Book Review: Absolute Rage

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Absolute Rage     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon US ADOBE Reader eBook Amazon US MSReader eBook Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Robert K. Tanenbaum
Class/Genre:   Mystery   Legal Setting   Police Procedural   Thriller
Series: Butch Karp & Marlene Ciampi # 14
Summer in the city means a lot more than just a loving spoonful of
humidity so Butch Karp, his wife Marlene Ciampi, and their twin ten-year-old boys (Zik and Zak), cool off on their Long Island beach
property. After completing the spring semester at Boston College,
their "eaglette" daughter Lucy joins them on the North Shore. Their
neighbor Rose Heeney tells Marlene about her hometown in
McCullensburg, West Virginia where family feuds make the Hatfields
and McCoys seem like Manhattan debutantes.

Not long afterward, Butch and Marlene learn that someone murdered Rose and her husband, Red, a union organizer. The West Virginia governor appoints Butch as a special prosecutor to investigate the Heeney deaths. Butch accompanied by Marlene between canine discussions and their three children travel to West Virginia. However, the quintet will soon find that Manhattan is a safer place than the small coal mining towns of West Virginia, as no family member will come out of this summer unscathed.

The latest Karp-Ciampi tale takes long time fans on quite a twist as the action occurs in West Virginia with the kids playing pivotal and dangerous roles and tragedy hitting home. Though humorous, the story line is much darker than the previous novels with the stunning misfortune striking one of them and with Marlene seemingly going crazier as her dogs hold conversations with her and not just letting her know what they want. Still Robert K. Tanenbaum provides a powerful thriller albeit that leaves readers satiated and the Karp-Ciampi crowd ready for their next adventure still filled with ABSOLUTE RAGE.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner