Long considered cool, distant, and absolutely reliable, an American-born hit man, working throughout Europe, grows increasingly distracted and begi...
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reviews
Jan 24, 2012
Emma
rated it: 
All right, all right, call me prejudiced but I thought a book written by an author who, it says so on his blurb, worked for The Museum of Modern Art and was senior editor of ARTnews Magazine would be as stodgy with pretention as an underboiled Christmas pud. But how wrong I was Mr De Feo. This book has not a pretentious bone in its body and is funny as hell to boot.
The book chronicles the life of a very likeable American hit man. Coming from a disadvantaged background, his skill in b More...
The book chronicles the life of a very likeable American hit man. Coming from a disadvantaged background, his skill in b More...
Oct 14, 2011
Barbara
rated it: 
This book is somewhat of a one-trick pony. It would have made a fabulous short story with a Saki-like ending, but instead it's a 291-page novel. Against the odds, I liked much of it.
When the phone rings for "Peter Chilton" and the voice on the other end asks for "Mr. King," it means the man, who is neither Peter Chilton nor Mr. King, must go to work. He is a hitman and an excellent one to boot.
One day, Peter becomes distracted while waiting for his mark to More...
When the phone rings for "Peter Chilton" and the voice on the other end asks for "Mr. King," it means the man, who is neither Peter Chilton nor Mr. King, must go to work. He is a hitman and an excellent one to boot.
One day, Peter becomes distracted while waiting for his mark to More...
Oct 28, 2011
When I opened Ronald De Feo’s Calling Mr. King I was convinced I wasn’t going to read more than a few pages. I had received a free copy at the BEA from the publisher, Other Press, and since I normally don’t read novels about hit men, I thought I would just take a quick look at the hit man’s travels between Paris, London, New York and Barcelona, and get some vicarious tourist enjoyment this way. And then…I couldn’t stop reading. This novel turned out to be a faux thriller written in a minimali
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Oct 08, 2011
Julie H.
rated it:
Calling Mr. King is a novel about an experienced hit man undergoing an existential crisis. De Feo's killer is no Martin Blank in Grosse Point Blank, although that is certainly where my mind went when I first read the novel's jacket blurb. Instead, our man comes from a decidedly working-class background but is landing upon all the best books, exhibits, and quickly educating himself on his new-found interests. Admittedly, a professional killer makes for an unlikely sympathetic protagonist. In sh
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Sep 14, 2011
Lisa
rated it: 
I kind of hate it when people write their reviews as mashups, but I can't resist in this case: This is The Bourne Identity meets The Catcher in the Rye. Seriously. A disgruntled and slightly petulant hit man wanders London, Paris, New York, and Barcelona, decries various phonies, has a gradual aesthetic awakening, and goes through a kind of begrudging solipsistic shift. And if that sounds like I'm being facetious, I'm not. It's a strange, dark, funny book -- in that order, I think -- and an inte
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Sep 30, 2011
Kenneth
rated it:
The concept of Calling Mr. King is intriguing, if not entirely original. I enjoyed the narrator's struggle with his work and his life's trajectory, and his eventual descent into near-madness, and his affected British turns of phrase. However, many hefty sections of the story were devoted to lists of book titles, architectural styles and the names of artists or composers. The final chapters, in particular seemed like a long list of places of interest, culled directly from a Barcelona travel gu
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Nov 04, 2011
Susan
rated it:
Can reading about architecture, noticing architectural details, going to the Metropolitan Museum and the Frick make a person better, more humane? Can these "hobbies" transform a killer so that he seems more likable? Calling Mr King, which appears to have been written on a dare, sets up and answers these kinds of Nietzchean questions. The answer is of course not, but although they don't exactly add depth, these activities do instill quirkiness and a new raison d'etre in the protagoni
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Feb 14, 2012
Courtney
rated it:
Calling Mr. King by Ronald De Foe chronicles an unnamed hit man’s realization that he wants more out of his life than what his profession asks of him. The narrator—who answers to the pseudonym Mr. King—carries out hits as ordered to him by his employers, whom he simply refers to as “The Firm”. He is liked by The Firm due to his excellent shot and having the capability to have a “job” done quickly and cleanly. All of this changes in an instant, however, when while trailing a hit he begins to feel
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Dec 01, 2011
Michael
rated it:
Mr. King is a hit man who furtively begins to admire the well-respected men he is hired to knock off. This leads to an interest in Georgian architecture (and ultimately the Art Nouveau of Barcelona) that threatens to surpass his vocation, with potentially disastrous results. De Feo writes in a swift and compelling style that skillfully uses the narrator's unschooled voice. The results are droll, but also touching. I would like to see Woody Allen adapt this as a film.
