Customer Reviews

Money, Money, Money: A Novel of the 87th Precinct (87th Precinct Mysteries)

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As a mystery author with my debut novel in its initial release, I am amazed that Ed McBain (AKA Evan Hunter)has been writing 87th Precinct police procedurals for nearly fifty years. I doubt if I'll be writing my series in a half a century, but I'm glad McBain is still writing his. Astonishingly, each 87th Precinct novel seems fresh and inventive. MONEY, MONEY, MONEY is no exception. Steve Carella and the boys (as well as the girls) remain as vibrant as they did when this series first began back when Eisenhower was president. In this fifty-first 87th Precint novel, a woman is found dead in the Grover Park Zoo. She turns out to be an ex-military flygirl who has found herself a fulfilling civilian career as a drug pilot. Steve and his associates (mainly Fat Ollie Weeks) follow the money, and McBain's plot spins upward from there. There's a secondary plot involving a terrorist plot, and, of course, the personal problems and concerns of the series characters also play a major part in the story. MONEY, MONEY, MONEY is a fine fifty-first entry in this series. It is one of the best fifty-first novels in any mystery series ever written. Get this book and read it.

"Detective Steve Carella wished that one of the lions hadn't dragged the victim's left leg into the 88th Precinct. That was what brought Fat Ollie Weeks into the case." It's Christmas week in fictional Isola, and despite the holiday, business at the 87th Precinct is brisk. The unfortunate young lady being consumed by lions turned out to be Army Lieutenant Cassandra Jean Ridley, a pilot in the Gulf War. Her death starts a wild chain of events that leads the boys of the detective squad to an unusual assortment of uncooperative characters, including the Secret Service, terrorists, counterfeiters, drug runners and petty criminals. As the body count continues to rise, Carella and Weeks are having a hard time getting a handle on the case, and find it's nearly impossible to tell the good guys from the bad..... It's hard to believe that after 40 some odd years, a series could remain fresh and entertaining, but Ed McBain has beaten the odds, and his latest, Money, Money, Money, doesn't disappoint. This is a fast-paced, intriguing police procedural, full of crisp, spare writing, unrivaled dialogue, vivid scenes, and brilliant characterizations. This is the master at work, and nobody does it better. Mr McBain weaves the varied and seemingly unrelated threads of his fascinating and complex story line, effortlessly, and then ties them all together into a neat, logical and very satisfying package at the end. For those new to Ed McBain and the boys of the 87th Precinct, start with some of his earlier books to get the flavor of this wonderful series. For those who are already fans, Money, Money, Money deserves all the awards it's about to win.

It may be Christmas time, but for the cops of the 87th Precinct, crime remains the same year round. The season to be Jolly presents the police officers with the case of drug pilot Cassandra Ridley, found to be a Yuletide snack for the lions living in the Grover Park Zoo. Cassandra was carrying $10,000 all counterfeit. The case crosses precincts since one of her legs was chewed on in the 88th while the brunt of the corpse resided in the 87th. Detectives Steve Carella and Oliver Wendell Weeks share the investigation.

The two cops follow the money trail that apparently is somewhere between 1.7 and 1.9 million. However, other individuals from a less savory side of life also trail the cash including government men and hit women. With their personal problems and desires also at the forefront, the police find this investigation keeps turning screwier as Carella and Weeks get closer to the truth.

For this reviewers money, Ed McBains 87th police procedural novels are the yardsticks that every other sub-genre author strives to match, but few come close. His fifty-first tale in the long running series, MONEY, MONEY, MONEY, shows why hes the MAN even though the well written story line requires a stretch to believe in a conspiracy. The cops are human with troubles and desires outside the precinct and a struggle with the case, which is serious yet deftly, includes humor. Anyone, who wants a smooth ride in a police cruiser, Mr. McBains investigative trip is the ticket to enjoyment as it has been since the mid-fifties.

