Rating: 
Summary: A waste of time and talent
Review: I really enjoyed Hit Man, but found this novel to be a major disappointment--certainly a waste of time and money. One gets the impression that the entire book was written over a long weekend. To say that it is padded is putting it mildly. If the air was squeezed out, you might have a nice short story. I was reminded of some of those Ed McBain 87th Precinct novels with mindless jokes, repetitious banter and thin plots. Block can do--and has done--much better work.
Rating:
Summary: An incredible dissappointment.
Review: Block really slipped up on this one. The first Keller book (Hit Man) is actually a series of short stories, which work on their own, but also come together to paint an interesting character study. Keller comes across as sympathetic even while he's whacking people. Expanding the concept to an actual novel apparently made Block lose his grip on the character. No longer is Keller wistful or sympathetic, he's just . . . blah. The endless conversations between Keller and Dot grow annoying by the middle and by the end they made me want to throw the book across the room. I've never met anyone who actually speaks like Dot. She's like one of those sitcom characters who has a witty comeback for every possible situation . . . except substitute annoying for witty. It's a wonder Keller didn't knock HER off.The worst sin Block commits is the ending (or the climax, to be more precise), which is utterly terrible. I don't know what he was thinking. I won't spoil it, but it just may be the definition of anticlimactic. Not too long ago, Block knocked my socks off by writing two of his best books back to back - Everybody Dies, and The Burglar in the Library, which I think are the best books of the Scudder and Burglar series, respectively. But he's followed those up with a good but disappointing Burglar book (The Burglar in the Rye), a terrible Tanner book (Tanner on Ice, which is 100 times worse than Hit List), and now this. Seems to me another Scudder book may be what Block needs to get his groove back.
Rating: 
Summary: A waste of life
Review: I picked up this book because I had read a favorable review in the Washington Post. I was terribly disappointed. I kept reading this book on the hopes it would get better, and by the time I realized it wouldn't, I figured I might as well finish it. A book of this sort should be entertaining, humourous, and/or educational, especially when you have a lead charachter who is a hitman. This book had no redeeming value or entertainment value. Instead, there were countless conversations and internal monolugue that went nowhere and were often repetitive. The "padding" in this book was incredible. If this subject interests you, rent The Professional and Prizzi's Honor, both of which you can watch in less time than reading this waste of time for half the price.
Rating: 
Summary: This Book Should be on Everyone's "Hit List"
Review: John Keller is just your average business man. He's single, dates, eats out alot, watches TV, takes in a movie or browses through stores and galleries and collects stamps for a hobby. Every so often, he gets a call from Dot, his dispatcher and heads out on a job. His line of work...contract killer...he kills total strangers for a fee and no one else in the world, except Dot, knows what he does for a living. Life is good until he goes to Louisville, Kentucky for a simple hit and gets this funny feeling that everything is not quite right, just a little off. That feeling is confirmed, when a couple are shot and killed in the motel room he's just vacated. It gets so strong, in fact, that he decides to see an astrologer and have his chart read. She tells him that he's going to have a rough year. He has an enemy out there who wants him dead.....So begins Hit List, Lawrence Block's latest mystery/thriller. This is a well paced, compelling novel full of vivid scenes, droll humor and enough twists, turns and surprises, to keep you turning pages to the end. Mr Block's writing is smart, crisp and down to earth, with dialogue that's so true to life, it will, at times, have you laughing out loud. To his credit, Keller is such a likeable, well drawn and defined character, that even though he's a hit man, you'll be rooting for him to the end. So tag along with Keller, as jobs start to go wrong and he realizes that the hit man is now on somebody's hit list. You won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect if you need to get some sleep!
Review: I was lucky enough to read through this in December, just in time to make "Hit List" my years worst read for 2000. This story lacks any interesting characters including Keller the featured hit man and the unmysterious Dot, his agent. There are numerous episodes of verbal dueling between Keller and Dot over the most mundane topics that will leave the determined reader wishing for a visit from a real hit man. The actual "contracts" Keller performes are about as exciting as my trip to the local coffee house on Sunday, they lack any imagination, detail or reason but at least the coffee will keep me awake. I'm sorry, but if possible, I'd ask Mr. Block for a refund on this one, I've read about a hundred books this year in related action/suspense topics and this was absolutely the worst.
Rating: 
Summary: Good solid story.
Review: Okay, I'll admit...I struggled through the start of this story. I found it vaguely interesting but not a book that had me racing to get to the next page. However, as I continued to listen, I began to appreciate more of what the author had been doing that I'd found less than riveting...he'd been building up the story, providing information about the characters and letting you get to know them. The next thing I knew, I WAS racing to get to the next page. The characters are likeable, but of course the hit man is fleshed out the most. I liked that fact that he was made real, through the relationships he had and the feelings the author let us see about his life and the choices he had to make. The action in the story was pretty interesting too. This isn't a racy, fast-paced read, but it is a good solid read that has meat on its bones. Would I recommend it? Yes. If you like mystery, then this is a good mystery story. If you're more interested in faced-paced thrillers, you might still find this book good, as I did, but you'll have to slow your pace and just enjoy it. One note though: I usually don't like it when authors read their own stories. For some reason, what I expect from them and what I get just doesn't add up. That's the case with this story. Mr. Block's voice just didn't "do it" for me. I would have preferred another reader, but still, his reading it didn't spoil the book for me.
Rating:
Summary: Should have stayed in the short story genre
Review: I'll confess: I really like Lawrence Block's work. I get his newsletter. I buy his books. But Hit List? Keller, the pro killer engages in the kinds of behaviors that you just find a little to hard to believe. The cynical hit man going to an astologer? And altering his behavior because of what she says? I don't think so. Then there's the matter of the back and forth between Keller and his "agent," Dot. BORING! Filler? Who knows? Seems like Block had a good idea in having a hit man set up as a target. Seems like he had a bad idea in having a short story set up as a novel.
Rating:
Summary: A good, fast read.
Review: I'm no professional like Patrick Picciarelli, just a somebody who enjoys a good read, and this is yet another of along list from Mr. Block. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: A hit man is the hero
Review: John Keller's business requires frequent flyer miles and constant communication with his "agent" Dot. John relaxes by collecting stamps and dreams of one day settling in the towns and cities he frequently visits. If he ever honestly wrote his occupation on a 1040, John would describe his work as a HIT MAN. John knows that many of his victims are innocent good people, but employment in the new economy has been booming lately as his skills are in greater demand than ever. However, John has a new problem as someone else is beating him to the hit, hurting his lucrative business that depends on reputation and completing the job, customized to meet the objective of the customer. As an unknown assailant hones in on his consulting services, John concludes that he personally has made the HIT LIST of a rival who plans to shut down John permanently. HIT LIST contains all the humor and action that readers expect from a Lawrence Block novel. The story line is two parts amusement, two parts gloom and doom, and six parts irony. In spite of his profession and his tendency to languish in self-doubt, John retains a likable charm even if readers wonder why he continues to off decent folks. It is the killing of the innocent that leaves HIT LIST not for everyone, but those readers who relish a dark satirical look at life. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Fast Read
Review: John Keller is a great invention by one of the great mystery writers of our time. However, I was a little disappointed with this book after the great enjoyment I had reading "Hit Man". This book seems to lack the humor of the original. I did enjoy how this book did go a little deeper into the character of John Keller by placing him in the situation of being on a hit list himself. I would recommend this book to anybody who does want a good read, but I feel it lacked a little something.
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