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Good People

by Marcus Sakey

3.74 · rating details · 242 ratings · 48 reviews

The spectacular Dutton debut of a thriller writer whose ecstatically acclaimed work draws comparisons to luminaries such as Elmore Leonard, George Pelecanos, and Dennis Lehane

A family, and the security to enjoy it: thats all Tom and Anna Reed ever wanted. But years of infertility treatments, including four failed attempts at in-vitro fertilization, have left them with ne...more

Hardcover, 336 pages

Published August 14th 2008 by Dutton Adult

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The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Books Set in Chicago

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Feb 06, 2011

Paul Pessolano rated it

Test yourself. If you were renting to a completely unknown person and he died, and you found $400,000 hidden in his room - what would you do?????

Could you resist the temptation of keeping the money? Keep in mind nobody knows who this person is, he has no known relaltives, and no one knows about the $400,000.

Tom and Anna Reed are faced with this decision. They are in need of money and it would certainly make life more enjoyable for them. However, unknown to them, the m...more

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Nov 19, 2010

Savvy Suz rated it

I'm not usually a big fan of crime novels; preferring historical fiction, classical literature, and an occasional non-fiction.
I came to GOOD PEOPLE with no expectations, other than a quick skim of the reviews and some personal interaction with the author... So, I really wanted to read one of his novels!

Preferences for genres aside, I'm always intrigued by an author who can spin out an intelligently wrought captivating story!
The artfully talented storyteller ...more

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Aug 04, 2009

Bridget rated it

The Reeds are up to their ears in debt. When they're at the pit of despair, not sure how in the world they can turn their life around, they find a boat load of money. The money is calling their name. In their current situation of complete desperation, they make the only decision that seems logical, they take the money. There is no way they could have foreseen how this one decision would change their lives forever. Will they make it out alive?

I was completely drawn into this book befo...more

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Jan 04, 2009

Kathleen Hagen added it

Shelves: 2008-mysteries-suspense, 2008-audio-books

Good People, by Marcus Sakey, B, Narrated by Dan John Miller, and Joyce Bean, produced by Brilliance Audio, downloaded from audible.com.

Tom and Anna Reed liv in Chicago on the north side. They both have good jobs that pay well. However, they have spent thousands of dollars on fertility methods trying to get pregnant. In doing this, they have fallen behind on their mortgage and have credit card bills exceeding $15,000. They have rented out the bottom floor of their duplex to a man...moreGood People, by Marcus Sakey, B, Narrated by Dan John Miller, and Joyce Bean, produced by Brilliance Audio, downloaded from audible.com.

Tom and Anna Reed liv in Chicago on the north side. They both have good jobs that pay well. However, they have spent thousands of dollars on fertility methods trying to get pregnant. In doing this, they have fallen behind on their mortgage and have credit card bills exceeding $15,000. They have rented out the bottom floor of their duplex to a man who pays his rent on time, and who they know very little about beyond that. He keeps to himself and is almost rude when spoken to. Then one night they hear the smoke alarm go off in his apartment. They go downstairs when he doesn’t seem to be answering it. There is a kitchen fire caused by a teakettle forgotten on a burner. Anna grabs a bag of flour to put it out, since it’s a grease fire, and they find packages of hundred dollar bills in the bag. They also find their tenant dead in the bedroom. As they go through the kitchen they find many more packets and end up with something like $400,000. They give in to the temptation of trying to keep the money. At first things go well. Anna pays off all their debts with cashier checks, amounting to about $70,000. She goes shopping for new clothes. She thinks about having the money to try again to get pregnant. And then the dream comes to an end. Two sets of criminals are after the money, and a homicide detective also believes they kept the money. Tom and Anna, totally in over their heads, try to dodge the cops and robbers and keep the money. I have the same impatience with this book that I had with his first one-such stupid people who let greed get the best of them. This book is fairly violent and involves more deaths than I usually like in a book, and when everything is over, it seems that everyone remaining alive is going to try to go on with life as if nothing happened. I like this author’s writing but I usually don’t have a lot of sympathy for his characters. The narrators did a wonderful job portraying Tom and Anna, and the male also had to do all the crooks and the cops. He did a wonderful job with different voices. The imagery of Chicago was great also.

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Aug 23, 2011

M.E. Anders rated it

Shelves: 50-fiction-reads

Since Marcus Sakey is a local thriller author (Chicago, IL), I decided to read Good People. Available at my public library, I was excited to listen to the audio version of this fast-paced thriller. Though my iPod mixed up some of the tracks in this book, I listened to the majority of the story in chronological order.

