Sacrifice [Paperback]

"Sacrifice" is the darkest novel in the Burke series. It is also a turning point. Since each Burke novel builds on its predecessors, Burke's figurative descent into hell at the end of the book was bound to have a traumatic effect on him. "Satan's Child" is arguably the most disturbing creation that Author Vachss has created in the entire series. I've read all of the Burke novels, and by and large I prefer the earlier books to the later entries. Overall, I would rank "Sacrifice" somewhere in the middle.

This was the first Vachss book I ever read, it was given to me when at the age of thirty I finally got that horrid childhood disease, chicken pox. While laid up with 104 for a fever and wanting to die, my father gave me a copy of Sacrifice to help pass away the hours.

Within the first 20 pages the pox were forgotten and a Burke fan was born for life.

I knew a pedophile. For years we tried to convince 'the right people' that this person was indeed a pedophile. Unfortunately no one listened and his money bought his release. How I wish I knew a Burke in the real world.

What impressed me the most about this book was its truth. It is evident from the start that Mr. Vachss has spent time in the trenches, that his stories are sadly based on a grim part of life most people would rather not acknowledge.

The message in his words is conveyed through the gruff gentleness of Burke. The loyalty between Burke and his group is a loyalty very few people share. His voodoo accurate as well, this is simply a high quality novel that will disturb the reader, make the reader think and introduce the reader permanently into The Zone.

Read this book.

Andrew Vachss, social worker, lawyer, author is a leader in the child protective movement. He calls it "a war," and considers his writing as powerful a weapon as his litigation. Vachss openly admits that he writes about the abuse of children because he wants to raise people's awareness of what's going on, and he'll reach a wider audience with fiction. His novels are powerful. He hits hard. His street tough dialogue and staccato-like prose lend authenticity to this raw, darker than noir world - a world where unspeakable horrors are perpetrated upon innocent children. "Sacrifice" and other books in the Burke series are not for the faint of heart. As heinous, almost far-fetched, as the narratives seem, (who could treat children like this?), the stories are, unfortunately, as real as case studies and the perpetrators prey on their young victims all over the world.

The author tackles a particularly difficult subject here. Luke is a wonderful little boy with a genius I.Q.. He is inquisitive, playful, friendly to the people he trusts - which are few. He has other personalities, however - and one is of a monstrous baby-killer filled with uncontrollable rage. Luke was repeatedly tortured, sexually abused and cruelly filmed in his agony by his parents and their friends, members of a Satanic cult. He is "Satan's child." One of the questions that arises from Luke's case is, after psychiatric treatment to merge his multiple identities, should he be charged with committing murder - or should those people who turned him into a fiend be held responsible - if they can be found...and if Burke doesn't get to them first?

Vigilantism and revenge are other issues that continually pop up in this series. Burke was an abused child raised in numerous foster homes and is a veteran of reform school and prison. "I live under the darkness, where it's safe. Safe from things so secret that they have no name. Under the darkness - it's not a territory you occupy - you take it with you - it goes where I go." And, "There's other's like me. Children of the Secret." Consequently, he himself is unable to control his anger when he deals with pedophiles. His violent acts of vengeance often save the courts the trouble of trying the suspects. But revenge, especially by murder, is against the law.

"Sacrifice" is far from my favorite Burke book. The subject matter really creeped-me-out...and that's hard to do. I know that crimes like these happen - I just don't know if I want to read about them in my leisure time. Also, the author really proselytizes here. And that is so unnecessary. He makes his points over and over again and each time more fervently. The reader gets it - how could one not "get it?" Here Mr. Vachss is too much the man on a mission. But his readers are with him from the get-go. Too much preaching to the choir.

The usual cast of extraordinary characters are all present, including: Max the Silent, a warrior and now a father; Pansy is a warrior of another species - she's a Neapolitan mastiff, just like the kind that came over the Alps with Hannibal; the Mole, a pasty-faced genius who lives in a bunker beneath a high-tech junkyard; the Prophet, a scam artist who speaks in rhyme; Mama Wong, group doyenne - a Chinese Jewish mother and restaurateur, "keeps her prices high and the ambiance foul to discourage yuppies." She cares for the gang, takes Burke's messages and holds his stash; Michelle, a gorgeous transvestite is absent here, busy dealing with the complications which have arisen around her life-changing operation; Terry, the "lost boy" adopted by Michelle and Mole is around to befriend Luke. Ms. Wolfe, a sex crimes prosecutor who Burke has the hots for, plays a bigger than usual role in this novel - which is a plus. And Queen Thana, voodoo royalty, is introduced here too.

This is not a bad book. I don't think Andrew Vachss has it in him to write poor fiction. But, be warned - read at your own risk of some sleepless nights.
JANA