Malice (Butch Karp/Marlene Ciampi Series) [Audiobook, MP3 Audio, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Robert K. Tanenbaum (Author), Mel Foster (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 7, 2007 | Series: Butch Karp/Marlene Ciampi Series (Book 19)

New York District Attorney Butch Karp, recovering from an assassination attempt that came within a few millimeters of killing him, takes on a shadowy cartel that uses terrorists to further its criminal empire while sliding the United States toward a fascist state that the cartel controls. As Karp struggles to uncover those responsible for planning the terrorist murders of six schoolchildren, he goes to the aid of the younger brother of his college roommate, who has been unfairly suspended from his position as baseball coach at a university in Idaho. Meanwhile, Marlene Ciampi is in Idaho to help her husband with the investigation, and she befriends a Basque sheepherder who is demanding answers to the disappearance of his daughter - a pretty college coed he suspects is having an affair with the school’s president - which may be related to Karp’s case. And if that wasn’t enough, the couple’s daughter, Lucy, and her eclectic group of accomplices must uncover a traitor’s plot and stop an assassination attempt surreptitiously planned to occur in the heart of Manhattan.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Tanenbaum's run-of-the-mill 19th thriller to feature Manhattan district attorney Butch Karp and his wife, Marlene Ciampi, picks up where 2006's Counterplay left off. Karp is recovering at Beth Israel Hospital, after being shot by his rival and fellow prosecutor, Rachel Rachman, who was in turn gunned down by Ciampi. Various members of the Karp family have helped thwart terrorist outrages aimed at the pope. The mastermind behind the plot against the pope, mayoral candidate and murderer Andrew Kane, is believed dead, but Karp suspects that someone at a high level in U.S. security circles fed Kane key information and remains poised to do the country further harm. Once again, Karp's plucky daughter, Lucy, becomes involved in a plot so improbable that the author has Ciampi comparing it with the far-fetched conspiracies of The Da Vinci Code. Series fans will be pleased, but those seeking sophisticated political suspense set in a post-9/11 New York City should look elsewhere. (Aug.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"In "Malice," a unique cadre of crime fighters confronts its greatest battle yet -- to protect the streets of New York City from an international nightmare. Tanenbaum pens an extraordinary tale of crime, terror, and betrayal that illuminates the dark threats we face today while reminding us that Americanjustice, fortified by brave men and women, can still protect all we hold dear." -- Catherine Crier, bestselling author of "A Deadly Game" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on MP3-CD; MP3 Una edition (August 7, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423340981
• ISBN-13: 978-1423340980
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,943,206 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert K. Tanenbaum is one of the country's most successful trial lawyers -- he has never lost a felony case. He has been homicide bureau chief for the New York District Attorney's Office and deputy chief counsel to the congressional committee investigations into the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Most recently, he has taught Advanced Criminal Procedure atthe University of California at Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law. His previous works include the novels Escape, Malice, Fury, Hoax, Resolved, Enemy Within, and Absolute Rage and two true-crime books, The Piano Teacher: The True Story of a Psychotic Killer and Badge of the Assassin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Even One Star is too much, September 6, 2007

By 

KKM "TrinitotheBone" (Trinidad) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Malice (Hardcover)

Well, this does it for me. I have no idea what's happened, but a fantastic series just went down the drain. Now I have to wonder who exactly was writing it in the first place, because this is NOT the author I read five years ago. What an absolute mish-mash of junk. HORRIBLE, juvenile, writing style . No point even reviewing the plot. What a shame.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Hilariously dreadful, April 6, 2008

By 

G. Waterman (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Malice (Paperback)

My dismay at the loss of an intelligent, witty mystery series has been tempered by the amusement that comes from how comically bad it has become.

"Malice" is filled with conspirators and mystic happenings. The bands of conspirators include powerful descendents of Celtic smugglers; the Russian Mafia; a band of liberty-loving Constitutionalists; Mole People; Chechen and Islamic terrorists; Basque separatists; a secret federal spy unit; amateur forensic experts; White Supremacists; and a corrupt collegiate athletic association. Where's the Mormon Tabernacle Choir?

Lucy's dreams and visions while under the influence of peyote drive the plot. A prophecy-quoting homeless guy appears on cue. Totemic owls lead to the victim.

There is enough mayhem and derring-do to stock an Austin Powers film. Attempted garroting, roof-stop struggles, a hijacked ferry-boat, ambushes, Mole People battling terrorists, speedboat interceptions, bombings and fiery death.

Yet despite the thrills, the entire clanking machinery rests on one wafer-thin premise - a minority senator's call for Congressional hearings causes a powerful secret society to fear it will be revealed.

That possibility spurs the conspirators to plan an assassination before millions of witnesses at the climax of the St. Patrick's Day parade.

It made me laugh out loud. Since when does a minority congressman's call for investigation get taken that seriously?

Talk about low stakes - it's like the false rape in "Fury" where the crook suborns perjury and allows herself to be sexually battered, all to get a Master's degree in English.

The foiling of the plot is equally thin. None of the sleuthing has revealed any new clues, so with only a poetic phrase and a symbol to guide her, Lucy simply intuits which parade marcher out of 150,000 to follow, and saves the day.

Karp, Marlene and VT have had their family histories re-written. The new authors get the story of Marlene's career wrong - she did NOT start a security service for celebrities, and think of protecting endangered women as a sideline, it was exactly the opposite. Isn't this key to this character's moral core?

The characters have become bizarre. To show Karp as a moral man, the author makes him a grumpy, hypercritical Luddite. Marlene's toughness is shown by having her threaten people with violence if they displease her. Marlene says she'll unman Ned if he doesn't keep a promise - Whoa, what kind of mother-in-law is she going to be? Lucy's sexual bantering is becoming creepily inappropriate. Are we really supposed to admire these people?

Mikey and Richie's visit to the Karp home is a hilarious scene of a dysfunctional family. Marlene belittles her husband in front of the guests when they arrive. She responds to a compliment with a threat to hurt someone. The Karp parents badmouth the twins, who fight in front of the guests. The hostess helpfully points out the discomforts of the guests' intended room. As the guests begin their story, Marlene asks whether it's true that people who live where they come from are racists. The next day while the guests are out, Lucy Karp returns home, upset her room is occupied, so Marlene, who's begun drinking early, has the guests share with the twins. She insists they stay, despite the smell of dirty sox. The children refuse to join the guests at dinner, and later the family learns a friend may be dead.

Wow. Talk about awkward.

The repartee between Tran and Jojola is like a bad buddy movie. The police stand around watching while the Good Guys battle, and meekly do as Lucy says when she tells them who her Daddy is. The Bad Guys don't just kill people, they have to converse with the victim. And, in true bad movie fashion, the end brings together all the Good Guys, no matter how unrelated, for a feel-good scene where they can smile fondly at one another. The plot of the sequel is already revealed. Tanenbaum should just title these things Hoax II, III, IV and V.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment, December 29, 2007

By 

Carol Diller "literary addict" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Malice (Hardcover)

Having read all of the Karp saga books with pleasure and looking forward to this latest one it is difficult for me to express my disgust and dismay with the trashy writing Malice offers an unsuspecting reader. Butch, Marlene, Lucy, Ned, Jojoba, Tran, VT, et al become shadow figures totally disinteresting and even unlikable. Just when I thought it could'nt get any worse or more trite it ended with that old Irish drinkers' prayer about "the road rising to meet you". The book is not even entitled to one star. Juvenile writing at best.