The Anderson Tapes

Deadly Sins #1

by Lawrence Sanders

This novel represents the first appearance of Lawrence Sanders' most famous character, Edward X. Delaney, and the masterpiece of murder and suspense that launched Sanders' career.

The author outlines the conception, planning, and execution of the robbery of an Upper East Side apartment building with machine-like precision. The novel employs a clever premise: the entire story is told in surveillance-tape transcripts and reports from law-enforcement agencies, each of which observes an aspect of the situation in which the robbery takes place.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Ebooks

336 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published June 1, 1970

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Lawrence Sanders was the New York Times bestselling author of more than forty mystery and suspense novels. The Anderson Tapes, completed when he was fifty years old, received an Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for best first novel. His prodigious oeuvre encompasses the Edward X. Delaney, Archy McNally, and Timothy Cone series, along with his acclaimed Commandment books. Stand-alone novels include Sullivan's Sting and Caper. Sanders remains one of America’s most popular novelists, with more than fifty million copies of his books in print. Also published as Mark Upton.

Reviews

[John Culuris · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s been a while since I’d read Lawrence Sanders so I decided to try his first novel, originally published in 1969, and I have to admit I had my doubts about novel told entirely through the transcripts of various wiretaps? I had forgotten that this man was a master of the form. A slow start while setting up the concept and characters, but quite satisfying from then on. Makes me glad there are other Sanders novels I haven’t read.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Anderson Tapes chronicles the planning and commission of an apartment building robbery on New York City’s Upper East Side on Labor Day weekend in 1968. Sanders employs the unique technique of telling the story through a series of wiretap transcripts, police reports, witness interviews, letters, and other documents.

I wasn’t sure I would enjoy a book structured this way, but in fact, I found it to be very compelling. Sanders gives readers a “you are there” sense of the criminals and a detailed look first at how the robbery plan develops and then how it is carried out. None of the criminals are particularly likable characters, but you come to realize that they each have their own peculiarities, foibles, and vulnerabilities. I didn’t find myself rooting for them, exactly, but I did find that I had some empathy for some of them. Not quite to the level of buying a statement inscribed in one character’s diary—“Crime is the truth. Law is the hypocrisy.”—but I could see where that was coming from.

The robbery itself is quite ambitious and daring. The plan is almost perfect, with every detail worked out in advance. But as mastermind John “Duke” Anderson tells his crew, there’s always the chance of something unexpected coming along to make things go wrong.

Given the abundant surveillance to which the criminal plotters are subjected, it’s a wonder that law enforcement isn’t really on top of things. The problem is that the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. Afterward, Sanders has NYPD Captain Edward X. Delaney suggest that more cooperation among law enforcement agencies could help prevent crime.

Unfortunately, however, law enforcement “turf wars” seem to have persisted in the real world for decades, with tragic consequences on a far grander scale. Many critics questioned, for example, whether more inter-agency cooperation might have prevented the September 11 tragedy in 2001.

[WJEP · Rating 5 out of 5]

They were all listening to Duke Anderson as he plotted the heist: NYPD, FBI, Federal Bureau of Narcotics, Secret Service, IRS, Bureau of Customs, FDA, FTC, SEC, NYS Liquor Authority. Bugs were everwhere: Taps on pay phones, a transmitter concealed under a car dashboard, a voice-actuated tape recorder installed in the neighbors linen closet, a telescopic microphone concealed in wooded high ground in Central Park, etc. This might seem a far-fetched, but law-enforcement went wiretap-crazy in the late 60s in response to organized crime (including the yippies and Black Panthers).

Duke came from Kentucky mountain-man stock which gave him certain advantages over the shifty New Yorkers. But Duke didn't know he was being bugged and he also didn't know that the 251st Precinct was run by Captain "Iron Balls" Delaney.

I have little patience for gimmicks and conspiracies, but by the time I finished the 94 short chapters, I was completely sold. Sanders truly created a one-of-a-kind crime thriller.

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

John Anderson, ex-con, plans and executes a masterful heist of a multi-unit apartment complex in New York City. That’s the basis of the plot for this book but that’s certainly not what makes it unique. There is an “author” who describes what we are about to read as his summation of a wide variety of transcriptions of various tape recordings, witness statements, court records, concealed wiretap evidence, etc. that relate to the crime in question. This forms a framework for the entire story but we readers are left to act as voyeurs, reading and sifting through all the various documents, etc. to form the essence of what actually happened during the robbery and subsequent police actions. Most of the recordings in the first two thirds of the book involve John Anderson himself as he meets with other criminals, mob bosses, etc. and puts together his master plan. The final third of the book shifts to the witness statements, police accounts, and perpetrator statements from the robbery itself.

