Culprits

Culprits is a crime caper novel, fast-reading, full of action, hard to put down. That said, it’s also an anthology with the introductory part written by the editors and seven authors each contributing a chapter, kind of a fun parlor game for writers. Not the first time this has been done, but quite well done in this case. The trick with this type of book is to make the transitions seamless so that the reader feels as if it’s one while novel, not an anthology of stories by different writers.

The other interesting thing they did with Culprits is that, although it’s a crime caper novel, the planning and the adrenaline rush leading up to the incident, the robbery, the caper is over rather quickly because the real meat of the book is what happens to all of the players post-caper as they try to escape with the loot and hopefully without the proverbial knife in the back. This is where this novel really shines and is really fun to read.

Although it took a little bit to figure out who all these diverse characters are, eventually it becomes clear as you hear each individual story.