero, but even then, it is hard to see how this was acceptable.
It was interesting to read this as a time capsule. The descriptions were fun, and it was a weird ride of a book. It is a pulp book and not an impressive one. Read it or don't read it. Just don't expect much from it.
June 8, 2018
Interesting series. I prefer the Executioner series but this was a decent read. Don't expect it to be something its not.
July 25, 2008
Trash. But, you know, if you're not expecting Shakespeare, sometimes trash is fun.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews