Meaty and satisfying, 28 Jul 2008
A real meaty read this - about 500-600 pages in paperback and all of them worth reading, it gripped me from start to finish, and for my money it deserved its 25 weeks in the Publishers Weekly bestsellers chart.

It's not a "gay historical" per se - none of the main characters are gay, but young male prostitutes are being killed so it does offer a fascinating insight into a culture that is not much written about.

What makes it compelling reading is the "serial profiling is in its infancy" (that and just about ALL the modern policing techniques that the team use, like fingerprinting, time of death and all the things CSI take for granted.)

It's really gruesome, as would be expected. Carr doesn't flinch from his descriptions, and of course anyone who watches modern crime dramas won't find this a problem in the slightest. There's also a lot - a LOT of chat., which I loved, but someone wanting non-stop Dan Brown action won't appreciate that. Although there's a lot of tearing around in landaus and barouches and hansoms, it's not fast paced as a modern thriller and neither should it be, either.

The killer leaves very little in the way of clues; no-one's seen him, and the boys are seemingly snatched out of locked rooms. It's how the team piece the case together that makes this a fascinating read, and for me to applaud it as a magnificent work of fiction.

The characters are all vivid and believable. From Lazlo, the Alienist himself, John Moore the journalist, Miss Howard, the bluestocking who takes a post as secretary in the hopes of being the first woman detective, the two Jewish forensic scientists and three members of Lazlo's household. I identified with them all and wished them well (although doubting they'd all make it through the book unscathed)

As a historical author I can only sit here with my jaw dropped in envy. The research that this book must have taken must have been staggering. It's not just a matter of learning 19th century police techniques, but there's obvious intelligence about the whole psychology behind serial murders and the Alienists who study them. Then there's an indepth knowledge of the powder keg of New York socio-politics and a clear picture of a city on the edge; dragging itself from incipient corruption into a more enlightened age. Add on rich descriptions of buildings and streets that are no longer there, what's being built, who runs which district, gangs and thugs and whore-houses.... The list is endless and I am in awe.

Very cleverly too, it teases the reader with red-herrings, which,being a red-herring-phile I followed to conclusion every time. Highly enjoyable.

If you enjoy crime fiction, and are one of the four people in the world who hasn't read this, then I recommend it heartily.

Very Good, 13 Aug 2007
I set up this pseudonymous reviewer account because, frankly, I'm sick of fanboys (and girls) throwing up 5 star reviews for their latest flavour-of-the-month read, and drizzling their frothy praise with over-used adjectives like 'brilliant', 'fantastic', 'excellent', effectively robbing these words - which should always be used very carefully - of any real meaning. I can't recall how many bleedin' times I've bought over-hyped books solely on the strength of these reviews only to find I'm holding yet another poorly executed and unoriginal piece of hackneyed rubbish.

So, the campaign to rebalance Amazon reviews starts here. Think of my reviews as the 'Simon Cowell' counterbalance to the meaningless gushing praise for mediocrity that we have too much of here

So then...far be it for me to give anything more than 3 stars for a book. The whole point of my doing this reviewing thing was to name and shame the most awful books that I have the misfortune to come across. But, perhaps it's an opportunity amongst all my negative reviews to bring to people's attention, the occasional really good book. And this is such a rare beast.

Right then...onto the book itself.

Caleb has a very lyrical narrator's voice, pleasing to scan even when he often indulges himself with a lenghy description of a setting or a character. But what really sold this book to me, was the description of the protagonist's investigation into a turn-of-the-century serial killer and the progressive pre-FBI techniques being used by him. Beautifully done that.

Whilst it is a big book and a very sedate read he pulled me, a notoriously impatient reader, through to the very end. And believe me, that is no small achievement.

I decided to give this four stars. I'd have preferred to give it 3.5 stars, but sadly there's no capacity to do that here. Four stars means a book is REALLY REALLY good as far as I'm concerned, and this is NEARLY NEARLY that.

Superb novel written by a historian-professor, 17 Feb 2007
Apocryphally, Caleb Carr's publishers thought this was originally a factual historical book when they first received it, but then discovered it moved a little more quickly and (dare I say it) excitingly than a standard academic historical work.

I disagree with the reviewer that thinks it's too long. The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.

For anyone keen to delve into the best that New York writing can offer (this was a NYT bestseller and sold millions) then I would recommend this unreservedly. It is not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am thriller, more of a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime that no-one - then, at least - wanted to believe was real. But it was.

If this book were a movie, it'd be sixteen hours long. And dull., 31 Aug 2006
This story is a hideously protracted piece of work with almost no twists of note. And none at all if you exclude the ridiculous.

At 599 pages, the character development is, at best, mundane and the focus is all too often lost on the author's distracting obsession with fine dining. The tale is frequently illogical and far too reliant on absurd deus ex machina.

On the plus side, the description of late-19th century Manhattan is quite interesting for the first hundred pages or so and the author manages to paint his villain, in spite of the horrific nature of the crimes, in a sympathetic light. It is quite an achievement.

All in all though, a mediocre potboiler that is to be endured than enjoyed.



Excellent first novel, 27 Aug 2006
In the USA at the end of the last century, an "alienist" was one who studied and treated the "alienated", or mentally sick. Set in New York City in 1896, the novel details the search for a serial killer responsible for a batch of horrific murders in the city.

The story is told in the first person by a journalist friend of Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist of the title, and it's a gripping read. The book is long - more than 500 pages - which enables Carr the space to paint a convincing picture of life in New York one hundred years ago, but there's little redundancy in the text. The story is made all the more believable by the introduction of real characters from the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt in his pre-presidential role as Police Commissioner, international financier John Pierpont Morgan, and the infamous morals crusader Adolf Meyer. Reference is also made to the other early American serial killers, Samuel Green and H.H. Holmes, and Carr acknowledges his debt to British expert in these matters, Colin Wilson.

This is Carr's first novel, although he has previously written several non-fiction works, again concentrating on the recent American past, and it is a commendable start in the genre of crime fiction. There is plenty of excitement in this story of the hunt for an American Ripper, reaching a peak at the end of each chapter, in time-honoured tradition. It would make a great film. The book also works on the level of a quite fascinating documentary on the way that forensic, and particulary psychological, methods began to be applied to the solution of crime.

Carr has obviously done much research, and this has paid off. His descriptions of the various contemporary buildings and eating houses around New York are totally believable, as is the picture of squalor he paints around the city's Lower East Side. In just a couple of cases I doubted whether figures of speech employed by the characters were really in use a hundred years ago, but I was so carried away by the confident air of the rest of the story that I gave Carr the benefit of the doubt. A recommended read from, incidentally, the son of one of the leading lights of the Beat Generation.

Portraying New York City circa 1897 as a time bomb of political corruption and violence, Caleb Carr returns to familiar territory in The Angel of Darkness, the sequel to his international bestseller, The Alienist. Also a stand-alone novel, The Angel of Darkness brings together the same cast of characters from The Alienist but the relating of their recent psychological investigation has shifted from John Moore to 13-year-old Stevie Taggert. Abandoned by his drug addict mother, raised on the streets and in love with a teenage prostitute, Stevie's narration brings to the novel a tender combination of streetwise nonchalance and a tentative optimism that has been fostered by Dr Laszlo Kriezler's care. But even Stevie isn't prepared for the case of Libby Hatch--a dangerous caretaker who leaves in her wake a trail of dead children and who has kidnapped the child of a Spanish diplomat. Racing against the clock of Libby's psychosis and a legal system that has blinkered itself to such atrocities, the group struggle to find the key that will reveal Libby's murderous nature. A fascinating exploration of the very modern theme of motherhood and its role in society, The Angel of Darkness is a taut, page-turning thriller set against a gloomy Dickensian backdrop of crime and depravation. --Shannon Bingham

Meaty and satisfying, 28 Jul 2008
A real meaty read this - about 500-600 pages in paperback and all of them worth reading, it gripped me from start to finish, and for my money it deserved its 25 weeks in the Publishers Weekly bestsellers chart.

