Бесни кучета

by James Grady, Джеймс Грейди, Петко Петков (Translator)

Още с първия си роман “Шестте дни на кондора” Джеймс Грейди прави революция в света на трилърите. Сега, с “Бесни кучета”, Грейди излиза от всички жанрови ограничения и ни поднася невероятна история, започнала от оригинална творческа идея - тайна психиатрична клиника за пенсионирани агенти на ЦРУ.

Петима изперкали убийци от ЦРУ, зависими от хапчетата си и скрити в пустошта на Мейн, са принудени да избягат след като психиатърът им е убит и действат в съответствие с изкривената си представа за света. Подготовката им обаче им позволява да оцелеят във враждебната среда, дори тази среда да е пътят между Бостън и Вашингтон в търсене на истинския убиец.

Джеймс Грейди е легенда в света на трилъра. Носител е на френската награда “Гран при дю роман ноар”, както и на италианската - “Реймънд Чандлър”. Номиниран е за американската награда “Едгар”. Живее във Вашингтон, окръг Колумбия и работите му се отличават с достоверност и изследователска автентичност, както и със завладяваща увлекателност. Работил е като консултант по въпросите на тероризма в Ен Би Си и като журналист на свободна практика в “Уошингтън Поуст”.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Mystery, Audiobook, The United States Of America

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

James Grady is a longtime author of thrillers, police procedural and espionage novels. He graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 1974. During college, he worked for United States Senator Lee Metcalf of Montana as an staff member.

From 1974 - 1978 he was an investigative journalist for the famous muckraker Jack Anderson. Best known as the author of Six Days of the Condor , which was adapted to film as Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford in 1975.

James Grady has gone on to write almost a dozen more novels in the thirty-eight years since Six Days of the Condor was published.

In the past James Grady has written under the pseudonyms of James Dalton and Brit Shelby.

Reviews

[Metodi Markov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Чудесен трилър от бащата на Кондора, който даже има камео поява в текста.

Петима изкукали тайни агенти на ЦРУ затворени в секретна лудница, са принудени да избягат, след като психиатърът им е убит по начин, с който ги топят за смъртта му.

Следва шеметно препускане по пътищата в посока Вашингтон, в опит да се оневинят и да си спасят кожите, защото макар и полудели, на тях още им се
живее.

Моята оценка - 4,5*.

Прилича като сюжет малко на филма БСП с Брус Уилис и сие, възможно е сценаристите му да са заимствали малко или много от книгата.

[Effie Saxioni · Rating 5 out of 5]

▪︎5 πράκτορες,οι οποίοι νοσηλεύονται σε μια ειδική ψυχιατρική κλινική για κατασκόπους της CIA που υποφέρουν από έντονο μετατραυματικό στρες και είναι οριακά "τρελοί "
▪︎Ο επικεφαλής ψυχίατρος που κοντεύει να ξεμπλοκάρει το μυαλό τους,βρίσκεται δολοφονημένος με επαγγελματικό τρόπο
▪︎Τώρα οι 5 πρέπει να αποφασίσουν:μένουν και θεωρούνται ύποπτοι ή δραπετεύουν και ανακαλύπτουν την αλήθεια;
▪︎Πόσο θα αντέξουν κυνηγημένοι,άοπλοι και χωρίς την φαρμακευτική αγωγή που διατηρεί τα τελευταία ψήγματα διαύγειας;Είναι έτοιμοι να ρισκάρουν την ζωή τους;Είναι έτοιμοι να μετατραπούν σε Λυσσασμένα σκυλιά;

Μια ωραία ιστορία,κινηματογραφικά (ασφαλώς) στημένη,με καλή ροή και ενδιαφέρουσα πλοκή.
"Αμερικανιά" βεβαίως, αλλά από τις επιτυχημένες,όπως αποδεικνύεται από την αίσθηση που αφήνει κλείνοντας το βιβλίο.
Χωρίς να δώσω κανένα άλλο στοιχείο της υπόθεσης,μιας και κάθε παράγραφος είναι σημαντική για την εξέλιξη της ιστορίας,θα κλείσω αφήνοντας την πρώτη σκέψη που ήρθε στο μυαλό βάζοντας το βιβλίο στο ράφι του:
Πού και πού χρειάζεται εσύ να γίνεις ένας Λυσσασμένος σκύλος για τους φίλους σου.
5/5
Μικρό, ανεπαίσθητο edit για το εξώφυλλο:Δεν ξέρω αν οι εκδόσεις Πόλις διατήρησαν το αρχικό ή έβαλαν δικό τους, όμως είναι απόλυτα ταιριαστό και πλήρως ενδεικτικό της κατάστασης που περιγράφεται😉

