Customer Reviews

The Con Man

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I first caught on to Ed Mcbain by accident with his Matthew Hope novels, I liked them so much I decided to find other works of his. That's when I found the 87th Precinct Series. I thought I'd never find the original because it was over 40 years old. Fortunately I was wrong. The description of an imaginary city is phenomenal, each character is slowly developed and revealed to you. I loved this first novel and look forward to reading the remainder of the series.

The fourth book in the 87th Precinct series, the title says it all as the members of the 87th attempt to track down con men preying on the weak and naive members of The City, as well as involving themselves in a few cons of their own.

Written in 1957, my favorite dated aspects of the narrative:

*When talking about pretty girls, it is noted that no one cares if you are smart "so long as you have a beautiful phizz."

*Pointing out the absurdity of something, it is stated that it "takes the brass bologna" and "wins the fur-lined bathtub."

Main man Steve Carella and his deaf/mute wife Teddy (who is yet again involved in a crime relating to Carella's investigations) track down a deadly Lonely Hearts killer, the impatient Brown attempts to stop a pair of street smart confidence men, and rookie Kling helps out while helping his college student fiancee Claire con her school into granting her an early vacation with Kling. The mischevious Meyer Meyer and violent Havilland take to the background in this short entry into the series.

As always, McBain's characters are all three dimensional and compelling, and he manages to explore the emotional and philisophical aspects of crimes, victims of crimes, and their protectors in a way that few ever match. The theme of the The Con is throughout the novel, from the obvious and dangerous to the subtle and benign, and as his opening states and story demonstrates, life itself is a con, and to some degree we are all Con Men.

The 87th Precinct and the guys who staff it must be better known to police procedural mystery readers than any policing establishment in the world. The locale and the guys were presented for the fourth time by author Ed McBain in this short 1957 read. He already opts for the reliable formula: quick changes of scene, colorful dialogue, gruesome murders, suspense, and a chase to effect a last split-second capture at the end. McBain presented several confidence tricks occurring here. Some now seem so obvious and so transparent that one wonders how anyone could fall victim. Nevertheless, for me, McBain's story-telling skill never fails to keep me fascinated.

McBain has done it again. Another great book. Steve Carella is investigating the murders of young women who are floating to shore. Can Steve catch him before he strikes again???? There are several different cons going on at the same time. The others involve money and not murders. A tattoo artist gets in the middle along with Mrs. Carella. A good, short read that will make you want to read very fast. I nearly just scanned thelast twenty or so pages because I wanted to find out what the ending was. I think you will enjoy this very much.

Ed McBain wrote 55 "87th Precinct" novels between beginning in 1956 and going until his death in 2005. "The Con Man" is the 4th in the series and was written in 1957. There are many cons going on in the city ranging from a young girl being conned out of $5 to a businessman losing $600 in a con game. Steve Carella of the "87" is investigating the murders of 2 girls who have washed to shore and are termed floaters. They are part of an even more sinister con man who lures young women into marrying him, cleaning out their bank accounts, and them murdering them. Will Carella be able to nab this con man before he kills another girl? Carella's wife, Teddy, is instrumental in helping he husband solve the case. If you are familiar with the series you will know that Teddy is a deaf mute. Other detetives in this one include Arthur Brown, Meyer Meyer, and Bert Kling. This is another great early novel by the master of the police procedural, Ed McBain. "The Con Man" is highly recommended

I confess, I've been in love with Teddy Carella for years which makes this book a special treat. Her presence is felt all through this book as the guys at the Precinct find themselves faced with all manners of con men. One of them is a serial killer who targets lonely women. When she recognizes the killer, Teddy follows him while trying to leave clues and messages to signal husband Steve. First published in '57, we get to see African American cop Arthur Brown facing off against a hotel clerk who won't serve blacks and we meet tattoo artist Charlie Chen who is not a Chinese detective but also has several worthless sons like the venerable Charlie Chan. This is another terrific entry in the best cop series around.

I confess, I've been in love with Teddy Carella for years which makes this book a special treat. Her presence is felt all through this book as the guys at the Precinct find themselves faced with all manners of con men. One of them is a serial killer who targets lonely women. When she recognizes the killer, Teddy follows him while trying to leave clues and messages to signal husband Steve. First published in '57, we get to see African American cop Arthur Brown facing off against a hotel clerk who won't serve blacks and we meet tattoo artist Charlie Chen who is not a Chinese detective but also has several worthless sons like the venerable Charlie Chan. This is another terrific entry in the best cop series around.

I got this book for $0.99 during an Ed McBain promo on Amazon.

The story is well written & compelling but kind of short.

It's worth $0.99 & maybe a buck more...

This is a quick read. The plot is clever. it concerns a man who cons women into marrying him and then poisons them. The detectives of the 87th are in a race against time before the con man claims his next victim. The story develops the Steve Carrella character as well as his wife Teddy. Obviously, the first of the 87th precinct novels - it is remarkable how well it fits in with the later books in the series. Basically the same characters run throughout the series and they are developed over time.

A floater. I found talk about the deceased to be interesting. The notes taken. The speculation, especially about the tattoo heart on the hand in the tender spot between the thumb and forefinger. There was one man's anguish that could almost be felt.

While I don't appreciate reading extraneous information about individual characters unless the telling is vital to the story, I did enjoy the telling of how Carella feels about his wife. How he always delights in her. With makeup. Without the veneer of makeup. In contemplation. And no, this part wasn't vital to the story. It was just sweet.

A con man hitting on both male and female. At times these parts seemed really dragged out, keeping me from wanting to get back to the book. Other times however, it was remarkable and interesting reading how they ply their "trade."

While parts dragged, the last part of the book moved along at an increased pace, really livening things up.