The second installment of the Tank Rizzo series brings us more adventures with the Tin badge detectives--retired police detectives who still investigate cases for the department. Tank's nephew, Chris, is now a full-fledged member of the squad, serving as the resident computer expert, and it is he who dig up enough dirt on his late father's company to be convinced that his parents' death in a car crash was no accident. The rest of the gang, including Tank's wife, her crime boss/restaurant owner father, various heavies, and of course, Tank's partner, Pearl, are all in evidence, and it's the team that makes the story appealing. Everyone (good guys and bad) in this story seems out to exact personal, not necessarily legal, revenge on someone else, and all the "arrest the other guys, but person X is mine" is a bit extreme. The violence contrasts with other parts of the story in which there's a lot of explaining, which can bog things down slightly when the reader just wants to see what everyone is going to do next. That's what made this second book 4 start instead of 5 for me. I look forward to this excellent team's next outing.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital advance review copy.

This is the second book in the series and just as good as the first one! It was fast paced, it was descriptive and kept you on the edge of your seat.
I like how everything was wrapped up in a neat little package.
I think fans of Michael Connelly will enjoy this book!
I certainly did! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy

Ex cp Tan Rizzo and his crew have not 1, but 2 cases to investigate. Tanks crew Is unusual to say the least, his ex partner now in a wheel chair, a crime boss, the Chief of police and his orphaned nephew who now lives with him. One of the cases is very personal to Tank. It involves his brother and sister in law. They are up against some very powerful people who will stop at nothing to protect themselves. This was an action packed book that had me rooting for Tank and his crew. Most of the characters were likable, even tho some weren’t necessarily law abiding. I look forward to seeing these characters in another book. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

PAYBACK is an action packed thrill ride in which a retired former NYPD detective named Tank Rizzo and his crew take on the challenge of investigating not one, but two cases. One case involves clearing a con wrongfully imprisoned for a murder because of a now retired crooked cop while the other case is more personal since it involves the contract murder of Tanks brother and his wife by the bosses of a high profile accounting firm whose side business is laundering large sums of money for their “clients”.


Tanks unusual crew include members ranging from his wheel-chair bound former partner and a professional boxer to his deceased brother’s son and an ex-mob boss. And that’s just the tip of this iceberg. He also has the support of the local police chief as well as a U. S. Attorney.

Tank is quick to discover that he will have to keep his wits about him if he hopes to get his crew and himself through the investigations in one piece.

Although Carcaterra is a gifted storyteller who manages to weave an intriguing, though often implausible, tale
the majority of his characters lack true depth and dimension. The dirty cops are the scum of the earth while the ex-mafiosos and gang leaders are only out to seek “justice” for friends and family members.

All of that aside, there is enough going on in the blood and guts department to keep the reader turning pages.
3 1/2 stars

Tank Rizzo is a semi-retired cop, but he and his former partner are still on the job. Still close to his old chief, Tank is sometimes talked with temporary duty when his boss needs someone outside the department to weigh in, especially on politically charged cases Just settling into his new role as head of a household that now includes his teenage nephew and his wheelchair-bound partner, he's on the trail of a dirty cop who's put more than one innocent black kid behind bars. But the more interesting case is the one his tech-savvy nephew has built against his dead father's former employer, implicating him in what was supposed to look like an accident, and even though the brothers weren't close, it's a case that's much closer to home than a corrupt cop-at least until that cop threatens the people Tank loves.
A fast-paced thriller with an appealing protagonist and strong supporting characters.

Payback by Lorenzo Carcaterra is the second book that I have read Tommy Rizzo or Tank as he is callled by his friends and the police officers her previioulsy worked with. He with the help of several friends , Carmine an crime leader and now the father of his girl friend and olnwer of a restrauant workand his old partner from the police department Pearl work. together to destroy a crooked policeman and an investment firm. Tank recently learned that his brother and wife were killed. by members of the investment company and he is determined to get his revenge.
The book is interesting and most of the maincharacters likable. I recommend this book and the first one in the serries.
Lorenzo Carcaterra please write more novels about Tank, his partner Pearl and nephew Chris.

Payback is the second novel featuring Tank Rizzo and his friends taking down evildoers in their own inimitable style; not always the absolutely correct way but seeing justice done. Tank was a detective with the New York city police department but was injured in his last take down. His partner at the time, Pearl lost the use of his legs in the same shootout. The two remain good friends and are sometimes involved with a case given to them by their ex chief at the police department. These are situations in which the use of regular department personnel may not be feasible for one reason or another.
Tank's brother and his sister in law were killed in an automobile accident. Their son Chris was taken in by Tank and they are learning to live with each other in spite of his parents and uncle being on the outs for years. The opening of the novel finds that Chris has developed into a very talented computer guru. He has investigated the accounting firm that his father was working for when he died in the accident and found that there were several irregularities which were never thoroughly investigated. He brings his concerns to Tank who decides to investigate the circumstances surrounding his brother's death. This is a situation that was made more difficult due to the two men not speaking for many years based on an incident in their past.
Pearl, in the meanwhile has been approached on behalf of an old family friend jailed unfairly by a crooked New York city detective. The man has spent years imprisoned due to a confession he was forced to make by Eddie Kenwood, the detective in question. Pearl and Tank decide to look into that case as well as going after the accounting firm that Tank's brother worked for.
The investigations are aided by various groups not necessarily on the side of the law. For example, the father of Tank's girlfriend who just happens to be a mob boss, a crew of knife wielding thieves, the attorney general (how did they get into that group), a retired boxer and a cute little dog that Chris has been gifted with. It has been some time that a hard boiled detective has appeared in fiction but Tank and his allies make for excellent subjects and create an engrossing novel. There is no doubt that Lorenzo Carcaterra has started a series that will be continued in the future and enjoyed by his readers.