Manhattan Books

While reading this book, it did not occur to me that it was 560 pages long. All I knew was that I needed to finish it so I could find out what happened to the characters.

I found the characters to be complex and flawed but likable at the same time. There were times when I felt empathy for them. The characters seemed to have a reason why they behaved in their flawed ways and as a reader, you discover this in due time.

The story has many ups and downs, nuances and subtleties...much like life itself. While Casey is the main character in the book, I found the actions of the other characters in her life to to be more interesting and surprising - especially those of Leah, Unu, and Ted.

I did not think the author was bashing Korean or Caucasian men. I think she wanted show that the characters all had desires and some repressed it while others tried their best to attain their desires. The common theme in the book was that everyone has desires.

This book is well worth the read.

I don't know a single Korean woman. This matters. The only thing I know of Korean American culture is bound in the 600+ pages of this book.

I love that the author gave us a bit of everyone. The protagonist is completely unlikeable and deeply flawed. In any other book I would say that this is the problem with the book but here I liked it, loved it even.

This book is 5 stars of entertainment. I found the story to be totally engrossing and the characters were painfully familiar to the characters in my own life. Min Jin Lee's voice is amazing. I think I'd enjoy her telling of Aesop's Fables. This book is proof for me that the journey is as important as the destination.

This was a part of our book club reading and with all the different women represented I'm sure that the discussion this month will be very interesting.

Free Food for Millionaires is like a reprise on the movie Slacker, only set in the NYC finance world. The author knows how to write, how to set a scene, and how to tell a story. It's just that she doesn't have anything to say. The reader gets to watch the main character named Casey stumble through life without any direction or goals. The book starts out with Casey having graduated from Princeton and being accepted at Columbia Law. But she doesn't want to go to law school or get a job. Why? Who knows? She's just not excited about either one. What does she want to do? No one knows. We then see her bounce around from job to job, in and out of business school. But still without goals or a plan. No internal thoughts or outward direction about a job, career, or interests. Her other quality is throwing away all the abilities she has along with the plethora of chances that come along. She's smart (with awesome grades), well-spoken, attractive, a hard worker (when she has a job), has lots of contacts, and is even a naturally good golfer. She went to Princeton on a scholarship, gets accepted at law and business schools, has one boss who will pay for school and wants to hand over a high-end store to her, and she has other contacts who will help her get set up in the world of finance. And she turns almost all of it down. Not interested.

She spends almost all the book crashing in other people's apartments because she can't afford one of her own, and she still racks up credit card debt and never has any money. She dumps her fiance because she can't envision a picture of them together (an allusion to an underexplained neo-mystical ability she has that is used for this one excuse and never referenced again), and then spends the rest of the time with a guy whose life is also messed up. In fact, almost all the characters have messed-up lives; it's like a soap opera where no one can really go very long without some serious drama. Everyone keeps losing their jobs, losing money, and cheating on their spouse or partner, including Casey. Someone gets date-raped near the end of the book, in an unreadable passage that I skipped before any of it could sink into my long-term memory.

The Asian-American theme is played out, but it's not omnipresent. The greater culture clash for Casey is rich versus poor, since she comes from poor immigrant roots but lives in the world of high finance. If there is anything she is indeed interested in, it's money and the stuff it buys (mainly clothes). Casey learns that Harvard business school is better than NYU, not because of the education, but because of the name. Ditto with jobs at certain companies, and of course the labels on clothes. Her conflict comes not because she wants to merely join the world of the rich but because she can't deal with not having been part of it all along when all her friends have, and because she can't deal with being an outsider on any level of it. That would be a worthy theme to explore in a novel, but instead we get to slog through 500 pages of soap opera drama gimmicks. The barest glimmer of a possible happy ending we finally get isn't any sort of a wrap-up; it has the effect of a TV series that was finally canceled.

I have to admit, I'm torn over this book. Having just finished it about twenty minutes ago, I both hated and enjoyed it. The ending felt not like an ending at all, but at the same time it was sort of optimistically unresolved. Perhaps my ambivalence is a sign in and of itself.

I picked the book up because the description of the "protagonist" Casey reminded me of a dear friend. Well, the resemblance turned out to be weak, but I found myself engaged by these characters (despite their -- MAJOR -- flaws) so I kept going. (I put "protagonist" in quotes because there was a huge cast of characters, all of whose minds we enter, and many of whom we spend an equal amount of time with as Casey, so it was sort of hard to unclear who we were rooting for.)

Also, coming from an Asian background, I found the insight into the Korean community very interesting and not dissimilar to that of the Chinese/Taiwanese one I experienced.

