This is a story about a retired New York City police officer who, under the direction of the Chief of Detectives, works with a disparate group of people on an unsolved crime. The case is more than he bargained for as he adjusts to a change in his personal life as well. His brother, with whom he was estranged, and his wife recently died in an automobile accident and their son, whom he never met before, is now living with him.

The plot moves along quickly, although it strains credulity a bit. There is good, distinct character development. Tank, the main protagonist, is a rough and tough individual who prefers fine wine, good food, and museums to beer and bars. The ending is a set up for a sequel, and I look forward to it.

This story grabbed me at the beginning and hung on. The characters are great. Tank is strong and honest. He doesn't hide his feelings for his family. His family is group of people he has gathered to help him solve crimes. He loves them all and will protect them at all costs. Tank and his partner, Pearl, are no longer on the police force, but they help the chief solve cold cases. They are given a case that isn't so cold, but it turns out to be very dangerous. Tank isn't sure if any of them will be standing when they go up against a dangerous kingpin. Can he save his family?

"Tin Badge" is the term used for former police officers who still investigate cases. In this case, the guy's name is Tank (along with his former partner, Pearl). Tank is content with his life, doing side work for the police department, living alone in the brownstone in Greenwich Village that he grew up in, having a great girlfriend who complemented him, etc. His "perfect world" comes to a sudden halt when he is notified of his brother's death and learns that when he and his wife were killed, they left behind a teen son with no other family to take him in.

So part of the story is adjusting to the new relationship (you'll love the boy, Chris) while the rest pertains to his very risky and frightening job, taking out a major drug lord. This would, indeed, make for a great action movie. It's been awhile since I've read anything with this much going on and this much danger.

It wouldn't surprise me if a sequel is in the offing. I mean, was his brother's and sister-in-law's auto accident, really an "accident"??

PS I read it in one sitting, doesn't happen that often, anymore.

New York City detectives Tank Rizzo and Pearl Monroe carried a gold badge up until the fateful day when both of them lost their jobs. But Pearl lost so much more. Now both of them hold a tin badge, one that has few privileges of their former life, but it does open some doors. The duo works cold cases that the NYPD doesn’t have time to investigate thanks to the Chief of Police that has a soft spot for both of them.

When the case involving a couple of young women, who are beaten and sexually abused is tossed their way, it is so cold they might need gloves to hold it. No one has worked it for a while because the ladies are most likely hookers and no one really seems to care. Tank and Pearl dig into the case with the help of their brilliant, yet ragtag group. They discover the assault is just the tip of the iceberg. One that is full of drugs, murders and gangs that the two with tin badges are determined to bring to justice.

As if Tank doesn’t have enough on his plate, the brother that he hasn’t spoken with in years dies in an icy car accident along with his wife. This leaves his now orphaned teenage nephew, Chris, living with him in his NY brownstone. Chris is smart, mad at the world and crushed that his parents are gone; leaving him with the only family he has but doesn’t know. Tank loved his brother and willingly takes in Chris. Now he has to keep his nephew safe while working the case, which isn’t going to be easy. Chris is a crime buff and wants to be part of the team that takes the bad guys down and the good news/bad news is he is an expert at finding information that Tank and his team needs.

This fasted paced novel has page-turning action and is filled with the passion the characters have for their jobs, families and friends. Tank is the perfect leading man in the group of brilliant but ragtag crime solvers. His connections to the NYPD and old mobsters create a cast that entertains readers from the first page to the last. His love of NY City is evident as the story unfolds and the secret he holds close to his heart kept me guessing throughout the story.

Carcaterra is a Native New Yorker. A writer for over twenty years, he is a NY Times number one bestselling author. The prolific author has written several books, one of which, Sleepers, was adapted as a film in 1996 of the same name. I can’t wait to read some of his other books. Hopefully there will be a sequel to Tin Badges or better yet, a series with these interesting, complex characters. If you are a fan of Deaver’s Lincoln Rhyme or Patterson’s Alex Cross, you will love Tin Badges.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy for free from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. Copyright © 2019 Laura Hartman

Lorenzo Carcaterra has elbowed his way through the hardships that plague most writers and is now recognized for a successful thirty-years writing career in the diverse worlds of fiction, non-fiction, television and film. His photographs depict a no-nonsense guy with an attitude, a demeanor that lends credibility to his new novel, “Tin Badges.”

This is an entertaining story of a couple a police detective buddies who have suffered career-ending injuries. But their work is so well thought of by NYPD brass that they are hired to handle cold cases that are beyond the reach of over burdened regulars on the force. The latest involves a violent drug kingpin with the tough-guy name of Gonzo, who is fighting a violent battle to keep his narcotics enterprises alive. Retired detective Tank Rizzo and his horribly injured ex-partner, Pearl, are unorthodox in their approach but highly effective and feared by those who would oppose them.

