One of the really funny aspects of John Grisham's novel The Firm to me was the idea that a law firm could be a Mafia front. In Unholy Order William Heffernan presents an even more diabolic relationship between a secretive Catholic order and a Columbia drug cartel.

Heffernan's novel falls short only by failing to fully exploit the oppotunities the cultish criminal enterprise offers. As he draws near the end of his tale, the focus becomes concentrated on one member of Opus Dei, rather than the order itself.

While this enables him to wrap up his novel, the reader wants more. In a sense Grisham had the same problem and reached for the same quick solution in The Firm with the "mail fraud" prosecution. But this book is, if anything, more artfully presented than Grisham's classic, and such a facile solution is a bigger loss to the reader.

I've been a fan of Heffernan since I read Ritual, which was the first novel to feature Paul Devlin. Unholy Order is the best one in years. I'm not going to give a plot blow by blow. That's what the book jacket is for. The story is very interesting, the characters are as real as they get. An outstanding edition to a great series!

My favorite kind of novel. I couldn't put it down. Devlin and co. always entertains as they try to solve the hardest of cases when road block after road block is thrown in their path. All the supporting cast were great, even the villains. Loved the ending. Highly recommend.

This is a terrific book written by a member's wife and their daughter. I am a big golf fan and have read several books about Augusta National and the Masters in recent years, but this one has an entirely different angle--a woman's perspective, and an insider-woman at that. The authors are respectful of the club, but they also are open in offering dozens of refreshing anecdotes that are funny and border on irreverent. There are also a bunch of photos in the book depicting the golf course from a candid viewpoint.

I started the book about 6 and finished about 12. Every golfer, Masters fan, everyone in Augusta will want one of theses books.

It's full of real inside stories of the Club, its founders, the grounds, the caddies, the famous players.

I know the author personally and figured her book would be interesting but did not expected to be glued to it. The wording contained many of the unique phrases used at the National and un golfing. I could not put the book down.

I am not a golfer, but my dad was and I have heard him day dream about golf; I've seen him high on 72 and down on 90; it seems the author got to the point she day dreamed about sandtraps, the rough, the fairways, how she would handle different shots.

Stories about personal encounters with famous golfers and politicians were great. The stories about the caddies and their betting, "ownership" of golfers, their nicknames were fascinating.

The stories about how one gets into the club gives the Augusta National a sense of intrigue.

The stories about the president of the club presented a man bigger than life, who put fear into the hearts of the wealthy and powerful.

Fishing stories, access to the club during the Masters, access to the club during off season were all highly readable and clearly inside, non-public, unpublished views into a closed society.

That only a few people were there at a time off season was amazing; there is/or was a wonderful wine cellar; there were no socials unrelated to golf and no 5 somes.

This is a wonderful book of private information that every golfer will enjoy, buy 2 of (one to keep and one to give away).

I started the book about 6 p.m and finished about 1 a.m; I could not put it down. Every golfer, every Masters fan, every body in Augusta will want this. Lots of great (and courteous) insider stories about the the Club; the creek, the community power fights about the creek; about great golfers, the caddies; the role of women; the founders of the club; the author's learning golf; rubbing elbows with Washington big whigs.

I know the author personally; I never dreamed her book would be interesting; I certainly never expected to be glued to her book, but it is a gem. I've got a couple of golfing buddies in mind who will want to read this book.

The story about the golfer who would "never" play with a woman was great...he parted with a dollar of two.

The "ownership" of the caddies, the nicknames of caddies and the nicknames given by caddies to their "horses" was fascinating.

The stories about the club president show a man "bigger than life."

Perhaps some of you know what trunk bangers are...now I know.

My grandmother lived a few blocks from the club and she rented to people who attended the Masters...so the book brings back memories...

Anyone struggling with golf, all you addicts out there, who day dream about shots, greens, the rough, creeks and sandtraps will identify with the author, whether male or female.

I'm not even a golfer, but my daddy was; and after listening to him talk golf, get down with 90, high on 72, talk about lights for night golfing, discuss the game over a few drinks, I found this book a clincher. I never expected to enjoy a book so much.

I found this book at a Library sale. I had never heard of the author. I now want to read all his books. This starts out in early 1930's and takes you up through 1960's. It follows the life of a Corsican man Bounaparte Sartene. A thoughly enjoyable book. Unfortunately not in print.

One of the best fiction novels.Thrilling and intriguing from the start to the end.The violence is best captured in words.A must read for thrill seekers.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very insightful look into the mind of the authro Dominick Dunn. This book reminded me of another book that I just finshed, and thought was well written, U.S. Customs, Badge of Dishonor.

His personal and professional lives are all but dead, leaving New York Globe reporter Billy Burke very depressed. However, suddenly things look much brighter when Billy finds a story that, if handled correctly, could provide him with a Pulitzer. A hospital refused to provide life saving open-heart surgery to an impoverished child because the mother has no means (either out of pocket or insurance) to pay the cost.