For some reason, the length of the book didn't hit me until I was about 100 pages in and I realized that very little had actually happened. The most exciting things occur in the first 30 or so pages, and then it's just sort of one event after another. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster -- but one that didn't have very high ups or downs or go very fast -- it just kept moving, and since I was already on it, I went along.

I did find a handful of "gems" to underline, but in a 600 page book, I guess that's not much as I would have liked.

Most of all, I found the interactions between the characters to be flat. They were TOLD well, I suppose, but never really shown. (Ex. the author told me of Casey's love for Sabine, but I never really saw it.) Much of the dialogue was also stilted, meaning it sounded like it would be delivered by soap opera actors instead of Hollywood's A-list.

I think that is this book's biggest flaw: the quality/style of writing does not live up (or hold up) to this ambitious of a story.

I read somewhere (on her Web site, maybe?) that the author intentionally wrote in this style, never settling on one character's perspective or voice, in an attempt to imitate the style of 19th century European authors. I guess I don't think that was wholly successful -- but at the same time, it didn't fail so horribly as to make me stop.

And finally, there is very little happiness sprinkled throughout the pages. My view of the world is not generally dim, so that was a bit strange for me.

In spite of ALL that, I finished, and I'm glad I did. I wanted to know how these people ended up. I don't think I'd necessarily recommend this book to anyone, but I wouldn't urge anyone to NOT read it either.

I enjoyed this book very much. I couldn't wait to get back to it to see what would happen to Casey next (parts I-II). By the time it got to part III, though, it seemed to spin a little out of control; seemed a little disjointed from the rest of the story. But all in all I would recommend this as a very engrossing book, with very interesting characters.

because I felt for Phoebe. In each of the little vignettes, I could see a little bit of myself and my life. In her neurotic-isms, and in her self doubts and in her hopes as cliche as it sounds (but I'd hope I am a little bit more together than this character!). Seriously, though, I flew through this book in a day. I was expecting a light, fluffy read, and while it was light, on one level, it was also true to the realities of the educated-20-something-in-the-city. Reminded me of Bridget Jones and of Sex and the City. Lots of fun pop culture references. Lots of sarcasm. Lots of what I found to be witty points. Just an enjoyable, although at moments frustrating and searing, read.

A lot of women could probably relate to this book, especially women who live in New York City. I have often thought about all the different types of men I have dated here. Lucinda does a great job of telling it like it is with humor. Phoebe reminds me of the character in the memoir, Locked Passion of a Free Spirit. They both had a lot of growing up to do.

This book was very well written. I think Lucinda Rosenfeld is a talented author, and I will look for other books by her. That said, I found the book to be a "much of a muchness." In ten years, (age 16 - 26) Phoebe Fine never seemed to grow up, mature, reflect, or just grow, period. By the 10th or 12th man, I was a bit tired of her go nowhere, do nothing, victim mentality. I was also a bit tired of the men she chose--- never really seeing what she DID see in them. I'd give the writing style 5-stars, and the first half of the book 4-stars, but it was too much of the same thing to be more than a 3-star book overall.
Certainly worth reading though.

This story made me laugh and cry, both inspired and frustrated me. Whether we'd like to admit it or not, I think that almost every woman and girl can relate to a certain aspect of the heartbreakingly funny lead character, Pheobe Fine. While I did begin to tire of the book's concept toward the end, and was not particularly impressed with it's ending, I ultimately thought it was a refreshing and beautifully written read, and one that I would definitely recommend to my girlfriends.

Sadly, while reading this book, it is shoved down the reader's throat that Phoebe is a girl who suffers from the fact that every man she meets wants to have sex with her, and since she's basically a [prostitute], it usually happens. This takes away from Phoebe's intelligence and her other qualities that would make her a good person and a person worth knowing and caring about. Also, at about the hundredth mention of how beautiful and attractive she is to the opposite sex, the subtlety wears a little thin. Having said that, the book does have its moments, and I thought in general it had a lot of potential but ultimately fell short. It had a lot of promise in the beginning, but didn't follow through. Phoebe ends up coming across as an unlikable and empty sort of person, one of those annoying women who are always trying to call themselves victims and blame everyone else for their so-called unhappiness. I couldn't relate to her at all and it's unfortunate that the author chose to write a character who is such a cliche`. Also, the sexual references are disgusting, crude and totally gratuitous. I would recommend Why She Went Home instead.

This book, on the surface, is simple, straightforward and plot-driven. But the real power comes from its understatement. It is a beautifully-written and conceived story that reveals the complexity of human nature and yields a powerful statement about what is important in life. I am a psychotherapist and I have recommended this book to a few of my patients. It shows rather than tells. My favorite Bohjalian book.

It seemed as thought the author kept repeating himself over and over and the book was boring and predictable. Things started to pick up in the last 1/3 of the book and I became more interested. Not as good as Midwives.

I have enjoyed Chris Bohjalian's other novels. He usually picks an offbeat topic and sets up a lively family situation surrounding it. However, this novel seems endless, and the main focus gets drowned in wordy descriptions. His dialogue seems stilted and old-fashioned. For all the character development he describes in painstaking detail, you never really get to like any one of them. The book was at least 100 pages too long, and very repetitive. Not his best effort I'm afraid. I will continue to read his other novels, though, as his other novels are more engaging, especially those in first person.

I was asked to read this book for my job. I started out with high expectations because it was suggested by the community to read. As i go to reading it, i was disgusted on how slow and tiresome it was. I proceded to read it untill i got to chapter 7, and when i found that no plot has even erupted yet. The entire chapter was about a deer. How can a book be seven chapters in, and about 100 pages in, and still have expostition material. this book was terrible and would never suggest to anyone.

I tried to like this book, I tried to read this book...all I ended up doing was yawning & falling asleep. Since I am having trouble sleeping, maybe this is a good book for insomniacs or those going through a major breakup like me. All I can say is I tried!

I started this book. I got about 150 pages into it before I gave it up. It just bored me to death. I prefer an author who can really tell a story. Kurt Andersen can't. At least he's not my type of writer.

Realistic non-fiction is one of my favorite genres and I was expecting great things from this book after reading the reviews. I was sorely disappointed. The author puts his main characters in every major event, as well as knowing or meeting every major person of the times. As a result it comes across as contrived and the plot seems forced and predictable as he tries to weave these events together. I found the book frustrating as it attempted to gather sympathy for prostitutes, arsonists, drug addicts, army deserters and alcoholics, while expressing contempt for religion. Also frustrating was the several historical inaccuracies.

The only character in the book I found the slightly interesting was Drumont. Unfortunately even his character was highly unbelievable. His brother is accidently killed by a stuffed penguin during a riot, which Drumont is partly to blame for starting, and as a result becomes blinded by revenge. As a reader we are asked to believe he is able to learn English and track his brother's "killer" across two continents in just a few months time? The eventual meeting between Knowles and Drumont is predictable and anything but climatic.

The movie Forrest Gump was a huge success, even though Forrest ends up in the White House for Congressional Medal of Honor award, Ping Pong Master, etc. Talk about unbelievable coincidence(s)!

What made the movie "work" is it was enjoyable to watch with plenty of historical stuff, and great period music of the time!

We get to see John Lennon on a late night TV show with Forrest playing the straight guy; the tragedy's of the Vietnam War; Apple Computer making millionaires out of its early stock buyers; Nixon's downfall (Watergate) with Forrest saying to security... the flashlight's are keeping him awake!

This book is Forrest Gump II (movie in the future?), enjoy the history and don't read it with a dead serious attitude that can't accept moocho coincidences or history lessons.

This book covers a lot of territory and contains several plots, no one plot seeming to be higher in priority than another. The book is BUSY.
Goes from Paris, London, New York City to the West Coast and a few communities in between.
Gives a good overview of what was going on in this country in 1848, 1849 and the early 1850's.
My understanding is it is the second book by Kurt Andersen.

Heyday is a novel about America (and to a much lesser degree Europe) in 1848-1849. It is well-written, with a colorful cast of characters and lots of interesting historical facts. But I found the novel to be less than the sum of the parts. It's a mediocre novel.

Why is this? Despite the quality of the writing, the author never made me care about the characters, who always felt like a means to an end. The historical facts often seemed force-fed, jammed into the novel in ways that did not advance the story. (This was particularly true in the first half of the book.) The plot, and especially the ending, felt contrived. Heyday was an interesting story that didn't go anywhere, emotionally, or intellectually, and it didn't give me anything to think about when I was done.

The author has promise; he writes well, and clearly did his homework. If he can learn to tell a story with emotional resonance, his books will be worth seeking out. But this isn't that book.

If you do want to read it, take a look at the second-hand stores; that's where my copy will be.

This was an excellent book! It was funny and kept me entertained the whole time! I can't wait for her to come out with a new book! If you like Chick Lit and if your a mom already you will LOVE this book!

