Wolf in the Fold

Rating:
Summary: This is a wonderful novel!
Review:
The author creates a 1774 Boston that is so real you can almost smell the salt air wafting in from Boston Harbor!

I'm a history buff and an avid reader of historical novels, and have time and again been disappointed by stories set in colonial times.

Not this time!

Setting his novel not during the Revolution but rather a few years prior allows the Mr. Rotondi to fill his story not with cardboard characters making tiresome speeches about Liberty, but real men and women living their lives as best they can in the ever-widening shadow of the political and social turmoil that is rapidly approaching. This turmoil is not just a backdrop to the novel, but an integral force in the thoughts, actions, and motives of its characters.

Robert Hawkins is a smart, resourceful, and likeable protagonist, and the mystery he sets out to solve is a thorny one where the line between friend and foe become increasingly blurred.

Like Hawkins, Wolf in the Fold is clever, crafty, interesting, and a lot of fun. I couldn't put it down, and I eagerly await Mr. Rotondi's next novel.


Rating:
Summary: Colonial Boston Comes Alive
Review: A very intriguing novel from a first-time author. I enjoyed this book very much. It was fast-paced and fun. It is a mystery set in Colonial era Boston. Robert Hawkins is engaged to find a killer before the city is set in flames by one faction or the other (loyalists and patriots).

The author uses actual historical figures sparingly but to good effect. We meet Thomas Gage, Benjamin Chruch and Paul Revere. I also liked the fact that Hawkins has to work with a British soldier who happens to be a friend. A fine example of how complex relationships could be in that time period. Many patriots had friends among the British. A good mystery set in an era little used by writers.

Rating:
Summary: History Comes Alive
Review: As a mystery reader for almost half a century, from Conan Doyle to Robert Tanenbaum, I favor recurring characters set in either London or NYC. Now comes Anthony Rotondi with his protangonist, Robert Hawkins, in a historical mystery set in colonial Boston. Conan Doyle, of course, hasn't written a new book or story in years, Tanenbaum writes a new novel about every 1 1/2 years. I seriously hope Mr. Rotondi fills the void. His characters come alive and his discriptions of the area and era put you with the action. I look forward to reading additional exploits of Mr. Hawkins.

Rating:
Summary: Blue Blood Makes Good
Review: I read this novel at the suggestion of an old friend - he's not old, I've just known him for a long time - and was not disappointed.

The title of my review is a reference to the books main character, one Mr. Hawkins, not the author of the book, a Mr. Rotondi - undoubtedly a man of a more Mediterranean persuasion than the lively Mr. Hawkins. Mr. Hawkins' adventure is set in the great metropolis of New England - Hartford - I mean, Boston. And we may presume that the cause of Mr. Rotondi's choice of Boston was the commingling of his Italian roots with the wonderful portion of New York in which Mr. Rotondi lives - upstate (for all you NYC dwellers) or the Northern Hudson Valley/Massanetiyork (for everyone else).

Perhaps Mr. Rotondi's longing for those lovely bygone days, when small children died of small cuts, hygiene consisted of not rolling about in sheep manure and women of low repute were as easy to come by as Starbucks are today, prompted his choice of the pre-revolutionary days for the era in which to set his first novel. I suspect, however, that it was more of an appreciation for the intrigue that infested Boston in 1770s that resulted in Mr. Rotondi's choice, because the mystery explored by Mr. Hawkins runs through the currents of the political upheaval of the time and place.

Pre-revolutionary Boston must have been an exciting and dangerous place - and Mr. Hawkins has his fair share of both, ably assisted by his friends in the Sons of Liberty, including Paul Revere (of Revere Ware fame - he also road a horse a lot and liked to shout about the "Redcoats," which was the original name of the New England Patriots).

This is a great first effort from this author. The story is quick, the mystery. . . well . . . mysterious and the writing crisp. The setting of the novel is quite unique, I believe, and Mr. Hawkins' adventures involve many of the historical figures of the era (but they do not intrude too much on the story, taking this mystery out of the realm of the frequently poorly drafted "historical novels"). My impression (having read a fair amount about the era) is that Mr. Rotondi's characterizations of these historical figures do not take too many liberties; Although I don't believe John Hancock ever had a Humvee or that Thomas Hutchinson ever had an affair with Marilyn Monroe.

I look forward to the further adventures of Mr. Hawkins.


Rating:
Summary: Colonial Mystery
Review: This mystery takes place in Boston, in 1774. As a fan of historical mysteries, I was pleasantly surprised to find a mystery that takes advantage of this time and place. Unlike other eras used in historical mysteries, the eve of the Revolution is overlooked. Boston is a great setting for a colonial mystery.

The author has done an excellent job of recreating colonial Boston. Locations and people are described very well and the research shows. However, the author does not just throw in the research. It is woven nicely into the fabric of the story.

The lead character, Robert Hawkins is very likeable and the book is fast-paced and humorous. Well done.