It's not a "gay historical" per se - none of the main characters are gay, but young male prostitutes are being killed so it does offer a fascinating insight into a culture that is not much written about.

What makes it compelling reading is the "serial profiling is in its infancy" (that and just about ALL the modern policing techniques that the team use, like fingerprinting, time of death and all the things CSI take for granted.)

It's really gruesome, as would be expected. Carr doesn't flinch from his descriptions, and of course anyone who watches modern crime dramas won't find this a problem in the slightest. There's also a lot - a LOT of chat., which I loved, but someone wanting non-stop Dan Brown action won't appreciate that. Although there's a lot of tearing around in landaus and barouches and hansoms, it's not fast paced as a modern thriller and neither should it be, either.

The killer leaves very little in the way of clues; no-one's seen him, and the boys are seemingly snatched out of locked rooms. It's how the team piece the case together that makes this a fascinating read, and for me to applaud it as a magnificent work of fiction.

The characters are all vivid and believable. From Lazlo, the Alienist himself, John Moore the journalist, Miss Howard, the bluestocking who takes a post as secretary in the hopes of being the first woman detective, the two Jewish forensic scientists and three members of Lazlo's household. I identified with them all and wished them well (although doubting they'd all make it through the book unscathed)

As a historical author I can only sit here with my jaw dropped in envy. The research that this book must have taken must have been staggering. It's not just a matter of learning 19th century police techniques, but there's obvious intelligence about the whole psychology behind serial murders and the Alienists who study them. Then there's an indepth knowledge of the powder keg of New York socio-politics and a clear picture of a city on the edge; dragging itself from incipient corruption into a more enlightened age. Add on rich descriptions of buildings and streets that are no longer there, what's being built, who runs which district, gangs and thugs and whore-houses.... The list is endless and I am in awe.

Very cleverly too, it teases the reader with red-herrings, which,being a red-herring-phile I followed to conclusion every time. Highly enjoyable.

If you enjoy crime fiction, and are one of the four people in the world who hasn't read this, then I recommend it heartily.

Very Good, 13 Aug 2007
I set up this pseudonymous reviewer account because, frankly, I'm sick of fanboys (and girls) throwing up 5 star reviews for their latest flavour-of-the-month read, and drizzling their frothy praise with over-used adjectives like 'brilliant', 'fantastic', 'excellent', effectively robbing these words - which should always be used very carefully - of any real meaning. I can't recall how many bleedin' times I've bought over-hyped books solely on the strength of these reviews only to find I'm holding yet another poorly executed and unoriginal piece of hackneyed rubbish.

So, the campaign to rebalance Amazon reviews starts here. Think of my reviews as the 'Simon Cowell' counterbalance to the meaningless gushing praise for mediocrity that we have too much of here

So then...far be it for me to give anything more than 3 stars for a book. The whole point of my doing this reviewing thing was to name and shame the most awful books that I have the misfortune to come across. But, perhaps it's an opportunity amongst all my negative reviews to bring to people's attention, the occasional really good book. And this is such a rare beast.

Right then...onto the book itself.

Caleb has a very lyrical narrator's voice, pleasing to scan even when he often indulges himself with a lenghy description of a setting or a character. But what really sold this book to me, was the description of the protagonist's investigation into a turn-of-the-century serial killer and the progressive pre-FBI techniques being used by him. Beautifully done that.

Whilst it is a big book and a very sedate read he pulled me, a notoriously impatient reader, through to the very end. And believe me, that is no small achievement.

I decided to give this four stars. I'd have preferred to give it 3.5 stars, but sadly there's no capacity to do that here. Four stars means a book is REALLY REALLY good as far as I'm concerned, and this is NEARLY NEARLY that.

Superb novel written by a historian-professor, 17 Feb 2007
Apocryphally, Caleb Carr's publishers thought this was originally a factual historical book when they first received it, but then discovered it moved a little more quickly and (dare I say it) excitingly than a standard academic historical work.

I disagree with the reviewer that thinks it's too long. The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.

For anyone keen to delve into the best that New York writing can offer (this was a NYT bestseller and sold millions) then I would recommend this unreservedly. It is not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am thriller, more of a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime that no-one - then, at least - wanted to believe was real. But it was.

If this book were a movie, it'd be sixteen hours long. And dull., 31 Aug 2006
This story is a hideously protracted piece of work with almost no twists of note. And none at all if you exclude the ridiculous.

At 599 pages, the character development is, at best, mundane and the focus is all too often lost on the author's distracting obsession with fine dining. The tale is frequently illogical and far too reliant on absurd deus ex machina.

On the plus side, the description of late-19th century Manhattan is quite interesting for the first hundred pages or so and the author manages to paint his villain, in spite of the horrific nature of the crimes, in a sympathetic light. It is quite an achievement.

All in all though, a mediocre potboiler that is to be endured than enjoyed.



Excellent first novel, 27 Aug 2006
In the USA at the end of the last century, an "alienist" was one who studied and treated the "alienated", or mentally sick. Set in New York City in 1896, the novel details the search for a serial killer responsible for a batch of horrific murders in the city.

The story is told in the first person by a journalist friend of Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist of the title, and it's a gripping read. The book is long - more than 500 pages - which enables Carr the space to paint a convincing picture of life in New York one hundred years ago, but there's little redundancy in the text. The story is made all the more believable by the introduction of real characters from the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt in his pre-presidential role as Police Commissioner, international financier John Pierpont Morgan, and the infamous morals crusader Adolf Meyer. Reference is also made to the other early American serial killers, Samuel Green and H.H. Holmes, and Carr acknowledges his debt to British expert in these matters, Colin Wilson.

This is Carr's first novel, although he has previously written several non-fiction works, again concentrating on the recent American past, and it is a commendable start in the genre of crime fiction. There is plenty of excitement in this story of the hunt for an American Ripper, reaching a peak at the end of each chapter, in time-honoured tradition. It would make a great film. The book also works on the level of a quite fascinating documentary on the way that forensic, and particulary psychological, methods began to be applied to the solution of crime.

Carr has obviously done much research, and this has paid off. His descriptions of the various contemporary buildings and eating houses around New York are totally believable, as is the picture of squalor he paints around the city's Lower East Side. In just a couple of cases I doubted whether figures of speech employed by the characters were really in use a hundred years ago, but I was so carried away by the confident air of the rest of the story that I gave Carr the benefit of the doubt. A recommended read from, incidentally, the son of one of the leading lights of the Beat Generation.







The Angel of Darkness, 23 Feb 2007
Interesting characters but this book is far too long. The author could easily have told the story in half the time. A plus is the character of Rupert Picton and a minus is the characterisation of Libby Hatch. She didn't come to life at all, and there was no real insight into her personality beyond the superficial, ironic as this superficiality contributes to her situation.

One to read, 10 Feb 2006
A superb book by a wonderful writer. The follow up to the Alienist. It is another case for the psychiatrist hero that absorbs the reader in the world of New York in 1897. I find all his books very readable, even his non fiction works and each one educates about the history of the period he writes on. I wish that he would write a few more books as I sit waiting for the next one.

Utterly engaging., 27 Apr 2004
Picked this up from a charity store, quite by chance, and found the storythoroughly entertaining. A carefully crafted plot and fantastic attentionto period detail, left me only wanting to find out more about Caleb Carr,and read the other books he's written. Certainly an author I'll be lookingout for in the future.

***A Crime Committed...In More Ways Than One***, 18 Jul 2003
Caleb Carr's sequel to the fantastic 'Alienist' is cut from the same cloth as, say...The Godfather part-2...in that it's in many ways superior to it's predecessor. Angel of Darkness stands alone in terms of story, it's not a continuation, but the characters created so richly in the first book are written with much more evolution here.

Forensic science may not appeal to a great demographic, it's not a big turn on for me generally, but when it's set in a time and environment that looked upon on it as almost devilish...it tends to become a whole lot more compelling.

