Customer Reviews

Officer Down

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I tend to like books like this. Sadly, not this one. As a 30 year Chicago Police veteran, with my last assignment in the Detective Division I picked this up to read when I noticed that it took place in a district I had worked at one time. The main character is somewhat real, kind of hard-edged, like an officer with a few years on the job.
I was ready to forgive the author stretching the boundries of the 23rd District way up to the 24th, past the 20th. I could also forgive, for the sake of the story, that her 'boss', a sergeant,(not a lieutenant, or captain as in real life) would call her in on her day off. Not likely, certainly given that she would have to be paid at a great overtime rate. I could even forgive that she would walk into the men's locker room to ask who she was working with. (not likely in any district, and certainly not 23). I might even forgive that her boss, or any of the officers would make her work with her 'ex' for a tour.
BUT, when she gets into a shooting where her partner is shot, and she doesn't (or he as it first starts when he is still alive) call in 'shots fired' a 10-1, or as the title suggests "officer down" then things begin to go south real fast. To begin with, they had requested back-up at this location before going in. For the deparment to suspect that this was a bad incident and not to take her word from the start and begin to look for the named suspect is dumb. In any shooting such as this, on-duty, the benefit of the doubt would go to officer, and all effort would be made to find the offender. Certainly the word of another of the beat cops that he couldn't find any sign of someone being there would not be given any value. And, if this were indeed an empty building in that area, it would be loaded with signs of occupants, previous or squaters. IF it was to be determined after investigation that he had been shot by her rather than the bad guy, only then would steps be taken to suspend her. Sadly, most of the police story doesn't ring true at all.
Lastly, while the author seems to know locations, it's too bad that for all her knowledge of the city, she didn't know that we don't have "DAs" in Chicago, or Illinois. It is an "SA" or States Attorney. And the police deal with "ASAs" for investigations.
As another reviewer mentioned, this is just the same old story about the female officer blamed for something that she hadn't done by the bad old police deparment forced to prove herself. Skip the effort for this one and read a better one.

Officer Down is great debut crime novel thanks to the complexity of its protagonist. I am not an avid reader of detective/cop novels, and I've read far fewer that feature women as the main character. However, the novels of this sort that I have encountered generally feature spunky police gals who hold their own among the boys or a sweet female PI/chef who includes actual recipes among the chapters.

Samantha "Smack" Mack is not a cozy character who likes to cook, and she isn't a tough gal in the clichéd sense. Smack feels pain intensely, yet maintains grim humor in the darkest moments. She is a smart cop who makes some stupid choices. She is tough but vulnerable. As a reader, I wanted to protect her from a host of seedy characters, but most of all, I wanted to protect her from herself.

Officer Down is written in the first-person. I suppose first-person is a common approach in whodunits because the reader has the same limited access to information as the protagonist. However, Samantha Mack is such as mess (she drinks too much, she's had a concussion, she is ruled by her emotions) that I wasn't even sure if she was providing reliable information on her own actions. I had trouble trusting anyone in this novel, including the one telling the story. The novel is also written in present tense, which contributes to the sense of immediacy and instability that dominates the story.

My favorite line: "I'm starving, so I start a pot of coffee and root through the fridge for something to eat. Mustard, soy sauce, Hershey's syrup; two Budweisers left in a six-pack. All the ingredients for take-out."

I'm usually pretty forgiving with books, even music and movies, but I couldn't let this one slip by. "Office Down" is just not written well. The main character is a mess of contradictions, claiming to keep her boyfriend (a married man) at a distance, but meanwhile we only see her throw jealous fits and play clingy games. We also hear from other characters that she's a good cop, but meanwhile she leaves footprints at a woman's house who figures out she was there, and she screws up left and right. The characters aren't written well, there's only one redeeming guy, and he's not in it much. And the actual plot/mystery only takes up about a third of the book. Most of the time is spent in the main character's head, listening to her whine and pity herself for no good reason.

There are also story threads that go nowhere and not much interesting happens. Pass on this book. You'll thank me.

The writing is tight and fairly fearless. Schwegel does a terrific job of maintaining a tight, punchy style. But I found Samantha Mack to be a bit of a cliche -- hard-smoking, hard-drinking and insecure about her relationships. Endlessly insecure. I'll leave the deconstruction of the police details to others who know better, but much of the cop work description seemed thin. It does seem as if she is instantly put in the crosshairs of the investigation when most police departments would defer to her version of how her fellow officer was felled. Too often, Samantha ends up back at the bar drowning her woes and tossing back shots when you want her to use her brains and craft. "Officer Down" does rip along -- bonus points for speed and efficiency -- and Schwegel's blunt style is engaging.

Stumbled upon this author's crime fiction debut, and boy am I glad. Loved the book. The female heroine's voice was distinctive and insightful. Like the best crime fiction it delved deeply into character and then exploded with the morbid details of murder. The story in a nutshell: Chicago police officer Samantha "Smack" Mack is on a bust with her former partner. Shots are fired, but the perp isn't the one filled with lead when the dust settles. Samantha's partner is. What is Samantha's take? Not very much, as she was knocked unconscious during the battle. An unfortunate circumstance as ballistics points to her gun as firing the fatal shots. From this excellent premise the novel focuses on Mack's uphill battle to find out what really happened and to prove she wasn't at fault. The writing is poetic and action packed. The characters well drawn. The story is subtle, the ending sneaks up on you, and as you turn that last page you'll revel at how satisfied you are. Schwegel is a new star in the genre.

Samantha Mack is relieved of duty when she appears to have accidentally killed a fellow police officer. She is understandably distressed by the event, and for the next 150 pages or so she is either drunk or asleep. I also considered getting drunk or falling asleep when I became completely bored reading this novel. Samantha is also having an affair with her married boss, Sergeant Imes. Does the romance aspect spur your interest? Not really. Samantha keeps tab on Sergeant Imes' marriage by peeping in his kitchen window. She does this when she isn't looking into the window of the home belonging to the partner she shot. Does the peeping Tom part of the story get you excited? I don't think so.

Somewhere in the last third of the book the author tries once again to get you interested in the story by bringing in bad guys, and bad cops. Is Samantha's life in danger? I guess so, but I don't know if I really cared. As other reviewers have pointed out, the real mystery here is why this book is an Edgar Award Winner.

I tried, really tried, to read this book, and only got half way through it and gave up. I kept waiting for it to get better, be worthy of my time. The plot was convoluted and the main character, Samantha Mack, is such a self-destructive mess (drinking, smoking, running around with a serious concussion, sleeping with a married co-worker) that I could not stand to read another minute of her life. Yes, I know we are not necessarily supposed to like our protagonists to enjoy their stories, and I've read my share fantastic books with unlikable protagonists. Not this book. Avoid.

Back to the library it goes. I am so glad I didn't buy it!

Picked up this debut book on the recommendation from a local author and loved it. Officer Down is an edgy and beguiling ride. Samantha Mack, our protaganist, is an attractive young female Chicago street cop who gets blamed for getting her partner killed on a "routine" duty call. What ensues is deceit, mayhem and conflicting he said--she said, conversations. As Phillwrite says "not only does the ending sneak up on you," it knocks you down." You really are satisfied and energized in the end. Very enjoyable unexpected debut.

There are two types of police/detective stories, the caricatures and the character developers. Schwegel's first novel falls squarely in the first category: jaded cops with thought patterns that can't make it past ten-words. Basically one-liner after one-liner, with nothing in character development and characters learning nothing. Why should the reader care? Think about it, with the story built around a female cop who has nothing to say and learns nothing, here we tacitly have the best argument against women in the police (and I suppose, implicitly the military too) - and by a woman, no less! To make matters worse, this one is a talkie, 75 pages of material expanded to 275. Critical editor badly needed. A fact checker needed too, based on the comments of another reviewer, an ex-Chicago cop.

So, Grafton, Paretsky, Schwegel - who else? All for the garbage can. Compare them with Donna Leon, a European for those who appreciate a little thought with their mystery.

Theresa Schwegel's debut mystery "Officer Down" is the gritty and fast-paced story of Samantha Mack, a cop on Chicago's North Side who is forced to confront both the department and the bad guys after a shoot-out with a suspect leaves her partner dead, apparently by a bullet from her own gun.

Mack is injured in the firefight and she awakens with a memory that doesn't reconcile with the supposed facts of what happened. When the department and the media want to write off the incident as a case of "friendly fire," Mack is on her own to discover what really happened and prove that someone else was responsible for her partner's death.

After a somewhat rocky start, "Officer Down" settles down to tell a solid story of a good, though mixed-up, cop in a very bad situation. Although the prose at times is a little rough, it's nevertheless a powerful and compelling first effort that promises good things to come from Schwegel.