Vengeance Is Mine by Steven Torres
Elena Maldonado struggles to reach her father's home after she's been beaten brutally by the henchman of a local businessman, Robert Meister. At one time, Elena's father, Ray Cruz, worked as hired muscle himself, but he thought he'd left that life behind. When Elena knocks at his door, a wreck and unwilling to explain, his instincts kick in – the instinct to protect his family and wreak vengeance on whoever was behind the brutal message his daughter seems to have understood all too clearly – stay quiet, do as we say or worse will happen and no one you love will be safe.
A trip to the hospital attracts the attention of the police and Detective Jack Carver. Carver warns Ray to let the police handle the case, but Ray is not the type to let this attack go unpunished. It doesn’t take long, however, before the FBI gets involved telling Ray that Elena is working with them. None of this stops Ray from asking his questions, bribing some, intimidating others and beating the hardest cases. Soon, he finds the henchmen, but they know very little about who hired them and nothing about why. Ray makes them pay for their ignorance and their brutality. Detective Carver and FBI agent Ramona Esposito warn Ray against taking things into his own hands not knowing how far Ray has already gone or is willing to go.
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About the author
Except for a year and a half spent living in Puerto Rico, Derringer award winning author Steven Torres was born and raised in the Bronx in New York City. He graduated from Stuyvesant High School and Hunter College and earned a doctorate in English from the City University of New York. His first novel, Precinct Puerto Rico came out in 2002 to starred reviews. His stand alone novel, The Concrete Maze, came out in 2007. His short stories have been published in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine and Crimespree Magazine as well as anthologies like Bronx Noir and Hit List: The Best of Latino Mystery. His short non-fiction work has appeared in Mystery Scene Magazine and The New York Times.
Steven and his family live in central Connecticut. When he’s not teaching English, he is writing stories. If he’s not doing either of those thing he might be gardening, listening to music, reading or traveling.
Review
‘Vengeance Is Mine’ is a hard hitting tale which is action packed from the beginning right to the end - I was completely hooked! There is not a let up in the pace in this sordid tale and I devoured it down whole.
Elena is walking home from work when she is viciously attacked by two men but it's clear from the get-go that this is meant as a warning and Elena knows exactly why it has happened! She stumbles her way to her father’s house and collapses into his arms. But her father Ray Cruz is also a bad man - he is used to violence, has been in prison, doesn't hesitate to kill people and will stop at nothing to find out what has happened to Elena!
This tale has everything - the girl who needs protecting, the avenging family member, violence up to the kazoos, crooked cops, crooked lawyers, seriously bad guys and a great background in the Bronx. It felt like a modern take on a mixture of classic noir and an action film. I can definitely see it working perfectly on screen. The nuances between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ were especially done well. The style and pace of the writing were on point - crisp, clean scenes with no unnecessary dialogue or musings. Everything had a reason to be included and there were enough twists and turns to keep the reader guessing right to the end.
I had a thoroughly entertaining afternoon reading this book and I really think if slightly more gritty, dark crime fiction is your bag you will love this one!