So, the good Dr. Kreizler returns when his considerable pyschological skills are once more required to hunt down a serial killer who seems to have a destructive notion of motherhood. Kreizler's team is re-assembled, sporting fabulous characters that pull you effortlessly into late 19th century New York. The hunt is on. The team works incognito from their usual crime related professions and has to avoid detection by the local police force who are already involved in the case, this only makes their task harder.

Moore...the cynical edged journalist and Kreizler's oldest friend. The Isaac brothers...almost comic relief if not for their amazing knowledge of forensic science and revolutionary approach to crime fighting. And, Teddy Roosevelt, who constantly acts as a public shield for Kreizler's oft critisised methods. Roosevelts inclusion initially feels awkward to the reader but quickly lends the writing an amazing level of believability.

And how to prosecute a killer discovered, caught and brought to justice utilising experimental science widely seen as inadmissable to a court of law? How the world has changed. Now you can't prosecute a criminal without it.

Carr's depth of writing, both location and character, is woven so beautifully it's almost a despair to close the book as your eyelids cry out for sleep. A true Dickens of the modern age with a natural flair for crafting a time we'll never revisit. Rich beyond compare.

A Book You Don't Want to End, 13 Jan 2003
This is terrific read. A novel of old New York peopled with characters we come to love during the course of their investigation into the kidnapping of a womans child. I actually read this before I read "The Alienist", which is equally as good and introduces all these wonderful characters to the reader.

Stevie tells the story this time (Moore narrated "The Alienist") as our group of friends use Dr. Kreizler's revolutionary methods to solve this mystery. He is an Alienist (early psychiatrist) and together with Moore, Sara, the Isaacsons, and Cyrus a riveting and at times edge of your seat adventure springs forth.

Carr is so good that before you realize it you are in Old New York at the turn of the century and so in love with these people that you hate to leave them for sleep or work. The author does for Old New York and Psychiatry what John Dunning did for books in his Cliff Janeway series. At over 600 pages your interest never lags and is the case with all great books when that last page is turned it will be reluctantly. The characters are all to human and real, as is the time period. The solving of the Beechum case of "The Alienist" (which I also recommend) came at a great personal price to Dr. Kreizler, and in The Angel of Darkness Stevie will grow up and face tragedy of his own.

Other writers who attempt to evoke a period mystery like this pale in comparison to Carr. You really are THERE in Old New York and Carr fleshes the characters out so that you actually care about each and every one of them. There are moments of action and suspense that keep you turning pages as quickly as you can read. The historical figures are not just "thrown in" to evoke the time period. Carr makes them come alive as well, just as he did with Dr. Kreizler's friend Theodore Roosevelt in "The Alienist".

This will be one of the most entertaining books you will ever read but it is not without substance as well. If you want a great period mystery filled with danger and suspense, and even tragic romance (I won't spoil it for you), then this is the book to get.
Return to Delmonico's where great food is still served and your old friends (and they will be when you finish this book) are planning their next move against a kidnapper and a murderer of children in Old New York!

Meaty and satisfying, 28 Jul 2008
A real meaty read this - about 500-600 pages in paperback and all of them worth reading, it gripped me from start to finish, and for my money it deserved its 25 weeks in the Publishers Weekly bestsellers chart.

It's not a "gay historical" per se - none of the main characters are gay, but young male prostitutes are being killed so it does offer a fascinating insight into a culture that is not much written about.

What makes it compelling reading is the "serial profiling is in its infancy" (that and just about ALL the modern policing techniques that the team use, like fingerprinting, time of death and all the things CSI take for granted.)

It's really gruesome, as would be expected. Carr doesn't flinch from his descriptions, and of course anyone who watches modern crime dramas won't find this a problem in the slightest. There's also a lot - a LOT of chat., which I loved, but someone wanting non-stop Dan Brown action won't appreciate that. Although there's a lot of tearing around in landaus and barouches and hansoms, it's not fast paced as a modern thriller and neither should it be, either.

The killer leaves very little in the way of clues; no-one's seen him, and the boys are seemingly snatched out of locked rooms. It's how the team piece the case together that makes this a fascinating read, and for me to applaud it as a magnificent work of fiction.

The characters are all vivid and believable. From Lazlo, the Alienist himself, John Moore the journalist, Miss Howard, the bluestocking who takes a post as secretary in the hopes of being the first woman detective, the two Jewish forensic scientists and three members of Lazlo's household. I identified with them all and wished them well (although doubting they'd all make it through the book unscathed)

As a historical author I can only sit here with my jaw dropped in envy. The research that this book must have taken must have been staggering. It's not just a matter of learning 19th century police techniques, but there's obvious intelligence about the whole psychology behind serial murders and the Alienists who study them. Then there's an indepth knowledge of the powder keg of New York socio-politics and a clear picture of a city on the edge; dragging itself from incipient corruption into a more enlightened age. Add on rich descriptions of buildings and streets that are no longer there, what's being built, who runs which district, gangs and thugs and whore-houses.... The list is endless and I am in awe.

Very cleverly too, it teases the reader with red-herrings, which,being a red-herring-phile I followed to conclusion every time. Highly enjoyable.

If you enjoy crime fiction, and are one of the four people in the world who hasn't read this, then I recommend it heartily.

Very Good, 13 Aug 2007
I set up this pseudonymous reviewer account because, frankly, I'm sick of fanboys (and girls) throwing up 5 star reviews for their latest flavour-of-the-month read, and drizzling their frothy praise with over-used adjectives like 'brilliant', 'fantastic', 'excellent', effectively robbing these words - which should always be used very carefully - of any real meaning. I can't recall how many bleedin' times I've bought over-hyped books solely on the strength of these reviews only to find I'm holding yet another poorly executed and unoriginal piece of hackneyed rubbish.

So, the campaign to rebalance Amazon reviews starts here. Think of my reviews as the 'Simon Cowell' counterbalance to the meaningless gushing praise for mediocrity that we have too much of here

So then...far be it for me to give anything more than 3 stars for a book. The whole point of my doing this reviewing thing was to name and shame the most awful books that I have the misfortune to come across. But, perhaps it's an opportunity amongst all my negative reviews to bring to people's attention, the occasional really good book. And this is such a rare beast.

Right then...onto the book itself.

Caleb has a very lyrical narrator's voice, pleasing to scan even when he often indulges himself with a lenghy description of a setting or a character. But what really sold this book to me, was the description of the protagonist's investigation into a turn-of-the-century serial killer and the progressive pre-FBI techniques being used by him. Beautifully done that.

Whilst it is a big book and a very sedate read he pulled me, a notoriously impatient reader, through to the very end. And believe me, that is no small achievement.

I decided to give this four stars. I'd have preferred to give it 3.5 stars, but sadly there's no capacity to do that here. Four stars means a book is REALLY REALLY good as far as I'm concerned, and this is NEARLY NEARLY that.

Superb novel written by a historian-professor, 17 Feb 2007
Apocryphally, Caleb Carr's publishers thought this was originally a factual historical book when they first received it, but then discovered it moved a little more quickly and (dare I say it) excitingly than a standard academic historical work.

I disagree with the reviewer that thinks it's too long. The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.

For anyone keen to delve into the best that New York writing can offer (this was a NYT bestseller and sold millions) then I would recommend this unreservedly. It is not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am thriller, more of a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime that no-one - then, at least - wanted to believe was real. But it was.

If this book were a movie, it'd be sixteen hours long. And dull., 31 Aug 2006
This story is a hideously protracted piece of work with almost no twists of note. And none at all if you exclude the ridiculous.

At 599 pages, the character development is, at best, mundane and the focus is all too often lost on the author's distracting obsession with fine dining. The tale is frequently illogical and far too reliant on absurd deus ex machina.

On the plus side, the description of late-19th century Manhattan is quite interesting for the first hundred pages or so and the author manages to paint his villain, in spite of the horrific nature of the crimes, in a sympathetic light. It is quite an achievement.

All in all though, a mediocre potboiler that is to be endured than enjoyed.



Excellent first novel, 27 Aug 2006
In the USA at the end of the last century, an "alienist" was one who studied and treated the "alienated", or mentally sick. Set in New York City in 1896, the novel details the search for a serial killer responsible for a batch of horrific murders in the city.