This was a decent stab at mommy chick lit. I admit that I laughed out loud at numerous different points. My biggest criticism is that the book felt like it was drifting at various points without a clear plot or end point. There were numerous interjections of the protagonist having flashbacks or just having certain feelings that felt a little forced and like they could have been brought out in other ways. I did enjoy that Jennifer was not the prototypical SAHM - she definitely had an edge to her and at the same time was not over the top ridiculous in her disorganization as often the mothers are in these types of stories. Definitely a decent attempt, but at no point did I feel compelled to rush trough or a deep desire to know where the story was headed. The end definitely packed some weird twists that were not well-explained and seemed contrived in a way.

When I decided to stay at home with my son and was trying to adjust to the STAHM lifestyle from full time working mom, this book was a great read.

It is obvious that the author of this book has never actually BEEN a SAHM and that she thinks she is far superior to anyone who is. If I could have given it less than one star, I would. I never thought there would be a "chick lit" book that would actually piss me off, but this one has done it. The main character is so condescending, smug and conceited that I want to fly up to NYC and confront her. As a SAHM myself, I am disgusted with some of the assumptions and generalizations this author makes. I actually can't put the book down because it's pissing me off so much, I can't stop reading it. The more I read it, the madder it makes me. ARGH!

For the record MS. Scheibe, there are some women out there who are SAHM's who don't resent our children, don't resent our husbands, aren't bored, aren't stupid, don't miss working, never plan to go back to work and aren't feminists. They say authors should write what they know about, what they've actually experienced.... you should take that advice, ma'am!

While I liked the subject matter in general, and some of it was dead-on, some parts of the plot were a little unlikely and fell a little flat for me. A little unrealistic for most of the SAHMs I know (swearing, drinking, minor drug usage). If you like this genre it's worth a read, but it's definitely not going to be a classic.

i enjoyed this book tremendously. Many reviewers have said that this wasn't Nora Roberts best effort & i agree with this, but having said this it's still a very enjoyable book & i wouldn't miss it. It reminisces Romancing The Stone (the movie) a great deal. I thought the plot carried on well and the banter between H/H was witty, there was alot of excitement throughout the story, and the romance was definitely there so am a bit suprised that some readers didnt think there was alot of romance?? i liked the neat ending & it definitely wrapped up everything nicely. It's worth spending the $$ to buy the book. I definitely recommend this book.

The first book I've read by Nora Roberts, Hot Ice surely has sold me on this talented author- understandably, a best seller. Through fast paced story telling, multi-dimensional characters and exceptionally detailed settings, Ms. Roberts weaves a tale of adventure, romance and suspense. If you're looking to get swept away into a real page turner, I highly recommend this entertaining, well written book.

HOT ICE is an interesting tale about a wealthy woman and a first rate thief. Nora Roberts likes to use this premise and has used it in several of her books. However, each has different entwined subplots that make them each unique. She does use a few of the same guidelines:

1. The woman is beautiful and usually wealthy.
2. The thief (usually male) is always gorgeous and street savvy.

I personally am waiting for her to write about a really homely thief and a poor woman; now that would be an interesting concept, right? Ok, so maybe that's why I'm not a published author and Nora Roberts is one of the best!

One of the variances in HOT ICE from her other books is that the race to find treasure begins in Manhattan and ends in Madagascar. The usual trials and tribulations occur: passion trying to be denied, a rival enemy hot on their tails, etc. HOT ICE is more along the lines of pure romance with a little mystery thrown in for balance. In my opinion, Roberts's better efforts have more mystery and less romance, as she's excellent at setting the stage for suspense.

HOT ICE is a good story, but not fantastic. I wouldn't label it a "stop light book" as is my term for a book that is absolutely impossible to put down, so much so that you read a few lines while waiting at a red light in your car! I would much rather recommend MONTANA SKY, SANCTUARY, THE REEF or another more recent Roberts novel. However, if you've already read these and wish to fill some time, this would be the book for you!

I usually enjoy reading Nora Roberts books when I want a light hearted romantic change of pace. However, I found it difficult to get through this book. I felt like I had to force myself to keep reading. It was a bit too drawn out and even boring in parts. There was a great deal of suspense at times, but in between it lacked the page turning quality that I would have liked.
I noticed that the book was written in 1987 which explains some of it. This had to have been one of her earlier works and certain aspects of the story would never be an option now. For instance, Whitney uses credit cards everywhere to pay for things. In todays day and age we all know that leaving a paper trail when you are trying to elude a powerful enemy is asking for trouble. Other parts, just show their age.
I am sorry to say that this may be the first one of her books that I did not enjoy as much as I had hoped for. It's not even worth checking out from the library. Skip this one. There are plenty of others by this author that are far better.

