Strip

A Novel

By: Thomas Perry

Narrated by: Michael Kramer

Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

An aging but formidable strip-club owner, Claudiu "Manco" Kapak, has been robbed by a masked gunman as he placed his cash receipts in a bank's night-deposit box. Enraged, he sends his half-dozen security men out to find a suspect who is spending lots of cash and is new enough to Los Angeles not to know he was robbing a gangster.

Their search leads them to Joe Carver, an innocent but hardly defenseless newcomer who evades capture and sets out to make Kapak wish he'd chosen someone else.

Meanwhile, the real culprit, Jefferson Davis Falkins, and his new girlfriend, Carrie, seem to believe they've found a whole new profession: robbing Manco Kapak. Lieutenant Nick Slosser, the police detective in charge of the puzzling and increasingly violent case, has his own troubles, including worries about how he's going to afford to send the oldest child of each of his two bigamous marriages to college without making their mothers suspicious.

As this odd series of difficulties explodes into a triple killing, Carver finds himself in the middle of a brewing gang war over Kapak's little empire, while Falkins and Carrie journey into territory more strange and violent than either had imagined.

©2010 Thomas Perry (P)2010 Tantor

Critic reviews

“Perry's exquisite timing and finesse provide near perfect endings to the multiple story lines and make this escapist reading at its best.” ( Publishers Weekly)

Rambling

The story seem to ramble with the author not knowing which is the main character. By the time you get to the end you're happy that the author rushes every twist.

Good story, weird Cadence

I enjoyed the story very much, the end was my favorite. this was a random choice for me and glad I made it.

Interesting story, well read

Audio presentation was well read except for pronunciation of LA streets (e.g. Sepulveda). Interesting story, with good ending.

I love some bad guys

There is nothing better than a gangster with a heart! I applaud them every time. The writer of this book took great pains to give all of his characters features. I loved the boss looking at all his employees and giving special things. Who says crime doesn't pay. On the other hand he also built a good story and kept a lot of things dangling.
I suggest this as a good read. ENjoy

Not A Waste Of Time But...

This is like a collection of short stories...Maybe even comic book stories. Each is interesting and they do hang together... And it's not really boring. But I kept expecting something greater than the sum of these parts would happen and less did. There are so many books to listen to and I'm a tad disappointed that I spent this much of it on "Strip".

Still it made my morning gym visits less uncomfortable and wasn't bad company during household chores. Not sure that's a great recommendation though. Plus there are brothers in this plot and Michael Kramer seemed stymied over how to make their tongues seem different enough to keep track. On the other hand they, like most of these characters, really weren't much deeper than comic book characters so, maybe he didn't care about them, so... neither did I.

On balance? Pass on this one. It's not a waste of time but....

Really Fun, Elmore Leonardish Crime Novel

Audible's generous return policy too often makes me give up on a book before I should. Although listening to it this time, (I had forgotten I purchased it until I recognized the opening scene), it grabbed me from the beginning. So I have no idea why it was returned, I am only glad I finished it this time.

There are several storylines revolving around remarkable characters in uniquely perilous situations. The common thread is the anti-hero, a 64 year old, Romanian immigrant, small time gangster who owns a few night clubs and strip joints. He is decent enough to like, ruthless enough to fear. But when he mistakenly targets an innocent man as the theif who robbed him, all hell breaks lose.

Strip is sexy, fun, wildly suspenseful and worth whatever you pay for it.

too many gimmicks no mystery

Bizarre characters don't make a great book. There needs to be character development, as well. this just left me feeling empty.

I liked the characters

I liked the characters in the story, and especially the fact that the lines between good and bad sometimes blurred

Really interesting characters

Perry created a fun, escapist romp, by steering his characters away from the usual outcomes.

O good accept for pronunciations

Get is unhappy on my ear to hear pronunciations of Los Angeles streets so badly done