Ed McBain has this cool little setup in which he's got an entire city inside his head...and he allows us to visit every so often, much to our delight! Having penned more novels of the 87th Precinct than I can count...he's got it down, and how! I've was hooked the first time I read "Fuzz", and have been following along ever since.

"Money Money Money" is a delicious little thriller, and quite prophetic at the same time. Since the book doesn't tell us exactly WHEN in 2001 this was published, I am assuming it was released before September 11th. If so, this humdinger of a book prophecies those events in many ways, eerily so. With deft characterization and typical thrilling plot twists, "Money Money Money" comes across as not only a good escapist romp, but a social commentary as well. A fictional "State Of The Nation" address, if you will.

If you haven't read McBain's work yet, I suggest you walk/run/fly to your nearest bookstore and GIT BUSY!

How does he do it? This 51st 87th precinct mystery has all the snap and crackle of a brand new series and is as up to date as the evening news. Edgar-nominated "Money, Money, Money" effortlessly weaves an eerily prophetic terrorist plot, a CIA-like sting, a routine burglary, and a complex drug empire into an explosive read. The dialogue is crisp and frequently hilarious. The only thing that stays the same is the perennial youthfulness of the continuing characters. To those of us who have read all or almost all of the series, it does bring a smile to read that Bert Klinger, who was a rookie detective since 1960, has no memory of pop stars pre-1970.

Steve Carella displays some rarely seen human failings. He cannot get over his bitterness at his father's violent death and refuses to accept his family's moving forward with life. Also, he exhibits a classic case of job burnout. My secret favorite, the despicable Ollie Weeks carries his non-political correctness to new heights. The purity of his intolerance is breathtaking; not one minority group does he find acceptable. His manners and appearance are atrocious, and his one saving grace is he that he is an excellent cop. It is hard to rank the villains in this story except the amoral, cold-blooded egocentric CIA-types. The burglar is a quite likeable guy, the drug dealers are frequently funny in their ignorance and casual violence, and even the terrorists are given human faces.

How McBain set up Ollie Week's (of the 88th precinct) participation in the investigation has to be an instant classic. The initial incident is the zoo lions eating a human body. The zoo, more precisely the lion's veldt, is the dividing line between the 87th and 88th precinct. One young lion carried off the victim's leg to a private corner. Therefore, it was decided that ¼ of the crime took place in the 88th precinct, Ollie's responsibility.

I would rank "Money, Money, Money" right up there with my all-time favorite 87th Precinct mystery, "Kiss." A real pleasure.

Maybe not the best-as he claims himself-buth surely one of the best, by the author of the 87th,Matthew Hope and other wonderfull crime and fiction stories.
Excellent plot,easy to follow,funny to read,gripping,the 'Hitch' touch and the 'Hunter' style.A new must to have for every crime/thriller fan.
I surely will find confirmation of this acclaim on the audio book that will follow.
I now have them all;Expecting hopefully soon the return of the deaf man and -not to soon please-'The Exit'.
Much more where this came from and good readings...

The first Ed McBain novel I read was the last he ever wrote. Fortunately for me there are more than 50 87th Precinct novels for me to work through: this is my third or fourth.

McBain seems to have written to a formula, but he executed that formula brilliantly. Several stories going on at once. Each of the characters is sharply defined, but a few get extra detail, like Detective Steve Cardella. Cardella has a deaf (yeah, I know: politically incorrect) wife, twins who grow up fast, a sister (in this one) about to be engaged to the prosecutor who let her (and Steve's) father get away with murder, an aging mom who falls in love. Some of the other characters we know nothing about, but like a good movie, McBain keeps them all moving.

This story is about a dashing young woman who winds up naked in an enclosure filled with hungry lions; a lot of dope dealers; a book salesman who winds up very dead in a garbage can; a burglar out for the big score and a few terrorists.

No sense in giving away the whole book: just go read it and have a nice, time courtesy of the late and lamented Ed McBain. It will be a while before we see his likes again.

