The Weight

by Andrew Vachss

Andrew Vachss returns with a mesmerizing novel about a hard-core thief who’s about to embark on a job that will alter his life forever.

Sugar is that rarest of an old-school professional thief, tough and loyal as a pit bull, packing 255 pounds of muscle. When he’s picked out of a photo array in a vicious rape case, the cops find his apartment empty. A stakeout catches Sugar when he returns . . . carrying a loaded pistol. The sex-crime cops get nothing from their interrogation, but a streetwise detective figures out why Sugar offers no at the time of the rape, a holiday-weekend break-in job was being pulled at a jewelry store. The DA offers Sugar two give up his partners in the jewelry heist and walk, or plead to the rape he didn’t commit—and he’ll toss in the gun charge. For Sugar, that’s not two options; he takes the weight.
 
When Sugar finishes his time, his money is waiting for him, held by Solly, the mastermind behind the jewelry heist. But Solly tells Sugar that one of the heist crew was actually sent by another planner—and that planner has just died. In Sugar’s world, all loose threads must be cut. He suspects that there’s more to this job than what Solly is telling him. But nothing he suspects or imagines can prepare him for what he finds . . .

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Noir, Mystery Thriller, Detective, Ebooks

272 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2010

About the author

Andrew Vachss has been a federal investigator in sexually transmitted diseases, a social-services caseworker, a labor organizer, and has directed a maximum-security prison for “aggressive-violent” youth. Now a lawyer in private practice, he represents children and youths exclusively. He is the author of numerous novels, including the Burke series, two collections of short stories, and a wide variety of other material including song lyrics, graphic novels, essays, and a “children’s book for adults.” His books have been translated into twenty languages, and his work has appeared in Parade, Antaeus, Esquire, Playboy, the New York Times, and many other forums. A native New Yorker, he now divides his time between the city of his birth and the Pacific Northwest.

The dedicated Web site for Vachss and his work is
www.vachss.com. That site and this page are managed by volunteers. To contact Mr. Vachss directly, use the "email us" function of vachss.com.

Reviews

[Alex McConnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel has one of the truest protagonists I’ve ever read on a page before. Which is vitally important because The Weight is essentially a character study as opposed to a crime narrative. The book is essentially its main character, a thief named Sugar. And what a book it is.
Being familiar with Vachss’s Burke series I was surprised to find this novel focussed on what i thought was a straight mystery as opposed to a dark PI crime story dealing with abused youth. But The Weight isn’t even a mystery as you read deeper, it’s a study of an upstanding criminal. Which is of course on oxymoron but true nonetheless.
Sugar represents a very real portion of criminal society, one who knows exactly where he stands in the scheme of things and what he stands for. He’s a proud thief who gets framed for a rape and spend the narrative after his incarceration on the hunt. The true strength of this book and the character is his innate understanding of what he is and where he is. He’s not smart but he’s paranoid and very street smart. He knows when he’s outmatched and who he looks up to. It’s a very accurate portrait of the portion of criminals who only ever aspire to be criminals, yet understand there are unwritten rules to survival in that life.
The narrative truly picks up when Sugar meets Rena, another societal outsider operating in a criminal world. Together they unravel what’s actually going on and who’s been playing them both from the start. Their relationship develops naturally and has many moments of touching honesty as each shows their past scars and current strengths. Vachss truly excels here, making us like and pull hard for two characters who are essentially white trash criminals.
What’s also interesting is the “mystery” is never really explained because the two characters aren’t smart enough and don’t care enough to dive into it. So the reader gets a sort of explanation but not really. Which makes total sense given the characters.
An excellent book even if I still can’t tell you which section to file it in the library.

[Trish W. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic Vachss story on the theme of honor and pride among thieves and thievery as a lifestyle, as many of his other books have also been about. It's an interesting idea when one considers that on a personal level "thievery" is situational morality that's defined by whether one is the thief or the victim. In "The Weight" Vachss frames this as the victim remaining a nameless and faceless character who is also dishonest, so the major theft that provides the basis for this story is rationalized by means of depersonalization. This makes it easier to engender reader sympathy for the protagonist thief. The backstory provided to the main character is also a fascinating glimpse into criminal psychology, as Vachss is an expert who worked for years in the criminal justice system.

