Shutter Man

Jessica Balzano & Kevin Byrne #9

by Richard Montanari

Plagued with a rare disease that prevents him from recognizing faces, Billy carries a photograph in his pocket that is his only way of identifying his next target. Killing is in Billy's bloodline, as a member of Philadelphia's dangerous Farren crime family.

While Billy stalks Philadelphia, Detective Kevin Byrne is assigned to a series of bizarre home-invasion cases and is joined by his former partner-turned-assistant district attorney, Jessica Balzano. Their investigations circle Byrne's childhood neighborhood of Devil's Pocket, and they find themselves revisiting a crime from Byrne's past that has haunted him for decades. What Byrne witnessed as a child in Devil's Pocket jeopardizes the Farren family--which makes him the next target on Billy's hit list.

A multigenerational story of hardship, guilt, and redemption, Shutter Man is Byrne and Balzano's most tense and personal case to date.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Suspense, Audiobook, Horror

432 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2015

About the author

Richard Montanari is the Top Ten Sunday Times bestselling author of The Rosary Girls, The Killing Room, The Stolen Ones and the upcoming thriller, The Doll Maker.

Series:
* Jack Paris
* Jessica Balzano & Kevin Byrne

Reviews

[Sean Peters · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the Rousseau family are found dead in their suburban Philadelphia home – and Mrs Rousseau is minus her face – homicide cop Kevin Byrne, no stranger to horror, is appalled. There are no obvious clues, no prints, no forensics, and no motive. Only when crime scene techs examine the house do they find that Mrs Rousseau’s birth certificate is gone.

Days later, the murderers – Byrne is certain there must be at least two of them – strike once more, and this time the victim is an elderly man. Again, his face is sliced off. Again, his birth certificate is missing. When Byrne eventually finds a neighbour who may have seen something on the night of Edwin Channing’s death, he is perturbed and puzzled to hear that the witness saw a woman in white in Channing’s garden, and he’s convinced that he heard her singing.

In Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne this author has created two excellent characters who appear in a number of his crime fiction novels. Jessica has moved from the police department to the District Attorney's office , but they still end up partners in this novel and act very much as they always have done.

The downside to this story for me was the immensely complex historical background involving the various generations of Farren thugs and drunks, the names to remember, the characters and plots.

In the end, I began to lose interest in who was whose father, brother or son. The plot twists and narrative conjuring tricks continued to the penultimate page, and while it was all clever stuff, I felt it was just a little too much to take in. And the enigmatic title of the book? It refers to the photographs Billy uses in an attempt to circumvent his face blindness, and also the macabre way he records his misdeeds.

So as mentioned a little heavy in plot, character names and history, but two great main characters, especially Byrne.

Overall a three star book for me, just lacked the pace and action of my regular authors I read, like Tom Wood, Mark Dawson, David Baldacci and Simon Kernick.

With thanks from Net Galley, the publishers and the author for an advanced copy, and apologies for delay.

[Mort · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before I tell you about this book, I have to scold myself:
Whenever somebody asks me about great crime writers, I always tell them about Karin Slaughter, Michael Connelly, Dennis Lehane, Thomas Harris, Chris Mooney, Robert Crais, etc.
This is the ?fourth book I’ve read by Richard Montanari, and I haven’t been disappointed with any of them. So, in the future, I will try my best not to treat him like a forgotten great.

SHUTTER MAN, especially, had a very Lehane-like feel for me. I thought the characters were well written and, discussing the Farrens (the baddies) for three generations, were very informative without boring the reader.

Today, I’m going to try a different kind of review – I’m not going to tell you what happens in the book. Instead, I want to know if you’ve heard of the following:
1. Prosopagnosia.
2. The Sator Square.

No?
Don’t worry, I had to ask my friend Google for the medical term of the first one. It’s more commonly known (yet, uncommon to most…go figure!) as face blindness. People who can’t recognise a face. It usually occurs after some head trauma and in severe cases these people won’t even recognise their own friends, family or themselves (in a mirror).
So, hypothetically, how does a killer with this syndrome choose his victims?

