Back to Brooklyn

My Cousin Vinny #2

by Lawrence Kelter

Gambini is back! Hot on the heels of rescuing his cousin Bill and Bill’s friend Stan from an Alabama electric chair, our wildly inappropriate hero, Vincent Gambini heads home to Brooklyn where he attempts to establish a successful law career. Meanwhile, Lisa aches to have a wedding band placed around her finger and her biological clock is still ticking away like mad.

In the course of building his practice, Vinny is reunited with Joe, his walking, talking embarrassment of a brother and his dear old friend Judge Henry Molloy, who refers him the mother of all capital murder cases.

Theresa Cototi is young and pretty but far from innocent. Her boyfriend has just been scraped off the pavement after taking a dive from eight stories up and she’s going to trial, charged with murder one.

Aided by Lisa and a ragtag team of misfits, Vinny defends his client against overwhelming odds. In the balance hangs the life of a woman he believes to be innocent. Or is she?


Yes, Vinny may have finally won his first case but his and Lisa’s story is far from over.

Genres: Fiction, Humor, Audiobook, Mystery

ebook

Published May 22, 2017

About the author

Lawrence Kelter is the bestselling author of the Stephanie Chalice Mystery Series. A resident New Yorker, born and raised in Brooklyn and residing on Long Island. He often uses Manhattan and Long Island as backdrops for his stories. He is the author of three novels featuring street savvy NYPD detective, Stephanie Chalice: Don't Close Your Eyes, Ransom Beach, and most recently, The Brain Vault. Early in his career, he received direction from bestselling novelist Nelson DeMille, who put pencil to paper to assist in the editing of his first book. He was also a member of a private writing workshop led by the late soap opera legend and AFTRA president, Ann Loring. His novels are quickly paced and routinely have a twist ending.

Reviews

[donna backshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back to Brooklyn is a funny and skillful tribute to the 1990's screenplay "My Cousin Vinny". It picks up where the movie left off, and hilariously captures the voices and antics of Vinny and Mona Lisa perfectly as they leave Alabama and head home to new adventures. If you loved the movie -- and come on, who didn't? -- then this book is definitely for you.

Sadly, I must encourage you to actually read the print version, rather than pick up the audio. The team who performed the voices seemed to be trying so hard to nail the accents that their delivery was overly dramatic, deliberate and embarrassingly stilted. (Lisa's voice, for instance, reminded me of Janice from Friends, with her measured "Ohhh Myyyy Gawwwd") They weren't playing the parts as they read. Instead they were carefully pronouncing each word, as if they were seeing the pages for the first time.

[Onionboy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is in a tough situation. Writing a sequel to a movie that is as beloved as this, it is really hard to hit the mark just right. If you go too different from the first one, or if you stay too close to the original, people won't like it. In this case, I think the author followed way too close to the original, with too many conversations repeated or too closely duplicated from the movie. It ruins the book.

Another problem is that the original is really a fish-out-of-water story. An ambulance chaser rookie attorney trying to handle a big-time murder trial. A stereotypical New York working-class Italian trying to adjust to life in the deep south. But if you put him back in his native environment, you lose a lot of what made the original so charming. Also, we see him in a way we didn't expect: his people are much coarser than the people in the movie. So there's a lot more swearing and mentioning of sex and violence. If you gave it any thought, you'd realize that his life in New York was that way, but with the first movie, you never think about that.

In the end, the book is just too crude to enjoy.

Although I read the book, in other reviews here I saw so many mentions of the voice actors in the audiobook version, that I had to take a quick listen for myself. I wasn't bothered by the accents or the fact that the voices were not Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei. The accents were passable. But I did get the impression that the actors were not experienced audiobook narrators. Their performances seemed very stiff and unnatural, like they never got a chance to see the material first and prepare, and just recorded the first take. A few minutes of that was too much for me.

[Beverly Laude · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the movie My Cousin Vinny and I loved listening to this sequel! I thought that the story was great, very entertaining and LOL funny at times.

The performers did a great job IMHO. The accents were spot-on and at times I thought that I was hearing Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei. But, I am a Southern girl, so what do I know?

Vincent Gambini is an iconic character and I think this Audible book does credit to him. I would gladly read more and more books in this series! I hope that the author chooses to continue to write more books about Vinny and his friends!