The premise of the book is interesting: What happens to everyday Good People when they fall into sticky situations?

Intriguing question, right? What would I d...more

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Apr 08, 2010

Amy rated it

A friend lent me this... I don't usually pick up these kinds of grocery-store paperbacks, but this was a fast, fun, and (yes) thrilling read. It had movie overtones--I could see it as one of those generic thriller films. Because the protagonists are "ordinary people," the reader (unless you're a criminal) can definitely identify with them and understand how they act. And Chicagoans will appreciate and enjoy all the North Side references to places, streets, beaches, etc.

I th...more

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Sep 18, 2009

Steve rated it

Recommends it for: mystery readers w/ a Chicago bent.

I used to read mysteries like crazy - but seldom do now. Picked this up since Sakey is part of the well-regarded group of Chicago mystery writers, The Organization. Nice back drop of Chicago, w/out getting too heavy handed w/ it. And built nicely to a fever pitch as the book moved along. But old plot - innocents thrown to the wolves, in above their heads. And the bad guys would have killed them about 6 times over rather than keep letting them live. Blame me to some extent - I guess I am j...more

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May 29, 2010

Maddy rated it

Shelves: 2008-reads

PROTAGONIST: Tom and Anna Reed
SETTING: Chicago
RATING: 4.25

We all know good people like Tom and Anna Reed—a nice couple who work hard and love their friends and families. What isn't obvious is that they are struggling financially after having embarked on a series of failed infertility treatments. They own a 2-story home and rent the lower level to a man who keeps to himself; his rent is what keeps a roof over their head.

Then one day, the Reeds smell smoke comin...morePROTAGONIST: Tom and Anna Reed
SETTING: Chicago
RATING: 4.25

We all know good people like Tom and Anna Reed—a nice couple who work hard and love their friends and families. What isn't obvious is that they are struggling financially after having embarked on a series of failed infertility treatments. They own a 2-story home and rent the lower level to a man who keeps to himself; his rent is what keeps a roof over their head.

Then one day, the Reeds smell smoke coming from the downstairs apartment. They rush to control the fire, which has started on the stove. Anna rips open a bag of flour to sprinkle on the flames. But there's a lot more than flour in the bag—packs of money are thrown all over the room. Not believing their eyes, the Reeds go through the cupboards and uncover a stash of $370,000. They also find their tenant dead in the bedroom.

Let the dilemma begin—should the Reeds keep the money and move from their debt-ridden state? For Anna especially, the unexpected bonanza opens the door for more infertility treatments. Yet they both know that if they keep the money, they are stepping over an ethical line. What would YOU do???

The Reeds decide to keep the money, and the consequences of that decision are far reaching. As it turns out, their tenant had been part of a gang of robbers; and the money was the loot from a recent heist. His former mates are looking to get what he took from them, and they will stop at nothing to do so. And then there's the suspicious cop who sees a chance to make a name for himself out of the situation.

Good People is a real page turner. The Reeds are normal people who have made a choice that is completely understandable. What they don't see is the misery that their decision is going to cause themselves and the people they care about. And that every clever angle and plan that they make is just making things worse. As I read the book, I was hoping against hope that somehow everyone would decide to play nice, that the Reeds would turn over the money and everyone would live happily ever after. Well, it didn't quite work out that way.

Sakey does a great job of building suspense and creating an ever more complicated web for the Reeds to unravel. The fact that they are essentially "good people" just like our own friends and family makes their dilemma even more compelling and emotional. Although Sakey has received a lot of recognition for his first book, THE BLADE ITSELF, I much preferred GOOD PEOPLE. This one has heart behind the thrills.

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Jan 27, 2010

Jim rated it

Shelves: chicago, police-and-thieves, fiction, favorites

Sakey is at his best when he writes about average people who stumble into the nether world inhabited by criminals and sometimes crooked cops, often through their own bad behavior. The lengths his protagonists go to extricate themselves, all the while out of their depth, drives Sakeys crime thrillers.

Tom and Anna Reed are a nice couple. They own a two-flat on Chicago's Northside; they live in one flat and rent out the other. When their tenant dies, they find a lot of money hidden in ...more

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Sep 23, 2008

Ron rated it

I normally have little patience for or interest in books where there are no "good" people; that is to say, where there are various shades of flawed and non-heroic. I know the world more often than not operates in these shades of gray, but my entertainment preferences go for the black-and-white approach. In this case, the title is most definitely an ironic one, and the pace and suspense leave little time for the reader to pass judgment on the protagonists.

