Lights Out [Mass Market Paperback]

Peter Abrahams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1995

Eighteen-year-old Eddie Nye was bound for U.S.C. and a bright future that fateful summer in the Bahamas. But somebody set Eddie up. Instead of four years of higher education, he did fifteen behind bars for drug smuggling. Eddie went in innocent, but with three prison murders under his belt, he comes out dangerous. Although all he wants is to stay clean, Eddie's future won't be that easy. The nightmares of his past—corruption, greed, and most of all a stunning betrayal—are on a collision course with a daring plot hatched in a prison cell. To learn the secret of his own life, half-hidden in an ancient mariner's saga, Eddie must face the hardest choice a free man can make.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The author of The Fury of Rachel Monette here creates a fascinating and memorable character in Eddie Nye, a young man who spends 15 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit. After he is finally released, Eddie quickly discovers that a strange meeting with an incarcerated drug kingpin on his last day in prison has somehow enmeshed him in an intricate and dangerous plot. Seeking out his older brother, a Wall Street "investment consultant" who deserted him while he was behind bars, Eddie uncovers a pattern of betrayal reaching all the way back to the day the Coast Guard arrested him on account of a cache of shipboard drugs he knew nothing about. Eddie, who became an avid reader while in jail and is particularly fascinated by "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," asks everyone he meets in the course of his suspenseful investigation why they think the old sailor killed the albatross and why he suffered so as a result--as with his own case, the punishment seems out of proportion to the crime in Eddie's eyes. A fateful decision to try and help his brother out of overwhelming financial troubles leads to the discovery of some awful secrets and to personal disaster for Eddie. Abrahams spares the reader nothing, in gritty dialogue and often gruesome detail. Consistently interesting and suspenseful, his thriller's shocking outcome is revealed only on the very last page.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The summer before he was to go to USC on a swimming scholarship, Eddie Nye became innocently involved in a marijuana smuggling scheme and wound up in jail. He should have been out in three or four years, but his response to a brutal prison "initiation" forced him to serve his full 15-year sentence. Now he is back on the streets, looking for answers. His search is complicated by a powerful drug lord and fellow inmate, who sees in the unwitting Eddie the perfect messenger for some very important information. Like Eddie's favorite poem, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," the novel is concerned with penitence, though it's not clear for what, since Eddie proves himself to be a man of rare honor and courage in a world defined by evil and greed. Nonetheless, this gritty new novel by the author of Revolution #9 ( LJ 7/92) is highly recommended for all libraries. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/93; Abrahams will be one of the authors appearing at the LJ /Mysterious Press breakfast this summer at ALA.--Ed.
- Dan Bogey, Clearfield Cty. P.L. Federation, Curwensville, Pa.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Mysterious Press (March 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446401579
• ISBN-13: 978-0446401579
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,136,761 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Peter Abrahams - "criminally gifted" according to the New York Times Book Review - is the author of 27 novels. These include the New York Times bestselling Echo Falls mystery series for middle-graders (DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE, BEHIND THE CURTAIN, INTO THE DARK) and REALITY CHECK (2009) for teens. Among his adult books are OBLIVION (Shamus prize finalist), THE FAN (made into a movie with Robert DeNiro) and LIGHTS OUT (Edgar award finalist). DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE was a finalist for the Edgar best young adult mystery award and won the Agatha in the same category. BEHIND THE CURTAIN and INTO THE DARK were Agatha finalists. In her Cleveland Plain Dealer review of NERVE DAMAGE (2007), Michelle Ross wrote: "I swear, if one more literary person says in that oh-so-condescendng tone, 'Oh, I don't read ... mysteries,' I'm going to take a novel by Peter Abrahams and smack him on his smug little head." REALITY CHECK won the best young adult mystery Edgar award in 2010. ROBBIE FORESTER AND THE OUTLAWS OF SHERWOOD STREET, January 2012, is first in a new middle-grade series about a twelve-year-old Robin Hood in contemporary Brooklyn.
As Spencer Quinn, Abrahams also writes the New York Times bestselling Chet and Bernie mystery series: DOG ON it, THEREBY HANGS A TAIL, TO FETCH A THIEF, and THE DOG WHO KNEW TOO MUCH. He has a website - peterabrahams.com; and so does Chet - chetthedog.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice, tight and fast read, August 4, 2002

By 

Laurence Lazarus (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lights Out (Mass Market Paperback)

I had never heard of Peter Abrahams until I saw his name mentioned four times in the recommended authors section of the Stephen King book "On Writing". Since then I have become a fan.

"Lights Out" is typical of Abrahams' free flowing easy to read style and the length of this book, and infact most of his books, allow for a good 5 to 6 hour read.

The juxtaposition of past and present in this novel is handled immaculately and the ending, although surprising, isn't so difficult to rationalize.

The character of Eddie Nye is well created, gets the reader's sympathy, and I could imagine a movie of this book with the lead being played by one of our better young actors. I hope that will happen.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am eagerly looking forward to "The Tutor".

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Average novel about revenge and redemption, May 5, 2004

By 

Peter LaPrade (worcester ma) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lights Out (Mass Market Paperback)

I wanted to like Peter Abrahams's "Light's Out", but I just couldn't. Eddie Nye is almost likeable, as a newly released prisoner, who served 15 years for a crime he didn't committ. We slowly learn how he got himself into that mess, and we learn that things are not as they seem, with Eddie's brother, for instince. The subplot about Nye trying to figure out about "Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner" is interesting, but doesn't compensate for the weak ending.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-told story that reveals all in its own time, March 23, 2004

By 

Horse Trader (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lights Out (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a very well-paced story, with facts and flashbacks slowly being placed on the scales of judgement until what was once intuition becomes fact. Peter Abrahams is a masterful storyteller, who can really deliver the goods; his characterizations are rich, and he has a sense of humor that is a bit raw (and I'm thinking of the Gaucho here). I'm looking forward to my next P.A. book.