And the Sator Square is…something that dates back to biblical times…does it have anything to do with math…or grammar…or mysticism…or ???

Interested?
C’mon, embrace that inner geeky-ness!

[Effie Saxioni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ήταν μια υπέροχη,κι επιτέλους,αρκετά διαφορετική ιστορία στο 99% της,κι ας ήταν το κίνητρο το αρχαιότερο του κόσμου.Πιστεύεις στην καταραμένη μοίρα?Πιστεύεις ότι μπορείς να της ξεφύγεις?Στην Τσέπη του Διαβόλου,όλα είναι πιθανά!
Απολαυστικός Montanari,ακόμα μία φορά❤5⭐

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seemingly random people are being killed. They are tied to a chair, duct taped, shot in the chest or the head, and then some of them have their faces removed. All are wearing a strange assortment of clothes and birth certificates are stolen.

Billy and Sean are twin brothers, member of a mafia-type crime family in Pennsylvania. Billy suffers from a rare disease that prevents him from seeing or remembering faces..not even his brother's.

Jessica Balzano is now an Assistant DA, after having served 10 years with Homicide, partnering with Kevin Byrne.

I have kept up with this series, always getting excited when a new one is due out. However, I was a little disappointed with this one. The 'sizzle' seemed to be missing. The first part of the book takes the reader back to when Byrne was a youngster on the streets of Pennsylvania and then, even earlier.

There seemed to be a disconnect, but the second half seemed to bloom. Yes! There was the Montanari I loved.

Jessica Balzano is trying a case against Billy's father for several crimes. Byrne is brought in to help with the investigation as they try to find what connects today's victims to Billy's father. It is now that all that information in the first half of the book starts to make sense. It's like playing Connect-The-Dots.

What started out as a bit boring for me turned into another very good addition to the existing series. The story line seems to be better when Byrne and Balzano work together ... they are much more interesting together rather than apart. They feed off each other and it's that interaction that I really enjoy.

Again, this one is fine as a stand alone, but I always recommend starting at the beginning.

My thanks to the author / Mulholland Books / NetGalley who furnished the digital copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

4.5 Stars

[Carol - Reading Writing and Riesling · Rating 4 out of 5]

My View:
Richard Montanari writes with confidence and ease. The plot is complex, his characters are interesting and I love the blending of multigenerational stories/crimes and history. Philadelphia 1940’s is an alien world for me - I loved being transported into this timeline, meeting the people, hearing their stories of migration and community (even the stories surrounding the fledgling criminal community is interesting). Add to this mix a little bit of folk lore, an extraordinary medical condition, a moral dilemma or two, a nice twist in the tail and the great relationship between Byrne and Balzano ( more books with these two working together please Mr Montanari) and you have a thoroughly engaging read.

[Patrice Hoffman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shutter Man is another one of Richard Montanari's explosive, compulsive reads featuring the duo Jessica Balzano and Kevin Byrne. Although this novel shows the two doing their own thing, a series of gruesome murders brings them together in the hopes of capturing a killer like none other.

As usual, Montanari begins Shutter Man with a crime that dares readers to look away unimpressed by the sheer evil that is in store with every turn of the page. I'm not sure where to begin with this review except to point out that it was nice getting to know Byrne as a youth. As the story unfolds and the layers of the past are peeled away, we learn how the present is shaped. We also learn about a small Maryland town called Devil's Pocket.

Yes, Devil's Pocket is as bad as it sounds and has birthed a living nightmare. As the clues are gathered, it's impossible for readers to simply walk away from this novel. I had to know what the victims had in common and the killer's logic in deciding their fate.

I feel that Shutter Man used a lot more close calls and hair-raising situations than the others in this series. These moments weren't ill placed or used as a gimmick. Every moment in this novel is fluid and pure great storytelling. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Montanari is one of my favorite crime novelists to date. I dare you to read his novel and tell me I'm wrong.