I think Nora has spoiled me with her more recent writings. "Hot Ice" is an early attempt at suspense and romance, however, it was fairly boring throughout the story when ice cream heiress Whitney MacAllister and professional thief, Douglas Lord meet up. Their travels to find the hidden treasure dating back to the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette take them all the way to Madagascar. I think if Nora had written this story today, it would have been a real cliffhanger because the basic storyline is a good one. There were times during the story that I was actually "hooked" however, those moments were not long enough for this novel to be considered one of her success stories. Whitney is a spoiled rich girl and Doug is the typical good looking, strong, smart and very slick thief in her life. Toward the end of the book, things do get interesting when master mind villain, Dimitri and his bad boys come face to face with our hero and heroine and a long chase through New York, DC, and onto the jungles of Madagascar finally culminates. I enjoyed watching both main characters grow to a certain point by the end of their journey, however, the current sparks that Nora can grab from her audience with her outstanding writing is not in this novel.

Harrison is quite a good writer. He paints very vivid characters and scenes.

This book about a famous columnist who gets caught up in muddle as several storylines all come together on top of him.

Parts of the story are a bit of a stretch and though I read the ending twice, I couldn't quite understand how the columnist knows what to do in the steps leading up to the finale.

But whatever - the ride is quite fun and worth a few gimmes. The characters are interesting and engaging. The storylines clever and different from the run of the mill.

Definitely recommend it.

Note: This book is not as violent as the other book I read of his - Afterburn. I'm not particularly squeamish, but that story had some seriously violent scenes. This one has none of that - good family entertainment. Well maybe not quite, but not violent.

Porter Wren lives off the grime and guts of the city: he sells violence, pathos and vicarious thrills through his newspaper column, and he searches for the human side of Manhattan's underworld-the story of a girl shot while holding her wedding dress, the story of a man who jumps out of a building holding a baby... or

But when Wren runs into a beautiful woman, Caroline Crowley, at a billionaire's party, he is led off on a trail of sexual obsession and blackmail. Caroline's husband, brilliant young playwright Simon Crowley, was found dead under a demolished building, murdered under mysterious circumstances. But before he died, he hid an incriminating tape of his wife and the billionaire Hobbs, which Hobbs wants back, no matter what the cost. And so in helping Caroline, and being seduced by her, Wren leads us into a twisted tale of unsolved murder and bizarre acts.

Harrison does a masterful job blending characters and storyline. He tells us about Porter Wren in Wren's own words-normally a loving husband and devoted father, he falls easily under Caroline's spell-and tells us why, in a way that explains why normal men stray. We also meet the playwright Simon Crowley, post-mortem, with his penchant for filming everything about the city, from the conversations of ordinary people to extraordinary things-include his own murder. Caroline has set a bloodhound loose on the trail of more than one missing film, and despite his obsession with her, Wren will not stop until he unearths every last clue.

Harrison has written other thriller like The Finder and Afterburn, and his style is so intense, his works so well-plotted, that he deserves his international bestselling status. He's a new author for me, and all I can say is that I want to get hold of more of his books and dive in for the sheer pleasure of losing myself in the story.

Armchair Interviews says: If you are not familiar with this author, then get started reading him. He's worth your attention.

Author's Web site under construction: www.ColinHarrison.com

The artistic temperment in NYC gone wild and why not?, This novel portrays art with myriad consorting muses taken to the extremes of passion and enabled at every moment for this creation to create and finalize itself whatever the cost. Where but in 1970's Manhatten, partly staged and choreographed in the bowels and skylights of a multi storied modernized early 1900 Bowery warehouse, with elevators, like grilled ornate cages (see Bladerunner or Last Tango) and the artist maddened wild delirious, or is it rather, the artist committed to his obsessively well planned spontaneous yet not quite illogical living creations. Yet all is foiled by love! Very last minute-y of course by a mere human gallant though rottweilers be in hot pursuit. Read it! Particularly if you like anything Colin Harrison wrote, read this one. I think it to be his true masterpiece! Beware! NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART! Manhatten Nocturne has a good great fine and elegant ending. Pure suspense involving an artist whose perversions are shown to be truly part of creation's logic. To quote a noir writer.....First you dream then you die....... If this is based on a true situation, the NYC police have shredded the police records/ reports if indeed they were even notified. A Fine thriller you won't put down easily. I read it 3 times and will again!

Do read it if only for the small story told at the end; an exhausted North Dakota father finally gives a young girl her much sought after horse.

I loved this author's writing. So poetic at times. Great story. I got depressed when the book ended. Really depressed. Had to order all of his other books immediately. This man writes like a dream!!!!!

