ericwelch's review
3.0
Got this as a freebie from Amazon. No need to summarize the plot, it's fairly standard: old cop under fire, young cop trying to play it straight, old cop becomes mentor, they bond.
The first half of the book really did not grab my attention. Manfredo defines the relationship between the two cops: Rizzo is in trouble with IAD for protecting his old partner, and McQueen was rapidly promoted to detective for saving the mayor's daughter from a rape, and creating the background for the recurring mantra: "There's no right. There's no right. It just is," a phrase you just knew would be the last line of the book. So far nothing special.
The book really picks up, however, in the second half. After the two are chosen to locate the unstable daughter of a city councilman who has disappeared, however, it really picks up and I finished the last 150 pages without going to the bathroom. No real surprises the councilman is dirty and has ulterior motives for wanting to get his daughter back, etc., but the story becomes more focused and adds some interesting characters. I won't add any spoilers, just a note that those who know their Alamo history may remember James Butler Bonham and what he did. Rizzo uses him as behavioral model.
According to a blurb on the back of my copy, Manfredo had some twenty-five years of experience in the criminal justice system. If this book reflects his experience with politics and police and the intersection of the two, it's a very dark view of the system.
Two stars for the first half, maybe 4 for the second half. Splt the difference.
The first half of the book really did not grab my attention. Manfredo defines the relationship between the two cops: Rizzo is in trouble with IAD for protecting his old partner, and McQueen was rapidly promoted to detective for saving the mayor's daughter from a rape, and creating the background for the recurring mantra: "There's no right. There's no right. It just is," a phrase you just knew would be the last line of the book. So far nothing special.
The book really picks up, however, in the second half. After the two are chosen to locate the unstable daughter of a city councilman who has disappeared, however, it really picks up and I finished the last 150 pages without going to the bathroom. No real surprises the councilman is dirty and has ulterior motives for wanting to get his daughter back, etc., but the story becomes more focused and adds some interesting characters. I won't add any spoilers, just a note that those who know their Alamo history may remember James Butler Bonham and what he did. Rizzo uses him as behavioral model.
According to a blurb on the back of my copy, Manfredo had some twenty-five years of experience in the criminal justice system. If this book reflects his experience with politics and police and the intersection of the two, it's a very dark view of the system.
Two stars for the first half, maybe 4 for the second half. Splt the difference.
More...