The story is told in the first person by a journalist friend of Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist of the title, and it's a gripping read. The book is long - more than 500 pages - which enables Carr the space to paint a convincing picture of life in New York one hundred years ago, but there's little redundancy in the text. The story is made all the more believable by the introduction of real characters from the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt in his pre-presidential role as Police Commissioner, international financier John Pierpont Morgan, and the infamous morals crusader Adolf Meyer. Reference is also made to the other early American serial killers, Samuel Green and H.H. Holmes, and Carr acknowledges his debt to British expert in these matters, Colin Wilson.

This is Carr's first novel, although he has previously written several non-fiction works, again concentrating on the recent American past, and it is a commendable start in the genre of crime fiction. There is plenty of excitement in this story of the hunt for an American Ripper, reaching a peak at the end of each chapter, in time-honoured tradition. It would make a great film. The book also works on the level of a quite fascinating documentary on the way that forensic, and particulary psychological, methods began to be applied to the solution of crime.

Carr has obviously done much research, and this has paid off. His descriptions of the various contemporary buildings and eating houses around New York are totally believable, as is the picture of squalor he paints around the city's Lower East Side. In just a couple of cases I doubted whether figures of speech employed by the characters were really in use a hundred years ago, but I was so carried away by the confident air of the rest of the story that I gave Carr the benefit of the doubt. A recommended read from, incidentally, the son of one of the leading lights of the Beat Generation.







The Angel of Darkness, 23 Feb 2007
Interesting characters but this book is far too long. The author could easily have told the story in half the time. A plus is the character of Rupert Picton and a minus is the characterisation of Libby Hatch. She didn't come to life at all, and there was no real insight into her personality beyond the superficial, ironic as this superficiality contributes to her situation.

One to read, 10 Feb 2006
A superb book by a wonderful writer. The follow up to the Alienist. It is another case for the psychiatrist hero that absorbs the reader in the world of New York in 1897. I find all his books very readable, even his non fiction works and each one educates about the history of the period he writes on. I wish that he would write a few more books as I sit waiting for the next one.

Utterly engaging., 27 Apr 2004
Picked this up from a charity store, quite by chance, and found the storythoroughly entertaining. A carefully crafted plot and fantastic attentionto period detail, left me only wanting to find out more about Caleb Carr,and read the other books he's written. Certainly an author I'll be lookingout for in the future.

***A Crime Committed...In More Ways Than One***, 18 Jul 2003
Caleb Carr's sequel to the fantastic 'Alienist' is cut from the same cloth as, say...The Godfather part-2...in that it's in many ways superior to it's predecessor. Angel of Darkness stands alone in terms of story, it's not a continuation, but the characters created so richly in the first book are written with much more evolution here.

Forensic science may not appeal to a great demographic, it's not a big turn on for me generally, but when it's set in a time and environment that looked upon on it as almost devilish...it tends to become a whole lot more compelling.

So, the good Dr. Kreizler returns when his considerable pyschological skills are once more required to hunt down a serial killer who seems to have a destructive notion of motherhood. Kreizler's team is re-assembled, sporting fabulous characters that pull you effortlessly into late 19th century New York. The hunt is on. The team works incognito from their usual crime related professions and has to avoid detection by the local police force who are already involved in the case, this only makes their task harder.

Moore...the cynical edged journalist and Kreizler's oldest friend. The Isaac brothers...almost comic relief if not for their amazing knowledge of forensic science and revolutionary approach to crime fighting. And, Teddy Roosevelt, who constantly acts as a public shield for Kreizler's oft critisised methods. Roosevelts inclusion initially feels awkward to the reader but quickly lends the writing an amazing level of believability.

And how to prosecute a killer discovered, caught and brought to justice utilising experimental science widely seen as inadmissable to a court of law? How the world has changed. Now you can't prosecute a criminal without it.

Carr's depth of writing, both location and character, is woven so beautifully it's almost a despair to close the book as your eyelids cry out for sleep. A true Dickens of the modern age with a natural flair for crafting a time we'll never revisit. Rich beyond compare.

A Book You Don't Want to End, 13 Jan 2003
This is terrific read. A novel of old New York peopled with characters we come to love during the course of their investigation into the kidnapping of a womans child. I actually read this before I read "The Alienist", which is equally as good and introduces all these wonderful characters to the reader.

Stevie tells the story this time (Moore narrated "The Alienist") as our group of friends use Dr. Kreizler's revolutionary methods to solve this mystery. He is an Alienist (early psychiatrist) and together with Moore, Sara, the Isaacsons, and Cyrus a riveting and at times edge of your seat adventure springs forth.

Carr is so good that before you realize it you are in Old New York at the turn of the century and so in love with these people that you hate to leave them for sleep or work. The author does for Old New York and Psychiatry what John Dunning did for books in his Cliff Janeway series. At over 600 pages your interest never lags and is the case with all great books when that last page is turned it will be reluctantly. The characters are all to human and real, as is the time period. The solving of the Beechum case of "The Alienist" (which I also recommend) came at a great personal price to Dr. Kreizler, and in The Angel of Darkness Stevie will grow up and face tragedy of his own.

Other writers who attempt to evoke a period mystery like this pale in comparison to Carr. You really are THERE in Old New York and Carr fleshes the characters out so that you actually care about each and every one of them. There are moments of action and suspense that keep you turning pages as quickly as you can read. The historical figures are not just "thrown in" to evoke the time period. Carr makes them come alive as well, just as he did with Dr. Kreizler's friend Theodore Roosevelt in "The Alienist".

This will be one of the most entertaining books you will ever read but it is not without substance as well. If you want a great period mystery filled with danger and suspense, and even tragic romance (I won't spoil it for you), then this is the book to get.
Return to Delmonico's where great food is still served and your old friends (and they will be when you finish this book) are planning their next move against a kidnapper and a murderer of children in Old New York!

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

Meaty and satisfying, 28 Jul 2008
A real meaty read this - about 500-600 pages in paperback and all of them worth reading, it gripped me from start to finish, and for my money it deserved its 25 weeks in the Publishers Weekly bestsellers chart.

It's not a "gay historical" per se - none of the main characters are gay, but young male prostitutes are being killed so it does offer a fascinating insight into a culture that is not much written about.

What makes it compelling reading is the "serial profiling is in its infancy" (that and just about ALL the modern policing techniques that the team use, like fingerprinting, time of death and all the things CSI take for granted.)

It's really gruesome, as would be expected. Carr doesn't flinch from his descriptions, and of course anyone who watches modern crime dramas won't find this a problem in the slightest. There's also a lot - a LOT of chat., which I loved, but someone wanting non-stop Dan Brown action won't appreciate that. Although there's a lot of tearing around in landaus and barouches and hansoms, it's not fast paced as a modern thriller and neither should it be, either.

The killer leaves very little in the way of clues; no-one's seen him, and the boys are seemingly snatched out of locked rooms. It's how the team piece the case together that makes this a fascinating read, and for me to applaud it as a magnificent work of fiction.

The characters are all vivid and believable. From Lazlo, the Alienist himself, John Moore the journalist, Miss Howard, the bluestocking who takes a post as secretary in the hopes of being the first woman detective, the two Jewish forensic scientists and three members of Lazlo's household. I identified with them all and wished them well (although doubting they'd all make it through the book unscathed)

As a historical author I can only sit here with my jaw dropped in envy. The research that this book must have taken must have been staggering. It's not just a matter of learning 19th century police techniques, but there's obvious intelligence about the whole psychology behind serial murders and the Alienists who study them. Then there's an indepth knowledge of the powder keg of New York socio-politics and a clear picture of a city on the edge; dragging itself from incipient corruption into a more enlightened age. Add on rich descriptions of buildings and streets that are no longer there, what's being built, who runs which district, gangs and thugs and whore-houses.... The list is endless and I am in awe.

Very cleverly too, it teases the reader with red-herrings, which,being a red-herring-phile I followed to conclusion every time. Highly enjoyable.