Porter Wren, prominent New York tabloid columnist, is approached by a beautiful woman while attending a society party. The woman, Caroline Crowley, entices Wren with bait he cannot resist--she has a story to tell. Wren's decision to listen to that story has fateful consequences, placing his marriage and his life at risk.

Caroline is the widow of Simon Crowley, an up and coming movie director who died under mysterious circumstances. Over the years, Simon, a devoted student of the bizarre, compiled a collection of covertly filmed videos chronicling hundreds of strange and disturbing examples of human behavior. Since Simon's death, Caroline has been threatened by corpulent billionaire Hobbs, an Aussie press lord who believes she possesses a tape which may be damaging to his interests. Caroline, professing to know nothing about the tape, asks Wren to find it. Seduced by the woman and her story, Wren agrees, altering his life forever.

Harrison exploits classic noir archetypes--the femme fatale, the evil "Fat Man", and the protagonist in over his head--and successfully updates them. In Manhattan Nocturne, these stock characters are edgier, more three dimensional. The seductive female is more complex than the scheming sirens of yesteryear, the villain feels pain, and the hero, often the victim in these pieces, is savy and resourceful, although not enough to completely salvage the situation. Their interaction propels the narrative; their believabilty gives the book its credibility.

As narrator, Wren, a trained observer, misses very little. Painfully self aware, he describes the outer depravity he sees and the inner turmoil he feels. Readers are treated to a variety of stunning imagery, rendered in telling detail. This imagery, especially vivid when Wren describes the city and the events assayed in Simon's videos, sometimes threatens to overwhelm the ongoing storyline. But Harrison maintains control, unraveling the web he creates with great skill.

Manhattan Nocturne works on several levels--equal parts memoir, hard boiled crime novel, and reflection on the dark side of New York City, the book is compelling reading. Put it on your list.

This is the first book I've read by Linda Fairstein, and I must say that she didn't live up to the hype I've heard about her Alex Cooper mysteries. To be honest, I would have been more excited to read court transcripts from actual trials -- such was the tedium of this novel.

The complexity of the plot should make it more interesting, but instead I had a difficult time following who was speaking to whom. There were far too many secondary characters to carry the primary plot, resulting in a convoluted timeline that didn't entice.

Furthermore, and this is perhaps the most important thing I can say, I didn't care about what might happen to the characters. Alex Cooper didn't come across at all as sympathetic, and the lack of personal details about a character written in the first person was just shoddy craftsmanship. I'm thoroughly unimpressed.

To me, this is one of Linda Fairstein's best and I have enjoyed all her books about Alex Cooper. Plainly, I just could not put down this book! Read it, I think you will like it too.

Alexandra Cooper, Chief of the Sex Crimes Division in the Manhattan DA's Office, is gearing up for a rape trial that she knows will be won or lost by the victim's testimony. The Defendant has hired a sleazy high priced lawyer that will stop at nothing in his client's defense. But all is not what it seems when motives far greater than securing a not guilty verdict come into play and Alex's victim winds up dead. Once again, Alex, along with her detective friends Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace, put their super sleuthing skills to work to get to the bottom of the mystery and figure out what the bad guys are after that is worth more than life itself.

Fairstein has developed a set of characters that interact well together and have, in the past, entertained as they unravel various mysteries. But this one just didn't work. Despite the fact that Alex Cooper is a prosecutor, these books are far more interesting when she is on the hunt with the guys as opposed to in the courtroom. The courtroom scenes are bland and do not keep the pages turning at all. Unfortunately, that is not only how this novel begins, but it stays with the doomed rape trial for just about the first half of the book. Then things shift to the investigation and for a while the pages are turning again and the story is fondly reminiscent of past episodes. But somewhere along the way it starts to drag and lose steam. By the end the reader just wants it to be over so they can move on to bigger and better.

I don't know how this bodes for successive Alex Cooper novels, but this one left me disappointed and bored. Interesting to note is that this novel is dedicated to Patricia Cornwell. While reading, I noticed a striking resemblance between the characters in this novel and the Kay Scarpetta/Marino duo in Cornwell's novels. I have found that Cornwell's novels reached a tipping point where they became unreadable and I am afraid that the Alex Cooper series has gone that way as well.

First time read for me for this author. A very good read (listen) and I will be looking for more from this author in the future.