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I know I am in the minority here, but I didn't like this at all. I did, however, very much enjoy the movie My Cousin Vinny, and would recommend that to anyone. In fact, parts of the movie are still shown during attorney Continuing Education seminars. It was hilarious. This book - not so much. I found it annoying, and the humor crude and even distasteful at times. I could not get interested in the plot - what there was of it. I recommending getting the DVD and watching the movie with Joe Pesci, Ralph Macchio and Melissa Tomei. Now that's worth your time!

[Carmela Roccaro · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt reading this book was like watching My Cousin Vinny with a different plot. It was all the same antics and scenarios. I think they should have made Vinny evolve. It was a good story line but same old same old. If there is a series of these books I don't think I would be reading them. To say I was disappointed is an understatement

[Ronald Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely superb. I thought it would be impossible to capture the spirit of Vincent Gambini and Mona Lisa Vito. I was wrong. Lawrence Kelter does the impossible.

[Ellen Behrens · Rating 2 out of 5]

Big difference between movie Vinny and novel Vinny

I LOVED "My Cousin Vinny" and looked forward to reading this book. It languished in my Kindle for years until I swiped onto that page and I dove in. I was ready for a fun courtroom drama (that was part of the magic of "My Cousin Vinny": drama with some fun to it).

Sadly, I didn't get very far before the sexploits of the characters got to be too much. I've got a pretty high tolerance (or so I believe) for sex and profanity, but in this book it seemed gratuitous and a waste of words and space. Would the story ever start? I looked at the progress indicator on my Kindle: 5% in. Ikes!

All the praise in the world for the movie just couldn't prop up this book. "To this day, the film is still used by professors in law schools as reference material," writes the author in the forward. That might be true, but this book, unfortunately, could be a used by professors in fiction writing classes as an example of how some dialogue doesn't directly translate from screen to novel, how pacing can be everything, and how starting things off quickly will pull your readers in more completely than any "in case you missed the movie this story follows, here's what happened..." explanation.

I wanted to like this book. I wanted to read it. Then I started to read it.... and that's when it all went bad.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

The dialogue was true to the characters, but without an R rating to preserve, the language and innuendos out-crude the movie, if that sort of thing bothers you. While the closing courtroom scene is as rousing as the original, the plot is a little less carefully put together. For instance, one character mentions that the events of the book have ruined his plans, as he was forced to cancel his vacation; shortly thereafter, he mentions that he has a colonoscopy appointment this week. In a better detective novel, this contradiction would have been noted by the protagonists and would be a clue to the central mystery: Why would anyone plan a colonoscopy in one state when he was expecting to be on vacation in another? Perhaps he wasn't as taken by surprise by events as he claimed to be! But no, the author just wanted to throw in a colonoscopy joke. In addition, the motivation of one of the central characters is left unresolved by the end of the novel and of the case, leaving me with lingering questions.

[Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars for Back to Brooklyn: The Sequel to My Cousin Vinny (audiobook) by Lawrence Kelter read by Merlin’sVoice.com. It was really fun to see these great characters back together. This a wonderful sequel to the movie.

[Grady · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I won my first case. You know what that means?” She sassed him. “Yeah. You think I’m gonna marry you.”

Popular New York author Lawrence Kelter has published over twelve mystery thrillers that always manage to find their way to the top of readers’ favorites. Though we all know Lawrence’s polished writing of crime dramas, in this book - BACK TO BROOKLYN - he enters a sphere ever fine author envies: the ability to marry suspense, courtroom drama and satire!

In his Foreword Lawrence explains his concept for electing to write about this particular couple. ‘In the world of satire it is so incredibly rare that voices are created with such endearing charm and personality that they resonate with us still, decades later. Yet Dale Launer has done just that with the film “My Cousin Vinny”. The film was released on March 13, 1992 and has become an iconic comedy classic, a tale about two wrongly accused young men who are defended in an Alabama murder trial by Vincent Gambini, an inexperienced, wildly inappropriate lawyer unaccustomed to southern rules and manners. Mention the film by name or parrot any of the classic lines and you’ll find that practically everyone within earshot is immediately on the same page, going tit for tat with smiles plastered on their faces. “Am I sure? I’m pos-i-tive.” It’s rated the #2 all-time greatest legal thriller by IMDB, the Internet Movie Data Base, second only to John Grisham’s masterpiece A Time To Kill. To this day, the film is still used by professors in law schools as reference material in the instruction of courtroom procedure. Today, fans of the comedy are still tickled by the film’s wry sense of humor and sight gags. Personally speaking, I still get sucked in every time the film pops up on TV, and laugh just as hard as I did the first time I saw it. It just never gets old. Dale and I foresee a bright future for our sidesplitting couple, with Lisa investigating and Vinny litigating, much like Dashiell Hammett’s Nick and Nora Charles. I hope that you share my appreciation for this unique comedy. I look forward to continuing its legacy.’

