Boston

I just finished reading "Two Ladies from Boston" written by a niece of the late second Mrs. Curley and found it a fascinating tale. I thought it would be strictly a woman's type novel, but it held my attention from start to finish. As a historical fiction novel about the times Curley lived in, it was an excellent and revealing incite into the inner working of the family as well as the politics of the time. I would recommend it to anyone, especially anyone that has had any association with the Curley mystique.

A story of Boston's colorful Irish and Brahmin English ... getting along? or do they??? Elizabeth Hourihan dares to speak what others for years have considered "the unspeakable." Two Ladies from Boston become entangled in a number of issues facing New England families coming out of the Depression, that clearly cross religious, socio-economic and political lines. The political bosses of their day were not the only ones who had deep secrets ... and Elizabeth Hourihan ventures out from behind closed doors to enlighten us a bit from her unique personal perspective. Her family ties to a prominent Boston politician and her insights into mental illness leave the reader wanting to know more. I know that I, for sure, would love to have tea with these two ladies some day. Cheers!

I'd been looking for a book about Winslow Homer for a while and was delighted to find this one. Kate Jennings' copy about his life and art are very good and the 68 color prints are large and on glossy paper. The prints are not top notch, but very nice. If you're looking for a nice collection of Homer's work without breaking the bank, this is for you. (This review pertains to the Winslow Homer book by Kate Jennings. Alas,I havn't seen the one by Nicolai Cikovsky.)

As an Art student, venturing into watercolor recently, I received this book as a gift. I truly gained much information about the artist and the additon of color plates (90+) make this a complete reference guide. The author has separatedhis works into catogories by subject matter.The intro- duction reviews his travels, family life,interests,educa-tion,recognition and awardsduring his lifetime. A brief review proceeds each Chapterwhich then is visually supp-orted by wonderflul,colorful plates of Winslow works of that subject. The Chapters are Civil War, Sea PaintingsTropics, Adirondonck and Canada, and Prout's Neck,Me. He was an extraordinarypainter of various mediums,and always captured the 'atmosphere' in his workswhether it was stormy seasoff the coast of Maine, placid lakes in the mountains, clear skies in the tropics or children at play at that time. Fortunately, he was an artist who was noticed during his lifetime and rewarded with fame before his demise at age 74, having enjoyed his love of his work. I would highly recommend this hard cover version, to any art lover or student of the arts. I will plan to purchase this publication for my son, and perhaps a friend in the near future.

Personally I think Jhumpa Lahiri is overrated as a writer, though she is definitely more suited to the short story format than to the novel. This collection of short stories offers some genuinely interesting moments, but it also lacks that indefinable element of truly great story-telling. Lahiri is still finding her way as a writer and is yet to really prove her mettle. There are some good moments here but somehow I doubt that Lahiri will be the next best thing in Indian/American/migrant fiction.

Most of the central characters in Jumpa Lahiri's award winning collection of short stories are products of the great Diaspora of post independence India. Many live out their lives in that place where the ancient traditions of Indian clash with the youthful and brash culture of late twentieth America. Existing between two worlds, they struggle to come to terms with the inherent contradictions and discordant values that arise when Easterners live Western lives. With clear crisp prose, empathy, insight, compassion, and a wonderful grasp of the art of short story telling, Jumpa Lahiri takes the reader on a journey that travels between Indian and America, between the traditional and the modern, between the old world and the new. It is a journey well worth making for along the way you will be entertained, surprised, educated and enthralled. There are no low points in this book, no weak links, no disappointing stories. It is a stunning debut and one must hope, and harbinger of things to come.

I was moved by the plight of Shoba and Shukumar and laid awake for a long time having made the mistake of reading the first of these stories too close to bed. They are mourning the loss of a still born child and their ache is palpable in this subtle evocative story. The next seven stories were just as subtle and beautiful but didn't make the emotional connection that this one did. If the book ended there it might be a three or four star book, but the author struck gold again with The Third and Final Continent. This is a sweet wonderful nugget about being newly married and newly American that surely has something precious to say to any reader. For anyone who enjoyed Mukherjee's stories about immigrants this book is a must read. For those not having read those stories, I might recommend this book first, its quiet elegant style is truly a joy to read. Enjoy!