Jerry

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY is the first Ed McBain (or Evan Hunter) novel that I have read. I am sure I would have appreciated this novel better had I read previous 87th precinct novels. This is the first time I meet the characters from the squad and there were some chapters I had to reread in order to understand what was going on, particularly the death of Steve Carella's father.

The case begins with a gruesome discovery at the town zoo's lion cage. Five lions are having Cassandra Ridley for breakfast. Most of the zoo's territory falls on the 87th precinct; however, the victim's leg winds up reaching the 88th precinct where Fat Ollie Weeks works for the police department.

In the course of the investigation they learn that Ms. Ridley was working a pilot for Mexican drug runners. Inadvertently, she was also involved with counterfeit money, which brings the Secret Service to the mix. There is also a death involving a book salesman who also plays a part in this caper.

I cannot be too critical about this novel since this is my first McBain novel out of over fifty. I think I would have preferred to learn more of the series regulars before having started this novel. I do not intend to give up with this author since I am sure he has other good novels.

When I first read an 87th precinct novel, I didn't like it. Not enough character development. Later, I went to a book sale at the library, got three of them in one book for a quarter. After reading all three, I got to know the detectives and their back stories. Steve Carella is the center of the stories. He's got a deaf mute wife and a son and a daughter, fraternal twins. He also has a chip on his shoulder over the way his father died (in a stick-up) and how the case was handled. Meyer Meyer is Carella's bald, Jewish sidekick, and Burt Kling is the youngest member of the squad and the resident lady's man. There's a black detective named Brown.
Another amazing thing about these books is that McBain has invented his own city. Of course, it's based on New York. I read someplace that he did this to avoid research. There's always some eagle-eyed reader who knows New York better than the writer.
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY is exactly what it sounds like. Everybody's after a big stash. A cocaine deal unravels and the abused parties are all out to get their money back. A retired Gulf War pilot is the most interesting of those involved. She makes Kinsey Millhone look like Little Orphan Annie. Fat Ollie Weeks draws jurisdiction in one of the ensuing murders. One of the culprits is literally thrown to the lions. Fat Ollie is one of my favorite recurring characters. McBain is having fun thumbing his nose at the PC police. Ollie hates everybody; he even does a W.C. Fields impression.
Another satirical element is the front for the cocaine operation. Would you believe a publishing house?
Every once in a while I hit a bad stretch where every book I buy stinks, but I'm too cheap to quit reading. The problem is always easily remedied, though, if there's an 87th precinct novel at hand.

A Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster, and winner of Britain's Golden Dagger award, McBain remains in top form in this 51st 87th Precinct novel. Drugrunners, counterfeiters and terrorists bring mayhem and murder to Isola's Christmas season as Steve Carella (still 40 after 45 years) catches the lead on the case of the lady in the lion's den.

Cass Ridley, Gulf War pilot, earns some quick cash flying in a few loads of she-asks-not-what from Mexico. When an ordinary burglar steals some of her hard-earned loot, feisty Cass tracks him down and grabs it back - most of it. Only to wind up at the zoo, in the lions' quarters, being eaten.

Grisly. At least she was dispatched by ice pick first. To make matters worse, Fat Ollie Weeks of the 88th precinct, shares the lead with Carella when a lion drags Cass' leg into the 88. Worse yet, in the course of the investigation, Fat Ollie, vulgarian misanthrope extraordinaire, a man to make your skin crawl, saves Carella's life - twice - leaving him beholden.

The plot is fast-paced and complex, the money trail branching off into various avenues of depravity and greed, involving double crosses, murders, and conspiracies, from street-level thugs to international terrorists and governments. McBain never misses a twist and his dialogue is trademark crisp. The terrorism aspect strikes a more visceral note than it would have when McBain was composing his plot and for this reason a bit of the humor falls flat, especially that having to do with the competence and cynicism of federal agents. Nonetheless, this is top-notch McBain; spare, baffling and deftly done.