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16th out of 60 books
—
33 voters
My rating:
add to my books
Beat the Reaper (Peter Brown #1)
by
Josh Bazell
Publishers are given to attempts to whip up excitement about debut novels (it’s their job, after all), and often such fireworks splutter out all too quickly. But that’s not going to happen with Josh Bazell’s debut thriller Beat the Reaper, which is (it has to be said) quite as impressive as his publishers are trumpeting – in fact, if this book doesn’t take the crime and th...more
Paperback, Large Print, 416 pages
Published
January 7th 2009
by Little, Brown and Company
(first published December 15th 2008)
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I’m a Charlie Huston honk. There, I admitted it. Like the first step out of twelve, I recognize my problem. And I feel unburdened. Free almost. I’m a Huston-holic. A junkie for Charlie’s magical mushroom prose. And like every good Huston-holic, I’m always searching for writers with a similar style. Writers that’ll grab me by the throat, worrying me like a dog.
Enter Josh Bazell.
A combination of Huston and Chuck Palahniuk, Bazell stuns with his debut novel Beat the Reaper, a b...more
Enter Josh Bazell.
A combination of Huston and Chuck Palahniuk, Bazell stuns with his debut novel Beat the Reaper, a b...more
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Anybody who thinks the U.S. doesn't need health care reform should read this book. Since the author was a medical intern and the details about patient care seem horribly realistic, I think I'd rather read a Surgery For Dummies book and attempt my own future operations with a bottle of Jack Daniels, a carpet knife, duct tape and some rusty pliers rather than risk being admitted to a hospital after reading this.
Peter Brown is a harried intern trying to get through another miserable day...more
Peter Brown is a harried intern trying to get through another miserable day...more
Bonnie
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Bonnie by:
Mike Reynolds
Shelves:
reviewed-books,
action-thriller
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
You read the plot summary (former mob hitman, in WitSec and now practicing medicine, runs into his former cronies and must escape their revenge) and you don't wince, or sigh, or yawn--and I'm not sure this is for you. 'Cause that summary reads like a recipe for some high-concept Hollywood bullshit, all flash-cut-editing like Michael Bay, no sense whatsoever in its execution or (you'd think) in any element of its production. And you may come into the novel hoping for that kind of tough-guy lunk...more
lately my book reviewing reminds me of that old snl skit where the guy reviews porn: 'interested, interested, really interested, then i lost all interest.'
i don't know if it's me or not.
this book started off with a bang. the tone of the narrator was a little obnoxious -- although isn't that a requirement for crime fiction? and why is that? it's' tired.
but that aside, the writer is entertaining and informative (truly some of the greatest hospital anecdot...more
i don't know if it's me or not.
this book started off with a bang. the tone of the narrator was a little obnoxious -- although isn't that a requirement for crime fiction? and why is that? it's' tired.
but that aside, the writer is entertaining and informative (truly some of the greatest hospital anecdot...more
ok, here's the thing... at first i didn't think i was going to like this book that much. it seems a bit pretentious, especially the opening few paragraphs. its obvious they were meant to grab you and throw you into a world. and it works, only maybe you're not so sure its a world you care to explore. but here's the thing: i just kept reading and reading. it was engaging enough to keep me up all night just to see where things were going to go. its a bit like an episode of 'er' with flashback...more
Nick
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
People who like things that are awesome
Recommended to Nick by:
ba
This book is A-MAY-ZING. Straight up. Please read this.
It's hilarious and wildly disturbing all at the same time. Bazell is like the Chuck Palahniuk for sane people.
This will just be easier if I quote Ron Charles.
It's hilarious and wildly disturbing all at the same time. Bazell is like the Chuck Palahniuk for sane people.
This will just be easier if I quote Ron Charles.