So, in conclusion, Shutter Man is a must read for fans that follow the Byrne and Balzano series. I'm sure this review may seem biased to most but really, Richard Montanari is a great author. Shutter Man had it's grips on me from page one and did not let go until the final word. Period!

Copy provided by Mulholland Books via Netgalley

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a fan of this series so it came as little surprise to me that I really enjoyed this one - I do love my crime fiction and Richard Montanari is particularly good in this field.

This instalment gives us some great Byrne back story, taking as it's main part the Farren family, who Byrne has been involved with before. He faces a dilemma and some tough moral judgements and this, for me, made this one of my favourites of the series so far. Especially as it gave an added layer to his relationship with Jessica, who SHOULD know almost everything important about him. But she does not have it all...

Things shaken up anyway by the fact that they are no longer partners, the relationship between our two main protagonists is still a highly intriguing one, the ongoing portions of Shutter Man were terrific.

On top of that, I was fascinated by the concept of not being able to recognise faces. In fact I could not really get my head around it - imagine not being able to identify those closest to you by looking at them. Of course this being a Richard Montanari novel that concept is all wrapped up in blood and death...

Overall a really great read again from a series that so far has not hit a downturn. Clever descriptive writing, involving and dark mystery elements and engaging and often brutal characters mean that these come highly recommended by me.

Happy Reading Folks!

[Φίλιππος ²³ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ίσως το πιο αδύναμο βιβλίο του Montanari που έχω διαβάσει! Μέτριο απλά.

[Gatorman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong, gripping entry in the Byrne/Balzano series about a man with face-blindness who is committing a series of murders possibly tied to family history and a long line of violence. The book successfully alternates between past and present action involving Byrne, former friends and acquaintances to provide details of events which all tie together in the suspenseful and surprising ending. Montanari is quite good at setting the stage for horrific deeds to be countered by detailed police procedure on tracking the monsters down. Always great to visit these characters, one of the better long-running series out there. If you're a fan, this one will not disappoint. If you haven't read Montanari yet, you're missing out on one of the better thriller writers in the business. 4.5 stars. Highly recommended.

[Giota]

«Αόρατα πρόσωπα», ένα θρίλερ για δυνατά στομάχια…
Μπορεί ο τίτλος ν’ ακούγεται αφηρημένος, περικλείει όμως το κεντρικό θέμα του βιβλίου του Richard Montanari που κυκλοφορεί από τις εκδόσεις Bell.
Ο κατά συρροήν δολοφόνος πρωταγωνιστής μας πάσχει από μία σπάνια ασθένεια που τον εμποδίζει ν’ αναγνωρίσει και να διακρίνει πρόσωπα. Αυτό αποτελεί μειονέκτημα, όχι μόνο για την αναγνώριση των θυμάτων που πρόκειται να σκοτώσει, αλλά και για την αναγνώριση των συνεργατών του.
Το δίδυμο εισαγγελέας Τζέσικα Μπαλζάνο και ντετέκτιβ Κέβιν Μπερν για άλλη μία φορά συνεργάζονται (τους έχουμε γνωρίσει από παλαιότερα βιβλία του συγγρα��έα) και μας χαρίζουν μία πολύ ενδιαφέρουσα ιστορία, στην οποία φόνοι του παρελθόντος εμφανίζονται στο παρόν και ζητούν εκδίκηση.
Φόνοι φαινομενικά άσχετα μεταξύ τους, τα θύματα όμως πεθαίνουν με ��ον ίδιο τρόπο και δίπλα τους βρίσκονται παρόμοια πράγματα. Στο βιβλίο παρατίθενται αρκετά ιστορικά και λαογραφικά στοιχεία συγκεκριμένης περιοχής, της «Τσέπης του Διαβόλου».
Μειονέκτημα του βιβλίου η πληθώρα ηρώων και ονομάτων και η όχι πάντοτε ομαλή μετάβαση από το παρελθόν στο παρόν και τούμπαλιν.
Το τέλος της ιστορίας είναι πολύ ευφάνταστο όπως αξίζει σε ένα δυνατό αστυνομικό μυθιστόρημα…
Ποιος είσαι;
Είμαι ο Μπίλι ο Λύκος.
Γιατί ο Θεός σ’ έκανε να μην μπορείς να βλέπεις τα πρόσωπα των ανθρώπων;
Για να μπορώ να βλέπω τις ψυχές τους.

http://www.clevernews.gr/aorata-proso...

