Customer Reviews

The Budapest Connection: A Novel

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4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
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I ran out of recreational reading material awhile back, so I picked this up from the library based on the synopsis and cover... The Budapest Connection by Dr. Henry C. Lee & Jerry Labriola, MD. What I hoped for was a medical/forensic thriller, but what I got was something that never did grab ahold of my interest...

The main character, Dr. Henry Liu, is a forensic scientist who heads up a small international crime-solving group called GIFT - Global Interactive Forensics Team. This group has regular day jobs, but they are also available to head anywhere in the world on a private jet and consult on high-profile, difficult, or sensitive cases. GIFT has been called in to a crime scene here involving three dead girls on a waterfront pier. The nude bodies are arranged in a triangle, with one guy glued open and the other glued shut. Liu reluctantly takes the lead on the case, since it's relatively close to where he lives. The arrangement of the bodies suggest a Triad killing, and other clues link it to a Mafia matter. A chance request from a Hungarian official to consult on a crime also touches on this case, and it means that there are Eastern European elements in play. In all likelihood the case involves trafficking in young women ("white slavery"), and there are some people who would prefer that Liu just ignore everything he's seen and let things alone. But of course, that's not going to happen, regardless of how many brushes with death he has...

Having never read any of Lee and Labriola's other works of non-fiction, I came into this with no preconceptions. After a short time, I figured I must have stepped into the middle of a series as there was a lot of background I didn't seem to have on the characters. Only after finishing the book did I find out this was a first fictional effort by the two, which makes this even harder to understand. Other than the Liu character, everyone else was just filler with no depth. One of the team members is making overt sexual advances towards Lui (for what reason I don't know), but he's turning her down (again, not quite sure why). Lui travels with a bodyguard and driver during the day, but I must have missed why. The ending is a bit strange, and I never quite had a firm grasp of who the players were and why they were part of the international crime group. All in all, I was turning pages, but without much enthusiam...

This could have the makings of a decent series, but the character development needs to improve dramatically (in my opinion). I'd like to care about and understand the characters, but in this story I certainly didn't...

Dr. Henry Lee creates a character who reminds most of...himself. Even the name Henry Liu is close. Anyway, Dr. Liu and his team of forensic professionals G.I.F.T. find themselves in the middle of an investigation that starts with three dead girls and ends in a climax that endangers the life of Liu and takes the lives of others.

This book was a good read, not great, but it was very entertaining. The mix of science, thrills, and twists make the story move. I was disappointed in the ending as I would have liked more explanation and follow up on some of the main players, but all in all it was a good debut effort.

If you are looking for a quick interesting read, this one is for you.

The story is a master of intrigue that reflects the abilities and esperiences of the authors. It is a terrific blend of mystery fiction and forensic science. Dr. Lee is a mentor to fornsic scientists and Dr. Labriola is a montor to myster writers.

Dan Uitti - President, Connecticut Authors & Publishers Association

In spite of too many gruesome crime scenes, criminologist Dr. Henry Liu and the four other members of the Global Interactive Forensics Team (GIFT) are stunned by what they see winking back at them lying at the Brooklyn Marine Terminal. Three naked late teen female corpses each having one eye opened and one shut arranged to form an equilateral triangle. The women were executed by a shot to their heads.

GIFT begins its investigation informing NYPD that it is too soon to jump to conclusions. However as they start to follow the clues Dr. Liu and his three males and one female teammate run into a dangerous adversary who want Gift eliminated before they uncover the head of an international gang into all sorts of insidious activity including a white slave sex ring that leads them to Budapest.

The forensic science is terrific as the renowned Dr. Henry C. Lee and Dr. Jerry Labriola collaborate on an exciting global thriller. However, having the GIFT players also act as warriors seem over the top though it is fun to root for them as they kick butt. Still Dr. Liu and his squad provide readers with an interesting forensics investigation that takes the audience on a wonderful magical mystery tour from New York to THE BUDAPEST CONNECTION.

Harriet Klausner