The plot is complex with many directions. Character development is interesting, but a bit too extreme to fully relate to (unless one is an ex-convict or involved in organized crime). Vachss has always made heavy use of street vernacular in dialogue which makes some passages murky. In the first half of the book some of the convoluted forays into the legal system are a little tedious.

An entertaining and rather dark read, though not Vachss best work. One might conclude it's all too easy to go down the slippery slope of rationalizing unethical, immoral, and illegal acts, and to sympathize with or even excuse those who commit them.

[David Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Weight by Andrew Vachss (Pantheon Books 2010) (Fiction - Mystery) (3982).

This is the least satisfying book from this normally very satisfying author. This is either a stand-alone novel or the start of a new series, but it is not a continuation of the author's fine "Burke" series.

Like Burke, this story follows a streetwise ex-con career criminal with no living blood-family. In The Weight, the protagonist "Sugar" has been wrongly convicted of a crime which he would never commit. Can he clear his reputation and tie up the loose ends which could endanger him in the future? Unlike most of the Burke series, in this tale, the reader doesn't really care.

My rating: 3/10, finished 10/19/12.

[[Updated review 8/22/24 - I finished re-reading The Weight by Andrew Vachss. The review holds up well after rereading. but the rating was much too low. There is nothing to criticize about the plot, the characters, or the editing. This book, as a perfectly good story (but not one I would be likely to reread again) deserves a higher rating.

My rating: 7/10, finished 8/22/24 (3982).]]

[Dylan Weaver · Rating 2 out of 5]

This would be a great short story. Streamline it by cutting away plot threads that go nowhere then take the time for the elaborate schemes to make better sense and expand on a few things discussed but never seen and it's solid. Otherwise I've got short novel that somehow reads too long with a vibe that never swerves past middle of the road.

I'm not dumb. I like complex plots. I'm not a stranger to re reading a convoluted breakdown of a master plan. But when I did that here, my takeaway was "what? But...why?!"

Also lol at the fancy car having a GPS button on the dash that has a big arrow that points the way back to this particular house. Literally just a GPS with the home setting and nothing else. And Sugar acts like it's space age tech! Dude you went away for 5 years not 25! This was published in 2010 we know what a gps does.

[Mydonna · Rating 2 out of 5]

The central character and narrator of THE WEIGHT is Tim "Sugar" Caine, an old-school professional thief who follows a strict set of rules that include doing only jobs arranged through his "planner", Solly.
How he handles his prison time, his reflections while inside on previous incarceration and the events and people who have shaped his life up to this point start to give the reader deeper insight into Sugar. The title also plays off this pivotal period in the story --- the weight of the rules Sugar so rigidly adheres to, the weight he takes for the jewel heist, the weight he lifts regularly in the prison yard (and elsewhere) to maintain his impressive physical strength ... and the one weight he has trouble accepting: The weight of being falsely branded a rapist, a sex offender.
Caine is the perfect example of the modern antihero. We know he's a bad guy, but you can't help rooting for him.

[Ash Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book follows Sugar, a thief who was arrested for a crime he didn't commit. I'll be honest, that plus Andrew Vachss as the author sold me on the book.

Sugar is a much more healthy version of Burke - which isn't saying much - but this whole book has a very different feel, a little lighter while still being heavy. Sugar is lovable, but this is far from Mr. Vachss' best work. That isn't to say it's bad - but there are points where it feels more tell than show and where things are murky and you're left wondering 'why, though?' to yourself as you read.

Honestly, I'm not sure if my four-star review comes from my previous adoration of the author of Burke series or from the actual quality of this book, but I do think it's worth a read if you have the time.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've been reading Vachss since the very early 90's, the Burke series got me into crime novels. This is a fair distance away from those early works, it pains me to say that this borders on tripe. If this was your first book by him, you wouldn't read another. I might need to go back and reread Flood to get back on board.

