Once a Crooked Man: A Novel
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A deliciously quirky crime novel from David McCallum, the beloved actor known for his portrayal of Illya Kuryakin on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS.
Crime pays. And pays well.
Sal, Max and Enzo Bruschetti have proved this over a lifetime of nefarious activity that they have kept hidden from law enforcement. Nowhere in any file, on any computer is there a record of anything illegal from which they have profited. But Max has a problem. His body is getting old and his doctor has told him to take it easy. Max has decided that the time has come for the family to retire.
But when young actor Harry Murphy overhears the Bruschetti brothers planning changes to their organization, including the murder of a man in London who knows too much, the Bruschetti's plans begin to unravel.
After Harry makes the well-intentioned if egregious mistake of trying to warn the Bruchetti's intended victim he finds himself alone in a foreign country, on the wrong side of the law, with a suitcase full of cash and a dangerous man on his trail. And while his good looks, charm and cheerful persistence may prove assets in the turbulent events that follow, none of Harry's past roles have prepared him for what happens next.
At turns tense and funny, Once a Crooked Man is infused with the infectious charm that has made David McCallum one of television's longest running, most-beloved stars.
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David McCallum. (2016). Once a Crooked Man: A Novel. St. Martin's Publishing Group.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)David McCallum. 2016. Once a Crooked Man: A Novel. St. Martin's Publishing Group.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)David McCallum, Once a Crooked Man: A Novel. St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2016.
MLA Citation (style guide)David McCallum. Once a Crooked Man: A Novel. St. Martin's Publishing Group, 2016.
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- bioText: David McCallum is a Scottish actor and musician. He is known for his roles as Illya Kuryakin, a Russian secret agent, in the television series The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (1964-68) and for his current role as NCIS medical examiner Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard in the American television series NCIS.
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A deliciously quirky crime novel from David McCallum, the beloved actor known for his portrayal of Illya Kuryakin on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS.
Crime pays. And pays well.
Sal, Max and Enzo Bruschetti have proved this over a lifetime of nefarious activity that they have kept hidden from law enforcement. Nowhere in any file, on any computer is there a record of anything illegal from which they have profited. But Max has a problem. His body is getting old and his doctor has told him to take it easy. Max has decided that the time has come for the family to retire.
But when young actor Harry Murphy overhears the Bruschetti brothers planning changes to their organization, including the murder of a man in London who knows too much, the Bruschetti's plans begin to unravel.
After Harry makes the well-intentioned if egregious mistake of trying to warn the Bruchetti's intended victim he finds himself alone in a foreign country, on the wrong side of the law, with a suitcase full of cash and a dangerous man on his trail. And while his good looks, charm and cheerful persistence may prove assets in the turbulent events that follow, none of Harry's past roles have prepared him for what happens next.
At turns tense and funny, Once a Crooked Man is infused with the infectious charm that has made David McCallum one of television's longest running, most-beloved stars.- reviews
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- source: Associated Press
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"Highly entertaining... McCallum respects the genres' tenets, supplying the right amount of intrigue, violence and sex for a well-plotted, action-packed tale. While occasional bits of humor add levity to the plot, McCallum keeps a near hard-boiled edge to the story. It seems McCallum had a lot of fun writing 'Once a Crooked Man,' as will his readers devouring his energetic novel."
- premium: False
- source: Washington Post
- content: "It's pretty danged good...McCallum isn't writing a noirish tale of deceit, vengeance and the hard hustle. This is crime as light comedy, with a broad cast of characters...here are guns, a fetching detective and bags of money. It's a three-card monte as to who winds up where with what and whom."
- premium: False
- source: New York Post
- content: "Darkly comedic ... Hijinks ensue -- including a shootout, car chases and mistaken identity. Plus, of course, a sexy British agent."
- premium: False
- source: Washington Times
- content: "Mr. McCallum is great fun and it is obvious why he is so engaging in the television thriller in which he plays a forensic expert. His sense of humor would fit the work of a man who digs into dead bodies."
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November 9, 2015
Actor McCallum, of NCIS and The Man from U.N.C.L.E. fame, makes his fiction debut with a suspense novel that opens promisingly with echoes of the classic Hitchcock film North by Northwest. Harry Murphy, a struggling New York City actor, is desperate to find a bathroom after an audition. When he’s denied entry at a restaurant, he goes to a nearby alley to urinate, only to overhear some men planning the murder of a man in London named Villiers. Without knowing exactly what’s going on or who the conspirators are, Harry impulsively decides to travel there to warn Villiers, after first trying to phone him. The proceeds from a new voice-over gig make the trip possible. Arriving in London just in time to foil the hit, Harry soon becomes the quarry of both good and bad guys, but he’s never plausible as a man of action in a story line that tends to the formulaic. Toward the end, the puzzling behavior of Det. Sgt. Lizzie Carswell, who befriends a mobster, may trouble some readers. Agent: Erica Silverman, Trident Media Group.