Billy begins to investigate and soon realizes that hospital administrators are protecting their butts by altering or destroying records. However, his superiors at the Globe want Billy to hang somebody because someone needs to take the public hit as the malevolent person refusing proper health care to a poor child. Billy remains the consummate professional, not concerned with a prize, but with an honest story that will help the victim. Still, the clock is ticking on the life of a little boy and the pressure mounting on Billy to find a public goat.

CITYSIDE is a fabulous look at the journalist profession to hit a home run at every bat since the Watergate exposure. The story line is entertaining and intriguing as readers hope the lad gets his needed operation. However, William Heffernam falters a bit by painting Billy and his seemingly horde of women as totally perfect beings. The so-called villains are portrayed in a more even manner as hospital administrators struggle between costs and proper health care. Mr. Heffernam provides readers with a deep, well-written thriller.

Harriet Klausner

I have read and enjoyed all of William Heffernan's previous books, thus looked forward eagerly to the release of Cityside. I was not disappointed. Obviously writing from the experience base of his past career as a journalist, Cityside is a passionate expose of the period in big-city journalism when newspapers changed their emphasis (as we say in Australia) from playing the ball to playing the man. The triumph of the novel is that he treats his subject with humour and intelligence, rather than descending into cliche. When I finished the last page, I thought to myself that it was the best book I had read in many years.

Mr. Heffernan's tale hinges on an arcane Vermont racial law that stipulates a person is "white" after three generations of intermarrying. It is informally called "bleached." This describes the narrator, Samuel.

A white man, gruesomely murdered, is found on [the] Hill, which sets the stage for the tragic events that follow. The town does not "divide" on racial lines; it seems unanimously convinced that the Negroes living on the Hill are guilty. Violence begets more violence in spite of the efforts of Constable Samuel and Sheriff Frenchy LeMay. The climax is a blood bath on the Hill.

Mr. Heffernan is obviously a craftsman at setting mood and sparkling descriptions. He handles dialogue like a master. However, I found the unremitting phonetic spelling of the so-called back woods accent tiresome. In spite of the dark theme, Frenchy and larger-than-life Jehiel Flood both display a marvelous sense of humor. Some readers might well be offended at some of the scatological language; however, it rings true and reaffirms the escalating hatreds. The names conferred on many of the characters are priceless. I particularly liked Perserved Firman (the name, not the character. He is the arch-villain.)

My main problem was with the narrator, Samuel. The novel is written in the first person so Samuel is your window to the world. Samuel is nothing if not complex, but I found him unreliable and basically unlikable. He is self-absorbed to the extent that he only sees himself through what he perceives as the constant scrutiny of others. There is no question he suffered hardships and vilification, yet I was fundamentally unmoved. The lyrical, italicized erotic passages seemed somehow out of place. I questioned how an entire town could line up in support of an obviously vicious, obscene, mad dog Perserved Firman. The mysterious Elizabeth remained just that to me-mysterious.

I will read another by Mr. Heffernan. His talent is unmistakable and perhaps I will enjoy it to the fullest in another type of novel.

I picked it out of my library at random and was pretty much blown away. very beautiful writing, completely different and interesting subject. A wonderful book that should be read by lots of people. i've never really read a book like it. i loved the writing.

Set in Vermont in 1933, this book portrays the outrageous persecution suffered by a small Negro community at the hands of the local white folk. This is a terrific novel filled with suspense and tensions that are on a slow-boil and which inevitably explodes into violence.

A young white man is found dead in the woods on what is acknowledged as the land of Jehiel Flood. Jehiel is a black man and it's because of this that he is accused of the murder and undergoes racial abuse and personal attacks from the townsfolk. This is an account of a situation that just keeps getting more and more tense. It's a suspense novel of the highest quality and deals with the issue of racism in considerable detail.

Samuel Bradley relates the story. He is a young constable helps carry out the investigation into the murder. Although legally a white man, he is considered a "bleached" Negro. This means that he is third-generation white because his great-grandmother was a Negro, but through generations of inter-racial breeding, he was deemed to be white. This legal aspect however is irrelevant to the locals who still consider him black and overly sympathetic with Jehiel Flood and his family.

The outrage I felt over the injustices described in the book bear testament to the storytelling ability displayed by Heffernan. Although I was aware that it was only a story, the knowledge that this sort of thing was not particularly uncommon was always in the back of my mind. Heffernan doesn't waste a word in this extraordinary book.

I think Heffernan may be a capable writer. He, perhaps, captures the language and actions of the usual police department in any given city. However, he seems to enjoy burying his readers in lots of f'ing profanity every other f'ng word. Also, the disgusting diatribe about gays and lesbians is way over the top. This is the second of his I've read and it will be the last. For those who enjoy down and dirty police stories, you will like this one. It doesn't get more down and dirty than Tarnished Blue.