[Βασω Γενιτσαριδου · Rating 4 out of 5]

Για μενα το πιο φλατ βιβλίο του. Αρκετά καλό αλλά κάτι μου έλειψε. Ίσως το ότι οι αγαπημενοι μας ήρωες δεν είναι πια μαζί. Μου άρεσε οτι η αρχή της ιστορίας αφορά την ζωή του Μπερνς.

[myreadingescapism · Rating 5 out of 5]

You just can't go wrong with serial killer stories that have the cat and mouse between police and killer. I don't care if it's the same or repetitive, I am here for it.

[R.G. Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book for its setting--a crime novel set in Philadelphia--and wasn't disappointed. In fact, the many references to Philly neighborhoods and other locales made the city itself seem like one of the characters. This became a problem as I continued to read, however, because the city ended up being the most compelling character in the book.

Nothing I write here is going to keep any readers from buying Montanari's books (I was surprised to find this was only one book in a series featuring its pair of detectives--I was convinced Montanari was a debut novelist). In fact, anyone reading this will probably find the fault is mine alone, but I kept getting lost in the book, and not in a good way. Too many characters spread over too many decades kept me shaking my head and wondering "Now who is this?" (the past heavily influences the novel's present). Maybe I've been spoined by reading crime novels by greats like Carl Hiassen, Elmore Leonard, and Andrew Vachss, but Shutter Man just didn't do for me what I had hoped it would: entertain.

[Don Gorman · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3) This is a well crafted book. It is a little confusing at first, but after about 75 or so pages it picks up an intensity that continues the rest of the way. Kevin Byrne is a terrific character and the Philadelphia setting takes on a life of its own in this story. Bad guys, bad family history and a few really good twists at the end help to make this an entertaining adventure. Not your ordinary thriller, well worth the time.

[Maria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Το καθυστέρησα όσο γινόταν να το διαβασω, καθώς ειναι το τελευταίο βιβλίο της σειράς. Η αλήθεια ειναι θα του έβαζα τρία αστέρια καθώς η πλοκή ήταν από τις πιο βαρετές από την σειρά όλη. Έκανε κοιλιά κάπου στην μέση αλλα το τέλος ειναι συνταρακτικό όποτε κέρδισε επάξια το τέταρτο αστέρι στα μάτια μου.

[Cordula · Rating 2 out of 5]

Teil 9 dieser Thrillerreihe konnte mich leider gar nicht überzeugen. So schade, denn die ersten 8 Teile waren großartig. Ich hoffe, dass Teil 10 wieder besser ist. Wenn er denn rauskommt

[Paromjit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read all of the Byrne and Balzano series and have found them engaging and compelling books. This is no different. It is a complex story that takes in the history of Devil’s Pocket, an Irish enclave of Philadelphia, the murder of a young girl and the history of the Farren family. The Shutter Man has Balzano as an ADA who is now working with Byrne investigating the Farren family. There are a series of grisly murders in which victims have had their faces removed. Handkerchiefs with messages in blood are left at the scenes, passports removed, photographs taken and the victim wearing odd clothing. Upon investigation, it soon becomes clear that the perpetrators are Billy, who has a strange condition where he struggles to remember anyone, and his brother Sean. This is a dangerous trail littered with dead bodies and explosions. There is also a killer final twist. What can I say? This is a great read as I would expect from Richard Montanari.