"Beat the Reaper is a hypochondriac's nightmare but a reader's dream. Josh Bazell concocted this comic thriller while working as a medical resident at the University of California, San Francisco, and if anything he describes here is true, we s...more
Peter Brown is not your normal Manhattan ER doctor. When it comes to skeletons in the closest, he has tons. One of those skeletons he forced him to enter into the Witness Protection Program. Peter has been fighting with his demons for years. Peter was ready to start his day out like any other morning…with a walk in the park but there he gets mugged, than he receives an invite by a sexy pharmaceutical nurse for some TLC, and finally as if Peter’s day couldn’t get any worse, he new patient has tie...more
Wow. This was eventually a jaw-dropping thriller and really gruesome . . . but that being said it was also very funny. Yeah, all in the same tidy package of "can't put it down" obligation! The writing reminded me of Carl Hiaasen (was that the right # of s's and a's?) So I'm saying it's a very exciting read for those who can manage a little gore and can integrate the mafia, the medical establishment and the story of star-crossed lovers. DON'T BUY THIS FOR YOUR GRANDMA WHEN SHE GOES...more
Great mix of medical thriller and mob revenge tale. Main character is a foul-mouthed and very funny former hit man who's hiding out as a doctor in a run-down hospital. If his former boss/mentor finds him, it means he's probably dead. I was hooked immediately and especially liked his hilarious and ironic footnotes.
Utterly ridiculous, gratuitously violent, highly improbable, totally engrossing, lightening-paced. Why don't more people write like this?
This is the #1 pick on the IndieNext List for January 2009, which is why it caught my attention (that and the obnoxiously bright cover it has!). The best description I can come up with for this book is if the series "The Sopranos" and the series "Scrubs" had a child, and made Quentin Tarantino and Amy Sedaris it's godparents, this would be the baby. The main character is a former Mob hitman who is in the witness protection program, finishing up his medical training (his way...more
Peter Brown is a doctor at Manhattan Catholic Hospital with a horrible secret in his past. He is part of the Federal Witness Protection Program. Raised by his grandparents, Pietro Brwna, as he was known as at that time, comes home to find them brutally murdered. Having nowhere else to go, he attends an exclusive prep school and becomes friends with Adam Locano, the son of a Mafia lawyer. The Locanos treat him like family and eventually, Peter becomes a member of the Mafia.
Things...more
Things...more
Sara
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Anyone over 18 years of age, Action-Thriller Fans, Open-Minded Readers, Medical Fiction Fans
Recommended to Sara by:
I picked it up at Book Expo America
Coming off The Given Day, I was not expecting much from this. For one thing, it's a debut novel and for another, there's very little that could compete, quality-wise, with The Given Day. I was, however, pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this novel.
The novel is centered around Dr. Peter Brown, a young medical resident with a hidden past that catches up with him one day when he encounters a patient who knew him from his previous life as a mob hitman. Dr. Brown's identity reve...more
The novel is centered around Dr. Peter Brown, a young medical resident with a hidden past that catches up with him one day when he encounters a patient who knew him from his previous life as a mob hitman. Dr. Brown's identity reve...more
This book is truly incredible, considering I am actually taking time to write a review should tell you how awesome this book is. I think the part that really gets me is that he wrote it during in internship at a California hospital, where is he is a doctor. I mean come on! He must have the happiest parents in the world. I am openly going to admit that this man makes me feel bad about myself.
As for the book, it is well formed, well paced, and almost impossible to put down. Dealing wit...more
As for the book, it is well formed, well paced, and almost impossible to put down. Dealing wit...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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Mного тъп превод на заглавието на български ("Анатомията на Питър" wtf?!). Иначе преводът е на Богдан Русев и е много добър, а книгата е забавна и много увлекателна, въпреки многото кръв и убийства :)
What a fun read! This real-life intern's novel about a "good-guy" ex-mafia-hitman turned MD intern by way of a witness protection program is witty, tightly plotted, exciting and outrageously funny, and seems to teach one a lot about anatomy and physiology along the way -- though there is a disclaimer about that at the end of the book. Read the first few pages on the Amazon "Look Inside" feature and you'll be hooked -- I was!
This fast paced, action packed and entirely unique book was one that I couldn't put down till I finished it. Peter Brown is an intern in a ghetto hospital in the Bronx. He is also in the Witness Protection Program. He used to be a hitman for the mob. He unapologeticly tells his tale, the good, the bad and the ugly. A fascinating book that I reccomend highly.
Jen
rated it
·
review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Keri J., Becky G. and anyone who can laugh outloud at some good sadism.