If you enjoy crime fiction, and are one of the four people in the world who hasn't read this, then I recommend it heartily.

Very Good, 13 Aug 2007
I set up this pseudonymous reviewer account because, frankly, I'm sick of fanboys (and girls) throwing up 5 star reviews for their latest flavour-of-the-month read, and drizzling their frothy praise with over-used adjectives like 'brilliant', 'fantastic', 'excellent', effectively robbing these words - which should always be used very carefully - of any real meaning. I can't recall how many bleedin' times I've bought over-hyped books solely on the strength of these reviews only to find I'm holding yet another poorly executed and unoriginal piece of hackneyed rubbish.

So, the campaign to rebalance Amazon reviews starts here. Think of my reviews as the 'Simon Cowell' counterbalance to the meaningless gushing praise for mediocrity that we have too much of here

So then...far be it for me to give anything more than 3 stars for a book. The whole point of my doing this reviewing thing was to name and shame the most awful books that I have the misfortune to come across. But, perhaps it's an opportunity amongst all my negative reviews to bring to people's attention, the occasional really good book. And this is such a rare beast.

Right then...onto the book itself.

Caleb has a very lyrical narrator's voice, pleasing to scan even when he often indulges himself with a lenghy description of a setting or a character. But what really sold this book to me, was the description of the protagonist's investigation into a turn-of-the-century serial killer and the progressive pre-FBI techniques being used by him. Beautifully done that.

Whilst it is a big book and a very sedate read he pulled me, a notoriously impatient reader, through to the very end. And believe me, that is no small achievement.

I decided to give this four stars. I'd have preferred to give it 3.5 stars, but sadly there's no capacity to do that here. Four stars means a book is REALLY REALLY good as far as I'm concerned, and this is NEARLY NEARLY that.

Superb novel written by a historian-professor, 17 Feb 2007
Apocryphally, Caleb Carr's publishers thought this was originally a factual historical book when they first received it, but then discovered it moved a little more quickly and (dare I say it) excitingly than a standard academic historical work.

I disagree with the reviewer that thinks it's too long. The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.

For anyone keen to delve into the best that New York writing can offer (this was a NYT bestseller and sold millions) then I would recommend this unreservedly. It is not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am thriller, more of a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime that no-one - then, at least - wanted to believe was real. But it was.

If this book were a movie, it'd be sixteen hours long. And dull., 31 Aug 2006
This story is a hideously protracted piece of work with almost no twists of note. And none at all if you exclude the ridiculous.

At 599 pages, the character development is, at best, mundane and the focus is all too often lost on the author's distracting obsession with fine dining. The tale is frequently illogical and far too reliant on absurd deus ex machina.

On the plus side, the description of late-19th century Manhattan is quite interesting for the first hundred pages or so and the author manages to paint his villain, in spite of the horrific nature of the crimes, in a sympathetic light. It is quite an achievement.

All in all though, a mediocre potboiler that is to be endured than enjoyed.



Excellent first novel, 27 Aug 2006
In the USA at the end of the last century, an "alienist" was one who studied and treated the "alienated", or mentally sick. Set in New York City in 1896, the novel details the search for a serial killer responsible for a batch of horrific murders in the city.

The story is told in the first person by a journalist friend of Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist of the title, and it's a gripping read. The book is long - more than 500 pages - which enables Carr the space to paint a convincing picture of life in New York one hundred years ago, but there's little redundancy in the text. The story is made all the more believable by the introduction of real characters from the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt in his pre-presidential role as Police Commissioner, international financier John Pierpont Morgan, and the infamous morals crusader Adolf Meyer. Reference is also made to the other early American serial killers, Samuel Green and H.H. Holmes, and Carr acknowledges his debt to British expert in these matters, Colin Wilson.

This is Carr's first novel, although he has previously written several non-fiction works, again concentrating on the recent American past, and it is a commendable start in the genre of crime fiction. There is plenty of excitement in this story of the hunt for an American Ripper, reaching a peak at the end of each chapter, in time-honoured tradition. It would make a great film. The book also works on the level of a quite fascinating documentary on the way that forensic, and particulary psychological, methods began to be applied to the solution of crime.

Carr has obviously done much research, and this has paid off. His descriptions of the various contemporary buildings and eating houses around New York are totally believable, as is the picture of squalor he paints around the city's Lower East Side. In just a couple of cases I doubted whether figures of speech employed by the characters were really in use a hundred years ago, but I was so carried away by the confident air of the rest of the story that I gave Carr the benefit of the doubt. A recommended read from, incidentally, the son of one of the leading lights of the Beat Generation.







The Angel of Darkness, 23 Feb 2007
Interesting characters but this book is far too long. The author could easily have told the story in half the time. A plus is the character of Rupert Picton and a minus is the characterisation of Libby Hatch. She didn't come to life at all, and there was no real insight into her personality beyond the superficial, ironic as this superficiality contributes to her situation.

One to read, 10 Feb 2006
A superb book by a wonderful writer. The follow up to the Alienist. It is another case for the psychiatrist hero that absorbs the reader in the world of New York in 1897. I find all his books very readable, even his non fiction works and each one educates about the history of the period he writes on. I wish that he would write a few more books as I sit waiting for the next one.

Utterly engaging., 27 Apr 2004
Picked this up from a charity store, quite by chance, and found the storythoroughly entertaining. A carefully crafted plot and fantastic attentionto period detail, left me only wanting to find out more about Caleb Carr,and read the other books he's written. Certainly an author I'll be lookingout for in the future.

***A Crime Committed...In More Ways Than One***, 18 Jul 2003
Caleb Carr's sequel to the fantastic 'Alienist' is cut from the same cloth as, say...The Godfather part-2...in that it's in many ways superior to it's predecessor. Angel of Darkness stands alone in terms of story, it's not a continuation, but the characters created so richly in the first book are written with much more evolution here.

Forensic science may not appeal to a great demographic, it's not a big turn on for me generally, but when it's set in a time and environment that looked upon on it as almost devilish...it tends to become a whole lot more compelling.

So, the good Dr. Kreizler returns when his considerable pyschological skills are once more required to hunt down a serial killer who seems to have a destructive notion of motherhood. Kreizler's team is re-assembled, sporting fabulous characters that pull you effortlessly into late 19th century New York. The hunt is on. The team works incognito from their usual crime related professions and has to avoid detection by the local police force who are already involved in the case, this only makes their task harder.

Moore...the cynical edged journalist and Kreizler's oldest friend. The Isaac brothers...almost comic relief if not for their amazing knowledge of forensic science and revolutionary approach to crime fighting. And, Teddy Roosevelt, who constantly acts as a public shield for Kreizler's oft critisised methods. Roosevelts inclusion initially feels awkward to the reader but quickly lends the writing an amazing level of believability.

And how to prosecute a killer discovered, caught and brought to justice utilising experimental science widely seen as inadmissable to a court of law? How the world has changed. Now you can't prosecute a criminal without it.

Carr's depth of writing, both location and character, is woven so beautifully it's almost a despair to close the book as your eyelids cry out for sleep. A true Dickens of the modern age with a natural flair for crafting a time we'll never revisit. Rich beyond compare.

A Book You Don't Want to End, 13 Jan 2003
This is terrific read. A novel of old New York peopled with characters we come to love during the course of their investigation into the kidnapping of a womans child. I actually read this before I read "The Alienist", which is equally as good and introduces all these wonderful characters to the reader.

Stevie tells the story this time (Moore narrated "The Alienist") as our group of friends use Dr. Kreizler's revolutionary methods to solve this mystery. He is an Alienist (early psychiatrist) and together with Moore, Sara, the Isaacsons, and Cyrus a riveting and at times edge of your seat adventure springs forth.

Carr is so good that before you realize it you are in Old New York at the turn of the century and so in love with these people that you hate to leave them for sleep or work. The author does for Old New York and Psychiatry what John Dunning did for books in his Cliff Janeway series. At over 600 pages your interest never lags and is the case with all great books when that last page is turned it will be reluctantly. The characters are all to human and real, as is the time period. The solving of the Beechum case of "The Alienist" (which I also recommend) came at a great personal price to Dr. Kreizler, and in The Angel of Darkness Stevie will grow up and face tragedy of his own.