The team’s crew is full of talented and shady crime fighters will stop at nothing to solve their cases, earn their money, and put the loathsome crooks out of commission, dead or alive. In this particular case, Tank reluctantly adds his teen-age nephew, Chris, to his crew. Chris, who was recently orphaned when Tank’s brother and sister-in-law were killed in a tragic car wreck, has never been close to Tank, doesn’t fit in with his lifestyle, but shows some remarkable talent for crime investigation, an aptitude that Tank appreciates and wants to take advantage of. Along the way, Chris uncovers the fact that his father’s car was rigged to crash and convinces Tank that there’s another case in the works, one that, when combined with the investigation of Gonzo, turns events even deadlier.

This is a crackling good book with realistic backdrops, careful character construction, dialogue with sparkling realism, and a believable plot. Carcaterra has been successful in his crime writing career, turning out many big sellers, and getting his foot in the television and movies doors with many of his works. “Tin Badges” has been optioned for development as a weekly TV series. He has also written many successful feature scripts for television and the screen.

I liked Carcaterra’s work and I plan to read some more.

It's hard to rate this book. It's well-written and engaging. If it had been written in 1969 it would have been an okay-but-forgettable entry in the urban-warrior genre, call it three stars.

But today fans of the genre have the options of reading some of the energetic originals from the 1950s and early 60s, or the more nuanced and mature works since then, or churned-out-by-new-writers entries in the old series, or versions including modern stereotypes instead of 50-year-old ones. So based on the fact nobody would want this book, I could give it one star. I settled on two just to split the difference.

As typical for the genre, all characters are ethnic stereotypes. Italians are in the Mafia, brutal but honorable according to their code. Hispanics are brutal, not honorable and stupid. Irishmen are corrupt alcoholic cops, expect for the hero. Blacks mostly don't exist, or are low-level employees of the Hispanics, except for the token sidekick to the hero. Gypsies are dishonest and sneaky, but honorable according to their code. Whites whose names end in consonants are not brutal, but cowardly and corrupt.

Women are there to be threatened, raped or disfigured; to wear sexy clothes and to be protected; and to wring their hands about violence and worry about their men; and to welcome them afterwards with food and sex. Single gals are vindictive, not in manly sock-in-the-jaw or shoot-up-the-street because-you-threatened-my-woman ways, but in scarily sadistic personal ways.

Although this is nominally a procedural, no procedure is described. In fact, all the detecting is pointless because the bad guys all carry unlicensed guns in New York City, so you could just arrest them all on page one (the good guys are just as well armed, so perhaps there is an unwritten agreement to exempt both sides). Also the goal is to murder all the bad guys in a shootout at their urban headquarters (bystanders do not seem to exist, fortunately for them), which the bad guys were willing to do at any time in the book. So what's to detect?

There are other complaints. The action is highly unrealistic and not described with the clarity and tense energy this kind of work demands. A major subplot is constantly and annoyingly mentioned, and turns out to be a teaser for the next book in the series. We learn more about what the hero eats, drinks, listens to and roots for than even a Spenser novel attempts, with less originality and wit. Computer "hacking" is presented as a magic way to leap over plot holes.

If you like urban warrior tales, you have a rich selection of both classics from the past, and up-to-date works. Unless you've read all of those--and there are thousands--I'd give this one a miss.

This was a great book. I look forward to reading more from this author. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

A Decent Read But Nothing Special!

Many years ago Lorenzo Carcaterra became one of my favorite authors after reading his non-fiction books, Sleepers and A Safe Place. However, he dropped from being one of my favorite authors to being a “hit or miss” author after reading four of his fiction books — Gangster, Apaches, Chasers and Wolf.

Having now finished his latest book, I consider Tin Badges — which is the first in a series featuring main character, Tank Rizzo, a retired NYPD Detective who, along with his crew, accepts cold cases from the NYPD Chief Of Detectives — to be a book that both hit and missed. As a result, Tin Badges was a book that held my interest from beginning to end and one I found to be entertaining...but while enjoyable, I didn’t find anything that was special enough about it to make it a book I’d recommend you rush out to read.