[George K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Βαθμολογία: 9/10

Όταν έμαθα ότι θα κυκλοφορούσε στα ελληνικά το Mad Dogs του Τζέιμς Γκρέιντι, χάρηκα αλλά ταυτόχρονα σπάστηκα. Χάρηκα γιατί όπως και να το κάνουμε είναι ένα κατασκοπευτικό θρίλερ δια χειρός Αμερικανού συγγραφέα, αλλά σπάστηκα γιατί αυτός ο συγγραφέας έγραψε και το κλασικό κατασκοπευτικό θρίλερ "Six Days of the Condor" που τόσο πολύ θα ήθελα να διαβάσω (έχει γίνει και ταινία με τον τίτλο "Οι τρεις μέρες του Κόνδορα" - γιατί άραγε οι έξι μέρες έγιναν τρεις; Λόγω μπάτζετ; Χαχα, χιούμορ έκανα, γελάστε!), και αναρωτήθηκα γιατί στο διάτανο οι εκδόσεις Πόλις δεν διάλεξαν το πλέον πολυδιαβασμένο μυθιστόρημα του συγγραφέα και επέλεξαν το συγκεκριμένο, που δεν είναι και τόσο γνωστό και συν τοις άλλοις έχει δεχτεί και μέτριες κριτικές από αναγνώστες. Όμως τώρα που το διάβασα μόλις σε δυο μέρες (μιλάμε για τετρακόσιες σαράντα δυο σελίδες, έτσι;), κατάλαβα το γιατί. Πρόκειται για ένα τρελό, θεόμουρλο κατασκοπευτικό θρίλερ, με αμείωτη δράση και ένταση, με φοβερή και τεταμένη ατμόσφαιρα, με αξιοπερίεργους και εντελώς φευγάτους πρωταγωνιστές (αυτό έλειπε, κατάσκοποι που ξέφυγαν από τρελάδικο είναι!), καθώς και με μια γραφή φοβερή, ολοζώντανη και χειμαρρώδη, εθιστική σαν ναρκωτικό και γεμάτη νεύρο. Η αλήθεια είναι ότι έχει τα θέματά του σαν βιβλίο, δηλαδή δεν είναι καθόλου για όλα τα γούστα, δεν είναι το παραδοσιακό κατασκοπευτικό θρίλερ με λογική (αλλά χωρίς ευαισθησία - πάλι χιούμορ έκανα ο άτιμος!) και ρεαλισμό, προσωπικά το είδα σαν μια τρελή σάτιρα του είδους, σαν μια τρελή σάτιρα της Αμερικάνικης πολιτικής και του κόσμου των μυστικών υπηρεσιών και των υπηρεσιών ασφαλείας, με μπόλικο κυνισμό και κάμποσο μαύρο χιούμορ. Και έτσι προσωπικά το απόλαυσα και χάρηκα πολύ που οι εκδόσεις Πόλις το έφεραν στην Ελλάδα, αν και φυσικά ελπίζω κάποια στιγμή να μεταφραστεί και το magnus opus του συγγραφέα, που θεωρείται (και είναι) από τα κορυφαία κατασκοπευτικά μυθιστορήματα εκεί έξω. Υ.Γ. Εξαιρετική μετάφραση/επιμέλεια, πραγματικά υπέροχο εξώφυλλο.

[Eric_W]

Unfinished: Too bad, I really liked Six Days of the Condor, but despite repeated efforts, I just couldn't get past half way. Just too bizarre.

[Ευαγγελία Τσουκαλά · Rating 5 out of 5]

Πέντε πρωταγωνιστές τόσο διαφορετικοί το ίδιο τρελοί, δράση, φοβερή ατμόσφαιρα, μουσικάρες, πλοκή. Απολαυστικό από τη πρώτη μέχρι τη τελευταία του σελίδα.

[ᴄᴏʀɪɴᴀ••]

Δεν μπορεσα να το τελειώσω…. Μέχρι περίπου τα μισά έφτασα κ πάλι δεν μπόρεσε να με κρατήσει, δε βρήκα κάποιο ενδιαφέρον, ενώ ξεκίνησε πολύ δυναμικά, στην πορεία έχασα κ το πλοτ.

[Kilani Bey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am obsessed with the idea of five spies being locked down for mental treatment and running away for justice (as I do not want to spoil anything), their flash-back stories learning more about every single character were spot-on.

I felt like the first half of the novel was incredibly scripted. I liked the evolution of the events and how the writer drove us to that hunting exciting adventure that his characters had embarked into. But the second half, felt kinda short as we didn't see the complexity or subtle creativity of the journey itself. The characters haven't been really developed facing unexpecting shocking events. I was waiting for something to happen from the other side. It went flat.

The end was kind of satisfying in my opinion but it was kinda rushed. I wish he focused me on the psychology of each character giving us how the changes made the connected group really feel.
It was generally like an open ending. I wanted it to get more political.

In general, he gave us many aspects of brilliant promising yet mesmerizing script writing from the psychological background of the characters to the emotional side to some action thriller kind of pace. It met my overall expectations but I wanted more depth. An extra 50 pages would have done justice for this good-read novel.

In my humble opinion, the best rewarding thing that you can get out of this is that you'd feel really connected to all of them from start to finish.

An intriguing piece of work if you are into spy/ mystery/ action kinds of novels. You'd enjoy that.

[Josh Hitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. Five mental patients who happened to be burned out CIA spies escape their asylum after their doctor is killed. They do this because they are mad, mad at being patsies and that their doc is killed. They decide to find out who did it and why. Which leads to a load of fun while five nuts go on the road, while their meds wear off, trying to investigate who the killer is.

Highly recommended, just a great read.

[Fedra · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 πρώην κατάσκοποι της CIA, βρίσκονται για χρόνια εγκλεισμένοι σε ένα ειδικό ψυχιατρείο. Ο ψυχίατρος που τους παρακολουθεί ξαφνικά βρίσκεται δολοφονημένος. Κι επειδή πρώτα φεύγει η ψυχή και μετά το χούι, δεν μπορούν να μην καταλήξουν στο συμπέρασμα πως οι πρώτοι ύποπτοι θα είναι οι ίδιοι. Που όμως μεταξύ τους γνωρίζουν πως δεν είναι ένοχοι. Άρα τι κάνουν; Μα φυσικά ενεργοποιούν τις κατασκοπικές ικανότητες που ποτέ δεν έχασαν και μετά από μία καλά σχεδιασμένη απόδραση, κυνηγάνε να βρουν τι πραγματικά συνέβη. Μα τώρα είναι φυγάδες. Και παραμένουν τρελοί. Και τώρα δεν έχουν πλέον πρόσβαση στα φάρμακά τους.

«Πώς είναι να είσαι τρελός;»
Θέλει κότσια η τρέλα αναστέναξα. «Το να είσαι τρελός είναι σαν να ζεις σε όνειρο», είπα. «Όμως, ίσως εδώ έξω να είναι το όνειρο, και η τρέλα να είναι η αλήθεια. Αυτό που έχει σημασία είναι με ποιο μπορείς να ζήσεις.»
«Και ποιο σε κάνει ευτυχισμένο»

Κυνηγητό, δράση, μικρά κεφάλαια που στο κάθε ένα μια νέα περιπέτεια βρίσκει τους δραπέτες. Ορισμένα μας ταξιδεύουν στο παρελθόν και σε αυτό που τελικά τους “αποτρέλανε”, ώστε να τους γνωρίσουμε καλύτερα. Και όλο αυτό μέσα από μια πρωτοπρόσωπη αφήγηση από τον έναν εκ των 5.

Δεν υπήρξαν ποτέ πριν κάποιοι σαν εμάς.

