The Butcher's Boy by Thomas Perry Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Butcher's Boy
Book Review: An excellent first book.
Summary: 4 Stars
If you've liked any of Thomas Perry's books, especially the Jane Whitehead series, you'll enjoy this debut novel.There's even a very memorable female character who is obviously a precursor to the Jane Whitehead character.
Once I started reading, I went almost non-stop, despite being in a distracting environment.
Book Review: Couldn't put it down
Summary: 4 Stars
If you like compelling thrillers, Thomas Perry is your man- at least with this book and the sequel- Sleeping Dogs. I discovered this book when it was first pulished, and spent a number of years trying to find it after it went out of print. Now it is back, and I no longer have my copy because I loaned it to a thriller loving friend. Shouldn't really like the book- the "hero" is a hit man who is truly amoral, and yet somehow you still get engaged with him. The writing is lean and moves the story at a perfect pace. I love deep books about complex charcters, but for relaxation give me a well written page turner anytime. And this book is just that. I recommend reading both books, as I think the story becomes fully fleshed only in Sleeping Dogs. Then move on to the Jane Whitfield novels- great plotting and writing and the heroine is truly that.Book Review: Excellent Read
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an excellent book. I enjoy reading mysteries and this one had more depth than the current run of the mill bestsellers. Even though it was written a good while back, you cannot tell it.Book Review: Exceptional Debut Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
As you read this book, you have to keep reminding yourself that this is the first novel by Perry. It is an excellent debut novel.
Looking at the new books, at the library, I saw Thomas Perry's latest novel, Silence. I wasn't sure if I wanted to dedicate time to get it read and returned by the two week limit, so I went in search of some of his earlier works. I decided on The Butcher's Boy. And it was a great read.
He (the killer is always referred to as "he" throughout the novel) is very good. And extremely careful. His jobs always go through middlemen, so he doesn't know who hired him or why. He doesn't want to know. But he is very effective. A union officer is blown up in California. A senior Senator dies in Colorado. Nothing to link either victims or the people that wanted them eliminated. When the killer arrives in Las Vegas, a few days early, strange things start happening and it isn't long before he discovers that there is a contract out on him. But who and why? The killer finds himself running from not only his ex-employers but also a very smart and dedicated Department of Justice analyst.
I found this novel riveting. Told mainly from the point-of-view of the killer, you find yourself hoping that he makes it out alive. Even though he is ruthless. And the Department of Justice analyst, Elizabeth Waring, is one of the best female characters in fiction. She is smart, tenacious, dedicated. She feels that there is a link between the union official and the senator, but her bosses aren't about to go on "feelings." I looked forward to continuing the novel, spending as much free time as I could reading. For a debut novel, Perry includes plenty of twists and turns, believable dialog and characters, and an excellent plot.
A fantastic debut novel, one that will not disappoint.
Book Review: Flat
Summary: 2 Stars
I found the book to be rather flat. The motives of the unnamed assasin were perfunctory, the heroine was ineffective and I don't think the character of Maureen served any puprose--how did she help the assasin or earn her pay? In the Introduction, Michael Connelly describes feeling sympathy for the assasin. I did not feel any. The assasin was cold and unsympathetic. Also, by referring to the assasin only as "he", Perry created some pronoun landmines in spots when he tried to juggle two he's and it wasn't clear which he was he (see how confusing that is?).