Here’s a few examples of what I mean about it being a book that had both hits and misses. I found the plot to provide a good amount of action and excitement but I also considered many of the action scenes to be pretty predictable and, at times, unrealistic. Carcaterra’s main characters are pretty well-developed but his secondary characters, and particularly his “bad guy” characters, were basically one-dimensional. Typical of the author’s previous books, his dialog skills are very “street smart” but in Tin Badges I felt Carcaterra, at times, tried to be too hip and, thus, lost some of its realism. Further, I found him to be somewhat fixated — to the point of occasionally being annoying — with using the word “play” in a multitude of ways (eg., “that’s my play”, “what’s your play?”, “that plays to my advantage”, etc.). Lastly, I found the main character’s 15 year old nephew ‘s computer hacking skills and the speed and ease with which he could “weave his magic” to be somewhat implausible.

Despite my mixed feelings with Tin Badges, I found the book provided me with sufficient entertainment value to plan to read the second book in this new series whenever it is released.

#Tin Badges #Net Galley

Carcaterra's novel "Tin Badges" appears to be the start of an exciting new series. Tank Rizzo and his partner had an exciting NYPD career which ended with retirement. But,instead of running a bar or playing cards or watching NFL games and inviting the gang over for barbecues, Tank still hungers for the adrenaline feel of action and wears a "tin badge," meaning he gets tossed a cold case or sometimes a rotten case now and then and gets paid real dollars to deliver the criminals to NY's Finest.

So, he still lives in the East Village, hangs out with his old pals, and does police work but he's off the books like a black ops team so the rules don't always apply. And, did I say team? Cause Tank's got a crack team that backs his play from his ex partner in a wheelchair to the crafty fortune teller gypsy who knows everything around town to his computer whiz. Throw in his childhood crush, his orphaned nephew, and a bunch of aging ex mafiosos and you get one fun exciting story told in a manner that gets you turning those pages (even the electronic pages) pretty quickly.

Many thanks to the publisher for providing a copy for review.

Bottom shelf

I really disliked this book. It's about disabled cop (although one never hears that his wound bothers him) cop who occasionally takes on consulting work for the police department. For each assignment he pulls together a team of oddballs and misfits to pull off an improbable heist. Sound like a movie franchise we all know???

The writing is stiff and bland. Themes, settings, jokes inserted only to allow Mr. Caracterra to use historical details to add "color" to what is really basic, plot-driven writing. This happens, then that happens and then they do this other thing in this church that was built in XXX and used by XXX and decorated by XXX. The jokes are stupid.

My reading notes highlights improbable happenings, behaviors, and dialogue I consider way out of reality for the actors (can't say "characters" because there are no characters here, only automatons).

And every good thing in the book is "top-shelf", a writing tic that is irritating as hell.

As far as I am concerned, this book isn't worth reading even as a freebie. You have much better things to do with your life.

A standalone mystery thriller novel (with series potential!) revolving around a pair of tin badges and their unusual crew of misfits.

This eARC was sent to me by NetGalley and Ballantine Books for an honest review.

My Take
It's more tell than anything with a cold start, and I wish that Carcaterra had played up the tension more. As for the inciting incident, it made no sense to me. What cops are going to raid a criminal base on their own?? As for Jack and Susan, why didn't they just turn back? And isn't it kind of early in their relationship for Connie to be giving her family recipes to Chris?

But as I read, it got interesting: Tank's philosophy on the job. If it ain't hurting, it ain't worth busting. I also think he has a point about where cops spend their off-duty time and how it contributes to family issues.

Tank has his own personal and professional conflicts going on, including taking in an orphaned nephew and how it'll affect his long-term bachelorhood, his paralyzed partner, and a cold case handed to his team.
"There's dirty in every business. That doesn't mean you have to take part in it."
With third person global subjective point-of-view, we mostly hear from Tank's perspective, but we also hear what's going on in the heads of a number of characters, as well as experiencing scenes with individual characters including Alexandra's confrontation, Gonzo's frustrations, Carmine's encounters, Chris' thoughts, and more.

The nephew is a piece of work, although his hostility is understandable. He is at least intelligent and vocal with his opinions and questions. I like that Tank doesn't take on the guilt, but gives it back with honesty. It's a conflict that spirals down to a major secret between the brothers, and Carcaterra teases us to the end with what that secret might be. Even then, it's just a teaser.

I did crack up when Joey declared that they need a great plan, a can't-miss plan, and then Chris looks at 'em all and says he has a plan. That long-term friendship between Tank and Connie is sweet, and Carcaterra provides some of their early history, including her dad's, lol. As for Tar Beach, huh. Never knew it referred to those tarred roofs in the city.

Tin Badges has an interesting roster of characters and plenty of action with a good pace. Give it a chance, and you'll enjoy it. I know I want to read more about Pearl becoming a more integral part of the team and how Chris continues to embed himself, lol.

The Story
It's a cold case that pits Tank, Pearl, and their crew up against a dangerous drug dealer who has no problems with making it personal.

