What do you think?
North Beach Mystery #1
Chasing the Dragon
1st Hale Crime 2006 hardcover edition, new book in new dw, In stock shipped from our UK warehouse
Hardcover
First published October 4, 2004
About the author
Domenic Stansberry
25 books45 followersCrime novelist, editor and essayist known for his innovative noir fiction that skirts the edges of the genre while exploring the intricacies of criminal consciousness. The Lizard, finalist for the 2026 Hammett Prize, is the latest of his award-winning novels.
His other recent books include The White Devil, a sultry, decadent thriller that received the Hammett in 2017. An earlier novel, The Confession, received the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America, and is regarded as a neo-noir classic.
Other work includes the North Beach Mystery Series—featuring investigator Dante Mancuso — which received wide praise for its portrayal of the ethnic and political subcultures of San Francisco. Books from that series include The Ancient Rain, named several years after its original publication as one of the best crime novels of the decade by Booklist. Stansberry’s novels have been translated into numerous languages, with editions in Japanese, Italian, French, Spanish and Polish among others.
He lives with his wife, poet Gillian Conoley, and their daughter, Gillis, in a small town north of San Francisco.
His other recent books include The White Devil, a sultry, decadent thriller that received the Hammett in 2017. An earlier novel, The Confession, received the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America, and is regarded as a neo-noir classic.
Other work includes the North Beach Mystery Series—featuring investigator Dante Mancuso — which received wide praise for its portrayal of the ethnic and political subcultures of San Francisco. Books from that series include The Ancient Rain, named several years after its original publication as one of the best crime novels of the decade by Booklist. Stansberry’s novels have been translated into numerous languages, with editions in Japanese, Italian, French, Spanish and Polish among others.
He lives with his wife, poet Gillian Conoley, and their daughter, Gillis, in a small town north of San Francisco.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 12, 2015
This book just didn't do it for me. I didn't really warm to any of the characters and the events were confusing. There were a lot of references to places around San Francisco which may have been interesting if I was familiar with that city, but there wasn't enough here to make me feel as if I was there. I don't mind the ending being left hanging, but almost everything else was, too. It's a shame because the book had potential. Maybe I'm being too negative; someone else might like it just fine. But I for one was left feeling flat.
May 29, 2008
Started out as a better-than-average crime thriller -- in a field where the average is pretty abysmal -- but didn't fulfill its promise. Another bedtime book that didn't do the job.
August 5, 2018
Well written
Not satisfactory ending
Not satisfactory ending
September 14, 2011
Yikes! Let the reader beware: this is dark, unsatisfying, stuff.
The evil that lurks in the shadows in this novel is The Company, a vague entity that seems as tied to and embedded in government and law enforcement as it is the drug and smuggling cartels. The plot consists of two intertwined threads, one personal for the main character--solving the murder of his father--and one professional, the company asks him to arrange a meeting between a local Muslim leader and an up and coming Chinese mafioso for the purpose of turning them against their higher ups.
Meanwhile there are a variety of subplots, a couple of characters whose are only in the novel to be killed at plot critical moments, and a deeply evocative characterization of a (possibly non-existent) neighborhood in San Fransisco.
The point of the novel appears to be that the forces in power get what they want regardless of who gets hurt, and the best any of us can hope for is to keep our heads down and try not to get caught up in it. Although there is no explicit mention of September 11th or terrorism, the paranoia in this novel is seems clearly fueled by a distrust of government and the defense and security industries. I assume this is intentional.
Like most noirish crime novels, the universal corruption is balanced by an individual redemption. In this case this comes at the end with the main character abruptly destroying the evidence of a grand conspiracy in order to preserve his neighborhood, even though it is dying on its own. But this is an incredibly hollow redemption, because the author has given no reason why this is something worth saving.
As I wrote this, my rating went from 4 stars, to 3, to 2. There is much to enjoy about this novel, it is complex, moves very quickly, has some interesting characters, and perfectly captures the feel of the non-touristy parts of San Fransisco. Sounds like a great crime novel right? But the more I think about the deep underlying cynicism and paranoia, the less I feel like I can truly recommend this novel.
Fuck it, 2 stars, and I'm going to go reread the Maltese Falcon.
The evil that lurks in the shadows in this novel is The Company, a vague entity that seems as tied to and embedded in government and law enforcement as it is the drug and smuggling cartels. The plot consists of two intertwined threads, one personal for the main character--solving the murder of his father--and one professional, the company asks him to arrange a meeting between a local Muslim leader and an up and coming Chinese mafioso for the purpose of turning them against their higher ups.
Meanwhile there are a variety of subplots, a couple of characters whose are only in the novel to be killed at plot critical moments, and a deeply evocative characterization of a (possibly non-existent) neighborhood in San Fransisco.
The point of the novel appears to be that the forces in power get what they want regardless of who gets hurt, and the best any of us can hope for is to keep our heads down and try not to get caught up in it. Although there is no explicit mention of September 11th or terrorism, the paranoia in this novel is seems clearly fueled by a distrust of government and the defense and security industries. I assume this is intentional.
Like most noirish crime novels, the universal corruption is balanced by an individual redemption. In this case this comes at the end with the main character abruptly destroying the evidence of a grand conspiracy in order to preserve his neighborhood, even though it is dying on its own. But this is an incredibly hollow redemption, because the author has given no reason why this is something worth saving.
As I wrote this, my rating went from 4 stars, to 3, to 2. There is much to enjoy about this novel, it is complex, moves very quickly, has some interesting characters, and perfectly captures the feel of the non-touristy parts of San Fransisco. Sounds like a great crime novel right? But the more I think about the deep underlying cynicism and paranoia, the less I feel like I can truly recommend this novel.
Fuck it, 2 stars, and I'm going to go reread the Maltese Falcon.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 4, 2007
CHASING THE DRAGON (Unlicensed-San Francisco-Cont) – Ok
Domenic Stansberry – 6th book
St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2004- Hardcover
Dante Mancuso, forced out after seven years with the San Francisco police, as been working around the world for “The Company.” They’ve now sent him back to San Francisco just at the time when his father has died. But when his uncle gives him photo negatives from his father, and his uncle is murdered, Dante questions his father’s death and what is behind it all.
*** The most interesting and best-developed character in this book was the city of San Francisco, the flavors and nuances of which the author captured beautifully. Unfortunately, I found the human characters flat and uninvolving. There is good dialogue and suspense, but also massive coincidences and dangling threads left at the end. I was sadly disappointed in this book.
Domenic Stansberry – 6th book
St. Martin’s Minotaur, 2004- Hardcover
Dante Mancuso, forced out after seven years with the San Francisco police, as been working around the world for “The Company.” They’ve now sent him back to San Francisco just at the time when his father has died. But when his uncle gives him photo negatives from his father, and his uncle is murdered, Dante questions his father’s death and what is behind it all.
*** The most interesting and best-developed character in this book was the city of San Francisco, the flavors and nuances of which the author captured beautifully. Unfortunately, I found the human characters flat and uninvolving. There is good dialogue and suspense, but also massive coincidences and dangling threads left at the end. I was sadly disappointed in this book.
December 14, 2009
Noirish mystery that centers around drug and human trafficking in San Francisco ports. The end is filled with enough double crosses to make any Noir buff happy, but I found myself pining for a little bit of wisecracking from the hero. However, Stansberry's observational skills bring San Francisco's waterfront and Italian-American community to fabulous life. I will definitely check out the next in this series
May 14, 2015
Seduced by the gorgeous painting of the Golden Gate Bridge, I picked up this noir mystery that is not at all my cup of tea. The depiction of North Beach and the tension between the Italian and Chinese communities kept me hanging on. One of those fast-paced books that ends quickly and leaves you feeling empty.
May 15, 2010
The author successfully keeps up a sense of forboding and menace throughout the book. I'm more used to first person detective stories, but this kept me involved and worried about what was going to happen next. I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.
July 16, 2010
I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would! I loved the setting and the characters - North Beach, San Francisco and a bunch of Italians! Good action and a good mystery! And a pretty quick read too! A nice summer treat! I would definitely be interested in reading the next one!
January 6, 2009
It was a good book, tho I suspect if I had read earlier books about this character I would have enjoyed it more.
August 30, 2009
love a vampire story - especially with a werewolf!
September 13, 2009
Best modern day hard-edged noir I've read in years. The next two in the series fall far short of their predecessor, but CHASING THE DRAGON is well worth reading if you're a picky noir fan.
July 2, 2010
why is this guy considered a good author? this was flat, not believable, not rough enough. good for the 4 door pickup morning donut crowd maybe.
August 4, 2010
Interesting but not compelling. The flavor of North Beach surrounds a somewhat unfulfilling mystery.
January 12, 2011
A good page-turner. Nice descriptions of North Beach, Chinatown and other San Francisco locations. Decent plot.
Read
June 28, 2014loved it
May 1, 2017
Interesting story, lots of characters - not a book you can put down and come back to - too many moving pieces.
Interesting ending, but left me somewhat unsatisfied...
Interesting ending, but left me somewhat unsatisfied...
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews