Historical Fiction

The Gangster is a well researched adventure book. It takes place in the early 1900s. The book is about the rise of the Black Hand Mafia story and the gangs of New York including Tammany Hall and the illegal actions of the police department. It is a good adventure. ( )

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I like it but other Cussler books are more my type of adventure. ( )

By now everyone who knows me is aware that I'm rather fond of Clive Cussler's work, because his books are fun to read, full of action and adventure and all things delightful, and usually the books are worth the price you pay. With The Gangster, the ninth installment in the Isaac Bell Adventures, it's no surprise that I enjoyed the hell out of the book. I love the imagination that went into writing The Gangster, over-the-top characters, and all the research that must have occurred even before the book was written. It is excellent!
A ''Black Hand'' gang leader and some crooked businessmen wants to assassinate Teddy Roosevelt, so Isaac Bell of the Van Dorn's is on the case to find the bad guys before their plans can come to fruition. Isaac Bell, however, is giving orders to experienced men that are far older than himself. So, of course, a bit of conflict arises. Nevertheless, this quirky read will have you glued to your seat for hours, as you delve into the antics that makes Isaac Bell such a lovable character.

If you're looking for humour and excitement, a fantastic historical crime series that's full of heroes and villains, you've come to the right place. The Isaac Bell Adventures provides a great escape from the real world. However, I would suggest you get your hands on the previous books. The Gangster does somewhat act as a prequel, so it's a good book to start on, but I know a lot of new Cussler fans are aching to get their hands on the previous books in order to catch up (believe me, you'll be itching for a dose of Isaac Bell as soon as you've had a taste).

I can't wait for the next one!

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The Gangster is #9 in the Issac Bell series and takes place in 1906 New York. The Italians and the Irish are having a culture war, neither are well regarded by the general population. Italians in particular are underestimated, fostering an environment conducive to the rise of Sicilian organized crime.

A new aquaduct is being built, and the corruption is thick. Teddy Roosevelt succeed the assassinated William McKinley but seems not to have learned from the demise of his precessor. He's popular with the masses, but the powerful wealthy find him an impediment to their interests.

While Bell continues to come off as super-human, the story is steeped in period history and flavor. Very entertaining ride. ( )

The Black Hand in new York City early 20th Century. The Black Hand preys on their own Italians. There is a plot to murder President teddy Roosevelt.
The van Dorn Detective agency solves all the crimes. ( )

This was a fairly quick read, interesting in some of the historical details, but lacking in character depth. ( )

Isaac Bell takes on an Italian gangster and an American plutocrat in this story. The gangster is Antonio Branco and he is behind the Black Hand Society which is an extortion and protection gang in NYC. The plutocrat is Culp, a blue blooded American in NYC who wants to kill Theodore Roosevelt. There’s plenty of thrills and chills but Isaac manages to thwart the bad guys.

This book, like the others, is a fun read that you need not take too seriously. Great entertainment, plus you can learn about US history, in this case the NYC water supply. ( )

Entertaining but not up to Cussler standards. Seemed ghost-written. ( )

Unlike his contemporary novels, this book, part of the Van Dorn/Isaac Bell adventures, is exciting and full of adventure set in an interesting time during America's history. In a country built on waves of immigration American is not unfamiliar with the tensions caused by those waves. In this book, the Irish immigrants are fully integrated members of society, even working their way into the police to provide the familiar image of the friendly Irish cop on the beat. New York politics was being run by the kind and wise, er, utterly corrupt hand of the Democratic Machine that held Tammany Hall in a vice-like grip. The Italians were flooding off the ships from Europe desperate for a better life but still under the control of the Patrones that ran their lives be they shopkeepers or navvies on the great Catskills Aqueduct. The Black Hand, a criminal organisation that had decided to branch out into all the possible areas of crimes and extortion going decided to gouge out it's own power base stirs up the tensions to make its mark on the city and it's up to Isaac Bell and his colleagues of the Van Dorn Investigation Agency to untangle the crooks' actions before the highest figure in the land falls foul of the criminal gang.

This is a much better written book than quite a lot of Cussler's joint books and I would suspect many hours of research have gone into the background of these novels ( )

What begins as a simple case of investigating an extortion group of immigrant Italians involved in building the viaduct to New York soon turns into an investigation into counterfitting, murder, and potential Presidential assassination. A really well put together read. ( )

The Issac Bell novels that Clive Cussler has invented are a fast ride from start to finish. This one is about the black hand in NYC at the turn of the century, the super-rich and an assassination plot to kill Teddy Roosevelt. Although the story has its many twists and turns I was not crazy about the number of characters. In the beginning I needed a score card to keep up but in the end he brought the main characters together for a slam bang ending. ( )

Catch the bad guy in Early 20th century N.Y. City. He wants to Assassinate Teddy Roosevelt. I am not a big Clive Cussler reader but i did get thru this one. ( )

An OK read if nothing better is available. Slavishly formulaic with shopworn characters. ( )

Very good adventure that takes place in the past on w/chase scenes on land/train and ice many twists and turns makes for a great read ( )