Customer Reviews

Cut and Run (Brilliance Audio on Compact Disc)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

The plot is mechanical and unoriginal. It has characters of no interest and it manipulates the reader shamelessly, even by the standards of the genre (sweet little girl kidnapped by killer whose MO is to slit people's throats with a straight razor). Did I mention that the killer beats up and rapes his victims before killing them, but can't bring himself to harm little girls?

But what really stands out is how badly Pearson writes: "He didn't speak any of this, didn't voice his concerns, but he clearly wore them on his face, for she grew pale, turning away from the wind and him along with it." And this gem: "A night-light came on unexpectedly. Blinding him. Markowitz's grandson, dressed in cowboy pajamas, cowered. But it was he who'd turned it on."

Don't bother with this piece of trash, for you'll regret it.

Nothing very special with this book. Publishers Weekly called it one of his best, and I just don't see it. It's a plot that's been done, and characters that were pretty bland for the most part.

"Cut and Run" is predictable entertainment - the thriller that is decent fun while it lasts but will be forgotten by next month. Ridley Pearson is accomplished in the craft of pop fiction, and true to form he keeps the action moving unencumbered by any in-depth character development or complicated plotting. "Cut and Run" does offer some insight into the Federal Witness Protection program, as we find deputy federal marshal Roland "Lars" Larson falling in love with a protected witness, Hope Stevens. But that was six years in the past, and the program is so successful in hiding its participants that even Larson is unable to track down his lost love. When the massive data base tying protected witnesses with their true identity falls into the wrong hands, all hell breaks loose as Lars rushes to catch the bad guys, while at the same time finding and save poor Hope. Much what follows is formulaic: sadistic criminals, kidnappings, nail-biting cliffhangers, heavy weapons, murder and mayhem enough to fill a couple of hours on the big screen. Pearson fans will no doubt adore this latest installment; others will find "Cut and Run" more than sufficient fill for the long plane ride or lazy afternoon on the beach.

'Cut and Run' is a different type of novel for Ridley Pearson. Many of his novels feature Lou Boldt and Daphne Matthews, both of the Seattle Police Department. The Boldt series focuses a great deal of the investigation on forensic science and psyhchological clues. Those novels also tend to delve deeply into the troubled relationships of the main characters.

Many readers of Pearson's work have felt that the Boldt series has fallen into a bit of a rut. Not surprisingly, 'Cut and Run' focuses on a new set of characters (with a cameo by a few characters from the Boldt series). The change is refreshing, and the result is one of Pearson's better novels of late.

Roland Larson of the witness protection program is frantically trying to find a witness, Hope Stevens, that has left the program. To compound his problems, he was romantically involved with her. Further complicating matters, the database of protected witnesses has become compromised when its creator goes missing and is feared to be hacking the list for the criminal element. And last but not least, a mob family has sent a vicious assasin after Hope.

Overall, this novel is quite enjoyable. It has many short action filled pages that keep you reading. Cliff hangers abound. It is a bit light on detective work or mystery though. This novel thrives on being a thriller less than it does being a crime story or a detective story.

Pearson's fans will undoubtedly love this novel. I recommend it to anyone that enjoys a good thriller. If you are looking for a good novel featuring police work, I'd recommend some of Pearson's other novels.

Overall Grade: 4 stars.

I was disappointed with Cut and Run. It took me a LONG time to finish this book because every time I set it down I had little interest in picking it back up again. I didn't find the story line very compelling, and the characters were not fully formed. Not sure if I'll be reading another Pearson book...I guess it depends on the reader ratings here at Amazon.

This was my second Ridley Pearson book. Based on the first one, I expected this one to be not only a good story but also to have a little depth. But while it was full of action and easy to read, it seemed to have no real substance. It was the mystery equivalent of a Harlequin romance. I will try Pearson again because the first Lou Boldt book I read was pretty strong. But had I read this book first I would likely not have read more.

