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Title: Nine by Jan Burke ISBN: 0-7434-4454-X Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 October, 2003 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.50 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.13 (15 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Sordid tale of torture, murder and revenge.
Comment: Jan Burke's new thriller, "Nine," is a complicated suspense novel with so many characters and such a dense plot that it may confuse the casual reader. After finishing the book, I went back to the beginning to figure out exactly what had happened and why.
"Nine" deals with vigilantes who have decided to kill all of the suspects on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List. They methodically track down these felons, then torture and kill them. Many people across the country applaud the vigilantes, since they are catching dangerous criminals who have thus far eluded the FBI's dragnet.
However, Los Angeles Homicide Detective Alex Brandon does not applaud the vigilantes; he considers them to be criminals, not heroes. As Alex gets more deeply involved in the case, he finds to his horror that the perpetrators may be targeting not just wanted felons, but him, as well.
Although Burke is a talented writer who knows how to build suspense, "Nine" has some glaring weaknesses. The vigilantes are cardboard characters whose motivations and behavior are implausible. Most of the dialogue is stilted and the plot becomes more far-fetched as the book lumbers on to its melodramatic conclusion. At almost 400 pages, "Nine" is too long, and it goes off in too many directions. Tighter editing might have helped the book flow more smoothly. Although "Nine" does provide thrills and gore galore, I did not find it realistic or truly entertaining.
Rating: 4
Summary: Burke's fan base will grow thanks to this gripping thriller
Comment: It happens. You start a book with high expectations for whatever reason --- the inside cover summary, a friend's recommendation or, heaven forbid, some nebbish reviewer --- and you're disappointed. The converse also happens, however. You're not expecting much when you crack the binding on the book and the next thing you know you're halfway through the story before you even think about putting it down --- kind of like being abducted by aliens, without the probes, if you will.
That's the sort of out-of-body experience I encountered when I picked up NINE by Jan Burke. I wasn't really familiar with Burke's previous work, more by accident than by design, so I approached NINE with a tabula rosa impression, an impression that is now indelibly etched into my memory. NINE is as complex and gripping a thriller as you may well read this year.
The premise of NINE revolves around an unknown perpetrator or perpetrators who are dramatically and theatrically murdering the individuals listed on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted List. The first, a drug kingpin who executed a potential witness against him, along with the witness's family, is strung up and left to die with his lifeblood draining from him. The mourners who attended this gentleman's demise could be counted on the end of one stump. The unknown individual who hastened his journey to the other side of the veil is quickly heralded as a hero. As the remaining individuals on the FBI's list are dispatched with efficient and creative rapidity, the public is enthralled. Detective Alex Brandon of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department is not among the cheerleaders, however. The executions bear an eerie resemblance to the murders carried out by a serial killer, now deceased, some ten years previous; they appear to be done for the purpose of carrying out a taunting message to Brandon. As his investigation continues, Brandon becomes more and more certain that The Executioners, as the media has dubbed them, are actually targeting him. Burke almost loses her way at the end --- the ending almost seems a bit contrived --- but she ultimately manages to pull things off, coming back in a satisfying epilogue to tidy things up quite neatly and satisfactorily.
NINE will introduce Burke fans to a whole new cast of characters. While the main focus of the book is Detective Brandon, the supporting characters are so interesting that they ultimately come close to high-jacking the book away from him. While NINE functions quite nicely as a stand-alone, independent work, it would seem a shame for Burke not to utilize Brandon and his supporting cast of characters in future novels. Whatever Burke might choose to do, however, NINE will undoubtedly bring a legion of new readers to her work.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
Rating: 5
Summary: Another great Book by a great author
Comment: They say there are only about 4 or 5 plots for all the stories ever written. That may be true, but Ms Burke can do more with all of these plots than most authors with one in their best moments.
This is a well thought out and technically correct thriller with a premise that could easily come to life in this world we live in today. Ms Burke has captured the essence of hero vs antihero(es) in this, one of her best works. I can only hope this is the start of a new series, although if she keeps making hits with stand alone works, hurray!! Buy this one, you won't go wrong.
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Title: Hocus by Jan Burke ISBN: 0743444531 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Liar: An Irene Kelly Mystery by Jan Burke ISBN: 0061044407 Publisher: HarperCollins Pub. Date: 01 May, 1999 List Price(USD): $7.50 |
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Title: Remember Me, Irene : An Irene Kelly Novel by Jan Burke ISBN: 0743444507 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Sweet Dreams, Irene : An Irene Kelly Novel by Jan Burke ISBN: 0743444523 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 September, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Dear Irene, : An Irene kelly Novel by Jan Burke ISBN: 0743444493 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 31 December, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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