About the Author

Andrew Vachss’s many books include the Burke novels and two previous collections of short stories. His books have been translated into twenty languages, and his work has appeared in Parade, Antaeus, Esquire, Playboy, and The New York Times, among other publications. He died in 2021.

Reviews

“There’s no way to put a Vachss book down once you’ve begun.” —Detroit Free Press

“Vachss’s prose is as taut and street-wise as ever.” —Associated Press

“Burke is the hardest, most twisted man in crime and thriller fiction.” —Contra Costa Times

“Vachss is just about the toughest of contemporary crime novelists. [He] waves a powerful light across a city landscape that few writers go near and none portray so convincingly.” --Los Angeles Times

“The hardest-boiled crime fiction this side of Sing Sing.” --USA Today

“Sheer narrative drive is only part of what has kept readers coming back for more. [Burke] is a hero of our times. . . lord of the asphalt jungle.” --The Washington Post Book World

“Vachss’s style is as inimitable and passionate as ever.” --Rocky Mountain News

“Vachss is a contemporary master.” --The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“Writing in a style so sleekly engineered that it purrs when you pop the hood, Vachss gives such a smooth ride that it’s easy to forget someone is driving.” --The New York Times

“Vachss has always been able to make other writers look candy-assed . . . And it’s not because he manages to marry grim idealism to action-driven plots. It’s because of the unflinching way he looks at evil.” --Chicago Reader

“Vachss is red hot and as serious as a punctured lung.” --Playboy

“The New York Burke inhabits is not borrowed from anybody and shimmers on the page as gaudily and scarily as it does on the street.” --New York

After a nicely gritty opening ("Revenge is like any other religion: There's always a lot more preaching than there is practicing"), Vachss's 18th Burke thriller (after Terminal) goes off in disparate directions that never quite coalesce into a satisfying whole. When a sniper shoots Burke's father, the Prof, the Prof's uneasy relationship with the law means that his life-threatening wounds can't be treated at a hospital. While his father's fate remains uncertain, a shadowy figure connected with U.S. intelligence draws Burke, an ex-con turned avenging angel for hire, into a kidnapping case. Early one morning, somebody removed the infant son of a Saudi prince from his father's custom Rolls, parked near an abandoned pier near the Hudson River, after the prince was serviced by a prostitute, who didn't realize the child was in the back seat. Burke visits his usual seamy corners of New York City in the ensuing investigation. Those who enjoyed previous books in the series will find more of the same. (Dec.) Copyright 2008 Reed Business Information.

"There's no way to put a Vachss book down once you've begun." -Detroit Free Press

"Vachss's prose is as taut and street-wise as ever." -Associated Press

"Burke is the hardest, most twisted man in crime and thriller fiction." -Contra Costa Times

"Vachss is just about the toughest of contemporary crime novelists. [He] waves a powerful light across a city landscape that few writers go near and none portray so convincingly." --Los Angeles Times

"The hardest-boiled crime fiction this side of Sing Sing." --USA Today

"Sheer narrative drive is only part of what has kept readers coming back for more. [Burke] is a hero of our times. . . lord of the asphalt jungle." --The Washington Post Book World

"Vachss's style is as inimitable and passionate as ever." --Rocky Mountain News

"Vachss is a contemporary master." --The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"Writing in a style so sleekly engineered that it purrs when you pop the hood, Vachss gives such a smooth ride that it's easy to forget someone is driving." --The New York Times

"Vachss has always been able to make other writers look candy-assed . . . And it's not because he manages to marry grim idealism to action-driven plots. It's because of the unflinching way he looks at evil." --Chicago Reader

"Vachss is red hot and as serious as a punctured lung." --Playboy

"The New York Burke inhabits is not borrowed from anybody and shimmers on the page as gaudily and scarily as it does on the street." --New York