There are two Chicagos: One, a bustling center of commerce, vibrant and alive, with spacious lakeside dwellings for the affluent and comfortable...and the other, a gray and crumbling hotbed of rage and resentment. No walls or law can truly separate them. During the hottest summer on record, the ruthless politics of hatred and fear are driving a giant metropolis to the edge of the abyss. The assassination of Chicago's first black woman mayor three years earlier ignited a race riot of near apocalyptic proportions. And now the Second City is bracing for a second Armageddon. An ever-spiraling series of seemingly random and brutal events is about to have a devastating effect on the lives of every Chicago citizen, the innocent and the culpable alike. What begins with the killing of a homeless crack addict escalates with the senseless drive-by murder of a blameless young woman - and explodes in a massive demonstration of destructive fury in one of the city's safest, most opulent sectors. But there are those, black and white, who refuse to stand by idly while their city dies - urban heroes empowered by circumstance, bravely battling greed, violence and corruption, the dark legacy of politicians, criminals, charlatans, hate-mongers and media-manipulators who would divide a city along racial lines to benefit from anger and catastrophe. Two brothers, their bond strengthened by personal loss; two wives, proud and strong, and determined to remain so for the sake of those they love; a female police sergeant, dedicated to order; and a black Homicide cop, inspired by a son's courage and heart. These are the unlikely champions - ordinary people who recognized a sinister shape and form to the madness,something that goes far beyond gang warfare and racial unrest, beyond black rage and white supremacy. Because, for them, it is no longer about law and order, politics and power, or even saving a city. It's about life, loyalty, real justice...and family.
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Editorial Reviews
From Booklist
In the late Izzi's much-anticipated new novel, Chicago is an incendiary racial cauldron. Then a drunken off-duty white cop shoots a black panhandler in front of Michael Jordan's restaurant. Sensing opportunity, a cadre of white supremacists hire black gangstas to execute a drive-by shooting in the heretofore safe business district. The woman killed in the drive-by is the niece of homicide detective Marshal Del Greco, who initiates his own quasilegal investigation. Riots ensue; other opportunists act. Izzi, who reportedly took his own life, earned his considerable reputation writing about men who dealt in crime but had a clearly defined moral code. They were "small" books, with few key characters and a single, linear plot. This is a big book, with close to a dozen key characters, multiple plot lines, and lots of meaty issues. Izzi eventually may have been able to master the more ambitious form--he was a considerable talent--but he doesn't here. The novel is occasionally confusing and often preachy. Its conclusion is powerful, but its setup is interminable. Izzi's reputation and the publicity surrounding his death will generate interest, but this isn't the work for which he'll be remembered. Wes Lukowsky
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Eugene Izzi was the critically acclaimed author of more than a dozen novels-including his most recent fiction, A Matter of Honor and The Criminalist-nearly all of which were set in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A serious thriller about race and personal integrity,
This review is from: Matter of Honor H (Hardcover)
There have been three novels written over the last five years with the title A Matter of Honor. Eugene Izzi's story under that title deals with Chicago in the throes of racial conflict and features a diverse cast of characters both black and white whose personal agendas intersect in the tragedy of interracial murder and rioting. The central figures, a white homicide detective named Del Greco, brilliant at his job but emotionally remote from an upbringing in foster homes, and his partner Ellis Turner, a black detective with a loving family who has managed to maintain persepctive on race despite facing prejudice daily, are pitted against one another after Del Greco is accussed of racial prejudice and implicated in the murder of a young black who had murdered Del Greco's niece. The complex plot involves a background of black political machination, drug dealers buying influence, crooked lawyers with Mafia ties, a white supremicist organization called the ACK (Ayrian Christian Kinsman), sexual politics among the police, murder for hire, friendship, family ties, and enough quick turns to make the reader's head spin. Ultimately the plot - especially in its denouement - is so complicated and strained as to be unbelievable, but this does not detract from the book's power. The character's, even minor ones, are so good and so believably drawn, that the reader just has to know what happens to them.The book does tend to be somewhat wordy, spending a lot of time probbing various character's thoughts and feelings. But this is handled very well and the information that we get is key to both understanding who these people are and why they behave as they do. This is, despite being a mystery/thriller, a very thoughtful and intelligent book about human emotions and the strengths and weaknesses of the human spirit. I highly recommend it.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Eugene Izzi was a genius crime fiction writer,
By A Customer
This review is from: Matter of Honor H (Hardcover)
I am still so sad he is gone. I have read all of Eugene Izzi's books and the thought that there will be no more is tragic. I still think his best work is the early stuff, like The Take, Booster, King of Hustlers and the others. Eugene Izzi, you are missed.
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