| ||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.co.uk.
5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
36 reviews
17 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Too Violent
28 Jan 2009
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I used to enjoy Michael McGarrity's novels. Haven't finished the last several due to boredom generated by his use of extreme and brutal violence. He could probably write a better book by going back to the basics, like having a plot and utilizing the beautiful southwestern settings, instead of using extreme violence and sociopathic villains to keep the action going. After a while, you just start to expect another random murder or two in each chapter, each more brutal than the one before, which has the effect on me on generating boredom and distaste, rather than interest. I put it down after getting only half-way through the book. Surprised I got that far.
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Reviewing: "Dead or Alive" by Michael McGarrity
1 Mar 2009
Format:Hardcover
It begins in the Bernalillo County Detention Center in New Mexico where a mistake is made and inmate Craig Larson is accidentally picked to go to a minimum security prison outside Springer, New Mexico. He's killed before and gotten away with it. He got caught because he stayed too long in one place and now faces time for his original embezzlement charge and unlawful flight. He should be sent to the super-max prison outside of Santa Fe. Instead, he is loaded into a van as the only prisoner with the lone guard who will also serve as his driver.
The second mistake is made by the driving guard who cuffs him in front for the several hour trip. He then makes another mistake, suffers the brutal consequences and Craig Larson is once again a fugitive from justice. This time, he is going to make sure he never goes back to jail. Envisioning himself as some sort of modern day western outlaw, he goes on a violent rampage across New Mexico and Western Texas with retired Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney and his son Lieutenant Clayton Istee in pursuit.
What could have been an interesting novel quickly turns into a simplistic action filled violent joy ride. Stereotypes abound through out a novel that has virtually zero character development. While both Kerney and Istee express repeatedly how they have bonded and have so much respect for the man each is, often from the back of a horse, neither character ever has that deep internal monologue moment that would create such an event. Istee's heritage is yet again barely given a passing nod as are Kerney and his family's experiences in London now that Sarah is stationed there on a three year stint as part of her military career.
While it isn't surprising that Craig Larson is a clichéd stereotype which we as readers have to be treated to experiencing every few pages just like any other novel, it is disappointing to see Kerney and Istee reduced to little more than cardboard cutouts. Opportunities for real dialogue between father and son are frequent, especially during the last third of the novel and are wasted on snappy throw away lines. Taken in another direction, this is a novel that could have had real depth to it.
Instead, it is a violence filled simplistic clichéd read of an outlaw terrorizing and killing women and men and of the two valiant lawmen , modern day cowboys , who must chase this scum deep into the mountains before delivering gun barrel justice frontier style.
The movie version will no doubt be great. After all, that must be what it was written for because it wasn't written for readers.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2009
The second mistake is made by the driving guard who cuffs him in front for the several hour trip. He then makes another mistake, suffers the brutal consequences and Craig Larson is once again a fugitive from justice. This time, he is going to make sure he never goes back to jail. Envisioning himself as some sort of modern day western outlaw, he goes on a violent rampage across New Mexico and Western Texas with retired Santa Fe Police Chief Kevin Kerney and his son Lieutenant Clayton Istee in pursuit.
What could have been an interesting novel quickly turns into a simplistic action filled violent joy ride. Stereotypes abound through out a novel that has virtually zero character development. While both Kerney and Istee express repeatedly how they have bonded and have so much respect for the man each is, often from the back of a horse, neither character ever has that deep internal monologue moment that would create such an event. Istee's heritage is yet again barely given a passing nod as are Kerney and his family's experiences in London now that Sarah is stationed there on a three year stint as part of her military career.
While it isn't surprising that Craig Larson is a clichéd stereotype which we as readers have to be treated to experiencing every few pages just like any other novel, it is disappointing to see Kerney and Istee reduced to little more than cardboard cutouts. Opportunities for real dialogue between father and son are frequent, especially during the last third of the novel and are wasted on snappy throw away lines. Taken in another direction, this is a novel that could have had real depth to it.
Instead, it is a violence filled simplistic clichéd read of an outlaw terrorizing and killing women and men and of the two valiant lawmen , modern day cowboys , who must chase this scum deep into the mountains before delivering gun barrel justice frontier style.
The movie version will no doubt be great. After all, that must be what it was written for because it wasn't written for readers.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2009
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Violence with No Purpose
27 Jan 2009
Format:Hardcover
The murders just go on and on--not nearly as believeable as his previous books which were well plotted. It's as if he said "murder one person every 5 pages." McGarrity has a mental health professional as well as a police background and he knows better than this.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