In the opening sequ...moreI normally have little patience for or interest in books where there are no "good" people; that is to say, where there are various shades of flawed and non-heroic. I know the world more often than not operates in these shades of gray, but my entertainment preferences go for the black-and-white approach. In this case, the title is most definitely an ironic one, and the pace and suspense leave little time for the reader to pass judgment on the protagonists.

In the opening sequence, we see four thieves break into the backroom of a club in Chicago where an unidentified Hollywood star is working out a buy with a drug dealer. The thieves cow their victims physically, including the murder of someone who tries to resist, and make off with nearly $400,000 in cash and the drugs. As they separate in pairs, one of those with the money kills his partner (the younger brother of the group's leader)and absconds.

We then meet Tom and Anna Reed, the owners of "two-flat" in the Lincoln Square area of Chicago. Overextended to cover the mortgage, nearly maxed on their credit cards, and paying thousands to a fertility for IVF treatments in a deaperate attempt to have a child, they have rented out the bottom of their house to a secretive and not-very-friendly tenant who turns out to be the gang member who ran with the money after the club robbery. An accidental drug overdose results in the tenant's death in his apartment - leading to a fire which sets off the smoke alrams and brngs the Reeds down to the lower apartment. As they move out the stove and douse the grease fire on and behind it with flour, they begin to discover there and in various cupboards and other places the packets of money from the robbery. With their tenant dead, they make the fateful decision to keep the money, setting off a chain of events that put them on a collision course with the angry robbers, the equally ticked-off drug dealer from whom the robbers stole the drugs at the club, and the police who begin to suspect the Reeds know more than they are saying.

The events unfold with breakneck speed and momentum towards the inevitable conclusion. (less)

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May 25, 2009

Christine rated it

Marcus Sakey’s third book, “Good People” comes at the perfect time on the American landscape. With so many people facing economic challenges, it’s easy for readers to put themselves in the shoes of Chicago yuppies Tom and Anna Reed. They work good jobs, own a two family home, live in a good neighborhood, and are trying to have a baby. And yet, their pressing financial challenges (including expensive fertility treatments that haven’t yet worked) make their lives far from perfect, putting a strain...moreMarcus Sakey’s third book, “Good People” comes at the perfect time on the American landscape. With so many people facing economic challenges, it’s easy for readers to put themselves in the shoes of Chicago yuppies Tom and Anna Reed. They work good jobs, own a two family home, live in a good neighborhood, and are trying to have a baby. And yet, their pressing financial challenges (including expensive fertility treatments that haven’t yet worked) make their lives far from perfect, putting a strain on their marriage and themselves.

To make ends meet, they have a single tenant downstairs, an unfriendly loner whom they only seem to see outdoors when he’s having a smoke. One night, the downstairs fire alarm goes off, and the Reeds’ lives change forever. As they race downstairs to put out a grease fire in the kitchen, they discover a windfall…and a dead body. Now ask yourself, what would you do if you found $400,000 in the apartment of a dead man?

To the Reeds, the money represents financial freedom, a new look at the hold their jobs have on them, freedom from mounting credit card bills, and an opportunity to keep on trying for a baby. As readers, we sympathize with their dilemma, even while we know that this is not going to end up well. As a Chicago detective begins to piece together the story, criminals begin appearing out of the woodwork, threatening the couple. They can’t rely on the police because of their own criminal behavior (keeping the stolen money), and they are no match for the thugs who are interested in the cash and seeking revenge.

The rest is a wild roller coaster ride to the end, with any number of violent encounters. Yet, Sakey is no simple mystery writer; he’s been compared with Dennis Lehane, who has also written a ringing endorsement of “Good People.” Sakey makes readers care about the Reeds, enabling them to see how easy it would be to make the mistakes that prove so dangerous for the Reeds. The only question is that the ending gets wrapped up a little too neatly, although what happens to the money does provide a little surprise to the story. Sakey is a writer to enjoy, and “Good People” is a book that will keep readers entranced until the final page.
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Dec 31, 2011

Mark Bowman rated it

This author was recommended by a friend who is in a writers' group with Sakey. This is 3rd book of his I have read...and is by far the best so far. Top-notch crime fiction with fast-moving, unpredictable plot. And he manages to thread his existential narrative into the unfolding of the plot. I'm partial to writers who use settings with which I'm familiar and so I enjoy Sakey's accurate depictions of Chicago scenes--most of this book is in the parts of the city I frequent. Easy and most enjoyabl...more

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Sep 18, 2009

Mimi rated it

Enjoyable enough, although the ending was morally unsatisfying and (I don't believe this is a "spoiler" in the traditional sense) it employed the dumbest literary gimmick ever invented---the protagonist ends up writing a book about everything that happened and guess what! It's this book! OH COME ON.