[S · Rating 3 out of 5]

So, this started off ok. The first half of the book is effectively a how-to guide on how "cons" and "ex-cons" relate to each other, their lawyers, their wardens, the system and themselves. I wondered where it was going and halfway through found out - somewhere different. Won't spoil it but as a latecomer to Andrew Vachss, I will seek out more titles.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good narrator. Medium story.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

4*

[Paschalis]

elibrary

[Bob Box · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in 2011. A mesmerizing novel about a hardcore thief who's about to embark on a job that will alter his life forever.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good story. Interesting characters.

[Kevin Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always find Vachss’ books to be tremendously readable. He writes fascinating characters who would normally be considered “bad” and then makes you care about them as people. This was not as engaging as his Burke series but still certainly worth reading.

[Brett T · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Weight is Andrew Vachss' fourth novel operating outside the world of his criminal avenging anti-hero, Burke. It's the second one he's written since ending the Burke series with Another Life in 2009. Vachss' non-Burke books have been hit and miss. Only the brief 2003 Hard Case tale The Getaway Man has really come anywhere near the gripping quotient of the best of the Burke books. Haiku was confused, at least, and Two Trains Running was an almost incomprehensible mess. The Weight is better than either of those latter two, but doesn't really represent much of a step forward for Vachss in creating good work outside his central series.

Tim "Sugar" Caine, a top-level thief, has been arrested for a crime he didn't commit. He could beat the rap by offering a solid alibi, but the problem is that his solid alibi is his presence at a crime he did commit, along with a couple of partners. All he has to do is give them up to the police, but Sugar isn't that kind of thief. So he spends five years in prison, and when he's out he goes to the man who planned his last job, Solly, in order to get his share of the take. Solly tells Sugar that one of the men on that last job came to him from another planner, and since that planner is now dead, Solly is worried about whether or not that man can be trusted. He wants Sugar to find out, so Sugar is off to Florida to meet with Rena, mistress of Albie, the other planner, to learn what he can about Albie's man Jessop.

Sugar is not nearly as damaged a man as Burke was, so even though he's just as hard a case his first-person narration is not as dark. In that sense, at least, Sugar's story is a lot easier to read than were some of the things Burke was involved with. But after reading a few pages of the conversations between Sugar and Solly, or Sugar and the police interrogating him, or Sugar during one of his flashbacks, it becomes pretty clear that Vachss is planning to welsh on the most basic deal between writer and reader: As readers, it's OK if we don't know where the story is going as long as we know that the author does. About 70 or so pages into The Weight, it becomes hard to believe that Vachss knows where his story is going, whether he knew how he would end it or not. Meandering dialogue, narrative-killing flashbacks, Sugar's cryptic inner monologues and Solly's even more cryptic conversations spur an urge to either flip back a page or two to see if I missed something or forward about fifty or sixty to see how this thing ends and get it on the "donate" pile.

Among Vachss' non-Burke work are two short-story collections, Born Bad and Everybody Pays. Like the novels, they are hit-and-miss, but they have a lot better average and indicate that if Vachss decided to invest some more in that format (both collections date back to the 1990s) he might produce some of his best work. The Weight, trimmed down to short story or even novella length, could have been a much better read. But as a novel, it's carrying too much extra to be worth the time.

Original available here.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sugar is a thief. He makes no bones about it; that is his profession. He is proud of his professional demeanor and ‘cred’ with others he must work with. He is a stand up guy. His employers quite possibly believe Sugar isn’t to bright.
We are not given any background on Sugar, we have to take him as he is now. What is he is now is a man who just did five years for a rape he did not commit. The cops know he didn’t do it, but they are pretty sure he was in on the jewelry heist that went on at the same time. The DA wants the rape to go away, and unfortunately Sugar is caught with a weapon. He is a felon, and that is a serious problem. Sugar has some decisions to make. The DA makes the gun charge go away in exchange for clearing the rape case. It is all about the percentages!
After doing his five years he goes to Solly. Solly is a man who is a ‘planner’. Solly made sure that Sugar had money while he was in prison, and it was understood he would hold Sugar’s share of the take. Sugar shows up to claim his share, but Solly has a little side job for him; just a little detail to take care of before he hits the road with his share.
Sugar finally agrees and goes down to Florida to deal with the problem. This is where Vachss gets into the lovely twisty party of the plot. You definitely can’t see past the sharp turns and downhill drops that hit in the story.
There was only one character I recognize from previous Burke novels, Buddha makes a cameo as a driver. Anyone familiar with Cross and his crew will remember Buddha.
The characters are interesting and the story is well developed, while leaving interesting spots to fill in during future stories.
I thought that the moral and cultural aspects of the book were very realistic.
I listened to the audio version read by Buck Shirmer and thought he did a nice job.

