Author's guest post at my blog:
https://bookfare.blogspot.com/2019/02/foodfic-please-welcome-vincent-zandri.html

No More Vincent Zandri for Me

Based on the Amazon reviews and low price, this was the 2nd Zandri book I purchased, after The Innocent. I didn't think much of the first book, and feel the same about Godchild.

My main complaint is that I found the protagonist, Keeper, very dull and boring. I really couldn't connect with him, even after two books and often couldn't fathom the motivations for his sometimes stupid actions. Zandri does a poor job in fleshing out his emotional bandwith and curiously, seems to spend an inordinate amount of time describing the attire of Keeper's lawyer/best friend. I'd rather he'd written a three-dimensional Keeper instead.

The back and forth alternating style of writing between 2 streams of consciousness just chopped up the story in my view.

Even though I don't like Zandri's writing and will avoid him in future, I will credit him with devising a clever backstory (or 2) in this novel about a detective, a method writer and her corruptly criminal husband.

There's more graphic violence and a few sex scenes in the Godchild than in the first novel, The Innocent, for those who might be bothered about it.

All in all, "meh" from me. There's lots better books out there than this one ( )

This is a hard hitting, no holds barred, full throttle detective story. I'm reminded of Mickey Spillane's, Mike Hammer. As written in the books, not the watered down television version. P.I. Jack "Keeper" Marconi, was a former warden for a maximum security prison in New York. Lately he has been nursing a bottle and carrying a ton of guilt since his wife was killed. Their car was center punched by a hit & run driver in a black Buick. Marconi saw his wife die when her head was severed as she went through the windshield of their car. Jack has been obsessed ever since with trying to find the bald headed man who drove the other car. He has searched for three long years to no avail. It's as if the driver of the black Buick has dropped off the face of the earth or perhaps is being protected by persons unknown. A chance sighting of the Buick just as he is headed to the church to get remarried, tips him over the edge once again. In order to help him, his friend gets him a job involving rescuing a woman writer from a Mexican prison. Jack isn't particularly interested until he finds a wedding picture of the woman. In the background is the bald headed man. Is there a connection between the woman and the bald man? The only thing that stands between Jack and the answer is a heavily guarded security prison deep in Mexico. What could go wrong? Strap on that .45 and put the petal to the metal. Nothing will stop "Keeper" Marconi from getting to the bottom of this case. Book provided for review by Amazon Vine. ( )

Godchild is a mystery suspense crime thriller.

Jack "Keeper" Marconi is about to get married but before doing so, he visits the grave of his first wife, who was killed by a hit and run driver in a horrific accident. As Jack is saying his goodbyes, the Black truck with The Bald Man, pulls up and taunts Jack. However, no one believes him, not even his best friend and Jack fails to attend his wedding, leaving his bride standing at the alter. After getting drunk and shooting up a bar, Jack is asked to take on a case to save a rich American woman from a Mexican jail.

Renata Barnes is a rich socialite and method writer who has been accused of drowning her own son just so she could write believably about her newest book. This time she's writing about burriers, rich woman who become courier's of drug, smuggling them across the border. They do it for the thrill and not about the money. Renata gets herself caught, arrested and her future doesn't look good.

Keeper is hired by Renata's husband to find her and bring her back. But Jack is being removed from his element and placed into unknown terrorities. Will Jack be able to save Ms. Barnes from the evil drug lords or will she end up in a nameless grave like the ones she has witnessed. When Jack realizes that The Bald Man was also at the funeral of Renata's child, he realizes that things may be interconnected in ways he hasn't fully understood yet and time is running out for all parties involved.

I wasn't really impressed with the character of Jack, he seemed a bit of a wimp to me and every time he got caught, I was rolling my eyes and groaning. He just came across as a bit of an oaf who through luck only, gets the job done. I found him to be cliched and stereotyped and his dialogue was stiff and disjointed.

I liked the back story concerning Renata and her child, the twists and turns in that story were enjoyable to read. However, it wasn't enough for this reader to state this was a great book, more along mediocrity and droll. The plot was the only thing keeping the story afloat. The Bald Man as a "bad" guy name was hilarious when I first read it and I immediately thought of "The One Armed Man" from "The Fugitive".

I have never had the opportunity to read a Vincent Zandri book before and had only heard good reviews but this reader isn't sold, maybe I needed to read "The Innocent" to further understand the machinations of Jack, even though Godchild is promoted as a stand alone novel. Maybe it was the format in which I read it in, I am not a huge fan of eBooks, they lack depth that is needed to read a book properly. Or maybe I am just not a huge fan of this writing style...I am not going to say this is a good nor a bad book, I'll have to leave that to you, the reader, I just know this reader didn't enjoy the experience, and was looking for more intelligence and substance from such a renowned author. ( )

Vincent Zandri, in my opinion, has got to be THE best thriller/suspense novelist out there. All his books reach out, grab you into the story, and put you on a roller coaster of up,downs, twists and turns like never before. He uses skillful writing, life-like characters, and plot lines that leave you thirsting for more. He's unforgettable characters become one with the reader, as the reader follows along and feels as if Zandri uses them for the plot line. It becomes real. It becomes incredibly real. AWESOME-NESS!

Godchild is the sequel to The Innocent, where we first meet Jack "Keeper" Marconi, former warden. This time, 3 years later, he's a PI, a little down on his luck. He's about to get married, but he stops to visit his deceased wife, Fran, at the cemetery, when he has a spotting of the black Buick and man that was responsible for the death of his first wife, 3 years ago. So what happens next? His friend, Tony (this guy is SUPER DUPER mafia like!) gets him a PI job trying to safe the life of Renata, a writer thrown into a Mexican jail for trying to smuggle drugs. Wow. After he takes the assignment, the heat turns up and the suspense gets rolling at a fast-action pace. Totally worth the time NOT putting the book down (though I don't think the kiddos would agree with that!)! Feeling a part of the story, I loved the blood pumping, panting breath feeling of reading Keeper's second story. Like The Innocent, this is an un-put-downable novel.

Of course, I am not going to give away spoilers but I must confess, that if you like thrillers, suspense, or just a plain greatly written novel, then I suggest you start right here and now, with this FABTASTIC 5 star book! It is not overly confusing with the scenes and events, so it could double as a stand alone, though I HIGHLY recommend that you read it as a sequel to The Innocent. I think you may fully understand Keeper's story better if you read them both. Definitely give this book and it's rockin' great author a chance. You'll find, while there is a touch of humor, this is a noir crime novel and novelist BETTER than any Stephen King! Rock on, Vincent Zandri! ( )