[Hamisoitil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richard Montanari, c'est une première pour moi et surement pas la dernière. J'ai en effet découvert une plume magistrale à travers ce dernier roman de l'auteur, qui fait également partie d'une longue série. Je vous rassure de suite, celui-ci peut facilement se lire indépendamment des autres. A part ça, Montanari a une plume qui m'a tenue en haleine jusqu'à la dernière page. Une plume efficace, moderne et parfois familière pour mieux s'imprégner de l'histoire. Une histoire qui démarre en 1976 avec le meurtre d'une petite fille et de son meurtrier.
Ensuite vient l'intrigue qui va jongler entre le passé et le présent (2015) où différents meurtres, cruellement atroces, vont s'accumuler tout au long de l'histoire.

On sait que dès le départ tous les crimes sont liés et que l'enquêteur Byrne (personnage récurrent) et sa collègue Jessica auront du fil à retordre pour arriver au bout de cette investigation. Du coup, l'auteur nous fait vivre l'enfer en même temps que les victimes, et nous met sur plusieurs pistes afin de faire notre propre enquête. Enfin, moi, j'ai vu ça comme ça. C'est chouette, car la forme est vraiment originale et l'esprit de vengeance est bien présent au vu du passé des protagonistes et pourtant, plus on avance, plus on s'aperçoit que nous sommes très, très loin du compte. Que cela va au-delà de la vengeance, au-delà de tout, que ça remonte à bien loin, voire jusque dans les racines profondes.

Donc après la forme, vient le fond de l'histoire qui te fait prendre conscience, te pousse à fouiller même dans la psychologie des personnages, jusqu'aux tréfonds de l'âme humaine. Je me suis retrouvée à prendre mon cahier, à taper sur internet, à noter... Je voulais comprendre... J'étais là à vouloir savoir, à décortiquer le pourquoi du comment. J'ai trouvé ça profondément passionnant dès la moitié du livre où l'étau commence sérieusement à se resserrer avec des chapitres qui le deviennent également, comme si le temps était compté, le compte à rebours était enclenché. J'ai eu toutefois une petite baisse de régime dans la première partie, mais rien de grave, puisqu’après, tout s’accélère sans aucun temps mort pour le lecteur.

Ce roman est dur, sombre et touchant à la fois, dans une ambiance très à l'américaine. Tous les ingrédients sont réunis ici pour en faire un excellent polar et donc, une belle découverte que je vous recommande bien évidemment.

[Bill Kidd · Rating 3 out of 5]

People get killed, the cops win. Not bad. Bit of light reading for holidays.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meine absolute Lieblingsreihe.

[Diane Coto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Philadelphia homicide cop Kevin Byrne, one of our primary characters in this series, revisits his past in this episode. He and his three friends, Jimmy Doyle, Ronan Kittredge, and Dave Carmody, were thirteen years old the summer of 1976 when America was preparing to celebrate its 200th birthday on July 4th of that year. They designated themselves as protectors for eleven-year-old Catriona Daugherty, who was terribly shy and withdrawn. She always carried a flower and wore a colorful ribbon in her hair. The boys caught Des Farren leering at her. They hurt him, threatened him, and left him. They didn’t know what to expect. The whole Farren family was bad news. But the Farren brothers never came for them. On July 4th, little Cartriona was found dead. By July 9th, a man was found dead, identified as Desmond Malcolm Farren.

In present day, Detective Byrne and Jessica Balzano are investigating several bizarre deaths that on the surface, the victims seem to have nothing in common. The deaths seem ritualistic in nature as some of the victim’s faces were removed and an odd five-letter word written in blood on a linen hanky. Several witnesses agree that they’d heard and saw a woman singing a strange melody nearby. The reader is given the identity of the killer early on. He refers to himself as “Billy the Wolf”. Due to a rare neurological disorder, he is unable to recognize faces. He carries a photo of his intended victim to help him identify them. He makes them dress in clothing matching the pictures. At the first victim’s home, a man answered the door. Billy saw, “Yellow robe. Blue pajamas. Stain.”

In case you’re wondering, this is a real disorder – very rare. It’s called Prosopagnosia (or facial blindness). I also loved the name of the place where they lived as boys and now where Byrne and Balzano are called to investigate. Devil’s Pocket, per Wikipedia, is a “… three-square-block neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia.” This is the first book I’ve read by Richard Montanari, and while the premise, the characters, and the flow of the story are impressive, I just need to let readers know it has excessive violence and is rather graphic in nature. The story is told primarily in the present time, but occasionally relies on past events to allow us a deeper understanding. Rating: 4 out of 5.

[Kelly · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really,really struggled with this novel, and ended up stopping at around the halfway point.

I spent the whole novel re-reading passages because I had absolutely no idea what was going on. There were a thousand characters and a billion different plots that were all linked, and I knew they were linked, but Montanari seemed to think I didn't know that and so wouldn't just link them so we had some actual progression. This lead to a flatlining plot line. By the halfway point there had been absolutely no progression of the murder investigation.

It wasn't just the plot and the characters were that were hard to grasp, but the writing as well. I found the below paragraph baffling and I read it about three times before asking my husband to read it to confirm.

He had seen enough ransacking of living spaces in his many years on the force, and knew there to be only three kinds. One was when the perpetrator was trying to make it look like burglary. The final kind of ransacking was when the thief was looking for something in particular.

When you say, "There were three kinds..." I just assume that you are going to list them, not just give me two. Otherwise what is the point of giving them a number? Just say, there were a few reasons for burglary; one was to make it look like one, and one targeted one.

I didn't like this book at all, I just felt baffled. Baffled

[Meletis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Βιβλιάρα! Πανέξυπνη πλοκή και ένα τέλος σκέτη απόλαυση! Εξαιρετική η ελληνική μετάφραση!

[Patti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh for fuck's sake! This guy clearly had this idea--"I got it guys, see?" (imagine old timey gangster voice). "This guy is gonna have face blindness--FACE BLINDNESS! Genius!! And I'll write a story about it where...uh...some people get killed and we don't know why but there's this weird occult symbol thing and uh some people get killed and it's a mystery--that's it! A MYSTERY how they are all connected, see? And FACE BLINDNESS, MOTHERFUCKERS!"

The beginning is kind of good, to be fair. I like the Kevin Byrne character, and his 1976 memories. Sounded like a fun time. Not so keen on the Jessica the ADA character. She was not fleshed out enough, and kind of not necessary. The whole super secret "square" thing (I don't remember the exact name) was just sort of...there. The daughter and the nun appeared just to explain this stupid square thing. I wanted more Kevin, Jimmy and 1976 Philly. The ending was just ridiculous. The ultimate "let's see who the REAL killer is!" Scooby Doo ending. I only wish they would have actually pulled a mask off of some carnival worker before piling into the Mystery Machine to smoke weed and eat Scooby snacks.

[Alfred Nobile · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this ARC from NetGalley. First of all I must say I have enjoyed all previous books I have read by this author. But this book left me feeling strangely flat. I cannot put my hand on the reason why, but I suspect it was the use of backstory throughout this book. I appreciate backstory but when it makes up 40% + of the book I find it slows the story down and kills any forward impetus the story was making. I am willing to admit this may be a fault on my behalf. I must say I enjoyed the last 20 chapters as it was more indicative of the authors previous work. To sum up I enjoyed this book with great reservations and I am glad I did not pay for this book. Mr Montanari you have written better books.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Homicidal maniacs on the loose and it all started back in the old country more than 70 years ago. It's all been done before but it's done well here. An enjoyable thriller that's non too taxing.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great Balzano and Byrne book. I love these characters. There was a lot going on in this book with a lot of history and characters. Sometimes it was a little hard keeping things straight, but that didn't take away from it still being a great story. I liked the addition of the bad guy Michael/Billy not being able to recognize faces. That added a unique layer to the story.

[Mareli Thalwitzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shutter Man will have you on the edge of your seat for 400 pages. A good page turner with a few good twists and great characters.