This is certainly one of the more unusual books I’ve ever read. It reads like a play with the name of the speaker identified on each line followed by what they said on the tape recording. At first I was concerned that this wouldn’t be any fun at all. The first several chapters of transcriptions were heavy on legal procedural stuff like identifying the time and location of the recording and even details like the make and model of the recording equipment. But I soon fell into the rhythm of it and it wasn’t a problem at all. When the robbery itself kicks off, the narrative pace really kicks off and comes across not only as realistic but also with heart-pounding suspense.

This was Lawrence Sanders' first published novel and it won the Edgar award for best first novel back in 1971. Goodreads lists it as the first in the “Deadly Sins” series but I would categorize it as more of a prequel and only because it does introduce Captain Edward X. Delaney in the final 50 pages or so (via his final report on the case as on-scene commander). Subsequent novels in the series follow a traditional novel format, not this recording/transcription technique.

So, in the end, I enjoyed the book quite a lot. All those transcripts were woven together effectively to form a comprehensive and complete story. There was also a bit of unexpected humor from time to time, especially among some of the witness statements, some of whom tended to stray from the facts or embellish their tales, often to the police officer’s frustration. It’s been a while since I read the first two “Deadly Sins” novels but this experience has spurred me to go for the rest of them now, and catch up with one of my favorite police characters, Edward X. Delaney.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lawrence Sanders (1920-1998) began his hugely successful writing career in 1969 with this groundbreaking book, which won the Edgar Award for best first novel. Yes, it may seem a little dated now and parts of it read a little like an episode of a 1970's TV crime show, but it is still a fantastic first novel by any standards.

Sanders takes the approach of an author investigating a crime committed in New York on the night of the 31st August/ morning of 1 September 1968 and all the writing is assembled from eyewitness reports, records of court proceedings, penal institutions and investigative agencies, tape recordings from surveillance devices (which, rather unbelievably are simply everywhere, but we will give the author artistic licence!), personal correspondence, newspaper reports, official reports and the authors own experiences.

This is an old fashioned heist, in which John "Duke" Anderson assembles a team, and mafia funding, to help him plan an audacious robbery. He plans to rob not one apartment in an upscale block, but all of them. However, it is never possible to plan for every eventuality and things do not go as expected... This is an exciting and well written mystery with great characters. It is also the novel which introduces Sanders most famous character - Captain Edward X Delaney. Although he only enters the storyline near the end, he is the main character in the next novel The First Deadly Sin (The Edward X. Delaney Series). I am delighted to see these books re-released on kindle for a new audience.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining mystery listening 🎶🔰

This was a kindle e-book from the local library.

Listening to tapes Is not my style of mystery novel I enjoy. Give it a try you may like it.

Lawrence Sanders is one of my favorite authors.

[David Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crime caper assembled from surveillance tapes of a number of underworld persons of interest in 1968 New York. Charismatic, likeable and intelligent (but psychopathic) John “Duke” Anderson, fresh from jail, hatches a plot to clean out the sellable contents of several apartments in an exclusive area of the upper East Side.
He enlists the help of various experts and gets the approval of the local Mafia don so the perfect crime seems possible, but the reader is aware that things are likely to go pear-shaped as all the conversations between the plotters, reported verbatim, are being recorded, either legally or illegally. The sheer ruthlessness of the baddies is shocking. This is enjoyable hokum with the usual slight guilty hope that the audacity of the conspirators will allow them to get away with it.
The eventual fly in the ointment was the unforeseen resilience and ingenuity of an unregarded character and the fortitude and organisation of the NYPD.

[Boris Feldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never read anything by (or heard of) Lawrence Sanders. A Goodreads friend flagged this book. Delightful! Dated, in a positive way. Real-time tape transcripts of a big burglary in the planning stages and in process.

[Circa Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being published near the early seventies, this book feels very modern and touches upon issues that are even more relevant today. Right now information can be gathered from a wider variety of sources instantly without notice due to technological advances, but how organized and intentional this kind of thing is in the niche of crime control, no one can really say. Much like the book, despite the increasing information and resources at the fingertips of justice services and the government, the end result is still murky and law and order largely inefficient and unfair. Is it that the power is still in the hands of those that don't use with responsibility and respect? Is this lack of freedom and ulterior info leeching battle a source of crime itself? Are citizens sensing inferiority and taking to criminal advances to feel independent and dominant again?

The story propels along despite the solemn police report style because of the exciting and diverse characters that make up the criminal underbelly of New York. It's impossible not to get attached to the "villains" of the story because the author gives them a fair amount of heart and dimension that makes you want for them to achieve that final big score and retire peacefully. The author also analyzes the psychology of crime and what societal factors propel it. There is no black and white bias about law and order and what is good and evil. By the tragic end of the book, you really start to feel let down by the law abiding citizens and before you know it your heart has been played.

