11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Tale of Friendship, Betrayal & The Mob!, June 20, 2005
This review is from: Mafia Summer: A Novel (Hardcover)
Mafia Summer is a memorable story that takes hold of your gut and doesn't let go until the very end. It primarily is a tale of the friendship between two unlikely teens -- a tough Sicilian head of a street gang, the other a sickly, brilliant Jewish boy -- that are caught in the turmoil between the various Mafia families that ruled NY during the hot, steamy summer in the section of NYC called Hell's Kitchen in 1950. Vincent writes in such a way that I felt I was right there with all of the well-developed and interesting characters experiencing the strong firendships, loyalties, betrayals and full-scale crime war that took place on the rough streets of NY. Mafia Summer, E. Duke Vincent's first book, is one of the better fictional books about the Mafia that I've read in many years. While it's not on the level of the classic, The Godfather, it's not very far below -- which, to me, is very high praise. Mafia Summer is much more than an excellent book about the Mob. It's an excellent book -- period!. Enjoy!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A historical fiction novel chronicling the lives 5 families of the New York City underworld, July 15, 2005
This review is from: Mafia Summer: A Novel (Hardcover)
Chances are that if you've turned on a television set during prime time in the last three decades you have encountered the work of E. Duke Vincent. Vincent has been involved in the creation and/or production of television series ranging from "Dynasty" and "Vegas" to "Melrose Place" and "Charmed," among others. MAFIA SUMMER is his first attempt at a novel, but he brings to it the same assured and steady hand that has made so many television shows with which he has been involved compulsory and compulsive viewing.
While ostensibly a work of historical fiction, there is so much that rings true to life here that it has more of a biographical feel to it than a work of the imagination. Indeed, Vincent notes in his acknowledgments that this is a story that he has been turning over in his mind for some 40 years. If Vincent was not a participant to at least some of the events in MAFIA SUMMER, he was no doubt a close observer; the narrative's main strength is that it puts the reader in that position as well.
The events in MAFIA SUMMER take place over the course of a week at the end of August 1950. New York City is caught in a heat wave, which serves as a metaphorical backdrop for the Five Families of the New York City underworld, the members of which are the subject of Federal scrutiny that came to be known as the Kefauver hearings. 18-year-old Vinny Vesta, the son of Mangano family caporegime Dino Vesta, himself has a street gang that is on the bottom tier of the gangland hierarchy. The Vesta family maintains a low profile, living in a modest Hell's Kitchen apartment during the week as a front while spending their weekends at a luxurious farm outside the city. Vinny's gang, known as the Icemen, is an interesting set of individuals, each with their own particular and peculiar talents that are applied to legitimate purposes and otherwise. Their specialty involves heists to order, if you will, and they are quite good at spotting and evaluating situations that present merchandise ripe for the taking, either on their own or on a referral basis.
Two occurrences, however, are to provide a catalyst that will change Vinny's life forever. The first is his meeting with, and befriending of, Sidney Butcher, a sickly but booksmart Jewish boy whose family has just moved into an apartment across the hall from Vinny. Vinny introduces Sidney to life on the streets, providing Sidney with an excitement and friendship that previously had been denied to him. But the introductions aren't all one-way. Too ill to attend school regularly, Sidney has been teaching himself at the New York City library. While Vinny is at first dragged reluctantly into the stacks, he quickly becomes enchanted with the works of the Renaissance painters, as well as the world of John Steinbeck and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Vinny slowly comes to realize that there is a better place, perhaps a better way, beyond the crime-ridden streets that have become the locus of his life.
Meanwhile, a second event is brewing that will have an effect on Vinny and will resonate far beyond its conclusion. Gee-gee Petrone, an ambitious capo in the Luciano crime family, hires Vinny to steal 40 cases of sable pelts from a storage depot. The police though are seemingly tipped off to the job in advance, and almost catch the Icemen in the act. When Petrone insists that the order nonetheless be filled, Vinny and his father come to realize that Petrone is setting them up in an ambitious power-grabbing scheme that will advance Petrone and his mentor, a wily underboss named Vito Genovese. When a rival gang begins gunning not only for Vinny but also for Sidney, the level of danger reaches a new high for both Vinny and his father, who is interjecting himself into the action. Vincent builds his story slowly but deliberately to an apocalyptic ending that will leave everyone involved changed forever.
Vincent possesses that rare ability to make his characters come alive; indeed, each of the individuals involved in MAFIA SUMMER is memorable in his own way. And while much of the action is grim, Vincent nicely balances the action with some humor and even a few touching moments of friendship. Combining the best elements of "The Sopranos" and CATCHER IN THE RYE, MAFIA SUMMER may well be the surprise book of this summer.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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