It's not the time for Tank to be taking on a teenager, but it's a case of step up or regret it for the rest of his life.

The Characters
First Grade Detective Tommy "Tank" Rizzo ends up on a three-quarter disability/retirement. Jack "Numbers" Rizzo, an accountant, is his estranged brother, who is married to Susan. Chris is their son who loves all this CSI and detecting stuff and is a whiz on the computer. Tank and Jack's dad had been a lugger moving boxes at the meat market. Aunt Nancy and Uncle Aldo had rented the top two floors.

First Grade Detective Frank "Pearl" Monroe is his partner and married to a first-year resident at Roosevelt Hospital. After the accident, his role is computer research.

Tank and Pearl's crew includes...
...Bruno Madison, a bartender at Tramonti's, a former heavyweight boxer, and the muscle of the crew. Carl Elliot is a busker, a fence, and the team's wrangler who can get what they need. Joey Scalini is the tech guy. Alexandra Morrasa runs numbers out of Alexandra's Psychic Healing Center with ears everywhere and better intel than the NYPD.

Tramonti's is...
...a successful Italian restaurant/bar/jazz club — safe turf — co-owned by Carmine Tramonti, ex-Mob, and his daughter, Connie. Barry is an early-shift bartender. Vincenzo works in the kitchen. Paulie is a shooter.

New York City PD
Chief of Detectives Ray Connors is an old friend with a discretionary fund. (Ray's dad had been a longshoreman at the old Pistol Piers run by Tough Tony Anastasia, Albert's crazy brother.) Tony is a plainclothes detective. Technical Assistance Response Unit (TARU) is a special unit. Detective Frank Allison needs reassurance. Patrick works in Narcotics. Tomas Hidalgo had been a cop on the pad. Other corrupt cops include Frank "Zagat" Rumore and Calhoun.

Maria Martinez was an assistant DA. Leslie Stuart is also an ADA. Floyd Carter was a great cop back in the day, as well as a Tuskegee Airman, who also flew in the Cold War airlift in 1948, fought in Korea and Vietnam, won several awards, and was the first African American to earn a gold shield — and he crossed paths with Papa Calhoun.

Francine Jackson and Gloria were raped and beaten. Now they're a cold case. Reggie, a drug runner, is their betraying neighbor. and Rafael Puig Leon Anderson had good alibis. Mano is too talkative.

Juan Marichal Gonzalez, a.k.a., Gonzo, is the biggest coke dealer in Washington Heights. Luis, Angel, JJ, the stupid-pill-taking Pedro, and Felipe and Hector have never torched a building before. Edwin didn't make it. Albert J Burnett is a lawyer. Bono works out of New Jersey, and Gonzo owes him money.

Luther Wiley runs the Pain Train of drug dealers. The Colt Forty-fives are another gang. Mongo was moving a lot of coke a month. Nick "Baby Face" Arnold had been a Harlem drug lord. Ralph "Trouble" Jenkins is a thief whose lawyer is Wendell P Garrison. Ronnie Hidalgo had been head honcho for the Park Avenue Snipers. Mr Mike Ruffalino is in Tank's neighborhood. Greg Bartoli is a dirty banker. Antonio Felice works at the Banco di Napoli.

Curtis, Strassman, and Randolph is...
...an accounting firm. David Randolph is Jack's annoying boss, a department head, and a partner in the firm. His third wife, Bella, is too pretentious for words.

A tin badge is a retired detective hired on the side by the PD when they're swamped or have too many cold cases. Cooping is a two-hour nap while on the job. Herm Williams is/was a top-tier trumpet player who funneled his earnings into a bar. Carlo and Rocco, he's married to Frannie, are friends of Carmine's. Marie Andrews is best friends with Susan Rizzo. The Vidocq Society was started in 1990 and is named for Eugène François Vidocq, a 19th century detective. Jimmie is a bartender in a cop bar, Alberto's Grill.

Back in 1609
John Colman had been a member of Henry Hudson's crew on the Half Moon.

The Cover and Title
The cover has a medium blue, slightly transparent layer over an aerial view of Manhattan with yellow windows exposing more of the city AND forming the letters for the title. All the text is yellow, and at the very top is an info blurb with the author's name immediately below it. The title spans better than half the cover with the information that this is a novel at the very bottom.

The title is all about the protagonists, the Tin Badges who are so useful to the cops.