This is the first Fairstein novel I've read and I have enjoyed it very much! The story centers on Alexandra Cooper an assistant district attorney in charge of prosecuting Sex Crimes in New York City and is also told by her. Alex is just back from two weeks off spent in her home on Martha's Vineyard with her "boyfriend" Jake, a reporter. She is at a preliminary hearing for a rape case with the victim, Paige Vallis, being a likable person and the perpetrator being Andrew Tripping, a high powered collector and ex-CIA man who used his 10 year old son Dulles as leverage.

Alex is trying to get the Judge's help so she can interview Dulles who was taken away by Child Welfare when his dad was arrested. The lawyers for Child Welfare are close-mouthed and not letting Alex see the boy.

While Alex is jury-selecting and prepping Paige for her testimony, one of the NYPD detectives she works with is investigating a murder of Queenie Ransom, a very old black lady and former stripper whose apartment was ransacked. Alex and her two NYPD buddies, Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace, start to see links between the two cases when on of the suspects in the Queenie murder turns out to be a confidential informant that said he had info on Andrew Tripping and was being transported to Alex's office when he escaped.

Enter some strange government-looking men as spectators during Paige's testimony and her fright of one of them; enter a "helpful" attorney assigned as the child, Dulles, guardian and enter more killings of witnesses and worse and the plot thickens!

Very good twists and surprises and lots of excitement along with the mundane police work that Ms. Fairstein is obviously familiar with!

Great read!

This is the first book by Ms. Fairstein that I've read. It was enjoyable. I especially enjoyed the art history in the books. I'm not into art that much so it was fascinating to me. It was something different for me. I did however like the mystery itself. Author had some good plot twists in there. I liked the characters interplay with each other and how you could see their bonds. I think I made the mistake of reading the third book first however. They speak of other cases which I'm assuming are in the first books. I plan on picking those up soon. It's not early Cornwell or Sandford but I would still highly recommend this book to others looking for a murder mystery.

If you enjoyed Paul Clifford, you'll love this. Here's the first sentence for you: "It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents--except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up the streets (for it is in London that our scene lies), rattling along the housetops, and fiercely agitating the scanty flame of the lamps that struggled against the darkness." Linda Fairstein has taken the master's style and run with it.
Not in my recent reading have I seen a book so in need of slash and burn editing. It is said that smarter people write longer sentences, but this book bludgeons you with excess words on every page.

This was the first in the Alexandra Cooper series I read and I really enjoyed it so I will be adding the rest of the series to my TBR pile. The characters are appealing, the story extremely well written and Linda Fairstein really knows her stuff! The story involved the art word and the Gardener Museum heist and being an Art History major I found it all exceedingly fascinating. A joy to read and it really should be in your must read pile!

This lady goes from strength to strength. Once again we see Alexandra Cooper, the Assistant District Attorney for the Sex Crimes Unit of Manhattan. Only this time she finds herself with a body being pulled out of the river, but the woman is expensively dressed and tied to a ladder, with no identification.

It is not the easiest of cases, we find all kinds of skullduggery in the genteel art world, with forgery and faked provenance and Alex gets a bit too close to the murderer in this one, only narrowly escaping being shot, although unfortunately Mercer Wallace is hit, which is all rather too real.

I never imagined Art Galleries to inspire the kind of passions that abound in this book, I know that money will drive people to extremes and this is well illustrated here, but this really is the ugly side to beautiful artworks.

Nevertheless, as a subject for murder, it is a gripping plot. I know that sidekicks are not as immune as central characters, but Mercer and Mike are too central to be the victim of homicidal lunatics, but here we see that they can have a little scare, just to remind us that it is a terrible place for the good guys.

Linda Fairstein's 3rd novel in the Alexandra Cooper mystery series, "Cold Hit," follows Alex and her team as they track the killer of a victim who washed ashore in Northern Manhatten, strapped to a ladder. Her connections to the flashy art world add plenty of glitz and suspects for Alex, Mike Chapman, and Mercer Wallace to investigate before the killer strikes again.

I used to read alot of Patricia Cornwell and I had to stop because I realized I was reading the same novel over and over again. Now, you can say that of pretty much any mystery author, I realize. Most of them do a really good job of masking it though. I am hoping that Fairstein is able to do the same. Cornwell's character Kay Scarpetta is not likeable and always is attacked by the vicious killer. Fairstein's Cooper is likeable, but the reader sorta has to work at it and she is always attacked by the vicious killer. Authors need to realize that readers catch on to these sort of canned plots. We're not stupid, dearest authors, really we're not.

I did find the plot of "Cold Hit" to be a bit tedious. Fairstein can be overly wordy sometimes. 50 pages could easily be shaved off of each of her books and they wouldn't be any different.

The characters interwining stories along with the secrets of the Havana Room makes this a compelling read. I throughly enjoyed it.

