Rating: 
Summary: I loved this book....who's starring in the film?
Review: All the time I was reading this book, I couldn't help but wonder who would win the starring roles? Cannell's story of cops gone bad is a wild ride that hooks you on the first page and doesn't turn you loose until the last word is read. I think the violence is a bit graphic, but I don't live in Los Angeles where the gangs really do run the universe. Although I never really absorbed all the details about the tobacco industry and their corrupt practices, I think I understood enough to hate them even more than I already did. Don't start this book if you have to go to work the next day. Bad planning, because you'll have very dark circles under your eyes for lack of sleep. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: I didn't think it was possible for SJC to top himself!
Review: After reading THE TIN COLLECTORS, I didn't think it would be possible for Stephen J. Cannell to top himself, but he truly outdid himself with THE VIKING FUNERAL! Shane Scully, Chooch and Alexa are back and from the looks of THE VIKING FUNERAL, they are here to stay. First of all, the best thing about THE VIKING FUNERAL is you don't have to read THE TIN COLLECTORS to know what's going on in this new action-packed thriller (Although, you'd be doing yourself an injustice if you don't read TTC). Cannell does a great job of letting you know the major points of TTC with a few brushstrokes of his pen (Or should I say his famous Selectric typewriter?) without hitting you over the head with a lot of exposition. From the very first page, you will be hooked, and I guarantee you will not be able to put it down. I have read all of Stephen J. Cannell's best sellers, and loved them, but this one is a true page-turner! There is not one lull in the entire book. You never get a chance to catch your breath. Each page is so exciting, you have no other choice but to turn the next page! This is one book you will never want to end. I can't want for the next Shane Scully novel!
Rating: 
Summary: Another Adventurous Masterpiece From Stephen J. Cannell
Review: Although I probably haven't read a novel in the past year or so, I have to commend Stephen J. Cannell for bringing the joy of reading a thriller back to me. Shane Scully is a cop on the verge of a nervous breakdown due to his childhood friend commiting suicide and his girlfriend getting all the recognition for his work on a huge case he just cracked showing corruption in the L.A. Police dept., when he's driving down the highway one day and sees his supposedly dead friend driving next to him. After doing some investigative work he discovers that there is a rogue group of cops that have all faked their suicides so they could work off the books. Shane decides to infiltrate the group and delve into the shaddy underground known as the parallel market. In a wonderfully spun web of intrigue and suspense written by Stephen J. Cannell the reader is taken on an adventure that you won't soon forget. I found the book imposible to put down for the 2 heart pounding days that it took me to read it. The book is very well written and easy to read. 2 thumbs up for Stephen J. Cannell on writing this soon to be best seller!!
Rating: 
Summary: Cannel lost it
Review: An anthropologist specialized in American phobias and lifestyle could find this book interesting, but if fails to entertain.
I never pretended Mr. Cannel to be a philosopher, but he is repeating himself from previous books using the same old tricks:
-Spanish language bashing (which I particularly detest). ALL the sentences (supposedly from Spanish-speaking people) have misspellings, and all reference to the language is immersed in a derogatory context, always. Is there any Freudian reason you despise Spanish so much, Mr. Cannel?
-The sociopath-introspection deal (you already used that one in the Plan, Mr. Cannel).
-People who drive here, drive there, drive, drive, drive and then drive a little more. OK, California is sprawled, but when so much of the novel is an enumeration of streets, driveways and boulevards we have a plot-vacuum problem.
-The characters are simply not believable, let alone verisimilar. Drop Chooch and Scully, please.
-One good thing: in this novel Mr. Cannel didn't portrait a man and a woman that unexplainably copulate by the middle of the plot. Now they do it all along and customarily.
Should I continue? I hope this book achieves the success it deserves.
