From the Publisher
"R.J. Ellory is a uniquely gifted, passionate, and powerful writer." — Alan Furst
"R.J. Ellory's remarkable talent for probing the unknown establishes him as the master of the genre. The perfect author to read late into the night." — Clive Cussler
"R.J. Ellory will quickly rank with the best crime writers working today." — Otto Penzler
"In this bleak examination of murder and hope, Ellory's herrings are as red and sticky as caramelized apples, more dead-ends than Manhattan riverside real estate. Fans of Ellory's A Quiet Belief in Angels will repeatedly take the wrong road, when trying to identify the Anniversary Man. Readers who expect the amazing success of that novel to be replicated by the Brit who sets his plots in the U.S. as though he intends to recolonize for the Queen will be thrilled with this epic crime fiction novel. Written as though by a native New Yorker, this novel needs to be read twice—- once for vice-grip-like details, again for nectar from the consummate wordsmith. So real is Ellory's writing that the lines between journalism and crime fiction blur. Though Ellory's standalone crime thrillers grab readers by the throat and don't let go until the last page, Detective Irving has the makings of Connelly's Harry Bosch on steroids, sure to be a repeat character— and made with cinematic success into a blockbuster movie." — Bookreporter.com
"This is one of those police-procedural gems that come along once in a blue moon...And what a story it is!...This could be the one to put [Ellory's] name in lights in this country. Expect his name to be on every crime-fiction fan's lips in short order." — Booklist (Starred Review)
"Ellory's gripping thriller should appeal to lovers of procedurals and may also draw readers of true crime, as it deals with many actual serial killings" — Library Journal
"[Ellory's] prose is tightly and impressively woven, and edges more toward the lyrical than not...The Anniversary Man choreographs a complicated dance between a couple of fully realized characters, neither of them obviously the killer, but both of whom are amalgams of hope, secrecy, fear and, in their respective manners, courage. ...Ellory is a patient storyteller, willing to stretch beyond the necessities of his plot and illuminate people who occupy the peripheries of his captivating tale. He also doesn't stint in fleshing out his central players, even if in doing so he swings far from the demands of a police procedural." — January Magazine's
"This is an exhilarating New York City serial killer thriller...Fast- paced throughout...fans will relish this strong police procedural." — Midwest Book Review
"The author takes the reader on a deadly roller coaster ride...a riveting and spellbinding novel" — BookPleasures.com
"The Anniversary Man is just Ellory's second release here in the States (he has seven titles available in the UK) and he's quickly cementing himself as one of my favorites in the crime genre. His stories are dark and disturbing, his plots keep you guessing, and they never end quite like you think they will." — BookBitch.com
BookBitch.com
"The Anniversary Man is just Ellory's second release here in the States (he has seven titles available in the UK) and he's quickly cementing himself as one of my favorites in the crime genre. His stories are dark and disturbing, his plots keep you guessing, and they never end quite like you think they will."
BookPleasures.com
"The author takes the reader on a deadly roller coaster ride...a riveting and spellbinding novel"
Midwest Book Review
"This is an exhilarating New York City serial killer thriller...Fast- paced throughout...fans will relish this strong police procedural."
Bookreporter.com
"In this bleak examination of murder and hope, Ellory's herrings are as red and sticky as caramelized apples, more dead-ends than Manhattan riverside real estate. Fans of Ellory's A Quiet Belief in Angels will repeatedly take the wrong road, when trying to identify the Anniversary Man. Readers who expect the amazing success of that novel to be replicated by the Brit who sets his plots in the U.S. as though he intends to recolonize for the Queen will be thrilled with this epic crime fiction novel. Written as though by a native New Yorker, this novel needs to be read twice--- once for vice-grip-like details, again for nectar from the consummate wordsmith. So real is Ellory's writing that the lines between journalism and crime fiction blur. Though Ellory's standalone crime thrillers grab readers by the throat and don't let go until the last page, Detective Irving has the makings of Connelly's Harry Bosch on steroids, sure to be a repeat character-- and made with cinematic success into a blockbuster movie."
Kirkus Reviews
Uneven thriller about a New York City police detective who tracks a copycat serial killer. Ellroy (A Quiet Belief in Angels, 2009) begins with the appealing John Costello, nearly 17 and growing up in Jersey City. When John spots Nadia, a beautiful young woman, they begin a passionate relationship. One night, as they sit outdoors, a man approaches from behind and smashes Nadia's head with a hammer. Nadia dies, John narrowly escapes and the killer eventually commits suicide at a psychiatric facility. Ellroy now jumps forward 11 years and, in what may be a strategic mistake, shifts to the point of view of police detective Ray Irving. The author provides ample details to animate Irving and his Manhattan, but neither the man nor the place equal the vibrance of Costello and his Jersey City. At work, Irving confronts a killing similar to Nadia's-in Bryant Park, the body of a teenage girl turns up, her head crushed. Then the bodies of two teenage girls, shot in the head, are dumped along FDR Drive. Later, the body of a young man, his face painted like a clown, is found in a drain. A story in the City Herald traces the killings to those of serial killers of the past. Because all these killers were executed or are currently imprisoned, the story suggests a copycat killer is at large. How did reporter Karen Langley develop this theory? With aid from research assistant John Costello, who now obsessively compiles information about serial killers. Langley points out to Irving that the present-day killings occur on the anniversaries of the earlier murders. Aided by Langley and Costello, Irving digs through a massive haystack of serial-murder cases to find a needle-another case the killer will recreate. After several dead-ends, the three face off with the Anniversary Man in a tense scene in Madison Park. Ellory's prose is rather colorless, the plot lacks pace and momentum and Irving, at the center of it, is lackluster.