Does this case have linkage to events described in Jonathan Harr's "A Civil Action"?

What would the government do if Whitey Bulger or any of the other informants had children?

Consider this:

In 1995 Whitey Bulger disappeared AND Harr's book was released. Harr's book describes companies involved in litigation over a water pollution tragedy in Woburn. One of these companies was WR Grace. Grace has a history of Republican sponsorship, with the Grace Commission under Reagan. Walt Disney supported Richard Nixon. Disney received early funding from Giannini corp. which had ties to Middlesex county. Current President Bush is the son of Bush sr. with ties to both Reagan and Nixon. Grace invested in insurance per corporate report and had a major shareholder in the world's largest private pension fund. Grace had an enormous environmental insurance policy. Under Nixon EPA was established. Governor Cellucci (R) , now Ambassador Cellucci, has longtime support for President Bush and Cellucci has been listed as an associate of Teamsters Local 25 George Cashman, heavily involved in movie action and a Woburn resident. Former Governor Bill Weld, a Republican backed by insurance interests and with ties to the Kennedys and Bill Clinton paved the way for Paul Cellucci. The Bushes hail from Texas and Maine. On the Board of Grace were : Peter Lynch(Fidelity Investments), Zbignew Brezinski (NSA), Al Fiers (CIA). Joe Malone (R)did not support Whitey, was destroyed in the last gubernatorial election, and was backed by Fidelity and clothier tycoon Sam Cammarata. Cellucci was backed by Fleet Bank.

Disney produced the movie, Robert Redford- a vigorous environmentalist- directed the film. John Travolta ,of Maine, starred in the film having gotten his beginnings in the pop tv series "Welcome Back Kotter"- whose pilot was approved by Michael Eisner. Michael Eisner is head of Disney. Tip O'Neill (D) ,deceased former Speaker of the House, was an advocate for Wr Grace in Cambridge,Mass and of Mayor Daley of Chicago.William Bulger, Whitey's brother, was one of the most powerful men in Massachusetts but Whitey was protective in not tarnishing his brother's reputation. Whitey has been painted as anti-Kennedy but not confirmed. Knocko McCormack, former Senator John McCormack's (R) brother, is remembered fondly by both William Bulger and Tip O'Neill. Whitey has been said to have received support under Governor Mike Dukakis, and from Governor Cellucci (R),Tom Reilly(D), Scott Harshbarger (D), with Tom Birmingham (D) a family friend. Senator McCormack is said to have spoken well of Whitey and felt he was not given a fair shake.

FBI agents in the Bulger case have numerous links to Middlesex County. Limone,Salemme and others also have ties to Middlesex County. Judge Wolf and current FBI Director Mueller both worked under Bill Weld (R). Barry Mawn from Woburn was brought in as SAC in the FBI office in Boston, later transferring to NY, where James Kallstrom from Massachusetts stepped down.

The Woburn water case signs began in the 1960s as did the Mclean-Mclaughlin wars. Police and fire records have been destroyed for Woburn for that time and the city budget was closed to auditors. In Woburn were two groups: 1) NASA, and 2) Boston Navy Yard. The heads of each lobby group both lived in Woburn. Tip O'Neill supported the navy yard. Middlesex county was home to 10% of the 3000 navy yard employees and NASA would bring in 2-3000 new jobs with a [amt.] million new site. JFK actively supported space, and NASA specifically, while in Washington D.C. the states of Michigan,Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut vigorously fought for the NASA site in their states.LBJ later got the site in Texas.