Oct 02, 2011
Heather
rated it:
I did not know if I would be able to root for an assassin protagonist, but the author really pulled if off. It was very interesting to see him struggle with the continuation of his line of work and try to find more out of life. It was also interesting that his conflict with his line of work was not an ethical debate. The book does not deal with the right or wrongs of being a professional assassin but treats it as any other job. The novel is an interesting journey into the struggle with insanity,
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Dec 30, 2011
Isaac
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Jan 07, 2012
Susan
rated it:
This was quite different and very compelling. The story is a first person account of an assassin who is finding that he's looking at things differently these days. After years of work landing him at the top of his profession, his passion is shifting to things that have never interested him before.
The story is interesting but the telling is fascinating. Best I can figure out this is Ronald De Feo's first published work. I do hope he has a stack of others at home in the drawer. I do More...
The story is interesting but the telling is fascinating. Best I can figure out this is Ronald De Feo's first published work. I do hope he has a stack of others at home in the drawer. I do More...
Mar 24, 2011
Liz
rated it:
A fun, rambling novel--think of the movie "Office Space"--in which a man realizes how disillusioned he is by his work. He wants to think about architecture and see the sites as he travels around Paris, London, New York, and Barcelona. The catch, of course, is that his profession is "hit man" and there's no escaping the organization for which he assassinates bad men. Lots to like about this novel.
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Nov 29, 2011
Frances
rated it:
The story is told entirely from the point of view of the narrator, a professional killer. A masterful portrait, from his childhood to thoughts about people he sees walking on the street. It all sounds very realistic, and probable that a child like that would grow into a killer. But I didn't enjoy reading this book. Ultimately, I didn't want to know anything about this man or be inside his mind.
Sep 17, 2011
Sherrie
rated it:
Unusual style of writing and insight into how a quirky character might think. An assassin taking stock of his career and existence. Shows the circle of life and destiny. Lots of detailed and descriptive travel locations. Great use of understated British humor. Well Done!!
Aug 03, 2011
Heather
rated it:
I was skeptical of an assasin as protaganist, but I really started to feel for the guy & his issues with identity & purpose. Telling this story from the point of view of a burnt-out assasin exaggerates this common struggle in a fun, slightly absurd, but oddly relateable way.
Jun 04, 2011
Richard (Bound & Determined...)
rated it:
I was intrigued, and a little let down. I can't decide if I liked it or was just amazingly disappointed.
For my full review, visit:
http://boundanddeterminedtofindagoodread...
Many Adventures,
Richard
For my full review, visit:
http://boundanddeterminedtofindagoodread...
Many Adventures,
Richard
Feb 21, 2012
Tony
rated it:
A pleasant, leisurely, potboiler about a sympathetic hit man. His growing appreciation of architecture and art is handled very credibly. That junior high lit question about how did the main character change is completely explicit and in the character's own words
Sep 16, 2011
Jennifer M. (Books, Personally)
rated it:
I enjoyed considering life as an assassin-attempting-to-become-someone-else: it is rather intriguing to think about the moral, emotional, intellectual, and logistical complexities of such a job, and DeFeo captures them impressively in this ultimately moving novel. My full review is up on LitStack at:
Calling Mr. King
Calling Mr. King
Sep 02, 2011
Jennifer
rated it:
"I highly recommend Calling Mr. King to suspense fans..." my full review may be read on my book review blog Rundpinne.
Dec 13, 2011
Alisa
rated it:
This book is very much an odd duck. A very slow, very thoughtful examination of an assassin's inward life as he unexpectedly discovers art.
Jan 16, 2012
matthew
rated it:
A dark humourous midlife crisis story. A well written look at a man's descent from professional hitman to who he thinks he could be, if only they would leave him in peace.
Oct 25, 2011
Katharine
rated it: 
First 30 pages great. Last page great. The middle becomes unfocused and rambling.
Sep 20, 2011
Audrey
rated it: 
Won this and it was so full of cussing and wandering thoughts by the main character that I felt like he was insane and I was quickly following! I appreciate you picking me to win the book but this book was not my cup of tea at all.
Oct 27, 2011
Amber
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Jan 07, 2012
"Calling Mr. King is an entertaining tale built on what happens when a high-end hit man begins to feel the awakening of an intellectual life. Ronald De Feo invites the reader to play for a while in a seldom-explored part of the borderland between sanity and insanity." - Thomas Perry, New York Times bestselling author
Listen to Calling Mr. King on your smartphone.
Listen to Calling Mr. King on your smartphone.
Feb 22, 2012
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Feb 18, 2012