John Anderson manages to be an enigma, a criminal genius but also very down to earth and human depending on who he encounters and interacts with and I especially loved his relationship with Ingrid, the street smart sex worker. Ingrid and John are both too smart for the criminal life but are too world weary and hardened to quit. They both desire to "get out" either emotionally or tangibly retire and move on from the hard, painful life they've both had to lead. They admire the criminal mind because they feel it is truthful and closer to reality than common, decent living but at the same time they wish they could live a comfortable, safe, legitimate life. Tragically, they end up being cheated by their own actions that were meant to guarantee them financial security but their romantic chemistry and obvious potential makes you wonder what could have been if life was simpler.

Aside from Anderson and Ingrid, nearly every character feels real yet distinctive and captures your imagination. By the end, you feel like you've been right there with the crime reporter, hearing out the testimony of numerous witnesses yourself. It's an amazing book. There's humor, philosophy, psychology, action, romance, sex, intrique, etc. You can't go wrong.

[Drasko · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is interesting how prophetic many books are. In spite of intensive surveillance of numerous Government agencies crime is slowly being planed and executed and none of those agencies showed any interest to act and prevent it be it directly or cooperating with one another. It needed private action of disabled teenage genius to put spanner in a bad guy's works. One can't avoid thinking how his parents tax money has been squandered on all expensive gadgets Government is pointlessly (mis)using. Fast forward more then half a century and surveillance is 100 times worse but crime is still with us (and getting worse). Nothing changed!

[Mariam Z M]

Very boring....
It doesn't seem like a novel..
Complete waste ot time.

[Bonnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I probably read about 10% of the book and decided to quit. The style just didn't appeal.

[Bob Box · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in 1971. Became a fan of Sanders and read everything he wrote. Birth of my "mystery, thriller and crime" obsession.

[JDK1962 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting gimmick of a novel told almost entirely through surveillance tapes and taped interviews/confessions, with a few letters and news clippings tossed in. The first half I found on the tedious side, while the second half moves...but the problem with the approach is that the characterizations are pretty surface level, and none of the characters were particularly likable. So basically, you get a completely plot-driven surface-level view of a not-all-that-interesting heist. Originally published in 1970, so as an added bonus, you get plenty of slurs--most completely gratuitous--against Blacks and homosexuals.

As an aside, the title here says (Deadly Sins #1). This is, I assume, because Delaney, the protagonist of the later The First Deadly Sin shows up here, but the character is, like all the others, almost completely flat. This isn't an entry in the Deadly Sins series, unless you're an obsessed Delaney completist.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

My dad always liked the movie a lot, so I picked this up. Still haven't seen the movie.

The main character is generally unlikable so I don't really want to root for him. The book is novel to me as it's told entirely through interviews and exchanges stolen through overlapping surveillance operations. If the main character was more likable, there'd be more suspense as to what will happen (since we know police know all about him given all the surveillance).

Apparently this is a series centered around a specific cop that shows up for a few pages? I'm not likely to seek out any others in the series.

[Jon Barber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crime is the truth. Law is the hypocrisy.

I just read a library book that is two years older than me… and I’m pretty old. It started out disjointed and hard to read, but Mr. Sanders wove these bits together, and it glided more and more quickly until the finale. I was pleasantly surprised, clearly, since I finished it in about 36 hours or so.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different type from Sanders, but enjoyable. Mostly transcripts of wiretaps and recording devices depicting the planning and execution of a large robbery taking place in a New York apartment building. I was excited to see the first appearance of Delaney in the series.

[Susan ODell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Very Different Book

This is a different type of book. There are recordings of a crime that will be committed in the future. I cannot recommend this book, I did, however only finish the book to see how it ended.

[Lawrence Arnow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book 20 years ago and still remember it, got it on my bookshelf. One of the best. highly recommended.

[Patty · Rating 5 out of 5]

omg love this mans writing he can make you smell a sandwich like its right here

[Marcia · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's unusual for me not to finish a book, but I quit about 1/2 way through this book. I just couldn't get interested in the characters or the plot.

[John Gault · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first Edward X. Delaney novel.

[Matt English · Rating 5 out of 5]

A FANTASTIC first novel by Sanders, deservedly winning the Edgar. I am looking forward to the sequels featuring Captain "Iron Balls" Delaney, who made a late but great entrance in this novel.

[Sharon Archer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring!!