Not long after Whitey Bulger signed on (1975), i know of a person who was raised in state child care and whose circumstances changed significantly in Massachusetts. One day while at work after high school, the person was told " see you in room 320" by a coworker whom this person never saw again. About a year later, some of the person's mail stopped coming at their apartment. A short time later, some military police came to arrest the individual claiming they were AWOL from the military. This person was not in the military. As the person found out, across town was another person with the exact same name. When calling organizations from which the person ("John Doe#1") had not gotten mail, those organizations had the second man's("John Doe #2") address. So John Doe #2 was using this person's address for military service and knew enough about the person to contact organizations that person did business with and have their mail forwarded to the second address. 5 yrs later, when William Weld is said to have headed the Justice Dept criminal investigation division (Mueller-FBI and Judge Mark Wolf as subordinates) and Mike Dukakis was governor.,John Doe#1 was working at a local company and received an incoming customer call for another coworker. In taking a message, it was John Doe #2 who said they lived a few towns over. Another 10 yrs passed and John Doe #1 attended a major Massachusetts church at the insistence of a longtime churchgoer there. As John #1 attended the church, this 'friend' checked up on them frequently to see which services they attended, as if tallying. About a year passed and one day they saw their name in the church newsletter as being in the hospital. When John #1 called the church, John #2 had joined at approximately the same time. John #1 called the hospital and John #2 was in room 320, the same room number given by a mysterious coworker 20 years earlier! What does this have to do with the Bulger case? As part of the Bulger-Flemmi arrangement, was this person setup as a patsy and was their reputation destroyed over a span of 20 years by this John Doe #2? John Doe #2 operated in the same county region as major players in this case. Hypothetically, if one of the major players in this case had a child, how would such a child be treated and would the child prepared as leverage should the fragile relationships in this case falter? Or could Bulger, an air force veteran, have been authorized by Lt Gen Lew Allen (Air Force), Director of NSA or Flemmi authorized by Marshall Carter? Or Were either affiliated with the Treasury Departments or Secret Service?

Speaking as a recent Boston transplant amd a fan of O.C. stories this book is awesome. Boston, for those who are unfamiliar, really is a "little" big city....For me its hard to imagine that the politics and crime that is closely linked in this book could happen as recently as it did. As a story it is a compeling read.

This book may not be as action filled as other Mafia books, however, as a atory of real life corruption and journalistic detail it can hardly be surpassed.

This book is like driving by an accident site; You can't turn away, but instead are forced to slow down with morbid curiosity.This was the first of Dennis Lehane's books I've read, but you can bet I'm going to snap the rest of them up now. He's a phenomenal writer with a gift for crackling dialogue, and fascinating multi-level characters.It's the story of three boys, Sean, Jimmy, and Dave, one of whom gets abducted, but escapes. Twenty five years later the estranged men's lives converge when one of their daughters is brutally murdered.No one gets out clean in Lehane's world, and the brilliant unravelling mystery creates a tragic chain reaction. With the domino effect in mind, it reminded me in tone of "A Simple Plan." I read the other day that Clint Eastwood has bought the movie rights to "Mystic...". I hope he can do justice to this moody, evocative, and excellently written book.

In his sixth novel, Lehane departs from his popular, edgy, noir PI series featuring the hardboiled Dorchester duo Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro. "Mystic River" takes place around the murder of a promising, beautiful Dorchester girl and centers on three men, friends as boys, whose lives intersect again over the murder.

In the 1970's Sean Devine (the more affluent), Jimmy Marcus (the hellion) and Dave Boyle (the hanger-on) spend their Saturdays in the streets together until one day a car stops and two men intimidate Dave into going with them. His abduction and escape change everything.

Twenty-five years later Sean is a Boston homicide cop, Jimmy is a reformed ex-con who owns a neighborhood store and Dave Boyle is still a sad sack, haunted by the shame of his old trauma. The night Jimmy's 19-year-old daughter is murdered Dave commits a bloody crime and the subsequent news of the girl's murder leaves his wife in an increasing state of dread and suspicion. Did her husband murder Jimmy's daughter? Assigned to the murder, Sean finds himself mired in the intimate details of his old friends' lives and dwelling on the past they share.

