Tricks

Overall this is about what I expect from an 87th Precinct novel. The boys of the Eight-Seven are juggling about four different cases on a single Halloween night: an obscene phone caller, a gang of kids shooting up liquor stores, a serial killer who attacks prostitutes, and a magician who seems to have done "one last disappearing act." (Phrase cribbed from the back cover; it's a good one.) The book constantly shifts viewpoints and the action never lags. The dialogue is similarly snappy and overlapping: the conversation between Parker, Hawes and Brown about Parker's desire to write a book had me laughing out loud with its comic timing. I was a bit concerned about the serial-killer-targeting-prostitutes storyline, because it's not exactly show more the easiest thing for me to read about, but fortunately the previous murders are not discussed in extensive detail. Recommended for fans of the series. show less

“It’s Halloween night, and hell has opened its gates on the 87th Precinct.”

The bad guy in this one is spreading body parts around the precinct, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle - a very bloody jigsaw puzzle. Are the pieces from the same body?
In another plot line, a group of eleven-year-old kids are robbing liquor stores and shooting the owners, saying “Trick or treat!” as they run in and out.
Carella gets shot, again. (how many times has he been shot in this series?) And it looks like Kling is losing a woman, again. These two detectives are just abused.

A good book all around, and a nice rebound from the previous book in the series, which I didn't like.
The wrap up of all the story lines, the last 15 pages or so, is really show more enjoyable! Definitely a treat - NOT a trick! show less

A bit dizzying, this one. Three plots, all revolving around Halloween and the book's apt title. One: the disappearance of a magician from a high school performance where pieces of his body are discovered all over the city; Two: A series of liquor store robberies with dead owners, starting with four costumed “kids” going into the stores for a treat; Three: Detective First Class Eileen Burke has to fight her demons, posing as a hooker to lure in a serial killer.

An "up-all-night" story set on Halloween in a lightly fictionalized 1980s NYC, which happens to also be part of the 87th Precinct series. Perfectly interwoven murder mysteries, robberies, and parties create an abundance of incidents allowing for Tricks to be move quickly. Though it's crass and violent it's an easy recommendation. I could imagine rereading this one.

"Tricks" finds the boys at the 87th on Halloween dealing with midgets (his word, not mine. I know it's "little people" or "dwarves") robbing convenience stores and cops getting shot. Also, Det. Eileen Burke is dealing with the trauma of her-on-the-job rape, and is acting as a hooker decoy to catch a rapist. Very good stuff.

On a McBain binge at the moment. The fourth I’ve read back to back was ‘Tricks’. It’s a slightly unusual entry in the series, having four storylines running in parallel and being set (pretty much) in a single day (Halloween). Like most of the 87th Precinct books it’s very entertaining- hard hitting at times and wonderfully comic at others. There are a couple of quite brilliant dialogue scenes where 2 conversations take place at the same time, something that McBain manages to pull off with aplomb.

"Genero?"
"Midgets?"
"Four pieces?"

The first 2/3rds of this book is devoted to a series of set-pieces typical of McBain that force these consecutive responses from Detective Hal Willis when receiving a midnight update on the happenings of a Halloween night in Isola's 87th precinct.
In true McBain style, the remainder of the book neatly resolves issues, arrests the guilty and makes the reader feel a little smarter for getting to the solution first.

This episode of the long running novel series features most of the familiar faces, with a lot of time being given to Detective Andy Parker for a change. There's a cathartic coming of age for one of our heroes, jeopardy for another two and a major decision made by a fourth.

I read the majority of show more the series a long time back and only recently discovered that this book represented a hole in my reading. I found the story to be a little more graphic than others I recall, with less of the "police procedural" feel with which McBain made his name.

Apart from that it's more of the same: the dialog and characterizations are still there and my patented "McBain drinking game" - one shot every time he mentions high heels - would have had me paralytic if I'd read this in a single sitting.

If you like the 87th precinct novels - this will be fine for you. If you don't or are neutral: this won't change your mind.

2.5 stars show less