Rizzo's War

by Lou Manfredo

Book Overview

"Rizzo's War" is an introduction to a wonderful new voice in crime fiction, ringing with authenticity, full of personality, and perfect for fans of police procedurals.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312538057
• ISBN13: 9780312538057
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Length: 290 Pages
• Weight: 1.18 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Livin' in the Gray Areas

Detective Sergeant Joe Rizzo and Detective Mike McQueen are two veterans of the NYPD and find themselves at different places in their careers and in their lives. In "Rizzo's War," they both will be tested by a series of incidents and crimes that will reveal much in their characters. To me, it's the dialogue that carries and sustains the narrative here. There's grit and some resignation in evidence that paint this story with a weathered patina of realism in a palette of gray. It sure doesn't sound phony or contrived - let's put it that way. Both characters are quite different and the author does a nice job of keeping them quite distinct by using their backgrounds as a touchstone in writing about their current behaviors. Manfredo creates a nice positive tension dynamic between these guys and it's quite enjoyable to examine it little by little. By the end, you know and like both these guys... and you're damn glad they're on our side. The action in the narrative is not comprised of chase scenes or shootouts. Think of the movie "Seven" with Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt. Older veteran detective - cool-headed, observant, thorough, dedicated... working with a younger, somewhat impulsive, newly-minted detective with some definite potential. This novel is about that potential in all of us, whether it be in our professional achievements or in our character development. How far will we go to get ahead, to improve ourselves? Some of the answer lies within... these pages. For me, this one was a great read. Since it's my first exposure to the author, I'll be checking out some of Lou Manfredo's other work because of it.

A remarkable book for a debut author

Either Mr. Manfredo has the world's finest editor, or he has figured out how to write a gripping police procedural right out of the gate. The basic outline for this book has been written a thousand times before: grizzled and not-quite-cynical veteran with clouds hanging over his head is paired with a naive, yet earnest and bright, rookie. They are embroiled in a case with heavy political overtones, must test the bounds of ethics and law as they move in on the case, etc... You've read it before, and you'll read it again. The characters themselves could have come right out of central casting. So, if the plot is right out of the "book of police novel plots", and the characters the same ones that have been written before, why am I so excited about this book? Well, Mr. Manfredo has managed to put them in a vivid setting that captures the essence of what this reader imagines actual police work might be like. The decisions are once that you would expect to be made by actual human beings, as opposed to the caricatures often written by both police and civilian authors alike. I've read too many police novels that read like they were written by the narrator for "Dragnet", or were penned by somebody that either hates cops, or has failed to actually spend time with any. This is neither. It does not glamorize the much-needed, yet messy, work of the police, nor does it offer a base for righteous outrage of barely-legal investigative methods. Novels written by police officers almost invariably go over what guilty scumbags all suspects are, while all police are heroes navigating the triple evils of the law, politics, and Internal Affairs, and the civilian authors make all the police come across as Dirty Harry, who will do whatever it takes to get the job done. It gets old after a while, so it is quite refreshing to read something different. In this book, you are incredibly given a platform to draw your own conclusions, even within the rigid confines of a novel that has it's own solution to the various problems faced by the people involved. While this isn't necessarily unusual in a novel, it is quite rare in this genre. As a debut author, the chances of this book "making it" are slim, but I sincerely hope it sells well enough to produce more work by this remarkable writer.

A different kind of hard-boiled cop story

Joe Rizzo is a detective in NYPD's 62nd Precinct. He is partnered with a young whiz kid newly minted detective and together they solve crimes, talk about crime and we learn how a determined detective can trade favors to skip bureaucratic steps. "Rizzo's War" is, in a lot of ways, a non-traditional detective story. Usually, there is an overarching plot (the big crime, in a detective story) and lots of smaller crimes pepper the story as interesting filler. In this book, we get a lot of little crimes to introduce the characters and give the reader the feel for the environment. The actual "big" case doesn't occur until about halfway into the book. But, that's okay. The characters are interesting. The environment is interesting. The cases are interesting. The book feels like it is an introduction to a series and I hope that it is. I'll look for more Rizzo books.

The best since Wambaugh's early stuff

"... character doesn't change, only circumstances change. So, when you get older, when you're my age and you been fighting off mortgages and doctor bills and tuition - not to mention crooked bosses and lying citizens - you'll adjust to it. We can joust windmills ... and lose, or we can fight dirty and maybe win once in a while ... We sneak the ball into their court and we walk away. It's the best we can do." - Detective Joe Rizzo Not since Joseph Wambaugh's first two books, The New Centurions (1971) and The Blue Knight (1972), have I read a city cop novel as riveting as RIZZO'S WAR. Joe Rizzo has been a member of the NYPD for decades and a detective for more than one. Now, he's partnered with Mike McQueen, a twenty-eight year-old, six-year veteran of the uniformed force who's just been given his detective's shield. For the latter, school is now in session. Rizzo's first lesson: There is no right; there is no wrong; there just is. Especially in Brooklyn's Sixty-second Precinct. Some authors of fiction go their entire writing careers cranking out stories peopled with monoclonal performers undifferentiated except by name and job title. Making the character-driving personalities unique one from another - reflected in speech, mental attitude, and mannerisms - is a talent so often lacking. Here, in his debut novel, author Lou Manfredo succeeded beyond my wildest expectations. Since, for me, reading becomes a cerebral motion picture, Manfredo's skill made the difference between B & W and color images, or between a 2-D presentation and a 3-D one viewed through those silly glasses. Joe - savvy in the perils of both the mean streets and intradepartmental politics - teaches young Mike about life as an NYPD detective while investigating a sexual assault, a home-invasion burglary, a suicide vs. murder, and, in the main subplot, the disappearance of a powerful city councilman's mentally disturbed daughter. I couldn't put the volume down. (After delivering Mom to church on Sunday, I sat inside the car and read; reading in a pew would've been bad form.) As RIZZO'S WAR extends over a year's timeframe, by the end of which Joe is on the brink of retirement, it's perhaps doubtful whether there'll be a sequel involving the lead character. Oh, but I hope so. If not that, perhaps a prequel.

Amazingly good

The author has chosen to part from the standard cop story and the result is a winner. The seasoned cop/young cop approach is not what makes the story unique, but the personalities of each compel the reader to keep reading. Joe Rizzo, the seasoned cop, and Mike McQueen, the newly minted detective are at first leery of each other but their relationship grows into a true partnership as the character of each is revealed. After several cases which are both emotionally compelling and at times humorous, the case which has the potential to break each of them is dumped in their laps. That of a crooked politician and his runaway daughter. Their interactions with motorcycle gangs, priests and psychiatrists keeps the reader fully engaged as they make their way to the daughter. Once the daughter is found and Rizzo and McQueen learn the full extent of the Father's secrets, the two of them must make decisions which will impact their careers and even their lives. The clever way in which they make their choices and their personal journeys to get there make them heroes not soon to be forgotten. This is way more than just another cop story. A definite must read.