And with that promise he offers a synopsis of BACK TO BROOKLYN – ‘Gambini is back! Hot on the heels of rescuing his cousin Bill and Bill’s friend, Stan from an Alabama electric chair, our wildly inappropriate hero, Vincent Gambini heads home to Brooklyn where he attempts to establish a successful law career. Meanwhile, Lisa aches to have a wedding band placed around her finger and her biological clock is still ticking away like mad. Vinny and Lisa have been together ten long years. She’s waited so very patiently for him to complete law school and pass the bar. Winning his first case was the last piece of the puzzle, and now nothing can stand in the way of true love, except that between them they don’t have two nickels to rub together, and Vinny is about as romantic as a box of frogs. In the course of building his practice, Vinny is reunited with Joe, his walking, talking embarrassment of a brother, Lisa’s nudging parents, Ma and Augie, and his dear old friend Judge Henry Molloy, who refers him the mother of all capital murder cases. Theresa Cototi is young and pretty but far from innocent, and darn her luck … her boyfriend has just been scraped off the pavement after taking a header from eight- stories up. You’d better believe she’s going to trial, charged with murder one. Aided by Lisa and a ragtag team of misfits, Vinny defends his client against overwhelming odds. Our endearing neophyte attorney must match wits with a cunning DA and a formidable influence peddler, who appears to anticipate his every move. In the balance hangs the life of a woman he believes to be innocent. Or is she? Yes, Vinny may have finally won his first case but his and Lisa’s story is far from over.’

Exceptional attention to detail – much like a painter or sculptor creating art – Kelter makes this ‘sequel’ as lively and solid as the original. Really a fine novel – with hopefully more coming down the pike.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

MOVIE SEQUEL BOOK STYLE

I’m a movie fan. The fact I write reviews of movies should make that obvious. So when I saw that a sequel to a movie was coming out in the form of a book I was curious. Sequels are running rampant these days and I was surprised that this was in book form rather than on the screen. By the time I finished I could see why.

The book is a follow up to the film MY COUSIN VINNIE, the movie where novice lawyer Vincent Gambini was able to save his cousin from a murder charge through a clash of Brooklynese and the Deep South. The movie was hilarious and a big hit. The book, we’ll have to wait and see.

Vincent and his longtime girlfriend Lisa have returned home and with the success he had down south to go by, Vincent hopes to create a solid career as a lawyer here now. He’s provided an opportunity to do so when an old friend sends a client his way, young Theresa Cototi. Theresa has been accused of killing her boyfriend and claims she is innocent. Vincent’s friend, an ex-judge with a personal connection to Theresa, thinks that Vinnie is up to the task of saving her from execution.

Placed against an up and coming DA who has enough clout to make things difficult for Vinnie and who seems to know his every move before he presents it, Vinnie may have bitten off more than he can chew. At the same time you have to wonder if the defendant is as innocent as she claims or if she is guiltier than Vinnie and the judge are willing to accept. Via the usual oddball assortment of characters and witty one liners, Vinnie and his muse Lisa must sift through the clues and find the truth in order to win.

The movie is very easily written with more dialogue than description, as if it came from a script rather than straight to novel form. There is a lot of fun on display here but the fact is that what works well on screen doesn’t always work well in written form. Jokes that might inspire laughs when listened to are just not quite as funny when read, especially when they’re words coming from characters mouths as opposed to situations they are found in coupled with those words.

That being said it’s not to say that this book doesn’t offer some amusement or that it doesn’t help bring alive those characters we grew to love with the original film, one of those movies that when flipping through TV channels and found almost always makes you stop and watch. We’re still rooted for Vinnie, the constant underdog of the law profession as well as Lisa who loves him with all her heart and hopes they’ll soon wed and begin to take care of that ticking time clock of her body. There are some laughs along the way, an interesting story to follow and in the end a satisfying conclusion. I’m not sure this would transfer to film well but perhaps it will create enough interest for one to happen.

[David Caldwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the sequel to the movie, My Cousin Vinny.

Vinny and Lisa are headed home to Brooklyn so Vinny can start his law practice and Lisa hopes to get married. Vinny manages to luck into yet another murder trial (that seems impossible to prove his client's innocence). With the aid of Lisa and his brother, Joe, Vinny has to pull out all of the stops to win this case. Lisa, on the other hand, is trying to get Vinny to marry her, or at least be a little romantic.