The murder's aftermath frames the portrait of a close-knit (outsiders unwelcome) community in the throes of anguish. Driven by the expectations of family and friends and his own anger and grief, Jimmy seeks the murderer to mete out his own form of justice while Sean, under the auspices of the state, invades his friend's grief and his family's private moments and Dave, exulting in his cathartic act, tries to maintain a shell of normalcy.

Harsh, tender and painful, beautifully written, "Mystic River" explores the psyche of a neighborhood and how the individual is shaped by belonging, exclusion and class. Building to a dark, explosive, fateful climax, it's also an intense, insightful portrait of three men and the inner forces that drive them.

A book review of Mystic River, by Dennis Lehane

Mystic River is a very entertaining novel. Throughout the novel there are several twist and turns that keep the readers on the edge of their seats. The novel portrays the betrayal of family and friends. This novel is told from many different viewpoints, from all of the characters involved. Mystic River is by far the best book that I have ever read.
I would recommend this book to anybody who is interested in murder mystery, and suspense novels. There are several twists and turns that will keep them interested. This would also be a good book to those who enjoy reading novels on family life. Throughout the book Dennis Lehane shows how important love is. He shows that with love, almost anything is possible, but he also shows how love can ruin trust, in certain circumstances.

For a debut novel, Jinn is an amazing ghost story; the book contains some of the creepiest scenes I've run across in a while (stuff that would make the forensics people on CSI nauseous). For that alone, I would recommend reading it. Unfortunately, the book does suffer from serious problems that made it hard to get through.

First off, as other reviewers have noted, the editing is significantly worse in this book--and the lapses more obvious--than in most hardcovers I've read recently. Likewise, in an effort to keep the book from running 600 pages or more, the publishers opted for very small print and very narrow margins.

Combined with Delaney's choice to eschew chapters, this makes reading the book something of a chore. [For some reason, Delaney inserts 'datelines' at certain points, but doesn't include them in others, where it would make just as much sense to do so.]

More importantly, though, the book is almost crushed under its own weight: the book is as long as it is, in a sense, because it has to be; the plot, as it stands, probably couldn't be shoehorned into a shorter book. Nevertheless, in order for the plot to work as it does, Delaney has to "cheat" the reader; there are certain things we expect to find out, but don't--perhaps because Delaney felt giving us those facts would spoil the plot. [I'm being rather vague because I don't want to give away the plot.]

So, while this wasn't the best book I've ever read, Delaney certainly shows promise, and I look forward to his next book.

It's fun to read something from a young author with talent. If you've ever taken the time to read through an author's books chronologically, you can often see a pattern of growth that is inspiring to watch. For me, this book offered a chance to see what Mr. Delaney can do. I have to admit that there were several points in the book when I was downright scared...at the museum in Russia and of course in Boston Common. Having an office that overlooks the Common has made my walk at night somewhat frightful. Most books follow a typical formula- there always seems to be a formula that either authors or their editors feel a need to satisfy. Although there were some of those elements in this book, (McKenna) I felt like I was reading something that didn't follow the tiring formula of modern print em' and sell em' publishing. I think there is something more here. I was scared, identified with the characters and actually found myself hoping for certain outcomes...I was engaged in the reading.

I'm looking forward to reading more of Matthew Delaney's work- but I'd really like to see Jinn in the form of a movie- I think it would be incredible.

i leave the details of the book to others, i just wanted to say that this is a very good book to read and it is in the vein of sci-fi horror. i just wanted to ask, amazon.com has not listed his next book, is he still writing and if he is does anyone know when his next book going to come out.

The book, Johnny Tremain, was pretty good but, it was also pretty long. If you have a lot of free time then read it because you won't want to stop. It is about a fourteen year old boy that is and apprentice for a silversmith. He is so good at his work that he gets to boss the older kids around. One day he is working on something and he drops one of his tools in. Without thinking he grabs at it and the hot silver burns his hands. His hands basically get melted together in between his fingers making them look webbed. Now obviously he can't do the silversmith work as good as he used to so his master tells him to go find new work. Johnny goes out and finds a printing press and quickly becomes friends with the owners son, Rab. Johnny finds things being printed about the British that are bad. Johnny decides to take it into his own hands and basically runs a postal route so he can get letters from the British and show Rab's father. You'll have to find out how it ends.