[Veach Glines · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately, the quality of The Weight by Vachss is just slightly lower than his previous (which was slightly lower than it's previous). Mister Vachss is on the down slide.

Having read every book of his beginning in the late 1980's, I believe he (like many artists) lost his drive and anger and voice about the time he killed Pansy. He has tried for the last decade to get it back; new characters, new settings, new genres...none of those books contain the grit, clarity, surprising hooks and emotion that he was able to imbibe into his early Burke revenge-thrillers. The reason is probably that he has changed; he: the author, he: the businessman. He is now writing to pay for the toys he bought with the proceeds of his good hard-won inventions. He is no longer writing because he has a message he needs to get out. A story to tell. A ghost in his spine. He has a lazy, publisher-owned editor who never, never, never will send his story back for re-tooling because that would slow down the money train.

It's a sad thing to see, when an author becomes ensconced in his tower of success where he slowly loses readers because he has stopped struggling to create a quality product and has resorted to writing from a template, writing for a paycheck, and writing poor-quality pap.

This will be my last Vachss. I may pick up a future book of his at a lending library just to see if he is able to Koontz his way out of this downward spiral (Dean Koontz pulled out of the quality-dive in 2001 with his 'Odd series' and now writes better than he did in the 90's) but the chances are that he is satisfied with his past success and not listening to critics.

[Esme · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my last Vachss novel. If he writes a memoir I'll be first in line to read it but I've had it with his careful characters that spend the better part of the novel creeping around elaborate set-ups to achieve, what exactly, is not entirely clear. I thought that since this was an independent novel--not another of the Burke series, that it might be as taut and suspenseful as "Getaway Man." It was not. I couldn't follow Sugar's thought process, (just take the money and run!) or that of his love interest, or the guy who had set him on his course in the first place. One example of the plot cul-de-sac this book subjects readers to is that Sugar goes to a great deal of trouble to rent an apartment, he talks about how he pays in cash and how sure the landlady will snoop when he's gone. Sugar outfits his apartment with gear so if she snoops he'll look legit. The landlady talks to him about her perceived weight issues implying that she would like to hire him as a trainer. Then Sugar goes away and never returns to the apartment for the rest of the book, leaving me to wonder why the author subjected us to all that.

Of course, since it's Vachss you can count on their being a sex crime to be avenged. Keep in mind I've read at least a dozen of Vachss's novels, the man has a way of drawing you in...but there have been too many duds recently. He has nothing new to say.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Vachss novel I've read (or heard of) that doesn't involve the avenging angel Burke, THE WEIGHT was really involving.

This is a character study in depth, the story of a bad guy (a tough professional thief) who takes the fall for a rape he did not commit, in order to avoid using his real alibi, which was a robbery -- he's a standup bad guy who refuses to roll over on his confederates. He serves the time, but upon release, things get wierd, then wierder, as he tries to use his somewhat limited smarts to figure out who's zooming whom. I love love love the voice (and the narrator of the audio version). You can hear Burke's fierce protection of women, his respect for the truth, and his relentless pursuit of justice. What you also get in this book is an authentic, inside-out view of the life of a professional thief.

I was sad when the story ran down.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

This standalone novel reminded me of Mr. Vachss's crime title Shella about a brutal killer except the protagonist here is a professional thief named Sugar Caine. Sugar does a jewelry heist, gets nabbed, and takes "the weight" for a rapist by going to prison after the rape victim IDs him. So Sugar does time for a crime he hasn't committed, but he's done a few other violent crimes. That makes for an interesting book premise. After Sugar gates out, his boss, an old man named Solly, sends Sugar to Florida to take care of some business where he then falls in love. I like the hardboiled voice Mr. Vachss uses, and he knows his criminals and their seedy underworld since he's a criminal lawyer. I had a little trouble following the plot toward the end where the narrative uses a lot of dialogue, but I got the gist enough to really enjoy the entire ride.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a Burke novel. It's about a career thief who describes life in prison very well, and tells a good story when he gets out, too.