Other writers who attempt to evoke a period mystery like this pale in comparison to Carr. You really are THERE in Old New York and Carr fleshes the characters out so that you actually care about each and every one of them. There are moments of action and suspense that keep you turning pages as quickly as you can read. The historical figures are not just "thrown in" to evoke the time period. Carr makes them come alive as well, just as he did with Dr. Kreizler's friend Theodore Roosevelt in "The Alienist".

This will be one of the most entertaining books you will ever read but it is not without substance as well. If you want a great period mystery filled with danger and suspense, and even tragic romance (I won't spoil it for you), then this is the book to get.
Return to Delmonico's where great food is still served and your old friends (and they will be when you finish this book) are planning their next move against a kidnapper and a murderer of children in Old New York!

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

All the right ingredients with none of the magic, 20 Apr 2008
I have always loved the original Holmes stories and have been interested in what other people are able to do with them, which is what led me to Carr's novel 'The Italian Secretary.'

There is no doubt that the style is almost exactly like the original novels, the plot devices are similar as is the relationship between Holmes and Watson. It's just that something is missing. The tensions in the plot resolve themselves too easily and you end up with an inferior pastiche os a Holmes story. The ending is also incredibly frustrating....to deny something has happened, or to say that its resolution isn't really important is insulting to your readers. As the author, you might not think it's important, but as readers we've gone through 200+ pages to have everything revealed, only to find out that you don't feel like telling us!

If you are interested in seeing what others have sone with Holmes; I would recommend David Pirie's books and also the series written by Laurie R. King (starting with 'The Beekeeper's Apprentice') for something a little better.

Meandering and uninteresting, 04 Aug 2007
I'm sorry, but for me this book just didn't work. The style was not the same as that of earlier Sherlock Holmes stories. It lacked the pace and the intrigue. Caleb Carr wrote some very good books in the form of The Alienist, and The Angel of Darkness. He should go back to that series.

An enjoyable read., 10 Apr 2007
I bought this book with no prior knowledge of the previous works of the author,so I had nothing to compare it with.
My knowedge of Conan Doyle is quite extensive in a Basil Rathbone kind of way but having only seen the 1930s films. I have however read several of the original Sherlock olmes books since reading this entertaining attempt.
Having read quite a few 'who done it' novels of various standards I decided to give it a go.
What you have to appreciate when reading this book is that it is in effect a forgery, written in the style of Conan Doyle, and a brave attempt it is too. The story flows well and the atmospher the book mentally creates can actually take you back to an age long gone.
Occasionally I was pulled from the Victorian age by the authors clear attempts to put modern views and standards into the storey, something that was inappropriate in view of the fact that the Victorians did not have our enlightened views on certain subjects that would today be taboo.
The plot was not a classic murder mystery as the outcome is something that can be worked out by the reader some time before the author feels fit to reveal it to us. What it is however is a realy good read, a good storey and something I looked forward to reading each night.
If you are into historically accurate novels that will make your ribs ache, then I strongly recommend the FLASHMAN PAPERS, a series of books by George McDonald-Scott. Brilliant read.

Not his best., 14 Mar 2007
I bought this because I very much enjoyed The Alienist and,to a lesser extent,The Angel Of Darkness.I read it straight after consuming Julian Barnes novel ARTHUR AND GEORGE,which despite being 500 pages long,I read in 5 days.The subject matter of that book (which I cannot recommend highly enough),is a real investigation by Conan Doyle (intertwined with the nature of love,duty and honour),into a series of crimes which were disturbingly modern.Having enjoyed that book so much I couldn't wait to read The Italian Secretary.

However,the constraints of not only writing in the style of Conan Doyle,but also to some extent the writing within the literary conventions of that period serve to neuter part of what is interesting about Carr's work.Although usually writing about the same period,albeit in NY,he does so with a modern eye,here he cannot,because he is committed to reproducing Conan Doyle's methods,which are rather old fashioned for the modern reader.

The plot's not bad,but there's no real mystery involved,at least not one that sophisticated modern readers won't guess.There are attempts to make the story disturbing,but within the constraints of Conan Doyle's style they don't really work.However,as a pastiche it does.Because of that I would really only recommend this to fans of Sherlock Holmes.Fans of Caleb Carr will only find a rather muted version of his usual work.

No mre adventures, 16 Jan 2007
I read this because, 1: I love Caleb Carr's boks and 2: although not a big Holmes fan I would like to see how Carr deals with the prickly Holmes. Was I disappointed? Yes. Personally I found the plot full of holes and not throroughly thought out. The Italian secretary story really wasn't needed for the plot to be pushed along and there were times I actually forgot about it as being a huge motive.

In places it was too comical considering the history behind the murders and the royal history concerning the Italian secretary. I know Watson's a bumbling idiot and he is telling the story but the humour began to grate on me halfway through the book. The balance between the humour and the dark history behind the murders teetered towards to the comical on too many occasions and I think more emphasis should have been put on the Scottish nationalist side of the plot which would have been more intriguing to read.
I would have prefered if Carr would write the next book in his psychological thriller series, than waste time on books like this.

Meaty and satisfying, 28 Jul 2008
A real meaty read this - about 500-600 pages in paperback and all of them worth reading, it gripped me from start to finish, and for my money it deserved its 25 weeks in the Publishers Weekly bestsellers chart.

It's not a "gay historical" per se - none of the main characters are gay, but young male prostitutes are being killed so it does offer a fascinating insight into a culture that is not much written about.

What makes it compelling reading is the "serial profiling is in its infancy" (that and just about ALL the modern policing techniques that the team use, like fingerprinting, time of death and all the things CSI take for granted.)

It's really gruesome, as would be expected. Carr doesn't flinch from his descriptions, and of course anyone who watches modern crime dramas won't find this a problem in the slightest. There's also a lot - a LOT of chat., which I loved, but someone wanting non-stop Dan Brown action won't appreciate that. Although there's a lot of tearing around in landaus and barouches and hansoms, it's not fast paced as a modern thriller and neither should it be, either.

The killer leaves very little in the way of clues; no-one's seen him, and the boys are seemingly snatched out of locked rooms. It's how the team piece the case together that makes this a fascinating read, and for me to applaud it as a magnificent work of fiction.

The characters are all vivid and believable. From Lazlo, the Alienist himself, John Moore the journalist, Miss Howard, the bluestocking who takes a post as secretary in the hopes of being the first woman detective, the two Jewish forensic scientists and three members of Lazlo's household. I identified with them all and wished them well (although doubting they'd all make it through the book unscathed)

As a historical author I can only sit here with my jaw dropped in envy. The research that this book must have taken must have been staggering. It's not just a matter of learning 19th century police techniques, but there's obvious intelligence about the whole psychology behind serial murders and the Alienists who study them. Then there's an indepth knowledge of the powder keg of New York socio-politics and a clear picture of a city on the edge; dragging itself from incipient corruption into a more enlightened age. Add on rich descriptions of buildings and streets that are no longer there, what's being built, who runs which district, gangs and thugs and whore-houses.... The list is endless and I am in awe.

Very cleverly too, it teases the reader with red-herrings, which,being a red-herring-phile I followed to conclusion every time. Highly enjoyable.

If you enjoy crime fiction, and are one of the four people in the world who hasn't read this, then I recommend it heartily.

Very Good, 13 Aug 2007
I set up this pseudonymous reviewer account because, frankly, I'm sick of fanboys (and girls) throwing up 5 star reviews for their latest flavour-of-the-month read, and drizzling their frothy praise with over-used adjectives like 'brilliant', 'fantastic', 'excellent', effectively robbing these words - which should always be used very carefully - of any real meaning. I can't recall how many bleedin' times I've bought over-hyped books solely on the strength of these reviews only to find I'm holding yet another poorly executed and unoriginal piece of hackneyed rubbish.