Γενικά ήταν απολαυστικό όμως υπήρχαν ξαφνικά κεφάλαια μεγαλύτερα από 40 σελίδες (αντί για 10 όπως τα περισσότερα) και σε αυτά δεν συνέβαινε ΤΙΠΟΤΑ που να σχετίζεται με την πλοκή. Μου άφησε την εντύπωση πως ήθελε απλώς να γεμίσει σελίδες. Και έτσι έκανε μια κοιλιά.

Στα αρνητικά επίσης κάτι που θα αναφέρω συνεχώς όταν το συναντάω. Σταματήστε να το μεταφράζετε “αναπηρικό καροτσάκι”. Οι λέξεις έχουν σημασία. Το καροτσάκι το χειρίζεται κάποιος άλλος όπως σέρνω ένα μωρό ή τα ψώνια της λαϊκής. Το αμαξίδιο το χειρίζεται ο χρήστης του. Ακόμα κι αν το “σέρνει” κάποιος άλλος, το κάνει επειδή ο χρήστης του ορίζει την κατεύθυνση.

Trigger Warnings για βιασμό και βασανιστήρια.

Όσοι δεν είναι τρελοί είναι ήδη παράφρονες.

[Arnis · Rating 3 out of 5]

https://poseidons99.wordpress.com/202...

[Jay Fusco · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the original condor book in the 1970's and really enjoyed it. I re-done of the sequels and saw the movie 3 Days of the Condor with Robert Redford and Faye Dunaway. Mr. Grady is one of the tops writers of spy thrillers. Mad Dogs is about five CIA spies in a facility in Maine for spies with mental issues. When their therapist is killed, they escape and try to find his killer. Reminded me a little of Slow Horses by Mick Herron. Intriguing plot, fascinating characters and non-stop action made this an entertaining book I highly recommend.

[Ria · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exciting book telling the tale of five mental patients with a difference, they are all ex CIA agents who in their line of work have seen far too much.
When their psychiatrist is murdered on the hospital premises they fear that as mental patients, obviously they will be the prime suspects so they escape and go on the run as "mad dogs" to try and figure out who has framed them for the hit.
Along the way they get another agent on their tail who they take hostage but who can they trust in the big outside world after being essentially institutionalised?
Fast paced and gritty this is a real page turner.
Well worth reading.

[Sam Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slipping in and out of the realms of insanity always draws my fascination. The pages seemed to posses magnetic properties pulling me from within. The pace of reading quicked , knuckles whited, as the beads of sweat collectively formed on my brow. To continue at the current pace would be madness, it would end in a crash.

Maybe this book, was just special to me due to the subject matter .... maybe just maybe .... I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Bene Vogt · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's been a few years since I actually read this but for reasons unknown to me, I found myself getting really mad about this yesterday (probably the heat). It's not that the book is particularly bad, but there are sparkles of a brilliant book here, but they get dragged down by lots of serviceable. Pity, really.

[False · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hollywood into the Robert Redford vehicle "Three Days of the Condor"), Grady returns to the theme of a rogue element loose within the CIA. But while that story was a classic thriller in the '70s mold, this one is all kinds of wild and wacky, and may well not be to the liking of those who like straightforward spy stories. It begins in a top secret government lunatic asylum in rural Maine, where government assets who are psychologically damaged are stashed for observation and safekeeping.

We meet the five heroes in group session with their temporary psychiatrist, and are quickly introduced to their various neuroses. When the psychiatrist is apparently murdered in the their closed ward, the quintet confer and decide that since they're going to get blamed for the murder, they'd better make a break for it. And so begins a rollicking road-trip down the Northeast seaboard to Washington, D.C., where they hope to unmask the true killer and clear themselves. Their escape is inventive, although perhaps a bit too easy -- one would think that some slightly more elaborate security procedures would be in place given the known capabilities of the patients. The trip south is relatively entertaining, as -- coming down off their meds -- they must zig and zag to avoid and outwit local law enforcement and the black ops teams sent to track them dow . Along the way, we get extended flashback chapters explaining what happened to each of the five that shattered their mind.

