Only Child

Burke #14

by Andrew Vachss

It’s been years since Burke has been home, years since he’s seen his “family” and worked in the underbelly of New York City. Although his appearance has changed, his reputation grown dusty and his wallet thin, his skills and his crew remain razor sharp. So when he is contacted by a mob boss to investigate the murder of his illegitimate daughter, Vonni, Burke takes the job and begins searching for an unspeakably brutal killer.

Posing as a casting director looking for tomorrow’s stars, Burke reaches out to the high school students who knew Vonni, and may know the identity of the killer. Before long he unearths a perverse enterprise—a young director pursuing a brutal new type of cinema verité.

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

304 pages, Paperback

First published October 8, 2002

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

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burke is finally back in the city where he belongs, reunited with his "family," and now living in a sweet apartment designed by the Mole. (There are not only panels that flash if someone is sneaking up the stairs, but FREE CABLE as well! This guy thinks of everything!)

Running low on cash, Burke now needs to find a job. Before very long, one finds him. A Mafioso's daughter is dead. Was it a random killing, or was she murdered to send a "message" to her papa?

I've been avoiding this series for a few years now. Anyone who's ever read a Burke book knows they can be, oh, let's say...a tad depressing. If you haven't read one, know that they are filled with really BAD THINGS, and most of them seem to happen to children. In other words, the books are just life real life. The saddest, most awful parts of real life.

While this one won't make you think of sunshine, lollipops, and cute baby animals, it's not too bad on the "Scale of Bleakness." (Following up this title with a quick Terry Pratchett book should clear away any lingering clouds.)

I had forgotten how much I truly love the supporting cast in this series; this collection of wounded and wonderful people that Burke has assembled in lieu of a family. I won't wait so long before visiting this bunch again.

[Skip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Burke has finally returned to NY to be with his "family." There is a touching scene early in the book when his is reunited with Flower, who is not fazed by Burke's new, mangled face. However, Burke is running out of money, especially after being set up with a new batcave. After some discussion of getting involved in trafficking, Burke is hired by a mob guy and his surprising friend to find out who killed his illegitimate daughter and why. Lots of theories, but the investigation shows the girl Vonni was a normal kid, which is why the violent nature of her death is hard to understand, except as a message. All good, but the book drags and the antics and dialogue of Cyn and Rejii are pretty annoying, although Michelle's star shines bright in this one. Vachss uses the younger generation's obsession about video and fame to craft a memorable but very dark story.

[Larry Bassett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am continuing my audio reprieve of this Siri‘s using the audible format along with e-book back up. Not quite 10 years later as I am re-experiencing these books, I have to admit that the later books in the series have not remained in my memory. As I am listening to them years later, it is a completely new experience. This book seems a little more polished and intellectual than some of the others. The creation of a concept that ends up with the murder of a teenage girl is a pretty big variation on the theme in the murder book. And at the end since Burke has his own form of justice, he evidently arranges for his own form of execution. And there are a couple of additional hands-on murders of bad guys as well. The concepts of revenge and vigilanteeism is not at all disguised.

—————————-
Burke is back from the dead – if by dead you mean someplace other than NYC. He has quit smoking – “Just use them as props,” he says. “It’s just that, ever since it happened cigarettes don’t taste the same.” “Not even after . . .?” Michelle asks. If you have to ask “after what?” you have not read enough Burke recently.

Four bowls of hot-and-sour soup at Mama’s restaurant and he is ready to get into book #14 in the series.

Vachss is clever and his dialogue is sharp and sparse. “. . . it didn’t take a DNA specialist to see there was a heavy dose of cream in her coffee.” That is the kind of clever and to the point that I mean. I enjoy reading him for his short sentences and short paragraphs and short chapters. His books are a respectable length too. This one is 276 pages with quite a bit of white space. Vachss makes me smile without wearing me out.

Here is an exchange between Burke and Hazel, the mother of the murdered 16 year old girl.

“You’re no priest.”
“No, I’m not. I’m not a lawyer or a doctor or a social worker or anything the law would prohibit me from repeating what you tell me. I’m just a man. But what I am is a man of my word.”
“You say so.”
“Yes, I say so.”
“That’s all you have, your word?”
“That’s all anyone has. Question is, how good is it.”
“That is the question. How would I find the answer?”
“Watch me,” I told her. “Watch me close.”

