Available at Amazon Check Price Now!
The Criminalist
 |
Customer Rating : 
Availibility : Usually ships in 24 hours 
|
The Criminalist Overviews
Terry Moran is a cop whose rapid rise in the department came to a crashing halt when he was accused of butchering his brother's wife. The accusation alone was enough to destroy a promising career, and now, twenty years later, he is a pariah among his peers; a lost and broken soul merely going through the motions of living and operating from the depths of his despair. Then the body of a young woman is discovered in an alleyway in a downtown commercial district--savagely slain with a gaping hole where her heart heart should be--and the all-consuming flames of supicion are feuled once more.
The Criminalist RelateItems
The Criminalist Specifications
The saddest thing about Eugene Izzi's last book, completed just before his bizarre death by hanging in 1996, is that it could very well have been the start of a very successful series--just what this talented crime writer needed to get his career back on track after some false moves and setbacks.
Dominick DiGrazia, the criminalist of the title, is a fascinating, gifted Chicago homicide detective who has carefully avoided the promotions that would remove him from the actual work of investigating crimes. He has trouble keeping his explosive anger in check as less-qualified superiors try to misuse or take advantage of his expertise; his thorny personality and high standards also mark him as a loner. But when a pregnant young prostitute is murdered and savagely butchered on the 20th anniversary of another similarly horrible killing, DiGrazia asks Janice Constantine--a tough street cop in her 50s--to become his partner. It's a smart choice for him and a pleasure for readers: Constantine is a wonderfully real, totally unglamorous character with raspy edges that help keep DiGrazia honest.
Suspects in the new murder include Dr. Tom Moran, the psychiatrist whose pregnant wife was the first victim two decades before; Dr. Moran's cop brother, Terry Moran, whose career is frozen by rumors of his own involvement in that case; and Mike Schmidt, DiGrazia's former partner, obsessed to the point of alcoholism and insanity by the earlier case. And, as in Izzi's earlier books, Chicago in its many mean and meaty guises plays a major role in this final effort. --Dick Adler
The Criminalist CustomerReview
Previous reviews have well summarized the characters and plot of The Criminalist. All I can add is I never read an Izzi book without hoping it would never end. I hated to see this novel come to a close. It is brilliant in every respect: storyline, characters (chillingly real, honest, and abrupt), and realism. This novel held me from beginning to end. I cared about the people, I grimaced at the stupidity or venality of some of the police characters, I felt for DeGrazia whenever he was frustrated-I just was deeply involved in every aspect of this work. I am sure everyone who reads and enjoys this book will agree with me in my firm belief that Eugene Izzi did not commit suicide. He was murdered! A writer of such brilliance, with so much going for him, could not be that far gone. The circumstances of his death lead me to believe there were elements in Chicago who felt he was getting too close. To what? We'll never know. I read every book I could find by Izzi. I, for one, mourn his loss. He was a true great.
*** Product Information and Prices Stored:Jun 21, 2010 09:30:26