I loved the movie, My Cousin Vinny. The whole fish out of water story of Vinny and Lisa in the deep south working on a nearly impossible case worked on so many levels. I have very high hopes for this sequel. But there were some immediate problems. First, Vinny and Lisa are out of the south and back in their more familiar settings. You also lose some of the fun of watching neophyte lawyer Vinny learn the ropes of going to trial. He may still be brash and fairly green but these judges are used to his type of behavior. Also, there are scenes that are almost replays of scenes from the movie. The best example, Vinny gets the shoeprints to be shown to be the most common shoe with the most common size which was very like the movie scene where he shows the tire imprints were from the most common tire in the most common size. So, a lot of the humor from the movie just didn't carry over to the book as well. There were still a good bit of laughs, they just played differently.

I do feel the need to comment on the language.If you are like me and have seen the TV version of the movie more than the actual theatrical version, you may have forgotten than Vinny and Lisa drop quite a few choice words and phrases. (Well, really only one word with a few variations.) The book also uses this word frequently. So if you don't like cussing, this might not be your best choice for a light read.

Fans of the movie should enjoy this revisit to Vinny and Lisa. There is plenty to remind you of why you enjoyed the movie. 3.25 stars

[Tom Godfrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you've seen the movie My Cousin Vinny, and who hasn't, it's impossible to read this sequel and not see and hear Joe Pesci and Marissa Tomei in your head, which is all to the good. Their New York-style wisecracking is essential to the spirit of the book.
Admittedly, this go-round starts out a bit slow. Vinny and Lisa are back home, but Vinny seeks more regular employment, and Lisa, though she knows Vinny loves her, feels that he isn't romantic enough. His mentor suggests working as the representative of lawyerless characters while they arrange their first actual court dates. It isn't much, but it pays, and, knowing Vinny, you can bet his clients are all highly unusual. Meanwhile, Lisa complains to her girlfriends about Vinny's lack of romance outside of the bedroom. I should point out that Lisa and her buds are about the raunchiest, most sex-oriented bunch of young women ever!
One of Vinny's clients has been waiting for seven years for her boyfriend to get out of prison, but the night he gets home he winds up dead, and the girl soon becomes the only suspect for his murder. This then becomes the crux of the story, with the highpoint being Vinny's winning the case against heavy odds, unveiling the true killer(not to mention who's actually dead). It all has a happy ending, with the sense that there's more to come.

[patrick Lorelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story picks up with Lisa and Vinnie trying to leave Alabama, but even that has some problems. When they finally make it back to New York Vinnie is set on working and making money. He also ends up in court a few times trying to get his brother Joe out of trouble. His other two problems are Lisa, and the case he picks up which the D.A. thinks will be a slam dunk because he is new. With the odds against him once again along with family members because they feel he is not doing right by Lisa. You have the makings for a very good book. The description of the characters are a little different than the movie especially Vinnie, but that is okay. Overall the story works and I am good with everything except the ending. Lisa has been with Vinnie for ten years and I wonder how many women would stay around. Overall a good book. I received this book from Netgalley.com I gave it 4 stars. Follow us at www.1rad-readerreviews.com

[Brent Butler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't a fan of his novelization of the film, and sadly, I'm not a fan of this book either. Lawrence just doesn't seem to have much of a feel for comedy. The book is full of gutter humor, as if all you need to do is focus on toilet paper, women's periods, and men's asses or penises to get a laugh. I actually started to feel a little ill at some of the extended attempts at jokes. The book starts out with more bigoted nonsense about the South, which dominated his first book.

We're 30% into the book before we get into the crime, and the start of the scenario makes no sense at all. But that's where he SHOULD have started the book, because everything before that was an utter waste of words and my time.

[Shaun Stanley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A ton of fun

If you love the movie like myself, you will have a great time with this book. Is it a literary masterpiece? Not at all but it is just so much fun and I haven't read a lot this quick in quite a while. My only problem with the book is the story starts immediately after the events of the movie but mixes in modern day cellphone technology and pop culture reference. Not sure why the author decided to try to update the time period this story takes place as I feel a 90s law thriller would be easier to write.

