Choice of Evil: A Burke Novel (Burke Novels) (Hardcover)

by Andrew Vachss (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
With the possible exception of James Ellroy, Andrew Vachss is the mystery writer with the darkest heart and the most troubled soul. Like his 10 other books about the enigmatic outlaw private eye called Burke, Choice of Evil deals with unpleasant subjects--ritual murder, pedophilia, sexual deviance--the full force of which are never dampened by attempts at tact or taste. Vachss is not an author to look away from the nasty, or try to soften any of life's lowest blows.

That said, his latest does start off on a light note when Burke's giant mastiff, Pansy, is grabbed in a police raid. Burke and his motley crew of helpers--people with names like Mole, Crystal Beth, and Max the Silent--stage a raid on the animal shelter, and in a zany scene worthy of Lawrence Block or Donald Westlake, set free a herd of caged canines. All too soon, however, darkness descends as Crystal Beth--Burke's main squeeze and an activist for abused women--is killed at an outdoor rally, apparently by someone who hates homosexuals. Following this atrocity, a vigilante calling himself Homo Erectus declares war on gay bashers, and also on pedophiles who seek to link their cause to gay rights. Burke is hired to find this vigilante and keep him safe before the cops nab him.

Mentioning pedophilia to Burke is like waving a red flag at a bull: he can (and does) go on for many pages about this particular evil as he and a friendly lesbian dominatrix link Homo Erectus to a supposedly long-dead killer from Burke's own past.

To absorb the full force of the Burke canon, read other books in the series: Safe House, Blossom, Blue Belle, and False Allegations. --Dick Adler

From Publishers Weekly
Urban nightmares have been Vachss's stock-in-writing-trade since his debut 14 years ago with the extraordinary Flood. His 11th Burke novel is more nightmare than most, a dizzying shapeshifter of a tale that speeds suspense, vengeance, retribution, magic, bizarre sex play, characters old and new and icicle-pointed prose past the reader in a near blur. After the customary preludeABurke loses his apartment and must move with his dog to BrooklynAthe action proper begins. The outlaw PI is hired by a group of gay activists to find a vigilante, the self-proclaimed Homo Erectus (HE), who is wiping out gay-bashers around the city; the activists plan to spirit him to safety. Too soon, the case complicates immenselyAfor Burke but also for readers. Burke's lover was killed a while back in a drive-by shooting of gay protesters. Was HE involved? Why is HE, whom Burke contacts through the Net, so obsessed with Wesley, the stone killer apparently blown up some time ago? Has Wesley returned from the dead? What does the lesbian dominatrix aiding Burke in his search for HE really want? Into this plot mesh, Vachss weaves cameos by nearly all the series regularsAMax the Silent, Mole the technogeek, Strega the witch, etc.Abut anyone new to the books will weep at trying to make sense of the relations between them. Vachss's excesses strut through the storyAthe elliptical narration, the ranting against pederasts, the psychosexual melodrama ("She licked the blood off... sucked until she came, spasming... "). The plot whips here, there and everywhere, including into extensive but only tangentially relevant flashbacks, via computer messages from HE, of the killer's kidnapping of a girl. Like a furiously spun hand-cranked generator, this angry novel spits out a few sparks, but not enough to distract readers from the real show: that of a talented writer sliding toward self-parody.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 305 pages
• Publisher: Knopf (April 27, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375406476
• ISBN-13: 978-0375406478
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,139,584 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #64 in

  Books > Mystery & Thrillers > Authors, A-Z > ( V ) > Vachss, Andrew

• This is item 11 in The Burke Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a very important writer, August 10, 2000

By	T. Bekken (Austmarka Norway) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Choice of Evil: A Burke Novel (Paperback)

Any book by Vachss is part of a crusade against the exploitation of children, sexually or otherwise. That is a worthy cause, and in addition, the books are good. In many ways, Vachss is an eye-opener. He takes readers to places which are so hideous that they are hard to imagine, and he tells those readers not to accept the foulness and cruelty that children all over the world must endure on a daily basis. "Choice Of Evil" confronts the moral problems that arise when a super-intelligent mind deliberately choses to be evil, and the ugly results of such a person's actions. The book is disturbing, but extremely thought-provoking, and on top of that, it is a serious page-turner. Vachss is never dull. This novel is not an exception to that rule.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No one better, ever., July 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Choice of Evil: A Burke Novel (Paperback)

Andrew Vachss has a gift for exposing the ugliness masked under pretty gilding, and the glory of love hidden by hard exteriors. He knows the difference between talk and action, and he tells you the truth in a way you cannot forget. This novel presents a new level of excellence in his writing.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Action and Unique Storytelling, July 12, 2000

By	tina h. (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Choice of Evil: A Burke Novel (Paperback)

Vachss never fails to deliver a powerful story built to bowl the reader over. CHOICE has a multi-layered and complex plot that builds on the story of bisexual Crystal Beth, first introduced in the previous novel, SAFE HOUSE, and her effect on Burke, whom she loved. Vachss' writing, as always, is spare, yet richly evocative. Whether this is your first taste of Vachss, or the one you've been waiting for, you won't be disappointed!