Rating: 
Summary: Another great "Burke" novel!
Review: Vachss' great anti-hero Burke returns in this latest adventure. While the book may cause some confusion for readers who haven't read all the Burke novels, for die-hard fans there are plenty of "inside" references to Burke's earlier escapades. As always Vachss provides a gritty, hard-nosed and unflinching look at the evil that men create, and allows Burke to use his less than legal approach to try and set things right. A worthy installment in the continuing saga of Burke. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: reeking piece...
Review: What is this?! Andy has definitely gone down hill since "Down in the Zero", the last Burke book I read. And Zero wasn't that hot either. And please don't give me any grief about how what he does for a living is so important that we have to support him. I thank God for people like him who fight the monsters that hurt children. This is in regard to his career as an author, and how he gets away with such sloppy work is beyond me. He understands women like I understand quantum physics; I know the school of thought exists, and I have a very basic grasp of the simplest principles that underlie the theories, but brother, do NOT ask me to build a linear accelerator! Did Andy rip off the idea of the character Gem from a recent non-fiction work, the title lost to me, that tells the stories of Cambodian women and girls abused by the Communist thugs that ran the place? I think so. But that's a minor quibble. Authors get ideas from everywhere and everybody does it. But the loosely structured plots, the standard "The world is a junkyard" cynicism, the tired characterizations, have grown weary. What shows through all of this story, however, is Vachss' own desire to leave this world behind. It's evident, to me at least, that he just doesn't care about using fiction to get out his message. I suspect we'll see a lot more non-fiction from Mr.Vachss, a driven man who has proven his value to the human race many times over in his legal career. God bless him. But please, no more Burke.
Rating: 
Summary: Burke's back in shape, folks.
Review: With "Dead and Gone," Burke undergoes an intense rebirth. After surviving a set-up, he's back to the ground-zero tension that fuels Vachss' best work. The last 50 pages present a whole lot of Burke's backstory. His closest partner, Pansy, goes out stone loyal. Much as it hurt to read Pansy's death, "Dead and Gone" breathes new life into the franchise.The "Who wants Burke dead?" search is complicated, but the payoff is a genuine surprise. Turns out our antihero didn't have this person pegged as accurately as he thought. The bad guys are trying to found a pedophile's paradise. Burke wants to keep Burke alive, and this leads him back to the crusade that defines him - fighting dirty for the Children of the Secret. As in "Sacrifice," Burke has to deal with...well, "performance" issues. Given the loss and grief endemic to Burke (especially in this book), it's a more realistic and interesting approach than the "no woman can satisfy him" school of detective fiction. Plus, it sets the stage for Gem to be the heroine. She brings hope and even some humor to the whole thing. You can pretty much nail down Burke's age this time - he was nineteen during the 1969 Biafra genocide. Now he's on the West Coast. Ripe new territory for a vengeful con-man who's legally dead...
Rating:
Summary: Burke's back in shape, folks.
Review: With "Dead and Gone," Burke undergoes an intense rebirth. After surviving a set-up, he's back to the ground-zero tension that fuels Vachss' best work. The last 50 pages present a whole lot of Burke's backstory. His closest partner, Pansy, goes out stone loyal. Much as it hurt to read Pansy's death, "Dead and Gone" breathes new life into the franchise. The "Who wants Burke dead?" search is complicated, but the payoff is a genuine surprise. Turns out our antihero didn't have this person pegged as accurately as he thought. The bad guys are trying to found a pedophile's paradise. Burke wants to keep Burke alive, and this leads him back to the crusade that defines him - fighting dirty for the Children of the Secret. As in "Sacrifice," Burke has to deal with...well, "performance" issues. Given the loss and grief endemic to Burke (especially in this book), it's a more realistic and interesting approach than the "no woman can satisfy him" school of detective fiction. Plus, it sets the stage for Gem to be the heroine. She brings hope and even some humor to the whole thing. You can pretty much nail down Burke's age this time - he was nineteen during the 1969 Biafra genocide. Now he's on the West Coast. Ripe new territory for a vengeful con-man who's legally dead...
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