Customer Reviews

Citadel Run

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4 star:		(1)
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2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The book is pretty trite, compared to Michael Connelly. Of course, Bishop was writing before Connelly and was an actual cop at one time. Michael is a journalist who knows a lot about the cop business. Bishop apparently used Joseph Wambaugh as a role model, but I don't know that he measures up to that standard, either.

The fall guy, the Italian-surnamed sergeant everyone laughs at, except Calico's ex-wife (who appears to be using him to "get back") reminded me of the fall guys in Mash. In fact, most of the characters are pretty cardboard-thin, and, for that matter, so is the plot.

The things that happen here are sensationalized, but not that interesting. We know the hero, Mr. Calico, is going to come out on top in the end, while the bad guys of course predictably lose in the "macho" face off. His half-Japanese partner, a female, is probably the most interesting, but we learn precious little about her, only that her father wanted her to follow a traditional path.

The "run" to Las Vegas is mildly interesting, if you have done that route. Route 66, you know, except in the opposite direction and then a little to the northeast. But his opponents in this sillly race are also silly people: their egos are their gods, so it seems for all of them in this book.

Anyway, I read the book. It's not boring, exactly, but you won't learn a whole lot here about Los Angeles cops, Los Angeles, or people in general. Read Connelly instead if you want all that. Diximus.

Very enjoyable book to read....author is reminiscent of Joseph Wambaugh's writing style...humor and pathos...kept my attention to the end...recommended reading for all who enjoy the police sense of humor....

Citadel Run is a book that seemed as if it should have been part of a series of books and this book would have been the ending of the series. The main character is retiring and taking a last jab at having some fun while breaking the rules. There are plenty of characters in this book that would have been good recurring characters from other books in the series but since this wasn't a part of a series you don't really care about them. Paul Bishop also has the annoying habit of having to go into great detail of a single character. First you meet the character. Then you get their past history, the low down on their personal life, and what they look like. It gets very tiresome at awhile. The first part of the book is pretty good though. It's about a boy setting buildings on fire. That would have been a good central plot to use for the whole book but the author had to add in the useless "last ride" story that added nothing to the book. Citadel Run is a boring, tedious, thoughtless book that reads as if it's 500 pages instead of 300. 2 Stars