So, the campaign to rebalance Amazon reviews starts here. Think of my reviews as the 'Simon Cowell' counterbalance to the meaningless gushing praise for mediocrity that we have too much of here

So then...far be it for me to give anything more than 3 stars for a book. The whole point of my doing this reviewing thing was to name and shame the most awful books that I have the misfortune to come across. But, perhaps it's an opportunity amongst all my negative reviews to bring to people's attention, the occasional really good book. And this is such a rare beast.

Right then...onto the book itself.

Caleb has a very lyrical narrator's voice, pleasing to scan even when he often indulges himself with a lenghy description of a setting or a character. But what really sold this book to me, was the description of the protagonist's investigation into a turn-of-the-century serial killer and the progressive pre-FBI techniques being used by him. Beautifully done that.

Whilst it is a big book and a very sedate read he pulled me, a notoriously impatient reader, through to the very end. And believe me, that is no small achievement.

I decided to give this four stars. I'd have preferred to give it 3.5 stars, but sadly there's no capacity to do that here. Four stars means a book is REALLY REALLY good as far as I'm concerned, and this is NEARLY NEARLY that.

Superb novel written by a historian-professor, 17 Feb 2007
Apocryphally, Caleb Carr's publishers thought this was originally a factual historical book when they first received it, but then discovered it moved a little more quickly and (dare I say it) excitingly than a standard academic historical work.

I disagree with the reviewer that thinks it's too long. The beauty about this book is the manner in which it sucks you into the seedy underbelly of New York in the last decade of the nineteenth century, and the research and information we get as readers is startlingly comprehensive: criminology, alienism (nascent psycho-analysis and psychiatry) and detailed corruption. Theodore Roosevelt is name-checked and plays a significant role in the story.

For anyone keen to delve into the best that New York writing can offer (this was a NYT bestseller and sold millions) then I would recommend this unreservedly. It is not a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am thriller, more of a totally believable and often surprising journey into the labyrinth of horrific crime that no-one - then, at least - wanted to believe was real. But it was.

If this book were a movie, it'd be sixteen hours long. And dull., 31 Aug 2006
This story is a hideously protracted piece of work with almost no twists of note. And none at all if you exclude the ridiculous.

At 599 pages, the character development is, at best, mundane and the focus is all too often lost on the author's distracting obsession with fine dining. The tale is frequently illogical and far too reliant on absurd deus ex machina.

On the plus side, the description of late-19th century Manhattan is quite interesting for the first hundred pages or so and the author manages to paint his villain, in spite of the horrific nature of the crimes, in a sympathetic light. It is quite an achievement.

All in all though, a mediocre potboiler that is to be endured than enjoyed.



Excellent first novel, 27 Aug 2006
In the USA at the end of the last century, an "alienist" was one who studied and treated the "alienated", or mentally sick. Set in New York City in 1896, the novel details the search for a serial killer responsible for a batch of horrific murders in the city.

The story is told in the first person by a journalist friend of Laszlo Kreizler, the alienist of the title, and it's a gripping read. The book is long - more than 500 pages - which enables Carr the space to paint a convincing picture of life in New York one hundred years ago, but there's little redundancy in the text. The story is made all the more believable by the introduction of real characters from the period, such as Theodore Roosevelt in his pre-presidential role as Police Commissioner, international financier John Pierpont Morgan, and the infamous morals crusader Adolf Meyer. Reference is also made to the other early American serial killers, Samuel Green and H.H. Holmes, and Carr acknowledges his debt to British expert in these matters, Colin Wilson.

This is Carr's first novel, although he has previously written several non-fiction works, again concentrating on the recent American past, and it is a commendable start in the genre of crime fiction. There is plenty of excitement in this story of the hunt for an American Ripper, reaching a peak at the end of each chapter, in time-honoured tradition. It would make a great film. The book also works on the level of a quite fascinating documentary on the way that forensic, and particulary psychological, methods began to be applied to the solution of crime.

Carr has obviously done much research, and this has paid off. His descriptions of the various contemporary buildings and eating houses around New York are totally believable, as is the picture of squalor he paints around the city's Lower East Side. In just a couple of cases I doubted whether figures of speech employed by the characters were really in use a hundred years ago, but I was so carried away by the confident air of the rest of the story that I gave Carr the benefit of the doubt. A recommended read from, incidentally, the son of one of the leading lights of the Beat Generation.







The Angel of Darkness, 23 Feb 2007
Interesting characters but this book is far too long. The author could easily have told the story in half the time. A plus is the character of Rupert Picton and a minus is the characterisation of Libby Hatch. She didn't come to life at all, and there was no real insight into her personality beyond the superficial, ironic as this superficiality contributes to her situation.

One to read, 10 Feb 2006
A superb book by a wonderful writer. The follow up to the Alienist. It is another case for the psychiatrist hero that absorbs the reader in the world of New York in 1897. I find all his books very readable, even his non fiction works and each one educates about the history of the period he writes on. I wish that he would write a few more books as I sit waiting for the next one.

Utterly engaging., 27 Apr 2004
Picked this up from a charity store, quite by chance, and found the storythoroughly entertaining. A carefully crafted plot and fantastic attentionto period detail, left me only wanting to find out more about Caleb Carr,and read the other books he's written. Certainly an author I'll be lookingout for in the future.

***A Crime Committed...In More Ways Than One***, 18 Jul 2003
Caleb Carr's sequel to the fantastic 'Alienist' is cut from the same cloth as, say...The Godfather part-2...in that it's in many ways superior to it's predecessor. Angel of Darkness stands alone in terms of story, it's not a continuation, but the characters created so richly in the first book are written with much more evolution here.

Forensic science may not appeal to a great demographic, it's not a big turn on for me generally, but when it's set in a time and environment that looked upon on it as almost devilish...it tends to become a whole lot more compelling.

So, the good Dr. Kreizler returns when his considerable pyschological skills are once more required to hunt down a serial killer who seems to have a destructive notion of motherhood. Kreizler's team is re-assembled, sporting fabulous characters that pull you effortlessly into late 19th century New York. The hunt is on. The team works incognito from their usual crime related professions and has to avoid detection by the local police force who are already involved in the case, this only makes their task harder.

Moore...the cynical edged journalist and Kreizler's oldest friend. The Isaac brothers...almost comic relief if not for their amazing knowledge of forensic science and revolutionary approach to crime fighting. And, Teddy Roosevelt, who constantly acts as a public shield for Kreizler's oft critisised methods. Roosevelts inclusion initially feels awkward to the reader but quickly lends the writing an amazing level of believability.

And how to prosecute a killer discovered, caught and brought to justice utilising experimental science widely seen as inadmissable to a court of law? How the world has changed. Now you can't prosecute a criminal without it.

Carr's depth of writing, both location and character, is woven so beautifully it's almost a despair to close the book as your eyelids cry out for sleep. A true Dickens of the modern age with a natural flair for crafting a time we'll never revisit. Rich beyond compare.

A Book You Don't Want to End, 13 Jan 2003
This is terrific read. A novel of old New York peopled with characters we come to love during the course of their investigation into the kidnapping of a womans child. I actually read this before I read "The Alienist", which is equally as good and introduces all these wonderful characters to the reader.

Stevie tells the story this time (Moore narrated "The Alienist") as our group of friends use Dr. Kreizler's revolutionary methods to solve this mystery. He is an Alienist (early psychiatrist) and together with Moore, Sara, the Isaacsons, and Cyrus a riveting and at times edge of your seat adventure springs forth.

Carr is so good that before you realize it you are in Old New York at the turn of the century and so in love with these people that you hate to leave them for sleep or work. The author does for Old New York and Psychiatry what John Dunning did for books in his Cliff Janeway series. At over 600 pages your interest never lags and is the case with all great books when that last page is turned it will be reluctantly. The characters are all to human and real, as is the time period. The solving of the Beechum case of "The Alienist" (which I also recommend) came at a great personal price to Dr. Kreizler, and in The Angel of Darkness Stevie will grow up and face tragedy of his own.

