Badlands [Hardcover]

Richard Montanari (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Random House Inc. (2008)
• ISBN-10: 1607510960
• ISBN-13: 978-1607510963
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,192,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard was born in Cleveland, Ohio, the scion of a traditional Italian-American family, which means he learned two things very early in life. One: ravioli tastes much better than baby formula. Two: if you don't get to the table on time, there IS no ravioli.

After an undistinguished academic career in junior high and high school, culminating in an undistinguished five-year career as an English major at Case Western Reserve University, Richard traveled Europe extensively, living in London for a time, where he sold men's clothing on Oxford Street, and foreign language encyclopedias door-to-door in Hampstead Heath.

Needless to say, he hawked a few more ties than tomes. So, abandoning his dream (that being to become the next Bryan Ferry) he returned to the States and joined his family's construction firm.

Five years and a hundred smashed thumbs later, he decided that writing might be a better job.

After working as a freelance writer for years, during which time he was published in more than two hundred publications, Richard wrote three pages of what was to become the first chapter of Deviant Way. He was immediately signed to a New York agency. When he finished the book, Michael Korda signed him to a two-book deal at Simon & Schuster.

Deviant Way was published in hardcover in 1995. Richard went on to publish The Violet Hour in 1998, Kiss of Evil in 2001, The Rosary Girls in 2005, and The Skin Gods in 2006. His books have now been published in more than a dozen countries.

His next novel of suspense, Merciless, will be published by Ballantine Books in spring 2007.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A pretty good thriller., January 13, 2011

By 

J.Flood (Dublin,Ireland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Badlands: A Novel of Suspense (Mass Market Paperback)

Runaway girls are turning up brutally murdered, in various bizarre ways, in the city of Philadelphia. Detectives Kevin Byrne and Jessica Balazano are on the case, trying to hunt down the sadistic killer.

I thought Badlands was a pretty good thriller. Having read a number of books in this series, I think the Byrne/Balzano partnership works quite well. The plot held my interest throughout, as the detectives try to track down this particularly nasty killer, before he can strike again. Overall, not quite a page turner, but worth a look.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Exciting Page-Turner From Montanari!, December 8, 2008

By 

bobbewig (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Badlands: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

I've said it before and I'm saying it again having now read all seven of Richard Montanari's books: I am convinced that he is incapable of writing a bad book and he deserves to have a much wider reading audience. Montanari's writing style and interesting, well-developed characters will keep you turning the pages to find out what happens next in the fourth book in the series featuring Detectives Byrne and Balzano. That being said, however, Badlands does not quite measure up to the first two excellent books in the series, The Rosary Girls and The Skin Gods, but it is better than Merciless. Putting these comparative comments aside, Badlands -- which has Byrne and Balzano working working a "cold case" involving the death of a runaway teen in the dangerous, desolate North Philly district dubbed the Badlands -- is filled with suspense and excitement, strong characterizations, very believable prose and several complex plot twists. The only factor that keeps me from giving Badlands a 5-star rating is that I found the ending to be somewhat predictable -- but let me reassure you that this is only a minor criticism, and one that I hope will not turn you away from considering reading a book that is a real page-turner.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent offering from a skilled novelist, September 11, 2008

By 

Armchair Interviews (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Badlands: A Novel of Suspense (Hardcover)

Lock the doors, settle into a comfortable chair, and prepare to be swept away in the mystery and intrigue of Badlands. This chilling suspense novel, filled with gruesome murders conducted along a twisted plot in north Philadelphia, will keep you turning page after page as the puzzle unfolds.

Joseph Swann, known to his victims as Mr. Ludo, is the brilliant son of a magician-gone-madman. Keenly adept with his hands, he builds keepsake furniture pieces for the wealthy to support his passion for magic, puzzles, and murder. With tormented thoughts from a long-lost childhood, Swann attempts to collect revenge on his past by hunting teenage runaways to become his magician's assistants. A handsome, smooth-talking man with knowledge on current events and pop culture, and a vast array of stage disguises that transform him into anyone he wants to become, Swann is able to gain the confidence of his young victims and lure them into his trap. In his relic mansion with hidden passages, Swann tenderly cares for each of his victims until he is ready to display their bodies as part of his Seven Wonders.

Detectives Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne are assigned to the cold case of Caitlin O'Riordan, and quickly find that the case is not really cold, and the killer is on the loose. Collaborating with officers who worked the case in the past, street-smart runaways, and the famous author of a tangram book, the detectives begin to close in on their prey. The question is, will they catch him before the seventh girl dies?

Author Richard Montanari is a skilled novelist, essayist, and screenwriter whose work has appeared in numerous national and regional publications. He is an OLMA award winner and has also written Merciless, The Skin Gods, The Rosary Girls, Kiss of Evil, Deviant Way, and The Violet Hour.

Armchair Interviews says: Chills and suspense in a well-written novel.