National bestselling author Mitchell Smith returns with a masterwork of suspense that will keep you turning pages all night! The notorious Sweetwater Killer has claimed yet another victim, as a young woman is found brutally murdered in the sweltering Florida swamps. Her father, a reformed criminal himself, now vows revenge against this serial killer who has eluded the authorities for years...and is willing to use all of the illicit resources at his command to get it!
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
There's little to surprise veteran thriller readers in Smith's new crime novel (after Karma, 1994), and not much to please them either. The villain is a familiar sort?a serial killer?as are her pursuers, aging robber Tyler Pierce, who's an ex-con, and Naomi Cohen, an erstwhile prostitute with a heart of gold. Despite rich detailing, these two heroes in fact seem chipped from any number of Elmore Leonard novels, as does the Florida setting. The set-up is strong: after ripping off an armored van shipment, Pierce learns that his daughter has been slain in Florida by the maniac known as the Sweetwater killer. Heading south to find the murderer and extract revenge, he hires Naomi as his local guide and sorts out clues, running up against a bent cop, drug runners and other oddballs. There's no mystery, since readers are told the killer's identity early on, and there's scant suspense as Smith devotes too much space to interplay, sometimes cute, sometimes maudlin, between his leads. Fierce action too rarely punctuates the narrative. The most extended action sequence?of Pierce struggling naked through lethal swamps as a hurricane sweeps by?is powerful but seems arbitrarily inserted for effect. Even the killer's motivation?rage against abortions?appears more calculated than realistic, and leads to some intrusive pro-choice soapboxing. A pat ending laced with symbolism only confirms that Smith is straining here, etching a novel that, despite some crisp lines, winds up feeling as bogus as a three-dollar bill.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Highly praised for earlier novels depicting independent-minded characters in difficult situations, both female (Due North, LJ 9/92) and male (Stone City, LJ 4/1/90), Smith here develops another striking antihero who certainly follows a different drummer. Tyler Pierce, recently released from prison for bank robbery and settled in small-town Missouri as a roofer, learns that his 22-year-old daughter is the latest victim of a serial killer in Florida. With the aid of money stashed from one last bank job and the help of contacts outside the law, including a prostitute, a drug dealer, a crooked cop, a retired pimp turned female, and numerous other vivid characters, he tracks the killer. Like Carl Hiaasen, Smith knows the dark side of Florida with its bizarre characters, and his atypical protagonist might well be compared to some of Elmore Leonard's. We know the killer early on, but the plot is still cinematically fast, the dialog fine, and the suspense, mixed with humor, builds to a real twist. Highly recommended.?Roland C. Person, Southern Illinois Univ. Lib., Carbondale
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tropical chills...,
By
This review is from: Sacrifice (Mass Market Paperback)
Well, I enjoyed this more than I did Karma or Stone City, both by the same author. I found the setting to be believable and learned quite a bit about illegal banking techniques and roofing. And I would read a book centering on any one of the characters in this one; they're that well-written.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
In a Different Category,
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This review is from: Sacrifice (Mass Market Paperback)
I read several hundred books a year. I do not like Elmore Leonard; his material is mostly unbelievable and not especially exciting or funny. Most mysteries are formulaic and boring. Smith is a different sort of writer. He's gritty and real in a way that's hard to define. The plot isn't unique, but the treatment made the book. Can not believe the other reviews! Sooo many books are just the same thing; Lescroart, Parker, Cornwell, etc. Smith writes a mystery that's not just off the assembly line.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An Extremely Likeable Anti-Hero,
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This review is from: The Sacrifice (Hardcover)
Tyler Pierce is an extremely likeable anti-hero with an odd mixture of flaws and strengths. He is a knight errant with no confidence in the law enforcement establishment and a strong preference for doing things his own way. The author is a skilled writer who introduces the reader to the killer early, but still manages to maintain the suspense to the end.
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