Posing as a German engineer, geeky Eric got swept up with other guest workers during the first Gulf War and was tortured by Iraqi intelligence to the point where he can only obey orders and has no free will. Black and beautiful Hailey was unexpectedly placed in the middle of a dangerous deal involving an African diamond smuggler / arms merchant / nuclear materials broker and some Russians and the realpolitik of the outcome left her emotionally broken. Zane is an old Vietnam vet whose bright idea for a counterintel operation along the Ho Chi Minh Trail leads to him witnessing the slaughter of his father figure and a grim rescue operation. Russell was working undercover as a Serb militiaman in Bosnia and saw one atrocity too many before he snapped. And for protagonist Victor who was working in Malaysia in the mid-'90s trying to keep tabs on al-Qaeda, it was the death of the woman he loved. These lengthy vignettes are told much more straightforwardly than the rest of the book, and make for much more compelling -- if horrific -- reading. While this background information makes one sympathetic to the five characters, they're not exactly fleshed out in any meaningful way. Each has a distinctive trait or two, and each is given a moment to shine, but they generally feel like types rather than people.

As they make their way from Maine to Manhattan to Asbury Park (NJ) to Wheaton (MD) and finally, Bethesda, the team picks up a hostage/witness and tries to piece together all the parts using their considerable spycraft. Consistently befuddled by each new piece of information, they turn to the one person who may be able to save them, in a denouement that's rather disappointing. The writing is very loose at times, veering into streams of consciousness as Grady peers into the heads of five people coming off their meds and trying to grapple with the outside world. Ultimately the book is full of energy, but energy that's not always harnessed.

[Alger Smythe-Hopkins · Rating 3 out of 5]

For anyone following my trajectory this summer, it could be apparent that I am trying to clear a shelf of my 'To Read" stack by plowing through the books that have been there a long time and I was iffy about even when I picked them up.
In that context, this was a surprisingly good book. Better than expected for sure.

I've not read any other Grady that I can recall, certainly not "6 Days of the Condor", but I saw the film (3 Days...) and thought it was an interesting premise and framing. That story reminded me in small ways of John Le Carré, particularly where both Grady and Le Carre emphasize that only constant paranoiac vigilance keeps you alive in the mirror world of espionage.
This novel though is much less about spy craft and more "spies on a road trip".
There is some fun in here, although the publish date makes the Boomer culture and Vietnam references feel like a last hurrah. This is only one reason why it was hard to get invested in the story. The telling is oddly slack, lacking the kind of narrative tension that should have arisen naturally out of the chase. This is why the novel's pay off was equally predictable you just CAN'T introduce a major character in the last two chapters and not have it be obvious that they are the mastermind, unfunny, unsatisfying, and really dumb. Grady obviously didn't care enough to make us care.
But it's a pretty good low investment potboiler.

[Peter Talbot · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author of Six Days of the Condor (James Grady) breaks new ground with a more bizarre telling of the story of five demented and damaged CIA operatives committed to an agency asylum that are framed for murder and use their skewed talents to escape to try to prove their innocence. Reads more like an updated "Five Musketeers" than a typical espionage novel. Well written, even breathtaking in spots with some excellent use of flashbacks and great characters to propel a slightly outlandish plot.

Though the ending gets tied up rather too easily, and less satisfactorily than I had hoped, Mad Dogs is worthy and capable of transfixing you for a full 350 page read in one sitting. I would have given it 3 and 1/2 stars if that were possible.

Spirited fun with testosterone spiced with psychoactive meds and wet ops action. Could easily be adapted cinematically as an offbeat big-cast espionage thriller with a denouement re-write. Recommended for a rainy day!

[Fenia Vazaka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Το απόλαυσα! 5 πρώην πράκτορες της CIA που είναι σε ψυχιατρική κλινική λόγω των ψυχικών τραυμάτων που τους άφησαν οι αποστολές τους, το σκάνε για να μην βρεθούν άδικα κατηγορούμενοι για τον φόνο του ψυχιάτρου τους, που βρίσκεται δολοφονημένος. Πολύ χιουμοριστικό παρά το ανθρωποκυνηγητό και τις δύσκολες καταστάσεις, όπου το πιο δύσκολο πρόβλημα είναι ότι βρίσκονται κυνηγημένοι και χωρίς ψυχοφάρμακα. Και ξέρουν ότι υπάρχει αντίστροφη μέτρηση μέχρι να χάσουν τελείως τα λογικά τους...
Μέσα στην όλη ιστορία μαθαίνουμε πώς κατέληξε ο καθένας τους εκεί και στεναχωριέσαι όταν συνειδητοποιούν και οι ίδιοι ότι δεν είναι παρά γρανάζια ενός σάπιου συστήματος.

[Kin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confusionario, supponente.Vorrebbe essere la versione rockettara di “quella sporca dozzina”.Ambirebbe ad una riduzione cinematografica.Non mi sembra il caso.

[Julia Falade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it

[Zora · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 5-star idea with 2-star execution.

I've argued before (and will again, no doubt) that ideas aren't much of what makes a good book. Every novel is a love story, or a whodunit, or a revenge story, or a survival story, or a coming of age story, or a Hero's Journey epic, or a story of great sacrifice, or one of a very few other stories. Maybe the writing is good or bad. Maybe the setting is Victorian England or a future asteroid colony or contemporary Kent or Connecticut or Adelaide. Maybe the author has deep insights into the human heart or only cliches to share. But the idea? It's almost never original or what makes a book good.

Here, however, the idea is nearly everything right about the novel. If I were on the development team for some TV network, I'd snatch up the rights to this and make a good eight-episode miniseries about this idea, changing everything but the core concept.

Which is: five CIA spies who have suffered awful trauma in operations have gone "crazy" and are in a CIA mental hospital. Their psychiatrist gets murdered, and they realize whatever the reason for that, they're being set up as likely murderers. So they break out of the loonie bin and go running off to find who really did it. (Okay, it's a whodunit after all, but what a great idea for setting and context.)

But the execution is pretty meh. (**mild spoilers coming**) We get everyone's back story over a dozen chapters, in between chase scenes, which is fine. But the solution is dull and the dialog atrocious. They all sound like Beat wannabes talking in vague philosophies/bad armchair analysis and when they do, the thing screeches to a dead stop. Individual chase scenes are exciting, but it's unevenly paced, and it all adds up to nothing, as none of the disparate elements ever connect.

But in my imaginary TV rewrite, a writer could make one of the backstories connect to the eventual solution, put in some twists and revelations about hidden connections that would shock the viewer and shift the dynamic within the group of spies, and update the backstories, and make a pretty exciting miniseries of it. Maybe wait for that day instead of reading this.

[Marguerite (M) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating : 4 stars
Mené tambour battant, ce road trip en direction de Washington, mélange de livre d'espionnage et d'enquête policière, se lit avec plaisir et même une certaine dose de jubilation. Les personnages, quoiqu'un peu dérangés, sont attachant et l'humour décapant.

[⚔️Kelanth⚔️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dall'autore dei "Sei giorni del Condor", dunque una colonna portante per il genere spy, abbiamo questo libro, che secondo me non tiene fede alle aspettative e soprattutto siamo lontani dai fasti del Condor.

L'idea non era affatto male, ma secondo me è stata sviluppata in maniera errata, dando troppo risalto ai problemi dei protagonisti, invece di dedicare un più di pagine all'azione e alla trama, portando poi ad un finale abbastanza scontato e chiuso troppo in fretta.

Diciamo che parte molto bene e le premesse lasciano ben sperare. Però man mano si perde lo slancio iniziale per dare risalto, troppo, all'interiorità dei personaggi, tralasciando lo sviluppo dell'azione che deraglia troppo presto.

Alcuni personaggi sono stati ben disegnati a discapito di altri che erano un po' la macchietta di loro stessi. Belle le parti in cui alcuni protagonisti rievocano il loro passato inserendo praticamente dei racconti brevi all'interno del romanzo, in una sorta di antologia nello stesso, ma che probabilmente non bastano per fare in modo che la storia sia veramente godibile.

Sinceramente non ne consiglierei l'acquisto e per chi non lo avesse fatto direi di recuperare, magari in qualche bancarella dell'usato, i "sei giorni del condor", decisamente di un altro calibro.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting ride, but not told as clearly as it could have been.