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November 1, 2015
An actor plays it for real when he tries to prevent a mob family from eliminating their potential enemies in this comic thriller. Harry Murphy has had some success as a New York actor, but when his paychecks start coming from things like voice-overs in mayonnaise commercials, he figures it's time to consider a new line of work. Stepping into a Queens alley to relieve himself, Harry overhears the conversation of three gangster brothers who, like him, have decided it's time to leave their profession behind. First, though, there are loose ends to tie up--living ones. Too decent a guy to hear of a potential murder and not try to do anything about it, Harry flies to London, where he succeeds in averting murder but is mistaken for a mob enforcer and nearly killed himself. This debut novel by actor McCallum (NCIS, The Man from U.N.C.L.E.) suggests the author has spent time enjoying the crime-and-espionage farces of Donald E. Westlake and the master of the genre, Ross Thomas. He's not embarrassed by good dumb jokes (the mobsters are named the Bruschettis) or by what ensues when Harry teams up with a flirtatious British agent whose purpose is more to be the hero's partner in backchat than in bed (though they're suited there as well). McCallum also loves plot. He has a farceur's taste for seeing how many complications he can bring to any situation. This good-natured debut gives the reader as good a time as it has plainly afforded its author.COPYRIGHT(2015) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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December 1, 2015
The first book from actor McCallum (The Man from U.N.C.L.E.; NCIS) is an entertaining mystery that begins in Queens, moves to West London, and then returns to New York City. Melding the adventures of bit-part actor Harry Murphy with the machinations of three elderly crime bosses, Sal, Max, and Enzo Bruschetti, McCallum pieces together a somewhat madcap tale in which Harry stumbles ever deeper into crazy circumstances. His first mistake involves overhearing the Bruschetti brothers discussing an assassination being planned in London. Harry compounds his troubles by acting on what he overhears, hoping to warn the intended victim by flying to London. If readers are willing to suspend their disbelief about such a far-fetched premise--that a good Samaritan would travel from New York to England based on an overheard conversation to save a complete stranger--then the rest of the novel becomes believable as well. Reminiscent of darkly comedic works in which heroes spiral continuously downward, this zany tale is oddly humorous at several junctures. VERDICT McCallum's characterizations are decent in this serviceable, competent thriller, and protagonist Harry is likable enough that readers would likely enjoy further adventures.--Jeffrey W. Hunter, Royal Oak, MI
Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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January 1, 2016
McCallum is an actorThe Man from U.N.C.L.E. and, more recently, NCISand so is his hero, New Yorker Harry Murphy, who happens to be standing nearby when members of a crime family discuss the murder of one of their British associates. Things are slow for Harry, acting-wise, so he jets to London to warn the imperiled Brit. And so we're off on what is being promoted as a romp, with the requisite chases and shootouts. There's that, but there is also fascinating stuff beneath the surface. Yes, Harry has something of the movie action hero in him, scaling buildings like Spider-Man and scuttling boats like Bond. Meanwhile, though, McCallum gives us glimpses of tormented lives, such as the Wall Streeter with a secret and an Englishwoman crazed with vengeance for a slight done to her father. It's Harry's intrusion into their lives that provokes the horrors, adding some ambiguity to the usual formula, like the fact that cops can be fond of the people they track down. Even love them. This quirky novel will appeal to readers who like a bit of subtext with their thrillers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)
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February 29, 2016
In this comedy thriller, written and performed by television actor McCallum, the hero is an actor based in Manhattan named Harry Murphy. Harry overhears gangsters Sal and Enzo Bruschetti plotting the assassination of a Londoner named Villiers. When he can’t reach the intended victim by phone to warn him, big-hearted Harry uses his last paycheck to fly to England. He foils the hit but winds up in between the gun sights of the Bruschettis and Villiers. Worse yet, he is forced by British detective sergeants Ivan Supinsky and Lizzie Caldwell to act as bait to catch the criminals. McCallum is effective when giving voice to his creations, going American for the Manhattanites, upper-class Brit for Villiers and his wife, adding a bit of a Russian growl for Ivan, and a brash, sexy cockney for Lizzie. But when using his own familiar delivery, complete with faint Scottish burr, for the descriptive passages, he’s unemotional to the point of sounding bored, an approach that works best as counterpoint during the novel’s somewhat jarring scenes of violence and sex. A Minotaur hardcover.
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A deliciously quirky crime novel from David McCallum, the beloved actor known for his portrayal of Illya Kuryakin on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS.
Crime pays. And pays well.
Sal, Max and Enzo Bruschetti have proved this over a lifetime of nefarious activity that they have kept hidden from law enforcement. Nowhere in any file, on any computer is there a record of anything illegal from which they have profited. But Max has a problem. His body is getting old and his doctor has told him to take it easy. Max has decided that the time has come for the family to retire.
But when young actor Harry Murphy overhears the Bruschetti brothers planning changes to their organization, including the murder of a man in London who knows too much, the Bruschetti's plans begin to unravel.
After Harry makes the well-intentioned if egregious mistake of trying to warn the Bruchetti's intended victim he finds himself alone in a...- sortTitle
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