[Andy Plonka · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the way this tale was presented.. using the tapes secreted in apartments in a building in New York.

[greatgrayprairie · Rating 5 out of 5]

There were billions of implications everywhere. A marvelously complementary world. And a hoard of agencies asleep at the switches. The one unknown to Anderson turned out to be his downfall.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Plot or Premise
A robbery crew is planning to rip off an entire small apartment building of tenants in one night.

What I Liked
I had read a lot of Sanders' novels before I got to this one, out of order. While it is the first of the Edward X. Delaney series, he is a relatively small part of the book near the end. Instead, it reads like the same structure of the movie, the Usual Suspects (which drew inspiration from the book). There are scenes in the present day, after the day of the robbery, with people being interviewed about what happened. But in addition to their witness statements, there are also numerous electronic surveillance tapes of the various criminals being surveilled by a bunch of different police groups, none of which are talking to each other.

What I Didn't Like
I was on the fence for the rating between four stars or five. While the book is awesome, there is a niggling detail in the plot that bothers me. The "premise" of all the surveillance is that all of these crooks were being surveilled by separate law enforcement units (different precincts, different federal agencies, and so on), and so none of them had the "big picture" to prevent it. Which is fine, it's a tale as old as time as they say, and a popular theme for crime sprees like serial killers. No one was looking at the cases as connected. Which is fine as a premise, except in each of the fictional tapes referred to as the premise for the book, it is very clear not only that a crime is about to happen, but in many of them, the actual day of the crime, at least one of the major players, and in some cases, the address of the building. Yet NONE of the law enforcement agencies portrayed as running the wiretaps bother to warn the precinct where it will happen, or when, or how? It's not very realistic in plotting, as the tapes are made several months in advance, according to the text. If it was all in the week ahead, potentially the transcripts weren't ready or nobody had listened to the tapes yet, sure. But months ahead, someone would have warned someone so the cops could be ready. In the end, I decided it wasn't a big enough plot device to knock it down a full star.

The Bottom Line
The first book of a master storyteller

[Kelvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a 1971 book about a crime caper with a setting in New York City in 1968. The book won an Edgar Award for Best First Novel for Sanders. The book is written in a very unconventional style. It is all form transcripts of wiretaps and interviews as well as other forms of documents such as court records and witness statements. The writing is very smooth and clean.

The first 60 percent of the book is about the planning phase of the heist that involves a team of robbers breaking into a 10-unit high end residential building in New York over the Labor Day Weekend and rob every unit. Through various transcripts, we were told how John Anderson, the cool-headed mastermind, put together a plan and a team. This part of the book was presented almost all from wiretap transcripts. In order to make them look realistic, the author injected a lot of official sounding details, which can be quite distracting. The last 40 percent of the book deals with the unfolding of the heist and use other forms of materials more (such as interviews and witness statements). The book reads faster at that point and it became more interesting.

Sanders was also philosophical in the book. Sprinkled here and there are various theories of crime and criminals, including a question on whether everybody is a criminal, just a difference in degree. Some of the viewpoints in the book are quite interesting.

The book is also the first appearance of Captain Edward X Delaney in the series, even though he did not show up until the end of the book.

[wally · Rating 3 out of 5]

finished 7th january 2024 good read three stars i liked it kindle library loaner and apparently the first from sanders for me and also his debut novel and edgar winner. sounds like this is based on real events? looks like sanders was a crime reporter was given time off to write this...and as the description says based entirely on wiretaps and such, interviews recorded...by a whole host of entities even the f.d.a. heh! securities and stock something or other. law enforcement. this guy plans a burglary of an entire building maybe five floors new york and he plans for months three or more...what? they weren't listening to the tapes? burglary goes down...victim gets the word out over short wave. at times three or so entities recording the same conversations. i don't know what's more mind boggling...that fact...or that the planning went on for months and still it went down injuries, two deaths. now you have the government recording everything from everyone and stockpiling the info in their space-age warehouse in utah...nothing new under the sun.

[Devonne West · Rating 2 out of 5]

I used to be a fan of Lawrence Sanders but hadn't read any of his books so I thought I'd try this book, which was his first published novel. It was interesting that the entire book was told through transcripts obtained via wiretaps, police interviews, etc. It did take me a while to get into this book and although, the plot was intriguing, I was disappointed that Sanders felt the need to bring up incest situations in this book as it really did not enrich any of the characters or have anything to do with the crime for which the plot was developed.
I add that comment because of the reviews that I read of Sanders' book Guilty Pleasures, which was the last book that he published. In retrospect, I wonder if the books that I read years ago also did that. Since I've been drinking in all of Mary Higgins Clark's books, I have to say that Sanders does not compare with her.