Johnny Tremain, an arrogant, annoying brat of a silversmith's apprentice is ruler of the roost (the shop where he works, that is) until a tragic accident cripples his hand, making him unable to continue his trade. He then becomes an outcast of society. Unable to find work, he nearly sinks to theiving, but luckily stumbles upon a printer's assistant named Rab who befriends Johnny and helps him find a job. Rab is an intriguing type of fellow. He was my favorite character in this book, even though he's not the main character.
Rab introduces Johnny to a wonderful world of secrecy, excitement, and intrigue with the Sons of Liberty, who are plotting America's independence from the tyrannical British government. Johnny develops into a rather likable sort of chap before the book's end. Such American immortals as Paul Revere, Sam Adams, John Hancock, and Joseph Warren are skillfully interwoven by Forbes into this delightful piece of historical fiction. I highly recommend this book to children around 12 on up but I believe it is just as enjoyable to adults. I am in my 20's and I really enjoy this book still. If you are an American history buff or simply enjoy a good book with an old-fashioned flavor, buy this book and read it.

Johnny Tremain
Johnny Tremain is a book in which the author writes about the American Revolution. Johnny Tremain takes place in the city of Boston in 1773. Johnny is a boy who is 15 years old and lives in Boston. His mother died when he was 12 years old. Johnny works as a silversmith for a talented but old silversmith. Johnny is the most talented apprentice of the three
apprentices employed at the silversmith shop. He became involved in the American Revolution and the battles at Lexington and Concord.
Johnny Tremain is an excellent and fascinating book in which the plot is well spoken and traps the reader. You will never want to put this book down. Johnny Tremain is probably one of the best kid books in print today. It has an excellent retelling of history with accurate dates, titles, and cities from
American Revolution. It describes Boston with accurate titles for the wharves and hills around the Boston area.
You or a kid should read this book to entertain, while at the same time, learn about American history. This book is a historical fiction book, but it still has the right facts. Johnny Tremain is a excellent book about the American Revolution and an excellent kids book to read. Johnny Tremain is a great character to read about. You almost feel as if you are in Boston, in 1773. Esther Forbes does an excellent job in displaying Johnny Tremain in this classic book.
Johnny Tremain was first published in 1943 by Esther Forbes. It's copyright was renewed in 1971 by Linwood M. Erskine, Jr. Johnny Tremain captures the American Revolution in its first stages. The book, Johnny Tremain, won the Newbery medal and national acclaim when it was first published in 1943.

This book was easy to read - and for me that is its secret. Lahiri's clear prose demystifies what for most Americans is still a largely 'strange' culture. Yet the rituals, and foods, described are enough of a departure from the norm to be of compelling interest to many readers. Also - the lack of previous narratives about a very specific Indian immigrant experience -- that of well educated, Brahmin, well-off but not wealthy (ie - securely middle class) immigrants, mostly in the tech industry or the professions -- has made this book popular among first generation Indians who feel the story "resonates" with their own. Recently a friend who describes himself as "unliterary" said he enjoyed the book because he'd never read a book before that captured his own experience so closely.
The thing that's rather sad is that books in this genre which have taken on darker, more interesting and potent themes have simply not sold as well as Lahiri's work. While writing style must in part account for this, I think it's also the sanitized version of "immigrant conflict" she consistently delivers that makes her work stand out. Her dissociation from other Indian writers is somewhat sad as well: she is forced to do this to maintain a sense of "literary quality" key to her insider status -- yet clearly her writing is not de novo, and a large part of her audience is made up of Indian and other South Asian readers whose taste for this genre has benefited her sales.