Full of action and suspense. You will not be able to put this book down. You will be guessing all the way. And Devlin is the best.

I picked Tarnished Blue because of its cover...(really). This is my first book by William Heffernan... You can bet I will read more... Just one thing I did not care for... I think it's somewhat homophobic... Aside from that, WOW! Money well spent.

Like I said it kept me interested in finding out what was going to happen next. The story was filled with lots of surprses,and took place in diferent parts of the world as the detective ran around pretending to find out what was happening to the victims!Thru the whole story I kind of figured it was the detective but really could not pinpoint it.

Okay, the problem might be caused that the author did not have too much experience in making living in corporate jungle, he could only use imaginary thought-to-be or scenes he saw from the big screen to make up the make-belief story. If Fallon realized that he's gonna be a pink slip receiver and tried to fight back with his old bunch in his sales department, he should take the fight from an urban guerrilla war angle, since he indeed has some experience with the VietCong. But instead sneakily fought back for his own survial and those of the others, he did things so obviously and so stupidly by sending all of them a T shirt printed with dinosaurs and wore them in the gym publicly; giving plastic dinosaur toys digged out from his garage. What's going on? Was he stupid or something? His divorce lawyer warned him not to have new relationship during a vicious divorce process, but he could not help asking Samantha to stay over the weekend at his house. Was he stupid or what? I've never read anything so one-sided like Fallon's daughter who seemed to lack of any common sense and only trusted her mother. Was this a 7-year-old girl's IQ instead of a college student? If Fallon was a smart guy who was smart enough to win the corporate war, he should do everything subtlely but instead he threatened the dry clean guy if they refused to fix his shirts' lost buttons, he would break their shop's windows. A guy like Fallon would never be impossible to survive the VietNam war thirty years ago, and definitely would not survive the purge of the corporte war thirty years later. A very very stupid and totally focusless novel except Heffernan's writing style. Going-nowhere plots and scenarios, half-developed characters and happenings, ridiculous and superfluous corporate probes. All in all, I just don't know why WarnerBro would pay $1 million for this lousy and boring story instead of stealing stories from the French. If I were one of the Hollywood movie producers, I'd buy Donald Westlake's THE AX, a novel with mor! e sense of America's corporate downsizing culture and how a 50+-year old guy to deal with it desparately, or, I'd invest money in Michael Moore's war of fighting back the crazy and heartless Downsizing trend in American. END

The Dinosaur Club starts with its finger on the heartbeat of the nineties. Its tale of failed marriage and corporate greed will have most of its readers nodding their heads in acknowledgement as to how quickly things can unravel in this day and age. The novel takes us through the battlelines of a company's plan for downsizing and smacks of reality when it describes how the members of Jack Fallon's family react to his unexpected , and soon to get nasty, divorce. Unfortunately, reality takes a backseat when an elaborate, unbelievable plan is set up for revenge by the makeshift members of the Dinosaur Club. The book was a strong, interesting read, but I would have enjoyed it more if Heffernan would have ended it without straying far beyond the boundaries of fiction vs. fantasy

A jocose but pointed fable from Heffernan (Corsican Honor, 1992, etc.) pits aging executives against impatient young guns whose corporate strategies don't put people first. Jack Fallon's wife Trisha suddenly walks out on him after 24 years of more or less blissful wedlock. Badly jolted but stubbornly on the job as VP at Manhattan-based Waters Cable, the 49-year-old suburbanite learns through the grapevine that Carter Bennett, the company's unscrupulous young CFO, may be eyeing him, his senior associates, and their sizable pay packages as candidates for the big business equivalent of extinction. Instead of going quietly, Jack and his fellow targets resist the layoffs with preemptive strikes launched through a so-called Dinosaur Club they've organized. While their low-intensity revolt disrupts Carter's master plan to force as many older workers as possible from the payroll before instituting a mass dismissal, he presses on with a campaign of attrition. His presumed accomplice in this effort is Samantha Moore, a comely thirtysomething attorney who's been detailed to provide for a downsizing that won't result in a storm of discrimination suits. Increasingly disturbed by the nature of her big-chance assignment, Samantha eventually joins forces with the insurgents. In the meantime, Jack is being led a merry chase by the spouse from whom he's separated. The Vietnam vet nonetheless finds time to keep top management at bay and fall in love with clever Samantha, who returns his affections. The mechanics of how he and his over-the-hill gang turn the tables on their would-be tormentors will afford considerable comfort to those who believe age, experience, and cunning can overcome youth and enthusiasm almost every time. An enormously entertaining yarn that puts the concept of human resources in an arresting new perspective. (Film rights to Warner Bros.) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.