Kensington, Jun 2004, 14.00, 256 pp.
ISBN: 078203306
In Little Italy, Sonny Magro lays dead in the street just outside the church where Father Giannini led the Mass. Afterward, attendee Joey Dee looks at the blood flowing in the gutter as a reminder of his quest to leave New York for Vegas with his girlfriend, whose father lies in the street dead. While Joey stares at the corpse, his friend Vito Santero joins him. Vito had his brains knocked out of him by Sister Agnes so he cannot put much cogent thoughts together. He tells his only pal Joey that he saw the thugs who work for crime kingpin Nicky Mole toss Sonny off the roof.
Joey panics because he knows that Vito cannot be quiet and does not know the danger of mouthing. Not long afterward, Nicky's hooligans realize that Joey knows they killed Sonny. Not wanting to commit a homicide so soon after the previous one, the Mole mob hire Joey as a chauffeur to keep an eye on him until they can decides how to dispose of their new employee and the eye witness.
JOEY DEE GETS WISE is an intriguing urban crime Noir without a professional sleuth. The story line grips the reader with its dark look at life in the city contrasted against the gala of an Italian Feast (those are worth the trip to the Big Apple). Except for Joey and the mean streets of New York, the support characters feel more like caricatures out of the New York Italian stereotype handbook. Louisa Ermelino who makes tours of Manhattan neighborhoods intriguing (see SISTERS MALLONE) serves as a wonderful guide of Little Italy.
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book descript. of violence and chases - 10% Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40% How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
The crook is....
- stalking/killing innocents
Crime Thriller
Yes
General Crime (including known murderer)
Yes
Who's the criminal enemy here?
- breaking up mobsters
If story PRIMARILY about main chr. being hunted...
- hunted by killer/stalker
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- champion of justice
Age:
- 20's-30's
How much violence does he/she use?
- just the right amount
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