It's not bad; it's not good. It's a huge step up from a lot of mass market paperbacks -- but it's nowhere near the quality of Edwidge Danticat, Junot Diaz, Zadie Smith, Susan Choi, Sandra Cisneros, Monique Truong, Rikki Ducarnet, Jessica Hagedorn. Yet all these writers have been much more 'ghettoized', in terms of being identified as "ethnic writers" in a way Lahiri hasn't -- because they write about things that might make the average American reader react to with shame, anger, sadness, guilt. I found myself asking: What is the point? What is the point of endlessly detailing the minutiae of a certain kind of difference only in terms of its interiority, and never with an eye to external conflict, savagery, politics or morals? Some of her short stories do take on the larger world in a way that liked a bit better - but only glancingly, and with a kind of acceptance of the random cruelty of strangers that I found deeply cynical, and without the vibrant kind of questioning and perusal that you find in a writer like Anita Desai, for example, who also writes very plainly and crisply, but whose characters have a depth that Lahiri's lacks. But Desai is less likely to sell the way Lahiri has, because her books are not quite as easy to read; because they make you feel, think, and directly confront an 'alien' culture on its own terms.

With her 1999 collection of short stories, INTERPRETER OF MALADIES, Pulitzer-Prize winning writer, Jhumpa Lahiri, proved her talent for storytelling and keen eye for detail. She demonstrates those same abilities again in her poignant first novel, THE NAMESAKE. Lahiri's book follows the thirty-two year journey of its protagonost, Gogol Ganguli, from his birth to Bengali-American parents in 1968, to a transitional moment in his life in 2000, and ultimately to his self-acceptance. Along the way, and always at odds with Indian-American culture, Lahiri's character changes the given name he hates from Gogol to Nikhil, suffers the death of his academic father, studies architecture at Yale and Columbia, marries Moushumi, an American-Bengali woman, and then encounters divorce. The point of Lahiri's compelling novel is not so much about the significance of one's name--"There's no such thing as a perfect name," Gogol recognizes at one point in his life (p. 145)--as it is about attempting to accept, interpret, and comprehend the events in our lives that shape us into who we are (p. 187). Although short in length, Lahiri serves up much food for thought in THE NAMESAKE.

G. Merritt

"The Namesake" is the debut novel by Jhumpa Lahiri. She has previously written the Pulitzer Prize winning short story collection "The Interpreter of Maladies". This is the story of immigrants from India and is also the story of their son, Gogol Ganguli.

Ashoke and Ashima are married in India in a marriage arranged by their parents (as is the custom). Just after the wedding they travel to America where Ashoke is first a student at MIT, then later a professor. While Ashoke is able to feel a connection to this new country (he starkly remembers an older friend saying that his one mistake was leaving American to return to India), Ashima feels her immigrant status keenly. She holds to the ways of the Bengali and when their son is born they want to name him in the old manner: the grandmother will send a letter with his Good Name. A Good Name is that which is the official name on record and is used publicly and professionally. The private name is that which is only used among family and friends. But this is America and the child may not be releases from a hospital without a name on the birth certificate. The parents decide to name their son Gogol, after the Russian author Nikolai Gogol who, in a roundabout way, was instrumental in saving the life of Ashoke when he was a young man. They never intended this to be his Good Name and they waited for the letter from the grandmother to come, but it never does and so right up until Gogol is ready to go to kindergarten the only name he has is Gogol. When Gogol is to enroll in kindergarten his parents give him the Good Name of Nikhil and try to force both Gogol and the school to use it, but he refuses and so does the school. His name is Gogol.

I stressed this part of the novel because it raises a rather large theme within the novel: that of identity. It seems that everyone in "The Namesake" is dealing with their identity. Ashima is trying to hold onto the Bengali cultural identity while her two children, Gogol and Sonia, are trying to break free of that identity. Gogol and Sonia find partners that match, for a time, what they feel their identities should be.

"The Namesake" takes us on the journey of the Ganguli family over the course of more than two decades. After Gogol graduates high school he decides to legally change his name because of his deep dissatisfaction with his name. Strangely enough, Gogol decides on Nikhil, the name he would not accept as a child. The novel takes Gogol through his college years at Yale, his relationships with women, his marriage (and divorce) and his reconciliation with his mother. All this is truly a quest for identity (in particular, his marriage to a Bengali woman with a similar identity issue).

