The Violet Hour

by Daniel Judson

In Daniel Judson’s powerful new thriller, Bridgehampton auto mechanic Caleb Rakowski gets paid under the table at his friend Eric Carver's auto repair shop and lives in an apartment above. He's good at his job, he's a hard worker, and he’s making a decent living.

But right now he's sheltering a pregnant friend who’ll do anything to keep her abusive husband away from herself and her baby. Cal has sworn to protect her; that's the kind of guy he is, a true friend. Little does he know, though, the trouble destined to come down on them over the course of three days---Mischief Night, Halloween, and the Day of the Dead---when he learns the truth about Eric Carver and what he's been hiding all these years. And little does Cal know how those lies will force him to risk everything to save the people closest to him.

Daniel Judson is a craftsman of modern noir, an incredibly talented writer in the vein of Ellroy or Chandler but with the Hamptons in all their glitz and stark shadows as his canvas.  Like his two previous Hamptons novels, The Water's Edge and The Darkest Place, The Violet Hour is tightly drawn, hauntingly atmospheric, and completely searing. 

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Crime, Noir

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

DANIEL JUDSON, a Shamus Award winner and a four-time finalist, is the author of five previous novels, most recently The Violet Hour. He attended Southampton College, and his time in the Hamptons (particularly the parts that don’t make the society pages) was the inspiration for the setting and characters in Voyeur. He now lives in Connecticut.

Reviews

[Bandit · Rating 3 out of 5]

A thriller alone often isn’t enough for me. Without mystery or suspense, even though some murders are thrown in, it just isn’t the same. And that’s quite possibly why this one didn’t really work for me, despite good writing and a very likeable protagonist. Then again, for a random Kindle freebie, this was way above average in quality. The author is obviously a pro and appears to have been at it for a while, specializing in trilogies, there are also the prerequisite serial and a few standalones, of which this was one. A story of a young man who has constructed his daily life with such great care, all routines and laying low, until he inadvertently gets involved with some serious organized crime elements. Now he only has three days to sort things out for himself and the two women he’s been very chivalrously taken care of. The narrative is detailed as you would expect out of 300 pages for 3 days’ worth of excitement, but it goes by at a nice clip. There’s realism to both characters and descriptions that balances out the drama with action. Certainly plenty here to appeal to straight up thriller fans. Entertaining enough for a quick read. Good introduction to a new author.

[Wiseask · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Violet Hour aspires to be a noir novel which the author is promoting as A Thriller. The story takes place on Long Island over Halloween, beginning the day before and ending a few days after.

Cal Rakowski is a young auto mechanic who wants nothing more than to avoid trouble, but trouble has no trouble finding him. A friend and co-worker with a shady past named Lebell is being pursued by a gang of assassins so inept they are more pathetic than deadly, as Cal finds out firsthand when they wind up chasing him. As if this weren’t enough to keep him occupied over the three-day story arc, Cal is also sheltering his pregnant former boss running away from a dangerous, abusive husband who will stop at nothing to find her.

Though the book is not badly written, and includes a few exciting scenes, few surprises and a flat ending, there were enough typos in the manuscript to lower my score of not quite four stars to three.

[Ramona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unexpected hero

Cal has an unexpected moral calling. He's hiding someone, to keep her safe from a monster, her husband. Meanwhile, his normal, routine life begins to unravel. His friend is running from a dangerous past, and it's going to catch up to those around him. It only gets more complicated, who can Cal trust? Smart, intense and fast paced.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Kept my interest from the first page to the last

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend recommended this local author and I am glad I tried someone new to read!

Cal, a mechanic of unique imports, works under the table for Carver. After a change in his usual Friday happy hour plans due to a car that needs to get done, Cal finds himself on a wild adventure. Chronicled over the 3 days of the Halloween weekend, the book starts out strong and sinister then gets narrative as Judson describes Cal’s everyday life. The mood shifts and transfers back to the thriller atmosphere of the off-season Hamptons where everyone is connected in the escapade.

Downright grueling and violent amidst the background of the dark, gloomy fall the unique characters all fit together in this frightful tale of money, power, drugs, lust and secrets. You could feel the darkness and chill of the season.

The ending was a little more cheerful than I anticipated, and I wondered how pregnant Heather fared.

[Rusty · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating read! Young Cal comes from a family of rogues and is determined to lead a life of honesty. Naturally talented in solving mechanical problems, he works in an unlicensed garage on fine automobiles of the rich. His life changes dramatically when he helps hide a former employer's wife, Heather, from her abusive husband. The wealthy husband vows to find her so she leads an isolated existence with the walls of the garage apartment where Cal lives. The two friends become involved in situations far beyond their dreams. A sadistic killer is searching for Cal's friend, who does body work as needed on the vehicles in the garage. When Cal tries to help him, his own life is at risk. How he survives and moves on in his life is key to the story itself. Cal's character is well developed and one is privy to his thoughts and decisions throughout the novel. Well done!

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fast paced and well written. The story, which in the beginning appeared to be all over the place, ended tied togther really well with a fantastic motivation for the lead character Cal.

Cal Rakowski, age 22, mechanic working off the books is a shady shop finds himself thrust into a race for his life and his friends that he had been hiding.

