Brighton: A Novel

This is an incredibly well written book. I could not put it down. And there was a great twist at the end. Definitely going to read more of his stuff.

If you like Denis Lehane books, you’ll like this one. The two authors are cut from the same vein.The setting and characters are quite realistic. This world, while exaggerated perhaps, did exist. The gritty neighborhoods, the racial tensions and the survival of the fittest. The ending provides an unexpected twist you won’t see coming. Overall a very good read.

The mystery was good but just too much violence. Just because Michael Harvey thinks Bostonians talk like pigs, my entire Book Club was offended by the rampant use of the "C" word!!

The novel presents as a tried and true formula. Old friends. Old secrets. Old town. 25 years later.I bought this book behind that premise. I binge buy on Amazon. I read the reviews. I hope for the best. The box arrives. I climb through what I remember. I discipline myself against the rest. Which is the first sin I committed against this book. It was the last book I read in the box.I had never read anything by Michael Harvey. The book art was clichéd. I didn't remember ordering it. Matters were not helped much by Stephen King's xed out rave on the cover. I mean, all that guy does is write, and lately most is cliché with energy, so when would he have time to read and reflect? Then I opened the book and found that he was correct.What Harvey does is give us Brighton and Kevin and Bobby and every other Irish family that grew up within the confines of that emotional and geographical neighborhood that carry it around within them like Abbie Hoffman testified in the Chicago trial, that he was a citizen of the Woodstock Nation 50 years ago, and Harvey gives it to us in a way that is carried by a sojourner's soul.There is family, violence, crime, alcohol, drugs, wonderful characters, not one of which is dropped into the story without care and concern in their description, and there is the generous eye and ear of Harvey for all of it because, when he is done writing, when I was done reading, you forget, and I did, that it is your living room you are sitting in, that it is not on a stoop in Boston with the snow heavy and not falling, with families ripe for the same.This is a great book which you should buy tomorrow and read the very moment it is in your hands.

Plot, character and place. In Michael Harvey’s Brighton all three are rIchly and believably drawn. A plot that creates tension and surprise is the minimum for crime fiction. The best ones have characters deep enough that the action originates from them in a necessary way. Novels in which the setting is described with an intensity such that we believe the characters are inextricably caught in its web must be considered of the highest quality. We get an instance of the power of place when Bobby Scales warns Kevin about returning to Brighton: “Eat you whole, brother. Bones and all.”I thought Part 1 was tighter, more driven by character and place. Part 2 is thinner because the plot takes over. Nontheless, this impressed me as an exceptional piece of writing.

The reader eventually gets to the point in this novel that the outcome is suspected; not known, but suspected. The fun is getting to the end! Wonderfully written and plotted, plenty of details without ever boring the reader. Smallest details are meaningful from beginning to end. The writing of the ending is enduring weeks after finishing the story. I'm going to reread just to pick up any nuances I missed.Bobby scares us from the beginning, kind of like the "artful dodger." He's suspicious. Kevin is in the middle. The family and outside characters are meticulously introduced, as is the mystery itself.At the end I kept asking myself why I didn't catch on sooner. I was fascinated by the writing! I hope I live long enough to read all of his novels.

If you’ve never been to Boston, you’ll want to read this book to get a feel for the unique flavor of the city. If you’re from Boston, you want this book to reminisce about the old city on the Charles River. The author does a superb job of bolstering the complex storyline with a healthy dose of Boston lore from the opening sequence until the closing paragraph.

I downloaded this ebook from Amazon.com, to my IPAD. I was really looking forward to reading this ebook. I did the research and bought into Stephen Kings great review. Thought the cover was excellent. Wanted to read the story of Brighton from the Authors perspective.The ebook was a disappointment to me. The scenes of Boston and the way things used to be in the city was what I wanted to read about. The characters started off good but then fell off. The character development was not good. The scenes started off good but then fell off. The scene development was not good. The plot of the story was pretty messy, didn't really know what the goal or theme of the story was after a while. A lot of different characters moving in and out of the story with quick simple explanations of why they were there. Tension was not there, suspense was missing. The story did not peak at all, it was flat.So overall not happy with the price I paid for the ebook. I would not recommend this ebook to a friend.

Autore che non conoscevo. Costruisce degli intrighi davvero ben articolati, ben scritti. Leggerò anche altro dell'autore sicuramente

Very interesting crime story, tracing family and close friends and acquaintances from childhood. Some unexpected turns throughout. Highly recommend, adding this author to my must read list.

Libro di un autore che non conoscevo...lettura piacevole e intrigante, purtroppo però la storia, seppur ben congeniata ( molto ben descritta Boston e l'umanità dei suoi bassifondi) fatica a "cambiare marcia" risultando alla fin fine un pochino monocorde...ma comunque leggibilissima!

The seedy world of Boston laid bare.Another great read from a terrific author that I allways enjoy. God bless America.

I often found the book fragmented, at least that how it felt to read. There was every opportunity to add suspense to the story by alas it was not to be. Good news I did read the entire book so 3 out 5. So onwards until Bobby shows up again. This was my first read of the author.