Rating: 
Summary: "Hooray for Hollywood . . . "
Review: At one end of the mystery noir spectrum you have Michael Connelly and Robert Crais, and at the other end you have Stephen Cannell. And the difference is . . . television. Or, as Tony Filosiani, the ex-NYPD top cop picked up by the founding fathers to lead LA out of its incredible slump might say, 'You ain't gonna find Tolstoy in the rack at the drugstore. Ba-Da-Bing, Ba-Da-Bang.' Truer words and all that. It begins with an old Alfred Hitchcock premise, doomed rebellious (read 'still believing') police officer sees best friend but dead best friend in a random LA traffic snarl. And he must do what doomed rebellious police officers must do. Dig. Scratch. Keep looking. All of Shane Scully's friends, and by the telling of this story they are are few in number, tell him to stop. But Shane can't. And I think we're suppose to feel that this time, Shane will lose what few remaining chances he has to become, well, happy. But Shane can't. He seeks to restore his best friend's death to comprehensible logic (always a herculean task in television) and this leads to dishonest cops, the always present "other" informant on the inside, the Columbian cartel, drugs, silly Amazon women, and all the usual suspects. It's television. Visceral. Visual. Unfulfilling but pleasant in a superficial manner. If I had a feeling of distate, it was not over the repetitive torture or sex scenes, it was with Cannell's flirtation with racial and gender profiling. By now I find tedious that all Italians are overweight and talk like extras in Goodfellows, all African American men have rippling muscles, women are always calmed down by life altering sex (unless they're bad women and then they are evil and satanic), and that all South Americans have beady, black eyes. As Tony would say, 'wazupwitdat?' I like Cannell. But he reminds me of why I stopped watching television. Nevertheless, billions of people watched The Wiseguy, Mannix, The Rockford Files and Starsky. If you go to a poorer country you'll still see those big chested (both genders) heroes and heroines wrestling with the baddest of the bad. In 60 minutes with commercials. So the key here is, again in the words of the soothsayer who brings it all together, Tony Filosiani, 'whatjawannaread?' Cannell tells a good story but it's very superficial. When you read Connelly and Crais, you get a feel for what characters might or even would say. There's nothing like that in The Viking Funeral. It is a great pool read or airplane read. You don't have to work much. But it's like TV. You don't have to work much.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but could do better
Review: I am not a writer, so I do not provide a review based on my ability to write. Stephen Cannell is an accomplished screen writer. I think that's what defines this book. Overall, I liked the book. I don't think anyone will be disappointed in reading the book, but perhaps slightly confused by lacking detail. The book was intruiging, but at times predictable. I never thought Alexa was dead, but I also didn't think that the LAPD was still on Shane's side. The author made me forget about the satellite pill, but somewhat convienently came to the rescue at the last moment, which seems to me like "TV movie of the week" material. Knowing his screen writing accomplishments, perhaps I thought early in the book that it was written as a screenplay. I'm not a voracious reader, as I'm just recently finding the art of reading again. What sparked my interest recently was a book by Neville Demille ("Plum Island"), borrowed from a friend, to which I make a comparison. Neville Demille provided more detail surrounding his characters, physically, and more detail about the physical surroundings. Some people may not like much detail about sex, but when the main character, and therefore the narrator, is having sex, I expect more detail understanding the personal experience. The dreams, the love of Alexa ... all lacking a more expected, intimate and shared experience with Shane. There are times that Stephen Cannell provides this level of detail, but other times he does not. He seems to leave it to the imagination of a director or producer to provider more intimate detail on-screen. I sometimes lacked a clear picture in my mind of the physical appearance of the characters, particularly of Shane Scully (perhaps I should have read the earlier book). It's important for me to identify with a physical appearance of the characters. I'm still somewhat puzzled as to what exactly Jody was supposed to look like. For example, I would have thought that Jody had a better sense of style than the clothes he purchased in Aruba, but maybe I shouldn't have. I just didn't understand that from the writing. It seems like such a small point, but it reminds me that Stephen Cannell is adept at writing screenplays with, perhaps, stereotypical characters. I find it odd, however, that Stephen Cannell can give such great detail about weapons. He must be a weapons fanatic himself to provide so many details about weapons, but yet not enough for me to understand. Having little to do with weapons myself, I felt a little lost in the types, and therefore the meaning. As a result, I turned to the Internet for more detail. Again, I only criticize from a readers' perspective. I can only admire the accomplishemnent of such a book. I don't think anyone will be unsatisfied, but I think they will only be satisfied while not disappointed. Even Shane's enjoyment of his love of Alexa and Chooch, after all he has endured, seems understated. At this point, Shane should cherish life in many forms, but I don't feel that expressed enough in the text. I would encourage you to buy the book, but start with the first one in the series.
Rating:
Summary: Another Great Book By Cannell
Review: I have to disagree with the other reviewers; I enjoyed every page of this nail-biter. Cannell's unique writing style really brings the reader into the action. Two thumbs up and five stars for this one.
Rating:
Summary: What happened to Mr. Cannell?
Review: I keep a database of books that I have read over the past few years, and I have to say that out of 360+ books, 'The Viking Funeral' is the absolute worst. I can't believe that this came from the same author who wrote 'King Con'. Fortunately, 'Hollywood Tough' sounds much better. Even so, I'll wait for it to come out in paperback.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but confusing!
Review: I like this novel, but I got lost and confused when it came to the money laundering scheme. Too many players and too much confusing details. I like the novel mainly for the dynamics of Shane, Alexa and Chooch. And also the torment and pain between Shane and Jody. Wonderful writing. The end grabs you. Looking forward to the next Shane Scully novel.
Rating:
Summary: SJC Rocks... as usual
Review: I really enjoyed reading The Tin Collectors, so I was happily awaiting The Viking Funeral. It didn't disappoint me! I loved the interaction between the characters (which you can appreciate even if you didn't read The Tin Collectors). I like the fact Shane Scully is put in tough guy situations but always comes through a gentleman. It was very exciting, and since reading the book and hearing Mr. Cannell speak at a book signing, I discovered that the vikings are based on a true "gang" formed in the L.A. Sheriff's dept. some years ago and that the money laundering is a problem which our government turns its back on. Once again Cannell is at the top of his game, weaving actual events or bizarre occurrances into a brilliant work of fiction. I was on the edge of my seat and read the book without putting it down even once!
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