Customer Reviews

Chasers

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I NEVER throw away a book, especially before I've finished, until "Chasers." The dialogue in this book is probably the worst I've ever read; every character sounds the same, they all take two paragraphs to speak a simple thought and the dialogue is so stilted it sounds like Shakespearean actors doing a SNL skit. Laughably bad. Try reading the dialogue aloud...

Overall, I found "Chasers" to be frustrating to read, found myself grinding my teeth in parts. Wouldn't recommend this to anyone.

For good crime fiction, try T. Jefferson Parker, Robt. Crais, the gteat Lee Child or any of a dozen more. This guy Carcaterra is a wanna be.

The Apaches are back in 1985 Manhattan, Carcaterra's coterie of disaffected, disabled former cops, all forced by numerous injuries to retire on disability, the cold fire of vengeance temporarily banked. Both street-smart and street-weary, these ex-cops have seen it all and survived their wounds, at least the visible ones, their coping skills somewhat frayed. When the innocent niece of Giovanni "Boomer" Frontieri is caught in gang crossfire, he decides to cut to the heart of the matter and take out those responsible, even if it means open warfare with the strongest contenders on the street, the Columbians, the G-Men, or Father Angel, a cold-hearted ex-priest. Soon the others gather around their partner, stylized heroes all: Dead-Eye, Rev. Jim, Quincy, Ash, even a disabled drug-sniffing dog. Laying the groundwork for their vigilante assault on the vermin who prey on the streets of Manhattan, they all know the risks and arrange for a little backup from the Russian mob.

The author takes his time building the story, the characters introduced one by one in their natural surroundings, drug dealers, hit men, the Apaches. But for all the death and violence on the streets of New York, the almost oblivious continuation of inter-gang warfare, a blueprint for a convulsive collision of drug lords and Apaches, the characters are emotionally disengaged. So carefully has the author built this house of cards that none of the protagonists (Boomer, Dead-Eye, Rev. Jim, Ash, or Quincy) are accessible as living, breathing actors on a particularly brutal stage. The full-court press of predictable bad guys, assassins, the Boiler Man, Angel, the G-Men and a Russian mob queen, are the usual stereotypes, conscienceless killers. That spark of passion that allows a reader to root for the good guys is strangely absent, but for a final twist at the end. Perhaps that is Carcaterra's point; when we become as violent as our opponents, even in pursuit of justice, there is no difference. Luan Gaines/2007.

John Frontieri aka Boomer is an ex-cop with part of a lung missing but he is financially stable because he lives on three quarters of a pension with full health benefits. In 1982, he and other ex-cops who were injured and forced to retire formed the Apaches, a rogue police unit that went after and took down a drug queen and her entire posse. Three years later the Apaches with three new members are on the streets again to take down a South American drug lord, Angel who was a former priest before he turned to the dark side.

The reason Boomer and company, including Buttercup, a drug sniffing dog who can hold her own with the Apaches, wants Angel dead is because he ordered a hit on a couple of the G-men (Ceerzule brothers) in a restaurant and Boomer's niece was collateral damage. The new members are Ash a former arson investigator scared by a fire and Quincy who is in the early stages of AIDs. They manipulate the various crime lords having them at each others throats, accept help from the mob who wants a piece of Angel's turf and they take heavy chances that cost Angel big time. In the end, it is not their street smarts that determine the outcome but a little help from those on the wrong side of the law.

Many readers will wonder what the difference is between the Apaches and the criminals they battle and the answer is not much. Both cross the line into questionable activities as the Apaches act as judge, jury and executioners not paying attention to civil rights. Surprisingly, for such a dark shoot-em-up crime thriller Lorenzo Carcaterra has a way with characterization that brings an anchor of reality to the mix. Dark humor, characters that are shades of grey and the belief that any means to an end is good are the hallmark elements of CHASERS.

Harriet Klausner

I've read some very well written books by Lorenzo Carcaterra but "Chasers" is not one of them. The story was impossible to follow, the dialogue all sounded the same...all of it too hip for the room... and every character's introduction was hampered by a backstory that detracted from the pace and continuity of the book. And this is some of the 'better' apsects of the novel.

After making it through about 70 pages I put the book down, regretting the $25 plus dollars I shelled out to be bored and disappointed.

Well, I paid $1 for the book at a community library ridding itself of books not much in demand. I guess it was worth that, tho I can't say I would recommend it; however, there was just enough interest in following the plot and action to keep me going to the end (albeit hard going), which does cause some question as to what was really happening. Not being familiar with the NYC drug dealer scene, I thought that the major gangs were run by well-entrenched Mafia families, not just-arrived South American or Russian gang leaders. The action, while good, was marred by the author's apparent lack of knowledge or familiarity with small arms, having everyone with two ".44's," instead of the more likely .45,9mm, or .40S&w semiauto's. I wondered. Author must have seen the Dirty Harry movies, or read of the Son of Sam killer, who had a .44 (probably a magnum). Or .38 special revolvers, which are pretty much obsolete since the 90's. Even police now carry hi-cap semiauto pistols. Then, "double-pump" shotguns. Never have seen one. Either they are sawed off double barrels (18-20 in) or sawed off pump shotguns, usually 12 gal., not both in one--no such animal.

Another big question mark dancing over my skull was the author's use of extreme figures of speech in everyone's dialog: cutsy metaphors, allegory, slang, analogy, idioms, similes, etc. There seemed to be an obsession with these usages. Do all New Yorkers talk like this? hmm. they don't in the cable NYC police "dramas."

While not excrable reading, author has a ways to go to reach the top tier.

The action sequences are decent and I can even accept the dialogue. However, it's hard to get past the terrible editing. For example, this novel is set in 1985. One of the characters makes a reference to Mel Gibson's character in Lethal Weapon. That movie wasn't released until 1987. Apaches was a better book.

Lorenzo Carcaterra at his best - an excellent sequel to "The Apaches." He is fast becoming one of my favorites. Hasn't quite equalled Lee Child or F. Paul Wilson's "Repairman Jack's" novels but he's close.

An exciting and well-written book that I highly recommend.

I could not put it down and the ending is climactic. If you like the gritty world of cops and criminals you want to read this one.