The Getaway Man [Kindle Edition]

Andrew Vachss (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This slim retro-look paperback by crime master Vachss (Only Child; Pain Management) delivers the guilty pleasure of a dime novel, which means that although it is a few writerly steps up from a Dick Tracy comic, the emphasis is on action. Characterization is handled with a few deft strokes. As usual, Vachss, a lawyer who represents children and once directed a maximum-security prison for violent youth, suffuses his story with compassion for children and a razor-sharp outrage at their abusers. Here, Vachss takes us inside the mind of Eddie, a young man who has survived a string of incarcerations with his innocence seemingly intact. Dismissed as an idiot by a few seedy characters, he is prized for his loyalty and his unsurpassed ability behind the wheel by the big-time heist artist J.C. When he isn't customizing vehicles for the biggest heist of J.C.'s career, Eddie is happily ensconced in the barn behind J.C.'s cabin hideaway, watching videos that feature getaway driving. Enter J.C.'s girlfriend, Vonda, who just can't leave Eddie alone. Taking advantage of J.C.'s frequent overnight trips to work out the details of the big job in the offing, Vonda gets cozy with Eddie, confiding details of her abusive relationship with J.C. She becomes Eddie's secret girlfriend and inspires him to new heights of daring as a getaway driver. The surprise ending is so abrupt that it will cause most readers to jam on the brakes and wonder where the road went, but it's smooth sailing right up to the edge of the cliff.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Vachss takes a break from his popular Burke series to type a tribute to the Gold Medal pulp paperbacks of the 1950s and 1960s. Though it's a present-day noir like the Burke books, it's lighter in tone and steers clear of their dark subject matter. Eddie, the narrator, is a quiet, not-too-bright loner who loves to drive cars. Joyriding and a few stints in juvenile prisons lead him to hard time and hardened thugs who see potential in his single-minded loyalty--when Eddie's out front in the car, he waits until his partners come out, whether the cops are coming or not. After a few different gangs and adventures, he finds himself partnered with a tough ex-con planning the ultimate noir cliche: one last big score so they can all retire. This novel has all the standards, including stand-up guys, manipulative dames, double-crossing partners, and an aura of predestined failure that hangs over the proceedings like cigarette smoke in a waterfront bar. But Vachss gives it a nice twist by telling the tale from the point of view of the dim guy instead of the sharpster with all the angles. Except for a few slip-ups where Eddie uses too-nice wording ("a spring rain was slanting down"), or is almost too clueless to believe (he's never rented a video), it works. This should be a pleasant detour for both Vachss followers and fans of the genre. Keir Graff
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 199 KB
• Print Length: 192 pages
• Page Numbers Source ISBN: 1400031192
• Publisher: Vintage (April 8, 2003)
• Sold by: Random House Digital, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000FBFNA6
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #339,388 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

Andrew Vachss has been a federal investigator in sexually transmitted diseases, a social-services caseworker, a labor organizer, and has directed a maximum-security prison for "aggressive-violent" youth. Now a lawyer in private practice, he represents children and youth exclusively. He is the author of numerous novels, including the Burke series, two collections of short stories, and a wide variety of other material including song lyrics, graphic novels, essays, and a "children's book for adults." His books have been translated into twenty languages, and his work has appeared in Parade, Antaeus, Esquire, Playboy, The New York Times, and many other forums. His books have been awarded the Grand Prix de Littérature Policiére, the Falcon Award, Deutschen Krimi Preis, Die Jury des Bochumer Krimi Archivs and the Raymond Chandler Award (per Giurìa a Noir in Festival, Courmayeur, Italy). Andrew Vachss' latest books include Heart Transplant (Dark Horse Books, October 2010), a collaboration with Frank Caruso that attempts to reset the cultural software as it pertains to bullying, and The Weight (Pantheon, November 2010), a crime novel. The dedicated Web site for Vachss and his work is vachss.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A change of pace for a great crime writer, February 13, 2003

By 

C. Williamson (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Getaway Man (Paperback)

Readers used to novels featuring Vachss's continuing character Burke will find this book a true change of pace. Vachss alters his literary voice completely in his creation of Eddie, a professional getaway driver. Eddie is as far from Burke as can be imagined, an innocent in a world of corruption, a man who is a criminal mainly because his talents are best suited for that particular job. He is a driver who lives to drive, and spends his evenings watching old movies that he likes to think parallel his own life (like Thunder Road and Moonshine Highway). Loyal and honorable, realistic but trusting, Eddie seems a sweet child in an evil man's world until, as in the classic plots of James M. Cain, a woman makes him reexamine his priorities and loyalties. To say more would give away too much of the plot, but Vachss never takes a wrong turn on Eddie's drive away from innocence.

The tight prose and simple style suit the subject perfectly. Eddie isn't nearly as eloquent with language as Burke, and there are frequent grammatical errors in this first-person narrative which only add to the richly drawn portrait. Nor is Eddie as outwardly intense as Burke. There's no crusader in these pages, only a guy trying to make a living doing what he loves to do, and trying to deal with the temptations and moral dilemmas that go with the job. The sense of the 1950s predominates, although there are frequent references to contemporary technology.

The book is short, less than 200 pages, and they fly effortlessly by, with Vachss's trademark style of using simple breaks rather than the artificiality of chapter heads. The trade paperback package is totally simpatico with the novel's spirit, displaying stylish 50's cover artwork and logo, and even creases printed on the covers, to give that stuck-in-the-back-pocket paperback feel (you'll have to break the spine yourself). It's a terrific book that ends with a perfectly measured body blow to the gut, and those who appreciate crime fiction at its best would be fools to miss it.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A getaway from the norm, but a great read none the less, April 10, 2003

By 

Scott A. Misko (STONE MOUNTAIN, GEORGIA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Getaway Man (Paperback)

Andrew Vachss has a long series of hits with the Burke books. (Also recommend each of them). The Getaway Man is something different and new for Mr. Vachss. The characters come to life and emotional attachment occurs. The main character is a criminal but you care for him none the less. This book is a quick read that leads you through the life of Eddie who's only goal is driving. Through a series of stays in prison, comes out and begins driving for a series of criminals, each case seemingly to get more complex. Eddie gets through the story with his simple views on life and fierce loyalty to the people he drives for. After all, he's a professional. The last page makes the whole trip worth the time to read this book.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Andrew Vachss Has Crafted Yet Another Impressive Story, March 22, 2003

By 

Bookreporter (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Getaway Man (Paperback)

The latest effort in the impressive body of work from Andrew Vachss, THE GETAWAY MAN, tells the story of Eddie, a character whose outwardly simple nature masks a complex psychology that reveals itself in the subtext of this carefully crafted story.

Eddie is determined to fulfill his dream of becoming a getaway driver. That is the extent of his ambition. Eddie is not in the game for easy money or for the thrills --- he just wants to drive. He is a simple and likeable character, whose dedication to his craft and loyalty to those who hire him for his abilities is admirable, if misguided. But that's a good deal of what makes Eddie so fascinating. He takes to the outlaw's life in a manner so unassuming and natural that it's as if "Life of Crime" was a booth he visited on Career Day in high school. For Eddie, a straight life was never a consideration --- it wasn't even on the radar.

Despite his chosen profession, there isn't the slightest hint of menace in Eddie. This sets him apart from Burke, the main character in several of Vachss's previous books. Burke is a bad guy, an anti-hero whose moral matrix occasionally syncs-up with the law. Burke oozes a streetwise menace that is as impressive as it is frightening. Eddie, on the other hand, is as threatening as a cocker spaniel, yet he and Burke follow a similar moral code. But where Burke survives on projecting this menace and on the judicious delivery of the violence it presages, Eddie gets by on a keen ability to read people and tell them what they want to hear. Yet, there's nothing insincere about Eddie. He's not manipulative; he's desperate for approval. There's a childlike quality about this need that hints at some hidden tragedy. This is something that Eddie and Burke share: a dark and troubled psyche that is implied rather than revealed. Vachss trusts his readers to look not just at the characters in the spotlight, but also at the shadows they cast. It's there where Eddie takes shape, where his form is filled in and it's there that Eddie gets into your head.

Eddie's story is told in first person, in a narrative that describes his evolution from misguided teen to career criminal. The story is a remarkable distillation of detail and action into a form so crisp and concise that reading it is a bit like pouring water onto a dried sponge --- it expands before your eyes. In the end, you're astonished that a story so rich was contained in so small a package.

--- Reviewed by Bob Rhubart