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Amazon.co.uk Review
Richard Price's Samaritan, like his previous novels Freedomland and Clockers, is a crime drama set in the explosive slums of fictional Dempsy, New Jersey. Ray Mitchell, a former TV writer, has returned to his home town to reunite with his estranged teenage daughter, Ruby. Eager to contribute to his beleaguered community, Ray volunteers as a writing teacher at a local high school. When a brutal assault leaves him hospitalised, Nerese Ammons, a nearly retired detective and lost childhood friend of Ray's, investigates. She discovers, however, that while Ray can identify his attacker, he is unwilling to disclose their identity. Anxious to end her career with fireworks, Nerese continues digging, only to find that Ray made several generous donations to poor acquaintances and recently began a romantic relationship with the wife of an established criminal. While the case looks closed, Nerese continues to find evidence of Ray's troubled past and short-sighted altruism, increasing the number of possible assailants and suggesting Ray's complicity in the crime.
Price's narrative, which alternates between Ray's story and Nerese's ongoing investigation, gains momentum as the mystery nears resolution. Samaritan falters, though, in its awkward attempts at timeliness and, more acutely, in its underdevelopment. The selfish, people-pleasing Ray is a multifaceted character, but he fails to inspire sympathy, while the savvy Nerese never escapes two-dimensional limbo. Price brings the streets of Dempsy to life, however, with informed, realistic descriptions and inner-city survivors such as junkie-turned-independent-social-worker White Tom Potenza, who still "couldn't pass a pay phone without flicking the coin return, still stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of salvageable debris". While the plot will keep readers engaged, it's the world into which they're drawn that makes Samaritan a worthwhile visit. --Ross Doll, Amazon.com --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
'Richard Price is the finest writer about contemporary urban America on the planet, and SAMARITAN confirms it. This writer is at the peak of his powers a story so good you never want it to end' Daily Mail He is one of those rare writers who doesn't see why an ability to entertain and enthrall should come at a cost' Evening Standard
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Richard Price was sat in a Mcdonalds in Manhattan when he spotted a drug dealer on duty in the street. With a question on his mind he set out to research a potential story. Two novels later he brings us Samaritan, this third installment set in the fictional city of Dempsey, New Jersey (located somewhere between factual Hoboken and Jersey City) is an answers first gig with a plotline concerning the assault of wealthy jewish samaritan, Ray Mitchel, and his reticence to name the perp. As with the previous two novels in this vain (Mr. Price has written seven novels to date, but has classified himself as a crime ghetto novelist based on his last three works) there's a wealth of twists and intrigue woven around finely drawn characters with some brilliant analysis of the human heart, fast paced dialogue and excellent narrative. However with this, the third of it's type, Richard Price is really flogging a dead horse. His portrayal of human tragedy set against the back drop of mid-size American city travesty was so brilliantly done (to death) in Clockers and Freedomland that to paint a third picture on the same scenery is tantamount to turning the subject of ebonics versus white reality into a soap opera. The author's voice has changed so much from his early days (the fantastic and wickedly funny Ladies' Man for example) that it seems strange he would become obsessed with the urban jungle, ghetto and dope spot, without moving on. Following the brilliant social commentary of it's two predecessors, this work seems strangely lacking and reads more like junk food for the brain as oppose to a lesson into the darkness of modern urbania.
That said, this is still a strong if slightly pointless novel. Price doesn't complictate, and wisely avoids the use of "Blackspeak" or ebonics. Neither does he delve too deeply into the workings of a societal system the majority of this book's readership will know little about without explaining in full. The characters are highly detailed, if a little too clever for their own good, and, thankfully, aren't handsome, young, beautiful, muscular, slim, potential movie stars - these are real people and their descriptions makes them believable.
On the whole, if you're a fan you'll get a kick, if you want a bare bones crime story and you've never read Richard Price before, read his others first.
That said, this is still a strong if slightly pointless novel. Price doesn't complictate, and wisely avoids the use of "Blackspeak" or ebonics. Neither does he delve too deeply into the workings of a societal system the majority of this book's readership will know little about without explaining in full. The characters are highly detailed, if a little too clever for their own good, and, thankfully, aren't handsome, young, beautiful, muscular, slim, potential movie stars - these are real people and their descriptions makes them believable.
On the whole, if you're a fan you'll get a kick, if you want a bare bones crime story and you've never read Richard Price before, read his others first.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
This book is a genuine page-turner, but not for the more common reasons of thrilling plot twists or raw excitement. Instead it draws you in inexorably by way of the finely-drawn characters, the arcs of their development and the realism of their dialogue.
Ostensibly a quite straight forward police procedural, the joy of this book is learning more about the people, places and local history that defines them.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Richard Price is, without doubt, one of the best writers writing in English today. He's a wonderful novelist. That said, this is not his best book. That, I'm pretty sure, would be Clockers; Freedomland is a tour de force; Lush Life is well worth reading.
Somehow, The Samaritan doesn't quite live like the others. The main character is vivid, a bit raw, perhaps autobiographical. The other characters don't breathe the way his characters usually do. Still, a good read.
Somehow, The Samaritan doesn't quite live like the others. The main character is vivid, a bit raw, perhaps autobiographical. The other characters don't breathe the way his characters usually do. Still, a good read.
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I really, really enjoyed this book. The overriding feeling I have after finishing it is that every character is so finely drawn. Read more
Published on 18 Oct 2004 by MrShev
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