This is a self discovery journey by the end of this book. Worth the read. Good beach book.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Violet Hour is about three days in the life of Cal, a mechanic living a simple life which gets very complicated when he helps a friend hide from her abusive husband. There are probably a few too many coincidences in the plot line, but that didn't matter to me because the characters were so well drawn. Cal is a very likable and believable character, and it's easy to get caught up in the story as he tries to protect himself and his loved ones from the events that unfold. Enjoyable read.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting thriller - I really liked the main character, Cal and the plotline was good with the additional sub plot nicely interwoven. However, I did feel that the author ran out of steam, or interest and wound the story up with some haste. Cal's escape was all over within a page or two and I did feel that Jansen and co 'went down' rather easily, considering how much their skills had been emphasised earlier in the book. Nevertheless I would be happy to read a sequel and read more of Cal and his escapades.

[C. Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the most exciting novel I have ever read. However, the low star score is because, like so many today, there is so much blasphemy. Not, of course, anything that would offend the followers of the Arabian merchant, Muhammad! No-one would dare do that!
However, one of my favourite fictional characters is Jack Reacher, created by Lee Childs. I confess to not having read every single book - but I have read at least a dozen, and there is no form of offensive language in any of them! If he can do it, why can't others?!

[Beth Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a typical noir/crime novel. Not bad, but not outstanding. Events would happen a little too conveniently throughout to be believable.

My biggest issues were: (1) I love the title. There was never any correlation between the title and the actual story. It's just some random title, and (2) I read this the week of Halloween, thinking it would at least make use of the holiday. It doesn't. A couple of very weak mentions, that's it. Again, really just a random calendar choice.

Overall: quick, decent read, but wholly forgettable.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This may be a slow starter as characters are introduced and hints of their backstories are filled in but from the opening pages it still manages to grab your attention as not everything becomes clear straight away as Judson hints at a complex and interwoven story. As this becomes both clearer and more complicated the story picks up and really pulls you along until the final scenes that leave you stunned and breathless. This really is a case of not being able to trust anyone.

[Janine Matsko-Bolacker · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a thrill ride! From the opening pages your are sucked into Cal's life. He's a principled young man man who's experienced his share of tragedy; who's trying to fly low under the radar of his life. Unfortunately circumstances arise which prevent him from keeping his life on track. What results is a fast paced thriller I could not put down! I finished it in less than 24 hours. I would highly recommend this book and I would love to read more bu this author.

[Marnee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this book 3 stars it is an okay slow paced realistic story with a variety of characters who you love and hate. There is no major standing out events in the book and things are somewhat predictable with shady cops (that isn't hidden at all it is plainly told to the main character they are shady). I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who likes a gripping on the edge of your seat story but it does make a nice easy paced crime story.

[Weiping Yin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good plot and well written

The story is woven through a different angles of crime and violence. The main character is written in the third tense but read like reader going through the events in person. All characters regardless how small contribute well to the story line, leaving memorable impression while no lingering, nor indigence.

[B K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too easy an ending!

The characters are well sketched and the story line was also coasting at a good pace till it seems, the author lost his plot. Sudden ending!! It's never good writing to start ending a story with string of dead bodies of nearly all the principal characters! Too convenient.
Still, its a good read.

[Brian Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent thriller where the main Character(Hero)Cal, is a young man who is thrust into looking out and after people older than him, and sorting out the problems/actions that are befall to him. he has a great sense of responsibility to look after people he likes and defends
I look forward to see if he appears in further stories

[Amy Ingalls · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book in a giveaway. It kept my interest throughout. I liked the main character, Cal. He tried so hard to be good and live a good life and got caught up in all this criminal activity any way. How he survives these three days is equal parts terrifying and heartbreaking.

[Pat Oatman · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rush unlike any other.

Several stories coming together to a train wreck of a story. The tension is palpable thru the whole book. The story is so enveloping that it is hard to put down. Violent and raw in context and an all around great book.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wanted to keep reading throughout.

[Ramona · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank Goodreads, Kindle and Mr. Judson for a really good read. It is a little dark but that was expected. Thanks for giving me an enjoyable read

[sybil erden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really held my interest

Lots of twists and turns. Hard to put this book down and I rarely give 5 stars. Looking forward to the next book...

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This was really exciting! I was kept in suspense the whole time and enjoyed every minute of it! I read it in one day, I couldn't put it down!

[Marcia Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots happening in story. Still some open question for me as reader but no desire to follow thru

[John Cunningham · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was OK! Nothing to get excited about. Another attempt at 40's film noir I guess.

[carla morrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Read

This book is fast paced.I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough to see what would happen next.A truly five star book.

[Cathy A. Witherspoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange

Not my typical choice. Very unusual characters and situations. Characters were not likeable and everyone turned out to be a pretender.

[Kimberly Poisso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Leading and hard to put down

The characters leave you cheering for some and despising others. It continually moves and never stops, until finally it does. Excellent read.

[Barry Edstene · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first Daniel Judson book, with luck it won't by my last. I found it a well crafted story that never slowed down. All in all a most enjoyable read.

[Brenda · Rating 2 out of 5]

i liked it enough to finish it, but now can't remember how it ended - didn't leave a lasting impression