Also (as often happens with thrillers) I found the bad guys more interesting/complex than the good ones.

Lots of bonus points for being set in Chicago, though.

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May 13, 2010

Paulette rated it

I read this for book group. I started the book a bit unenthusiatically...and I still have a problem with the opening. That being said, I found the story to be thought-provoking and complex, with a nod to another I've recently read called Blame. Both deal with the aftermath of living with consequences of a single bad decision. This book brought about a lively discussion and raised some interesting ethical and philosophical questions.

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Dec 26, 2009

Ed Armstrong rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Anyone who enjoys a good thriller

Recommended to Ed by: Just pulled it out of the public library

Shelves: thriller

A debt-ridden couple discover a smoldering fire in the other half of a two-flat they own. While dousing the fire and cleaning up the mess created by their efforts they discover a ton of money that's been hidden in sacks of sugar and flour. They talk themselves into believing their money problems are over and the story details their dream-gone-wrong. A thriller that will hold you in suspense until the very last page.

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Nov 19, 2011

Lynn Webster rated it

I really liked this book. I had to wait an hour at the doctors office and I was really glad I had it. I got the name from a list of 20 of the best books from 2011 from Good Reads. It is supposed to be a movie later with Toby mcguire. I had not read a suspense book in a while. I thought the dialogue was great and the characters believable. The abuthor has written a couple of other books as well that I might try.

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Apr 09, 2010

Alesha rated it

This is one of those books full of suspense. If I had been one of the main characters, the book would have been extremely short because I never would have taken the money, and even if I had, I would have folded and turned it in the next day. I'm one of those people who looks at a situation and can easily imagine all the dangerous things that could happen. In this situation, that would have been a positive thing!

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Feb 08, 2010

Fiona rated it

Shelves: crime-fiction

Like the other Sakey novels I have read, I could not put it down. It was a page turner. Also like the other novels I felt like toward the end it turns into a kind of "write for movie style". So once again I moved quickly through the last 20 pages or so- I think he draws it out too much. Overall though a good, gritty read!

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Oct 18, 2009

Mary Cannon rated it

A Simple Plan is one of my favorite books of all time and this is along the same lines. Oh boy! Let's keep a huge amount of found cash we have stumbled upon. What could possibly go wrong??? Extremely suspenseful book with a lot going on from all angles.....

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Jan 21, 2009

Yiotula rated it

This book started off a little violent for my taste but it was really a page turner I couldn't wait to find out what happened. I thought that it had an interesting message too but it was a little predictable. Happiness at what price?

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Aug 30, 2011

Sheila rated it

This is another very good story of people thrown into problems without reason. It's an enjoyable read and will hook you right in from the start. I've decided I like Mr. Sakey's style and have added him to my list of authors to follow. Hope he continues to write so well.

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Aug 10, 2010

Bruce DeSilva rated it

An outstanding crime novel. To read my Associated Press review, click on this link:
http://www.wickedlocal.com/foxborough/fu...

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Jun 14, 2010

Colleen rated it

This is a good Chicago thriller. I would really give it 3 1/2 stars. The greed theme bugged me a little bit, and I was a little angry at the end of the book. The very end though brought me right back to enjoying this book. I can see why Marcus Sakey's books are going to become movies.

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Sep 05, 2009

Joe O'c rated it

Shelves: favorites

Outstanding; Couple start off a chain of events with them at the center when their tenant dies and they find a horde of cash - and decide to keep it

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Mar 31, 2010

Renie rated it

· review of another edition

Highly suspenseful game of cat-and-mouse! Sakey presents great language, authentic dialog, and nail-biting suspense. Two thumbs up!

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Apr 23, 2009

Jonathan rated it

Enjoyable fast read, but some fundamental problems, mainly with unsympathetic main characters, but a great writing style.

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May 14, 2010

Lynne rated it

Shelves: audiobooks, mystery-suspense

Despite a good attempt, the main characters didn't seem real and it was all resolved way too neatly at the end.

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Mar 31, 2011

Louis Phrasany rated it

Not a bad book. Got cliched during the middle but the ending is excellent. I can sense the writer maturing as the book progresses. I will continue to read more books by this author.

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Jul 11, 2010

Scott rated it

One of those books that makes you think

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Aug 05, 2011

JoAnn rated it

Not very nice people...

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