Simply put, this is a good book. It is infused with quality and good writing and Lahiri gives us a good sense of who these characters are. The fact that I didn't truly care what happened to Gogol did not lessen my enjoyment of the book at all. Throughout Lahiri's short stories and into this novel, I have enjoyed stepping into the world she has created and meeting her characters. To me, Jhumpa Lahiri feels like a more accomplished Zadie Smith ("White Teeth") and "The Namesake" is much stronger than Smith's second novel "The Autograph Man". I look forward to Jhumpa Lahiri's next novel (or short story collection).

Boston Homicide Detective, Jane Rizzoli, still bears both the physical and mental scars of her last, and almost deadly encounter with Warren Hoyt, "the surgeon," who methodically tortured, mutilated, and viciously murdered his victims in a killing spree that ended last year. Thanks to Rizzoli, Hoyt is now behind bars, in a maximum security prison, and he's there for life. So you can imagine her horror, when she's called to an eerily familiar crime scene, and it becomes immediately apparent that a copycat killer, soon dubbed "the dominator," is on the loose and has taken over "the surgeon's" work. As the body count rises, Hoyt escapes from prison and joins forces with his apprentice. This very lethal pair are now hunting together, and their next target is Jane Rizzoli, the victim who got away..... Tess Gerritsen is back with a sequel to last year's best-selling and cleverly plotted thriller, The Surgeon. The Apprentice is a fast read, tense and suspenseful, and filled with vivid scenes, and graphic descriptions. But unfortunately, if you read The Surgeon, you'll find there's not much new here, just a rehash of last year's story. The characters are well drawn and interesting, but the large chip on Rizzoli's shoulder, her drive to be always one better than any of her male counterparts, and her constant whining starts to get old and detracts from the story. With a rushed and unsatisfying ending, that leaves several plot lines hanging and too many questions unanswered, The Apprentice is far from Ms Gerritsen's best. For those looking for an intriguing and compelling thriller, read The Surgeon.

Detective Jane Rizzoli is back as the tough and determined homicide investigator we met in The Surgeon. This time, however, she carries with her the physical and emotional scars given to her by Warren Hoyt. This time around she is slightly broken, a victim survivor that still sees the predator that had once stalked her around every corner. To make matters worse, a series of violent crimes appear to be the Surgeon's handiwork-wealthy men are forced to watch their wives being brutalized, ending in death for both-but he's safe behind bars. The police can only assume that another madman has taken up Warren Hoyt's banner of sadism and murder-an apprentice the police moniker the Dominator. Rizzoli suddenly finds herself the lead investigator in a case that mirrors her nightmares. The investigation turns even deadlier when Warren Hoyt escapes from prison and somehow joins forces with his pupil. Now there are two predators, and their prey is Jane Rizzoli.

The Apprentice is a suspenseful and scary thriller that can even be enjoyed without having first read The Surgeon. Jane Rizzoli is a bundle of contradictions, from tough cop to recovering victim to lonely, single woman. You've got to love her and pull for her. The supporting cast is great as well, and the forensic science is superb. My only complaint is we don't get to learn more about the Dominator. He's only the sum of his crimes. This book seems to be more about Warren Hoyt than the new killer. But all in all, The Apprentice delivers the adrenaline rush it promises. You'll be hooked within the first few pages.