Recommended to Jen by:
Julie Johnson
Shelves:
five-star-reads
Bazell has a super dark sense of humor which one could probably guess just by reading the jacket of this book. I suppose if you were not a lover of the sarcasm you would not like this book. I loved it, devoured it!
I found myself laughing out loud at some of the internal discussions that Peter (the main character) had in his head and then thinking to myself 'that's not funny, that's actually terribly sadistic'. But I kept laughing.
As one would imagine in a novel whe...more
I found myself laughing out loud at some of the internal discussions that Peter (the main character) had in his head and then thinking to myself 'that's not funny, that's actually terribly sadistic'. But I kept laughing.
As one would imagine in a novel whe...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I could not believe how wonderful this book was... I was caught way off guard. I finished it in one sitting, which doesn't always get to happen. Pietro Brnwa, aka Peter Brown, aka "Bearclaw" has got to be one of the best narrators in recent literature. I have read many books that were good and could have been great, but I catch myself thinking the flow just wasn't there. Well not in Beat the Reaper, this book had so much flow you'd think Josh Bazell invented it. I loved it, absolutely,...more
When I ordered this book from the library on-line (love it!), I didn't realize it was a 7-day book. No way can I finish the book I was reading and read this in 7 days! Too much else to do. But once you start this book, you can't stop! Incredible action. You have to read it to believe it!
Rare that I give a book 5 stars, but this one earned it. A can't-put-it-down novel, it is filled with action, unforgetable moments, gore and fascinating "that can't be true?" footnotes. As another reader said, the ending is both grotesque and badass and will stay with you long after you put the book down.
Smart, funny, violent popcorn noir. I picked it up this afternoon and just kept reading, even while I cooked and ate dinner, and annoyed everyone around me until I had finished it. I kinda want to start at the beginning and read it straight through again.
I had a hard time putting the book down. The plot summary sounded a bit trite - a mob hitman now working as a doctor in witness protection and his old friends discover his whereabouts. However, I found that the story and the way it was told weren't trite at all. I enjoyed the way the author wrote this one, fast-paced and to the point with some interesting facts added in (I loved the footnotes!) It is a thriller with a touch of dark comedy thrown in. The shocking/random tidbits reminded a b...more
WOW. This is not one for the faint of heart.
It is a fast read and thank goodness the footnotes are a pleasure (unlike Infinite Jest, which I am still struggling with) The main character is an NYC DR. with quite a past and quite a lot going on in his life. Be warned, extreme circumstances, violence, language and like the author says, "as the FBI calls it, LCN". Can't wait for his next novel, I am a fan.
It is a fast read and thank goodness the footnotes are a pleasure (unlike Infinite Jest, which I am still struggling with) The main character is an NYC DR. with quite a past and quite a lot going on in his life. Be warned, extreme circumstances, violence, language and like the author says, "as the FBI calls it, LCN". Can't wait for his next novel, I am a fan.
LOVED IT! Linda and Annie, you have to read this, but don't expect to put it down once you start! I laughed out loud throughout the book at the author's rather cynical viewpoint of medicine. This guy can write and he is funny!
super funny and a fast paced read! like a medical pulp fiction and the godfather rolled into one-
Bleak, gruesome, and presented with dry humor, this story of a hitman hiding as a doctor in the witness protection program will make you chuckle and grimace. Josh Bazell is no Jane Austin, so this would be a real palette cleanser for a book club. Especially if there are guys in the book club.
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| crime vs compassion | 5 | 30 | Aug 24, 2011 04:55am |
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Josh Bazell has a BA in writing from Brown University and a MD from Columbia University. He is currently a medical resident at the University of California, San Francisco, and is working on his second novel. He wrote "Beat the Reaper" during the end of medical school and the beginning of residency. Some of his favorite writers are James Ellroy, Ken Bruen, Michael Connelly and Peter Loves...more
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“Ah, youth. It's like heroin you've smoked instead of snorted. Gone so fast you can't believe you still have to pay for it.”
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26 people liked it
“It's a weird curse, when you think about it. We're built for thought, and civilization, more than any other creature we've found. And all we really want to be is killers. ”
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12 people liked it
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