[Blood Rose Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

Richard Montanari: Shutter Man In the ninth book in his Balzano & Byrne series, Richard Montanari introduces the readers to a story that was 30 years in the making: Billy is a perfectionist when it comes to killing, if only he could remember who he was supposed to kill looked like. Billy carries his targets in photographs in his pocket to make sure he get the right one. Killing is part of Billy's ancestry as part of the  Philadelphia's Farren crime family. Detective Kevin Byrne and assistant district attorney Jessica Balzano are assigned a strange break and enter series all of which seem to be link to the Devil's pocket and Bryne's past. All of this jeopardizes the Farren family and has put Bryne on Billy's hit list.
 
I was really really excited to read this book, it had such an interesting premise (I mean a hit man not being able to remember face of who he is supposed to kill but can only tell who they are through photos. Just think of how you could take advantage of that) and the beginning was fantastic, engaging, had me hooked and then it fell really flat and slow.   Going in to this book I did not know that it was part of a series when I requested it on Netgalley. It was my fault for not checking, I get that, but I guess I assumed (we all know what happens when you do that) that it would be listed as number 9 in the series. So as you can guess I did not know the players in this game, their history and this is probably part of the problem I had.There was too much back and forth not only between different characters but also between past a present that I found myself lost some where in the shuffle. I like to think that I read often enough that this is a hard thing to do but I just really struggled with this book. I also really like when back story is explained especially when it relates to the characters and sometimes the crimes, but this one did not feel fluid with me.  I just do not know with this book, I have read some amazing reviews for it that make me think I should go back and give it another try, but I really had a hard time getting in to the story, that makes me think this one was not for me. Maybe if I start at the beginning of this series I would have been able to get in to the story more. Basically do not make the same mistake that I did.  Cheers!!!
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[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seit Generationen bestimmt die irische Familie Farren in Philadelphia, genauer Devils Pocket, in Verbrecherkreisen. Ob Schutzgelderpressung, Mord, Einschüchterung – alles hat die Familie im Repertoire. Während Daniel Farren in Haft sitzt, weil er einen Bombenanschlag durchgeführt haben soll, werden plötzlich teils ganze Familien getötet und je einer Person das Gesicht gehäutet. Was steckt dahinter? Wie kann man das alles stoppen? Fragen über Fragen, denen sich Mordermittler Kevin Byrne annimmt, dabei ist er in seiner Jugend selbst schon einmal mit den Farrens aneinandergeraten…

Das Buch beginnt extrem spannend und schockierend. Das hatte mich schon bei der Leseprobe überzeugt, allerdings folgt dann eine weniger spannende, dafür informative und gelegentlich auch unterhaltsame Phase mit zahlreichen Protagonisten, die man erst nach und nach lernt auseinander zu halten, in den verschiedensten Generationen – zurück bis 1941. Das war gelegentlich verwirrend, aber man kam nach und nach rein, entwickelte ein gutes Verständnis für die Hintergründe und konnte somit auch besser in Richtung der aktuellen Taten spekulieren. Allerdings verlor das Buch schon an Spannung in dieser Phase und lange, fast bis zum letzten Viertel des Buches, fand ich die auch nicht mehr wirklich. Der Showdown hatte es aber wirklich in sich, wartete mit verschiedenen Überraschungen und Wendungen auf, sodass ich am Ende recht zufrieden war.

Der Schreibstil ist an sich gelungen, flüssig und gut zu lesen – sieht man von der zwischenzeitlichen „Überforderung“ durch eine Vielzahl der Personen und den Zeitsprüngen ab, auch sehr leicht verständlich.
Insgesamt war es also gar nicht schlecht, jedoch würde ich nicht von einem Thriller, sondern von einem Krimi reden.

Obwohl es das 9. Buch einer Reihe ist, fand ich mich sehr gut zurecht. Nur an Kleinigkeiten, die nichts mit dem Fall an sich zu tun hatten, bemerkte ich, dass Lücken da sind. Ich werde die Reihe wahrscheinlich fortsetzen, auch wenn mich das Buch nicht restlos überzeugt hat, so hat es mir doch gefallen.