The dedication had what seemed like a suggestion that he'd be seeing his deceased loved ones soon, and he looks very ill in the cover photo. Pity.

Vachss can be a bit too terse for my liking. It's not unusual for him to have characters finish each others' sentences when I don't quite know what they're talking about. He also uses some criminal law jargon without explaining it which I find irritating. And I'm a criminal lawyer.

Anyway, this one was ok. Not my favorite.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story of a thief that gets caught up & jailed for a crime he didn't committ because his alibi was a burglary with other people & he couldn't admit to it cause it might get the other people in trouble. That was against the "code" or rules that his kind lived by --- it was taking the weight - doing the jail time rather than getting any one else that was on the job in trouble. Then he gets out of prison & it's his story of what happened afterward & what he had to do for the man that set up the job & what he had to for himself & a woman he met in order to keep them both safe afterwards.
really good story. rooted for the thief even tho he's a bad guy

[Ken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tim "Sugar" Caine- A man with two different colored eyes who is Big, Large, and Muscle- Bound, and a mind which mirrors his super-large frame.

Clever Premise- Man is brought in for a rape that he did not commit, but his alibi is that he was on a jewelry robbery , and he can't 'rat out' his confederates.

Interesting profile of 'A Man In The Life'. This might be a bit dated, but I guess it still makes sense. A successful, 'High-End' criminal only has 'the word on the street' as his reputation, so just like the stock market, Perception Is Everything.

Plot gets way too convoluted, and I completely lost the thread by the end of the novel.

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being a huge fan of the Burke series, I hadn't yet read a non-Burke book by Vachss that I liked as much as "The Weight". The main protagonist is very likeable, the story (as always with Andrew Vachss) unfolds slowly and takes unexpected turns, but is never boring. I couldn't put it down. And since I am currently holding up my own work-out routine pretty well, I could sympathize a lot with the main character, who works out every minute he can and is "packing 255 pounds of muscle" (as the blurb says). Even though I am faaaaaaar from packing 255 pounds of muscle and only work out 2-3 times a week (hey, I am trying ;).

[Viccy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The dialogue in a Vachss book could not be anymore spare. It is almost a code, the code of criminals. This time out, Tim "Sugar"Caine takes a five year hit for a rape he did not commit because he does not want to admit to burglarizing a jewelry store. He does the time and gets out and goes immediately to Solly, the planner of the heist to get his cut. Solly asks for Sugar's help in tracking down an accomplice in the heist and in retrieving a ledger from an associate of Solly's in Florida. It isn't long before Sugar figures out he is being played.

[Jacquelynn Fritz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a new character for this author. Sugar is a professional thief who knows the rules. You don't tell on your partners and you take your time without complaint and when you get out your money will be there for you. This is an intricate story about Sugar, his boss Solly, and the job Solly wants him to do. It was fun to follow the thinking and how Sugar finds happiness at the end.

[E.R. Yatscoff · Rating 2 out of 5]

He's had better books. Don't get me wrong, Vachss is a good writer, but I think I expected a bit more action. Sugar gets out of prison and is on a mission to get the loot owed to him and get himself cleared. He recalls his times in prison throughout and gives readers a glimpse into the prison system. It sounds plausible. Not a bad read.

[Tamlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not really like any other book I'd read in the past. Raw and gritty, but very interesting take on the life of a hard-core thief. The insights into jail-time were interesting. Liked the "planning" scenes, and the ending was good.

[Jayw]

Professional jewel thief takes a frame for rape instead of alibiing out with the robbery he was really doing at the time. He could skate on the robbery but would have to give up his partners. Walks out of prison after 5 years into political squabble between bosses.

[Tom Hicks]

Of course with Vachss a very well written book. Good story but you had to pay attention and sometimes re-read some parts. It kept you thinking all the way to the end. Highly recommended. Loved it.