With Vachss, the more you know, the more you know. That’s how it is when a writer packs a lot into a few words. Burke is the master of few words. He says,

Every time I see Wolfe, it’s always the same. And after she leaves, it’s always a Patsy Cline night.

In this case you benefit from knowing Wolfe from past Burke books as well as a thing or two about Patsy Cline. In my case it would be better to say “remember” rather than “know.” That’s always the challenge for me. Do you suppose the Cline reference is to “Crazy” or “I Fall to Pieces” or “Sweet Dreams”?

I thought that the movie as milieu was an interesting approach as was the spinning out of noir vérité. I am glad that the series has moved into the 21st century with the publication of Only Child in 2002. Burke’s attraction to S&M pops up as it usually does and his past entourage of women passes through his mind during one sleepless night. Paddling bare bottoms and disciplining of beautiful, scantily clad women make an appearance. Also de rigueur: The neck of one bad guy is broken by Max.

I didn’t want to stop reading until I finished the book. I was nice to have Burke back in The City even if it did not play a very big role. This was a fast read and an easy four stars.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've taken a little break from reading the Burke series, they're all good, but the last two haven't been quite up there as Burke moved out of his comfort zone in the city and stayed elsewhere whilst the people around his old haunts believed him to be dead. Don't get me wrong, Vachss is a writer who's prose haunts you and everything he does manages to do that, but it was a relief to see Burke back in the city.
Here he's back and starting to pick up jobs again, the main one here to find the murderer of the daughter of a 'made man'. We all know Burke and his obsession with those who abuse children, so finding the killer of a sixteen year old falls right into his comfort zone.
Reading Vachss doesn't take you to pleasant places, it won't make you love humanity as a class, but it will stay with you.

[Lloyd · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was in love with this series for a long time. Until Burke jumped the shark and went to the west coast. It just didn't work right. And I took a long break and found myself a bit less than thrilled with his return adventure to his old neighborhood. Maybe it will take some re-warming up to? Three more books in the series, so I will likely finish it up one day. I guess all good things eventually come to an end.

[John Collins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another Burke novel with depraved freaks and another tour into the seedy underground that exists around all of us. It’s not the best Burke novel, but Vachss’ prose is razor sharp as always so this is worth your time for that alone.

[Rogue Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forgot how much I like these odd and eccentric characters, Burke's beloved family. Also love the NYC landscape, streets and bridges and boroughs. This one is #14 so I can see I've missed a lot of the back story, fun to fill in.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back from the dead and finally back in NY. Enjoyed the plotting and being back with the family.

[Kirby Coe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding book

I am on a mission to read all the “Burke” books. Been giving them all 5-stars so far. Man, oh man. Ineffable tour de force.

[Bob Box · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in 2002. Burke still intrigues and shocks.

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Burke vs. weirdo underground cinema

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burke is back with a new face but with the same crew. This is a stand-alone story, but with so many references to past novels, it might be off-putting to readers who are new to the Burke series.

[Rock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Burke's back, starting from scratch, sort of.
Great story.
Fantastic writing.

[Chris Lott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad but not horrible. It was kind of convenient that they decided to role play as a movie production company and they stubbled upon the killer who just so happened to also make movies.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burke always gets his man.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fourteenth Burke novel begins slow but picks up speed as the main narrative is introduced about a quarter of the way into the novel.

Burke has returned to NYC. Vachss muddles about for a while before establishing the central focus of the book: Burke is hired by a low-ranking mobster, with more than one major skeleton in his closet, to find who killed his daughter Vonni. The mobster thinks it may have been someone within his criminal circle, or possible the feds, but the police believe the murder to be a random crime committed by a sex maniac.

Burke uncovers a snuff movie ring out on Long Island, headed by the mysterious 'The Vision'.

I enjoyed this novel immensely, especially in its second half, but I found it a chore to read at times: the narrative is kind of fractured and episodic at times, and dense with allusions to past events or slang terms that means a reader not 'hip' to this may spend their time playing catch-up. However, Vachss dialogue is exceptional, and once the snuff movie subplot comes into play things get very interesting: Vachss explores the limits to which people will go (or which they'll willingly surpass) in their desire for fame. Although the book was only written ten years ago, the fact that the snuff films are shot, and circulated, on old-school videotape makes the novel seem a little quaint in this new age of high-speed broadband, digital capture and mobile phones with cameras.