The premise of Mad Dogs is a winner - picture an insane asylum just for spies that have been pushed beyond the breaking point. There are victims of torture, people who have compromised cherished values, lost loved ones in the line of duty or have just seen things that no one should have to see.

Now, imagine that 5 of these patients have a doctor that they love - he pushes them, challenges them and makes progress with them. And, he gets murdered right in the room where they do their "group" time, making it look like one of them had done it.

So, this group of misfits decides to flee from the frame job and find the root of the conspiracy that killed their doctor. Each of them resurrects their skills and works together to escape, find clues and follow the scant trail back to the source.

Sounds great, right? Kind of like a hard-edged version of the Michael Keaton comedy The Dream Team (1989)

Well, the follow through...

Read more at: http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2010/...

[Besanth · Rating 1 out of 5]

Interesting storyline, great idea, attractive plot, but very bad execution. This book is so confusing on where & what is going on that sometimes I read 30 pages through and I have no idea what happened.

[Patrick O'Hannigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

You could think of this novel as a pointed satire, and in some ways, it is that. Fortunately, it's not preachy, because James Grady isn't as ham-fisted as Kurt Vonnegut, for example. He seems to write with an eye on potential film rights for his work, and also with a sense of humor akin to Joseph (Catch-22) Heller's or Edward (The Monkey Wrench Gang) Abbey's. That's good literary company to keep.

I enjoyed this tale of five different but certifiably crazy spies who break out of their secret asylum in Maine in a quest to find out why their favorite therapist was murdered. With the exception of an active CIA agent who becomes an unlikely ally for the quintet of deactivated agents on the run, Grady takes the time to explain the back stories for each of his characters. A lot of what they've gone through while working for Uncle Sam is heartbreaking, yet all of it seems plausible.

Spycraft described in the book seems solid, and the ups and downs of mental health are likewise portrayed with knowing sympathy. In the end, this book isn't so much a thriller as a clever meditation on two big things: surrogate family and the cost of compliance.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 institutionalized CIA operatives break out of the top secret asylum to find the murderer of their beloved shrink, try to avoid the teams sent to retrive them and all before they crash from lack of medication. How could I pass it up?

This was a good read. Definately rated "R" so beware. It was a bit confusing at times since you don't know what is fantasy and what is real, but that makes it more fun, too. The story of each character is told through backflashes so you begin to understand what they are all trying to deal with. The mystery was very good and keeps you guessing all the way to the last page, almost literally.

Best part, the team of crazies crash their docotor's wake on accident and it turns into a group therapy session and a breakthrough in treatment for one of them, to the horror of the other attendees of course. Hilarious!

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mad Dogs is an highly entertaining jaunt for two reasons. 1.) A great premise with interesting characters that have interwoven backstories that aptly help provide details for their present wonky behaviors 2.) A whip-smart writing style that casually throws smatterings of wry descriptive humour into the plot

James Grady does a masterful job easying between the serious and zany in a similar, but more coherent and subdued way compared to Chuck Palahnuik's Fight Club. Like Tyler Durden, our band of misfit spies have a hard time keeping a grasp on reality, but unlike Durden the group keep each other in check, and have mad-spy skills to counter-balance their psychological melt-downs.

All in all an well written and fun spy story with a flavour similar to RED (Retired and Extremely Dangerous).

[Joyce]

Five psycho ex-spies bust out of their asylum and hit the road looking for the murderer of their shrink. You're not going to learn much about mental illness from this story -- unfortunately the author seems to think the crazy is compounded mostly of malingering, narcissism, poetic sensitivity, and free-floating anxiety... and I think we all know there's no cure for that combo -- but the story moves along to the end.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written a fast and entertaining read. This book could become a series, but I doubt James Grady wants to do that much work...LOL. Anyway, if you want something out of the norm (a very different plot), then this is the one for you. This book will entertain rookie-pro readers. The book is about a group of ex-spec ops/CIA agents who have mental issues and are placed in a secret/secure lockup. After some things go wrong all 5 hit the road for fun and games.....Give the book a shot!