The Killing Man (G K Hall Large Print Book Series) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Mickey Spillane (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1993 | Series: G K Hall Large Print Book Series

Private eye, Mike Hammer, goes on the warpath when he finds his lovely secretary, Velda, lying battered on his office floor next to the mutilated body of a would-be client. The author has also written "The Girl Hunters", "The Body Lovers" and "Survival...Zero".

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"I rammed my elbow back and felt teeth go under it and the back of my head mashed the guy's nose who was holding me." Mike Hammer is back, and after almost 20 years, he's as psychotically hard-boiled as ever. Here, there's a dead man in Hammer's office chair. He has been horribly tortured; a note on the desk reads "You die for killing me," signed "Penta." Hammer's longtime secretary and sometime love interest, Velda, has been knocked unconscious and Hammer (no mellower despite the years), goes a-hunting. Gorgeous assistant DA Candace Amory warns Hammer off the case; he changes her mind. Penta turns up on government files as an assassin for hire, a billion dollars in drug money is missing and renegade CIA agents and mobsters are looking for Penta, while gunning for Hammer. Spillane's ( Kiss Me, Deadly ) dirty rain, mean streets, leggy broads, etc. have made him one of the all time best-selling authors--but many things, including present-day New York city, have changed since the '50s and Spillane has, for the most part, failed to notice. Readers will catch the bad guy 50 pages before Hammer does. $100,000 ad/promo.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From AudioFile

In case you haven't experienced Mickey Spillane firsthand, know that the numerous parodies of his style are not much exaggerated. The gritty exploits of gumshoe Mike Hammer teeter on the edge of high camp. However, Hayward Morse opts for a straight, irony-free performance. Although he's apparently British, his American accent is flawless. (Mike Hammer with a British accent would be camp indeed.) Mood, pacing and character voices are expertly handled. Hammer sounds a little young and clean-cut for one with such a long and colorful past, but that's a minor quibble against a thoroughly professional performance. If Spillane is your taste, this reading won't disappoint. J.N. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 345 pages
• Publisher: G K Hall & Co (February 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816155526
• ISBN-13: 978-0816155521
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,318,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mickey Spillane (1918-2006) sold hundreds of millions of books. He introduced iconic detective Mike Hammer to readers in 1947 with I, THE JURY, and was named a Mystery Writers of America Grand Master in 1995.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great break from the "heavies", February 27, 2010

By 

Heather Richie (lawson, mo United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Killing Man (Signet Shakespeare) (Kindle Edition)

Spillane novels are a great diversion from the heavy history and political philosophy books that form the greater part of my reading list. His style is easy to read and the storys are fun to get into and get lost in after a rough day at work. Spillanes detractors should realize this as a valuable purpose for this kind of genre of which Spillane is the best.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Mike Hammer is Back, November 29, 2009

By 

Nash Black "Troubadour" (Jamestown, KY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Killing Man (Paperback)

THE KILLING MAN by Mickey Spillane marks the return of Mike Hammer, one of the most viral of the detective genre.
Mike walks into his office to discover his beloved secretary, Velda, unconscious, the brutal murder of ex-mobster Anthony DiCica at Mike's desk, and a note from the killer signed Penta.
Mike is in the middle and taking hits from the DA's office, the FBI, the CIA, and the mob, while being assumed to have been the intended victim when DiCica was murdered.
For none stop action with a satisfying conclusion from an author that delivers a good yarn nothing can be better than a Mickey Spillane.
Nash Black, author of SINS OF THE FATHERS and QUALIFYING LAPS.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I Love the Pulp Fiction Detective, June 22, 2005

By 

Gerard F. Bianco "Author of The Deal Master -... (Maine, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Killing Man (Hardcover)

The Killing Man is a typical Mike Hammer murder mystery, only in this story, the tables are turned and bad things are happening to Hammer himself. The tale begins as Hammer walks into his office and finds his darling secretary, Velda, knocked unconscious and a strange man, brutally murdered, occupying the office chair. From there, things only get worse for the detective, and the reader finds himself in a fast-paced, sexy and interestingly plotted adventure. Reader beware, however, this is Mike Hammer, a guy who doesn't know the meaning of, `a feminine side.'

Here's a quick example of what I mean: (The story is written in the fist person. Hammer is speaking.)

"I cocked the .45, took real deliberate aim and touched the trigger. The gun blasted into a roaring yellowish light and for that one second I saw the leg jerk and twitch with a grotesque motion, and even before he could scream, I did it again to the other leg...

The pain really hit him...He glanced down and was ripping at his clothes again and screamed, `You killed me!'

`Not yet,' I told him... Then he found the small-caliber pistol his hands had really been groping for and brought it up in a sweeping, deadly arc, one finger tightening around the trigger.

There was one smashing roar of the .45. His blood went all over the place. Fresh specks of crimson were on the back of my hand. I stood up slowly and gave him a hard grin he couldn't see any more.

I said, `Now I killed you.'

If you like Pulp Fiction, you'll like this one.

Gerard Bianco, author of the mystery novel, Dying For Deception (www.dyingfordeception.com)