[Jakky · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK, I LIKED IT ALREADY!! Because I’ve seen My Cousin, Vinny, I could easily picture Joe Pesci and Marisa Tormei in the lead roles, complete with over-the-top dialogue, over-acting and ridiculous faux-insouciance. There were a few places where I had to roll my eyes because the reader is expected to believe that Vinny’s character is gauche and uncouth while at the same time a clever, unparalleled legal mind. Well, that is the point of this franchise, and it did get a few guffaws from me. An unexpected ending was satisfying... a fun read!

[Elizabeth Edwards · Rating 3 out of 5]

i didn't put it all together ...that it was the movie with Joe Pesci? is that spelled right?? makes me think of the comedian ... George Carlin, i had to google his name ... could see his face. i have this bit on my ipod and i listen to it over and over ...he is just hilarious saying that Joe Pesci is like God to him ... hilarious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! parodies. comedy. (kindle and books) .. fun read.

[Robert Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Enjoyable Book!

I enjoyed this book immensely from the first page. Profane? Not really if you saw My Cousin Vinny. Completely in character with Vinny and Lisa. The characters were well developed, colorful and myself being from Brooklyn, completely relatable. Looking forward to the next book. I highly recommend this book for a fun read.

[Ramona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Lisa and Vinny are a great duo. She is so supportive of Vinny's career, helps him out and is committed to their relationship. This book has the same "feel good" aura of the movie. Vinny does the right thing, and has a rough, but charming veneer. Great to experience Vinny's out of the box method of solving his 2nd murder trial.

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad at all.

What a pleasure to hear from Vincent and Lisa again. The author got the voices of the characters right on most of the time, so that I could hear the actors' voices in my head as I read. I look forward to reading more of this series.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not just a great book with some great parts . . . this is book where almost every line is a pleasure to read. What a hot-mess riot! Love that Vinnie and Lisa are back in a whole new way. Lawrence Kelter pulled off a great feat here: making good on a sequel from a beloved movie.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Totally loved the movie. Can't say the same for the book. If it hadn't been for the movie this would barely work - as I read I heard Pesce and Tomei in my head, and that's what kept me going. I'm glad I got this one for free, and I'll be skipping the rest of the series.

[Jon Koebrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back to Brooklyn is a light, funny, and enjoyable legal mystery utilizing the characters from the My Cousin Vinny movie. This is a good beach or weekend read when you need a break from weightier reads. 3.5 stars.

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the movie My Cousin Vinny so when I saw there were sequel books made - I had to try it out. This book took all the best parts of the movie and amplified them. Maybe a little too much? And the sexual innuendos were a little much. Overall it was a cute story with characters I loved.

[Rory Costello · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely done. Kelter was granted the honor of continuing where these characters left off, and he captured their spirit in a very enjoyable way. The legal nuts and bolts of the plot were clever too.

[Don Paske · Rating 4 out of 5]

AN enjoyable quick read about Vinny and Mona Lisa. Echoed the movie in many respects.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny, fast paced and enjoyable. I couldn't put this down at all.

[Barbara Hackel · Rating 5 out of 5]

While we frequently see books being made into movies, a rare occurrence is a movie being made into a book, or better yet, a favorite movie being continued into a book. Back to Brooklyn is that rarity and to make matters better, it is exceedingly well done.

As Lisa and Vinny drive off at the end of the movie My Cousin Vinny, it is just the beginning of Gambini's legal career. His long time supporter, Judge Molloy suggests a way for Vinny to get a little experience and make some money doing assigned council work. It is a challenge for Vinny because there is very little time to read the case file (often less than a minute) and with his dyslexia, reading fast is difficult. The first client he has is followed by Vinny's brother Joe, and that gives him a chance to break into the local scene and meet the Assistant District Attorney. Meanwhile the girlfriend of a murdered felon is referred to Vinny for advice, and when she is arrested, he becomes her trial attorney.

Although his career may be looking up, life with Lisa is never easy, and they continue fighting often without Vinny knowing why he is even fighting. But as always, she is proud of Vinny and helps him with his cases, making them a most unusual team.

I confess I loved the book but it was a slow read for me. Every time Vinny or Lisa spoke I had to visualize them (as Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei) and hear the familiar voices that I have always associated with these characters. That was by no means a negative aspect to reading the book. It simply meant I didn't race through at my usual speed, but instead actually savored the book. I am pleased to report it was worth savoring and I look forward to reading future books in this series.

[Phillip Vega · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who loved the movie, will love this book! Vinny is...Vinny!! The book captured the characters from the movie! As I read the story, I could hear Joe Pesci in my ear, and Lisa was awesome! Highly recommend this book!!