U.S. Marshall Roland Larson has guarded Hope Stevens for forty-one days waiting for her to be placed in the Witness Protection Program. She has information of the Romero crime family that can put them away for life. So far they have tried to kill her three times and although failed, they will keep on trying so it is imperative that she gets a new identity quickly so she can be alive to testify at their fraud and murder trials.

Before she disappears, Hope asks Larson to go into the program so they can be together. The next day she is gone and nobody will tell Larson where she has been relocated to or the name she is now using. Six years later, Hope is out of the program and on her own with her five year old daughter Penny. The Romero family has gone underground and wants to locate her now because their brother Donny is due out of prison unless she comes forth to testify. They kidnap Penny to use as a bargaining chip but Larson has found Hope and he is determined to get Penny, no matter what the costs.

Action, adventure, and romance are blended together to become one of the best books Ridley Pearson has ever written. The characters touch a chord in the readers' hearts especially Hope who wants daughter safe at all cost to herself. Larson wants Hope and Penny out of harm's way and with him while Penny has to be brave beyond her years to survive the kidnapping. The brilliant characterizations, the fast paced storyline and the romantic sizzle between two protagonists make CUT AND RUN a book to put on the keeper shelf.

Harriet Klausner

This book is written badly and boring. Before the author finishes one thought he is going on to another, never to come back to the first. Parts of the plot are unfinished.

The "bad" guy, like so many thrillers (book or movie form), is the only developed character, and even that is pushing it. Every character is stereotyped. The bad guy is Latina, the main female character "smart AND beautiful", the main male character is muscular and always one step ahead of the game.

Don't waste your time, find some good literature and expand your mind instead of reading this (...).

This book is likely to appeal only to Pearson-people, whose numbers apparently are legion. It should do little to add readers to that cult.

The plot is shopworn and predictable: good girl (Hope) is chased by bad man (Paolo) wielding a razor and intent on murder to silence Hope from testifying about something she learned that will somehow put a vicious crime family behind bars. Hope continually but narrowly escapes the murderous Paolo, but her young daughter Penny is captured and held. Hope turns the tables and takes up the chase of Paolo with maternal fury.

These characters are woefully underdeveloped. We're not quite sure how Hope knows what she knows. Penny is a kid and can't be expected to have too much character to develop, other than bravery in the face of terrible danger, which no doubt will lead to a lifetime of nightmares to tell her shrink about. Like the self-flagellating villain of The DaVinci Code, Paolo turns out to be a self-mutilator. Why? Who knows. It's the latest thing in villainy, I guess.

Add to the underdeveloped characters Roland Larson, alternately referred to as Rolo or Lars. He's the federal marshall who was initially assigned to guard Hope. He did a poor job of it, perhaps because he fell in love with Hope and she with him. When she disappeared out of witness protection, he began an off and on search for her that intensifies when the mob resumes its attempt to find and snuff her. Their paths cross again a third of the way into the story. This time Lars, or Rolo, or whatever is bound to do the job right, which means eliminating the danger, reuniting Hope with little Penny, and living with them as a family happily ever after. Who can doubt that this will happen?

A blurb by Harlan Coben on the book jacket promises that this novel is a "stay-up-all-night, hang-on-by-the-fingernails stunner." This must be some sort of shameless authorial quid pro quo. I finished this book only because of my own obsessive-compulsive tendencies, with nary a lost moment of sleep or a single trip to the manicurist. I am enthusiastic only in my non-recommendation.

maybe ridley pearson is going downhill or maybe he tried to churn out more than he could logically put together. and this problem has become worse during these years. now he just read totally similar to another james patterson, generic, stereotyped, formatted with 1 or 2 dimensional characters, totally impossible and vague plot, on and on, exactly what this specific book has shown. i never abandon him since his first book, but now, i think it's time to put him away as one of the failing writers beyond salvage. reading this book only forced me to put another coffin nail to this conclusion. i rest my case.