Other writers who attempt to evoke a period mystery like this pale in comparison to Carr. You really are THERE in Old New York and Carr fleshes the characters out so that you actually care about each and every one of them. There are moments of action and suspense that keep you turning pages as quickly as you can read. The historical figures are not just "thrown in" to evoke the time period. Carr makes them come alive as well, just as he did with Dr. Kreizler's friend Theodore Roosevelt in "The Alienist".

This will be one of the most entertaining books you will ever read but it is not without substance as well. If you want a great period mystery filled with danger and suspense, and even tragic romance (I won't spoil it for you), then this is the book to get.
Return to Delmonico's where great food is still served and your old friends (and they will be when you finish this book) are planning their next move against a kidnapper and a murderer of children in Old New York!

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

an enticing piece of history, 27 Feb 2000
Caleb Carr has a peculiar way of writing so involving that he can offer the readers a work of history as enticing as his thrillers are. I found the book accurate and involving. I read it all in one breath.

All the right ingredients with none of the magic, 20 Apr 2008
I have always loved the original Holmes stories and have been interested in what other people are able to do with them, which is what led me to Carr's novel 'The Italian Secretary.'

There is no doubt that the style is almost exactly like the original novels, the plot devices are similar as is the relationship between Holmes and Watson. It's just that something is missing. The tensions in the plot resolve themselves too easily and you end up with an inferior pastiche os a Holmes story. The ending is also incredibly frustrating....to deny something has happened, or to say that its resolution isn't really important is insulting to your readers. As the author, you might not think it's important, but as readers we've gone through 200+ pages to have everything revealed, only to find out that you don't feel like telling us!

If you are interested in seeing what others have sone with Holmes; I would recommend David Pirie's books and also the series written by Laurie R. King (starting with 'The Beekeeper's Apprentice') for something a little better.

Meandering and uninteresting, 04 Aug 2007
I'm sorry, but for me this book just didn't work. The style was not the same as that of earlier Sherlock Holmes stories. It lacked the pace and the intrigue. Caleb Carr wrote some very good books in the form of The Alienist, and The Angel of Darkness. He should go back to that series.

An enjoyable read., 10 Apr 2007
I bought this book with no prior knowledge of the previous works of the author,so I had nothing to compare it with.
My knowedge of Conan Doyle is quite extensive in a Basil Rathbone kind of way but having only seen the 1930s films. I have however read several of the original Sherlock olmes books since reading this entertaining attempt.
Having read quite a few 'who done it' novels of various standards I decided to give it a go.
What you have to appreciate when reading this book is that it is in effect a forgery, written in the style of Conan Doyle, and a brave attempt it is too. The story flows well and the atmospher the book mentally creates can actually take you back to an age long gone.
Occasionally I was pulled from the Victorian age by the authors clear attempts to put modern views and standards into the storey, something that was inappropriate in view of the fact that the Victorians did not have our enlightened views on certain subjects that would today be taboo.
The plot was not a classic murder mystery as the outcome is something that can be worked out by the reader some time before the author feels fit to reveal it to us. What it is however is a realy good read, a good storey and something I looked forward to reading each night.
If you are into historically accurate novels that will make your ribs ache, then I strongly recommend the FLASHMAN PAPERS, a series of books by George McDonald-Scott. Brilliant read.

Not his best., 14 Mar 2007
I bought this because I very much enjoyed The Alienist and,to a lesser extent,The Angel Of Darkness.I read it straight after consuming Julian Barnes novel ARTHUR AND GEORGE,which despite being 500 pages long,I read in 5 days.The subject matter of that book (which I cannot recommend highly enough),is a real investigation by Conan Doyle (intertwined with the nature of love,duty and honour),into a series of crimes which were disturbingly modern.Having enjoyed that book so much I couldn't wait to read The Italian Secretary.

However,the constraints of not only writing in the style of Conan Doyle,but also to some extent the writing within the literary conventions of that period serve to neuter part of what is interesting about Carr's work.Although usually writing about the same period,albeit in NY,he does so with a modern eye,here he cannot,because he is committed to reproducing Conan Doyle's methods,which are rather old fashioned for the modern reader.

The plot's not bad,but there's no real mystery involved,at least not one that sophisticated modern readers won't guess.There are attempts to make the story disturbing,but within the constraints of Conan Doyle's style they don't really work.However,as a pastiche it does.Because of that I would really only recommend this to fans of Sherlock Holmes.Fans of Caleb Carr will only find a rather muted version of his usual work.

No mre adventures, 16 Jan 2007
I read this because, 1: I love Caleb Carr's boks and 2: although not a big Holmes fan I would like to see how Carr deals with the prickly Holmes. Was I disappointed? Yes. Personally I found the plot full of holes and not throroughly thought out. The Italian secretary story really wasn't needed for the plot to be pushed along and there were times I actually forgot about it as being a huge motive.

In places it was too comical considering the history behind the murders and the royal history concerning the Italian secretary. I know Watson's a bumbling idiot and he is telling the story but the humour began to grate on me halfway through the book. The balance between the humour and the dark history behind the murders teetered towards to the comical on too many occasions and I think more emphasis should have been put on the Scottish nationalist side of the plot which would have been more intriguing to read.
I would have prefered if Carr would write the next book in his psychological thriller series, than waste time on books like this.

Maybe this book time travelled from the 1950s..., 27 Aug 2008
I picked this up because I'd read The Alienist - an utterly brilliant book which deserves 5 stars. And for the first 2 or 3 chapters of Killing Time, I was hopeful that I was in for a similarly entertaining and enlightening time. Alas, twas not to be... This book is monumentally dull. Either Mr Carr has never read any modern science fiction, or he pines for the SF of the 1950s, because this reads like a checklist of every SF stereotype of that era: flying saucers, women in skintight silver jumpsuits, non-existent characterisation, infodump dialogue. In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that the internet is a major plot point, I would have guessed that this book was written decades ago. Maybe he's being all ironic and post-modern? If so, it fails dismally. When I was ten years old and watching Thunderbirds I was prepared to accept a billionaire family on a secret island base who build spaceships superior to anything any world government can build. These days I want a bit more realism in my plots, thank you very much.

Caleb Carr - or an evil imposter?, 19 Jan 2003
While reading this book, I kept on having to check the front cover to see if it really was by Caleb Carr, and not by someone orthographically similar. Sadly, it does appear to be by him. It's terrible. It reads like Matthew Reilly, but with 10% of the action. The plot is absurd, the characterisation is leaden, and the dialogue sounds like something out of Tintin. The french professor ends all his sentences with a french word "non?","mon ami","precisement" to, like, really drive home the point that he is french. A rebel general in Indonesia addresses the protagonists - invariably - as "my infidel friends". It made me wince. I probably wouldn't be so caustic, as I have read enough poor sf to be somewhat hardened to dodgy plots and silly charaters, except I was really excited to read a non-historical Carr, and was bitterly disappointed.

Time to change the template..., 08 Dec 2001
The Alienist and the Angel of Darkness were brilliant and compelling with great in depth charecters. Both shared that urge to have to read on at the end of every cliff hanging chapter.
This does not. Some of the ideas are good, but it all feels a touch lazy. It involves an alinated rebel group fighting against convention using new technologies. This group contains; a psychologist, twins, a strong woman who is good with guns, and a genius with both a disability and childhood traumas. Sound at all familiar?
It is time Mr Carr used a new template rather than catapulting His existing one into the future and glazing it with a shiny sci-fi sheen. ...

Highly disappointing, 23 Nov 2001
If you read and enjoyed the brilliant The Alienist and Angel of Darkness, be prepared to be disappointed. This book is a fragmentary, predictable yarn set in a (surprise, surprise) dark future where all the terrible things man has done to the world has lead to an apocalyptic environment ruled by "Information". A ludicrous storyline finally leads to the highly unsatisfactory ending.
This book is already dated... I would advise readers to stay well away from this and to wait until Mr Carr writes a follow-up to the aforementioned titles (if he ever does!)