I liked THE HAVANA ROOM overall, but I must admit it's not for everybody. If you're looking for a realistic plot or likable characters, this novel will probably let you down. I didn't find this book particularly suspenseful, and I must admit I found some of the plot developments completely unbelievable.

However, the prose of this novel is remarkably well crafted. Colin Harrison is without question a gifted writer. The narrator of THE HAVANA ROOM, a 40-year old lawyer who has hit bottom, ruminates constantly about aging, the meaning of love, and other important life issues. These ruminations are very interesting to read. I suspect many middle aged men will identify with the themes presented in this novel.

I don't recommend this book if you're looking for a fast-paced thriller. But if you're looking for a literary/thriller hybrid, this is one of the better ones out there.

I read this book after reading Afterburn, which was stellar. Harrison constructs atypical, unpredictable plot movements with a very literate style. Good character development, nice prose, and unexpected twists and plot development. Havana Room is a ridiculous, implausible, poorly executed story. Worst of all, Harrison relies on the very sloppy, lazy literary technique of keeping the reader in the dark about essential elements of the plot until it is revealed all at once by a single character (read: the author) explaining it all in one fell swoop with a big long monologue. I have written better material than this myself and I am in no way a writer in Harrison's league. I don't know if he had to produce this piece of drivel to pay his taxes or fulfill a book contract but I say with confidence that he is a fine writer as evidenced by Afterburn and the outstanding review that I just read of his newest novel, released in April of 2008. So.....read Afterburn and I will check out the new one but this.....is a waste of time.

"The Havana Room" features what I like to call an anonymous man -- successful, but not famously so; married to a wife who is pretty but not quite beautiful; rich but not a millionaire -- whose anonymity is shattered because of a tragic accident that leads to the death of his friend's son.

The death of this young boy causes his family's life to spiral downward, and he loses his job, his wife, his son, and his comfortable little existence. He escapes into a depressed funk.

Randomly, he enters a steakhouse one day. It is here where our story starts to spin.

Though he no longer practices law, the man, Bill Wyeth, is roped into helping with a real-estate deal. After the deal is made, Bill finds himself drawn to the man he helped, Jay Rainey, and ends up aiding him in a crime. The more Bill finds out about the deal, the more suspect it looks, and the more sinister Jay appears.

Colin Harrison is an absolute master at teasing his audience, sprinkling a little trail for them to follow, building suspense and anxiety to figure out the truth of the situation.

His prose is like bitter urban poetry. He completely exposes post-9/11 New York with sharp, accurate observations. Before Harrison gets to his story, he sits back and revels in his own prose ability, giving the city he lives in a light smack across the face.

Really the only flaw of this book is that, once Harrison points the way the story is actually going, it's obvious where it will end. It's hard not to be three or four steps ahead of our narrator, Bill. And the grand finale, which is played for awe and horror, shouldn't be a surprise to anyone.

Honestly, I wish the two revelations -- about Jay and his farm -- had not quite been so obvious. But it's hard to complain because this book is so addictively good leading up to it. You'll find yourself not wanting to put this book down, impatient to know what happens next.

Unlike others, I liked what happened in the Havana Room. It's not a cliche. It's absolutely nothing that you would expect -- an intriguing and creative stop-off in the book that makes for later fun.

While I admit I wish this book was as shrewd in the end as it was in the beginning, it doesn't detract from what was a really well-written and smart book. It took me quite a while to finally get around to reading Colin Harrison. But now, having read "The Havana Room," I won't be waiting long to read him again.

A terrifically entertaining and literary mystery.

Bill, having eaten Thai take-out upon his late-night return home from out of town, gives a glass of milk to one of the guests at his young son's birthday sleep-over. The guest is allergic to peanuts and dies in his sleep as a result of exposure to a minute amount of peanut oil residue that got onto the milk glass from Bill's fingers.

Thus begins Bill's descent from affluent New York lawyer and family man to unemployed "bachelor" feeling sorry for himself.

He is reluctantly pressed into serving as an unpaid lawyer for a stranger in a real estate transaction at the request of a lady friend. He is engaged for this purpose late at night and given a seemingly impossible midnight deadline to complete the deal -- which he does, extracting a cool additional $300,000 in cash for his "client" in the deal. There follows a surreal set of circumstances and actions by Bill that defy belief.

This novel is a bit on the wordy side (there are whole pages without new paragraphs). The story holds the reader's interest, even if the reader isn't 100% willing to suspend his incredulity.

I'd recommend this book for someone who has plenty of time to sit poolside and read this summer.