This novel was 4.5 stars raised to a five! Tank Rizzo is a retired NYPD detective who, along with his partner, are Tin Badges (retired or disabled ex-detectives who look into cold cases for the NYPD). They are called upon to look into the robbery and rape of two women that was left unsolved. They had also formed a crew of irregulars who worked with them. Tank was called in to care for his teenaged nephew and only living relative after the boy’s parents died in an automobile accident. Tank and the boy had no pervious contact with each other because of an estrangement between the two men. Their investigation led to drug dealers, former gangsters (Tank’s lady friend is the daughter of a “retired” gangster and runs his restaurant), money laundering and a climax that any reader will remember for a long time. It is well written and very visually written. I am hoping for more Tank Rizzo novels. Thanks to Net Galley and Ballantine for an ARC for an honest review.

Great story. Fast read. Tons of action.
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This is the first time reading this author and unfortunately it came during a very busy week for me. So I could only read little bits and pieces of this book at a time. Very frustrating!!

The premise of the story is unique and I love all of these true crime happenings. The street sense, the mob players, and select good cops work together to make a dent in the drug world.

This book is actually a fast read and it is written in the short chapter method that keeps the engagement high and the action plentiful.

There are some great characters in the story, but there are many, and for someone that has not read prior books I don’t know if some were introduced before. However, I love the nephew and the main character, Tank, and their tenuous bond.

Highly entertaining, a great page turner, and a plot you can actually visualize coming together in real life. Tin Badges is a fabulous look at how connections and great friends can truly take on the unsavory and make an impression! Exciting and written with a passion for true crime stories.

This might be the first book I’ve read by Carcaterra, but it’s not the last.

Tin Badges makes retirement look exciting! Tank, retired NYPD, sometimes gets cold cases to work from his old boss. He has an interesting assemblage of personas to help him out with these cases. I liked the quirky dynamics of these characters. They had engaging dialogue and interactions. Tank is tough on the outside, but he's soft on the inside. As a former cop, he must embody the idea of a take no sh** from anybody kind of guy. There's much more to him, though, and he has a lot of personal stuff to deal with. I enjoyed reading about his cold case work. The case is complicated, twisted and thrilling. I liked the story overall, and I will read more from the author. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Compelling mystery about a contract (tin badge) detective solves a cold case with the help of his nephew.

What a fantastic story of an ex-cop with an amazing selection of friends from all walks of life! The characters are real, showing their good and bad parts, and we come to know exactly the way their lives go. Tank still loves real police work, and he has a relationship with the Chief where he is given cold or hard to get to cases to work out with his own small crew. That includes his former partner and best friend, Paulie, who is in a wheelchair after the outcome of their last case on the force, Carmine, an ex-Mob boss who runs a restaurant with daughter Connie, Tank's life long love, Joey, the computer guy and several other handy folks.
Tank gets a call that his brother and sister-in-law died in a car crash, and their son Chris is on his own. Tank steps up, Chris comes to stay with him and proves himself quite good at computers and plans, working his way easily into the group of 'mis-fits' that make up Tank's crew.
This story shows you police work from the bottom up, the good, the bad and the ugly. But also lets us see the relationships that form with people thrown together in their lives by their ideas, values and morals become more family than a blood brother. A really enjoyable read that makes me want More immediately!!
I thank NetGalley and author Lorenzo Carcaterra for the chance to read this wonderful book, and hope to read more of Tanks' adventures soon!!

Tin Badges is an excellent thriller. An engrossing, quick read featuring former cop Tank Rizzo. Carcaterra has created a protagonist who brings his knowledge, skills, experience and personal morality to solve cold cases in NYC. He has a network of interesting characters, his friends and colleagues, who support him as he and his former partner go after a successful drug dealer. Jack Reacher fans will find a new hero in Tank Rizzo.

As an avid reader (and retired Philadelphia Firefighter), I’m very disappointed in Carcaterra’s latest book, “Tin Badges”. The story is unbelievable, no one in law enforcement speaks the way his characters do, and after a short while I couldn’t read anymore. I struggled through the first half, but had to put it down after that, which is something I rarely do with any book.
Disheartening.

A retired bad ass cop....named Tank...who still gets handed cases from his old boss. Quite a concept. Fast paced, filled with lots of action, violence and very little sappiness. A good read.

Tank Rizzo is a Tin Badge, a retired NYPD detective who is tapped by the department, on occasion, to work on difficult, complicated or cold cases. He is determined to bring down the street king known as Gonzo. He taps his team: his former partner, Pearl, who was paralyzed in a shoot-out, along with a team of various other misfits. He also involves the father of his lady, a former mobster, who sticks his nose in when the bad guys trash his wife's garden in an attempt to derail Tank's investigation. And, on top of that, his estranged brother and sister-in-law have been killed in a car accident and now his resentful nephew has come to live with him. Non-stop action and interesting characters make this a very exciting read. Recommended.