I have been patiently waiting to get my hands on this book and finally I have. I have read every single book that Gerritsen has released and in The Apprentice I have not been disappointed. It is more or less a continuation of her earlier novel, The Surgeon. The big difference is that this novel focuses more on the female detective that helped crack the case in the first one. Jane Rizzoli was to me not a very likable character in the first book, but in this book she takes on a new light. She was portrayed as a very masculine type of female in The Surgeon, but in The Apprentice she takes on the role of the strong woman who is feminine yet at the same time a spitfire.
When murders start happening in Boston a year after the Surgeon has been in jail, Rizzoli is the only one who sees the connection at first. But as the body count mounts suddenly an FBI agent appears on the scene. Rizzoli who in all of her years as a detective has never seen the FBI work in this way, is very puzzled. Her puzzlement only deepens as her attraction to the FBI agent Gabriel Dean does also. When The Surgeon, Warren Hoyt, who she put behind bars in the first book, escapes from prison, all hell breaks loose. Rizzoli has suspicions that The Surgeon and their new killer, The Dominator are working together to fulfill their murderous fantasies. Tensions increase as Rizzoli and her fellow officers keep coming up with dead ends and no suspects in sight. The only problem that I had with this story was its abrupt ending.
Once again, I am impressed with Gerritsen's style and attention to detail. She is a wonderful story teller and I fully intend to keep reading her books and I highly recommend them to anyone!

In the initial chapters of "The Dante Club", the author's language proved a significant barrier. Awkward word coinage, showy phrasing, literary allusions seemingly designed to show off the author's breadth of arcane learning --- all of these contributed to a pretentiousness that was seriously off-putting. However, something happened as I read on. Either the author dropped his attention-calling approach, or I got used to it, or perhaps I just got smarter.

Eventually, all those literary allusions began to seem better integrated into what proved to be a well-structured, multi-faceted murder mystery. The author's own detective work into local 19th-century history contributes to fully-dimensioned characters, both real (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, many other Boston notables) and imagined. Even Longfellow House becomes a palpable character in the story.

And if you've ever wondered what Boston and Cambridge were like in 1865, this book will give you a detailed and lasting image. It might even be an authentic image (although Cambridge must have been a much more compact place then, given the territory these mostly aged detectives manage to cover on foot).

A few more-than-incidental complaints remained. The number of red herrings is preposterously large. And the author's revelation of the killer is blunt and accomplished in a disappointingly uncreative manner. But even with these caveats, the novel makes for a mostly rewarding read.

This was a fast-paced, action packed and very compulsive read!

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes and James Russell Lowell team up with 19th-century publisher J.T. Fields to catch a serial killer in post-Civil War Boston. It's the fall of 1865, and Harvard University, the cradle of Bostonian intellectual life, is overrun by sanctimonious scholars who turn up their noses at European literature, confining their study to Greek and Latin. Longfellow and his iconoclastic crew decide to produce the first major American translation of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy. Their ambitious plans are put on hold when they realize that a murderer terrorizing Boston is recreating some of the most vivid scenes of chthonic torment in Dante's Inferno.

What a talent Matthew Pearl is. He's managed to combine the traditional academic themes with a more convential mystery story to great effect. You really get a feel for the four main protagonists, and you are placed right with them in their search to find the killer. I new very little about Dante's works before I read this, but it doesn't matter. You can read this book on SO many levels. This a first-rate thriller, with a deft and elegant plot, and I sincerely hope that we hear more from Matt. Pearl in the future.

A must read!

This book is reminiscent of The Alienist by Caleb Carr. Both books take famous figures from the past and surround them with serial killers that seem ripped from present headlines. Both are excellent reads, thrillers that keep you turning the pages, and you walk away from each having spent an enjoyable number of hours and with a few new facts about city life in the end of the 19th century.

Both also turned my stomach at times with their VERY graphic descriptions of the murder victims. (I was eating lunch as I started to read about the Dante Club murderer's 3rd victim - mutltitasking recommended if you're hoping to shed a few pounds).

While Carr's book had me on the edge of my seat when I first read it - The Dante Club was still very enjoyable though a bit easier to set down. The writing is smooth and clear, the characters drawn well enough, and the description of life in Boston during that time period very interesting. I especially liked the character of Nicholas Rey - and was disappointed by the narrowing of his role as the book moved into the 2nd half.

Having not read Dante's Inferno, I was scrambling a bit at first, but once the book neared it's climax, my ignorance seemed not to matter.

A worthwhile read - and if Pearl writes another - I'll pick that one up as well.