This is a fascinating book, a little clunky in its first half, but solidly-written. It's not the best of the Burke novels, but it's very good.

[Spencer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dunno how I felt about this entry in the Burke series. Definitely took me longer to read than most and it felt like I was missing something (not sure if there were some interstitial stories I missed not re-reading Born Bad or Everybody Pays) as some characters were introduced as if I should know who they were (Cyn and Rejii, for example), also some older characters who only appeared in one previous novel were mentioned without so much as a reference as to who they were (so I had to strain my feeble brain to remember who Byron was, for example). The plot also included a few too many side tangents that never really seemed to go anywhere (Colto, the opening salvo about "snakeheads") that took away from the main story. Perhaps the most frustrating bit was that I knew who the culprit was (Vision) way before Burke and his crew nailed it down; in fact it seemed so obvious that it kind of tweaked my mind that they didn't follow that lead sooner. Also, as in several of the previous novels, the build up was long and the pay-off came within the span of the last 10-20 pages, making it feel a bit abrupt. That said, there was a lot I enjoyed about this entry, but perhaps that's due to my "intimate" familiarity of the characters at this point.

[John Grazide · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burke is back in NYC. To be honest I lost it when Flower came into the room on page seven I think. It was so awesome to witness the true bond that this "Family" shares.

With that out of the way, Burke has to replenish his bank so he develops an "alternate" identity and gets a job tracking down the killer of a young girl. But as it turns out this young girl's father is a made man and runs a crew for one of the families.

Through some late night flashbacks we are re-introduced to some characters from past books. Mostly female. And again when he thinks about Belle a small part of me feels the loss also.

The ending, or more to the point the way it ended was classic Burke. Awesome!

[David Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only Child (Burke #14) by Andrew Vachss (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard 2002) (Fiction - Mystery) is the best in the Burke series. For some reason, the author seems to have penned Burke as a little more human than in past installlments. Vachss has definitely lightened Burke up a bit; at times some of Burke's lines are almost funny. This volume finds Burke helping two mafioso find out who killed one don's daughter and why. Burke and the usual crew explore the world of underground film making to tap into a hidden world. My rating: 7.5/10, finished 2/14/14.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

The last of a 4 Burke books picked up a second hand store - and will be the last Vachss I'll be reading for a very long time.

The later books tread water and get extremely formulaic. I realise every novel needs to stand along, but It becomes very tiresome to be given the same background time and time again.

The plot lines have become so formulaic they are almost parody. Shame as there is an excellent writer in there if only Vachss would dare to escape the rut he's written himself into.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A high two, at the very least - kind of a patchy read to me in terms of my interest - some excellent, dense propulsive dialogue and scenes, but then the occasional part extolling manly things like cars and golf which, while good characterization for the main character, kind of alienated me a bit. My first Vachss, though - could be in bulk it would become more agreeable.

[Darrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its been a long time since I have read a Burk book , so I got this one and its was a good read , but it wasn't as page turning as the others I had read years ago. Its still a good Burk story , but not in the way I remembered him in stories past .
I do like that his family of characters are still in the story .

[Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Burke series - Set in Ney York, a mobsters daughter is slaughtered and dumped. Burke lives outside the system, he despises people who victimize children. He is hired to track down the killer, and he and his family learn about the movie business in the process.

[Leona · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thought I'd give Andrew Vachss and his Burke series another try having not read one of his novels for a few years. Didn't care for this - same circuitous style of solving a problem. Maybe I'm just past this phase....

[Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vachss gets the runaround from Hollywood and decides to write a book demonizing the film business. Above average for his recent fare but a far cry from his earlier work and some of his stand alone novels.

[Zach · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay. Agree with other reviewer that earlier Vachss novels were a little better, more gritty.

The novel has some interesting scenes and dialogue but in this novel Burke is more of a private eye who use to be a criminal, than the other novels where he is a criminal who sort of investigates.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I try to read everything by Andrew Vachss, but I liked his earlier Burke novels much more than the later ones. They were trashier, but so much more passionate.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is nice to see Burke back in NYC and home with his family after being forced to hide out in past novels.

[Bradley]

Burke

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

an attempt at a reboot of the series
but Burke finds home is not the same
some things are different
new car, now house
but family is still there
the only one missing is Pansy