Reckless Endangerment [Paperback]

Robert K. Tanenbaum (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999

Deputy D.A. Butch Karp returns in Robert K. Tanenbaum's newest legal thriller!

When an elderly Jewish shopkeeper is murdered and a racial epithet is scrawled beneath his body, police are hard-pressed to find the killer before the crime escalates into a media circus. While investigating, Butch discovers that a second murder--this time a cop--is related to the case. As racial tensions in the city arise, Butch and his family find themselves caught in the crossfire of a merciless killer.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Like a canvas by Bosch, the frenetic 10th installment in the popular Butch Karp and Marlene Ciampi series (Irresistible Impulse, etc.) is all foreground, a three-ring circus of mayhem and mystery. Here Tanenbaum pits Deputy DA Karp, his detective cronies Raney and Fulton and his security-expert wife, Marlene, against an amorphous army of Palestinians terrorizing New York. When Arab youths are implicated in the murders of two elderly Jews, Karp finds himself having to placate local Arab and Jewish leaders and at the same time convince the brass that the crimes point to a conspiracy. Meanwhile, a Mexican hit man linked to two jailed drug dealers is threatening to shoot up the metropolis and murder Karp's rival, Homicide Bureau head Roland Hrcany. Back home, Marlene is caffeinating herself to delirium to balance work and family. Then the teenage sister of one of the Arab suspects, on the lam after stabbing a pimp, lands improbably in a shelter for battered women run by Marlene's friend. Should Marlene inform Karp, or protect the girl? As always, there's much to cheer in Tanenbaum's work: quirky characters, snappy cop-talk, even a slam-bang car chase through a Hasidic neighborhood in Brooklyn, and the rousing action resonates with deeper themes as Karp, a lapsed Jew, tentatively accepts his ethnicity. But the constant jumps between subplots are wearying, the large casts of racist cops and racist terrorists run together and the resolution is strained as absolutely everyone is tied together into a too-perfect knot. Mystery Guild selection. (June) FYI: Media-alert readers will recognize Tanenbaum as the lawyer for a teenage defendant on trial in Delaware for killing her newborn baby.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Hair-raising.” —People

 

“While the legal writing is as expert as ever, this book gets its punch from Tanenbaum’s knotted, tangled vision of Manhattan. ”  —The Washington Post Book World

 

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Signet (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451193288
• ISBN-13: 978-0451193285
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #222,984 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

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A bit over the top but still a great read!, August 10, 1998

By 

Frank's Daughter (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Reckless Endangerment (Hardcover)

For those who have followed the trials (literally) and tribulations of Butch Karp and his one-eyed, gun-totin', walk-on-the-wild-side wife/lawyer/partner in crime Marlene Ciampi, "Reckless Endangerment" should prove to be as endearing a story as the titles preceding it. Read in order they paint an interesting hindsight picture of the late seventies and early eighties as Robert Tanenbaum relates the gruesome, thrilling and sometimes hilarious life and times in the NYPD Homicide Bureau. In this episode, Marlene and Butch's daughter, Lucy, really takes top billing. The polyglot (she has learned Mandarin, French, Tex-Mex Spanish, and some Arabic) kid, along with her shady Vietnamese mentor/babysitter, Tran, leads her parents and the cops around the Big Apple in search of Arabs, Jews, and a sadistic/wounded/crazy Mexican killer-child named El Chivato among others. The escapades often reach the height of unreality but who cares?? The ending was a bit! too pat, but I did not want the story to end. So, Mr. Tanenbaum, give up the law career and write full time, okay?

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fair plot, but the writing is weak, August 5, 2000

By 

Christine Lynn Jones - See all my reviews

This review is from: Reckless Endangerment (Paperback)

Three young Arabs seriously wound a Jewish elderly shopkeeper and murder his wife. Why? Because they have been ordered to by Ibn-Salemeh, a powerful Arabian megalomaniac. The reason is to start a holy war in New York City pitting the Jews against the Arabs, in what the Arabs hope will make themselves into martyrs. Deputy D.A. Butch Karp is assigned to the case. His job is to solve it, while keeping racial tensions from exploding in the city. More murders are to follow, all related to the Arabian cause. Even Mexican drug lords get tied into the crime spree, as the Arabs do much of their underground business with them to finance their holy war. Sound exciting? It could be, however, Tannebaum's lack of literary skills sure puts a damper on what could have been a good book.

First of all, Tannebaum introduces too many characters too soon in the story, and then he neglects to develop those characters. As you read, it becomes difficult to remember who is who and what their role in the story is. I found myself frequently having to flip the pages backwards to refresh my memory of people and events. Also, there is no distinguishable characters in this book. Personalities are rather bland and the dialogue used is in monotone voices.

As one reader pointed out, there are mistakes in the book that don't correspond with the book's time frame of 1981. The reader was correct in those errors he pointed out. Another one to add is that there is a scene where two girls sit down and watch the video Purple Rain. That movie wasn't released in theatres until 1984. While those mistakes may not bother some readers, I think it is important to note the carelessness. There are many areas in the story where Tannebaum goes into unnecessary detail on things that are not relevant, while in other parts of the story where clarification is needed, his writing lacks depth and the reader is left in the dark as to what point the writer is trying to convey.

On a positive note, there is a good action scene at the end of the book that involves a huge car chase/shootout/bombing in downtown Brooklyn. However, it doesn't make up for the many dull pages that you must plow through to get there. If you are looking for a fast, easy, and fun thriller to read, I'd suggest you look elswhere.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars People Magazine: Beach Book Of The Week, July 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Reckless Endangerment (Paperback)

Tanenbaum scores again with the further adventures of Ass't DA Butch Karp, wife Marlene and daughter Lucy.

For the latest hardcover, Act Of Revenge, from HarperCollins, Publishers' Weekly opined this dysfunctional family will provide wonderful sequels for years to come.

If you haven't read Tanenbaum, you are missing a great series. Get started!