Angel Baby: A Novel

I've been a fan of Richard Lange since his story collection Dead Boys, but still wasn't quite prepared for how riveting ANGEL BABY would be. From page one, this novel doesn't let up, and every chapter seems to have a moment that quickens your pulse further. Best of all, he doesn't skimp on the characters -- unlike with too many other books that explore this kind of scenario, you might be surprised at who you find yourself rooting for as these characters sink deeper and deeper into quagmires often very much of their own making. While marketed as a crime novel/thriller, if you ask me, ANGEL BABY puts Lange up there with authors who transcend that label -- Ellroy, Winslow, Stark, Elmore Leonard, Pelecanos -- all while putting his own distinct, contemporary-L.A. stamp on the proceedings as well. A perfect summer read that is in no way a guilty pleasure.

Luz has been under the thumb of her husband, Rolando, a drug and crime lord in Tijuana known as "El Principe," or "The Prince." The only thought that gets her through her every move being watched by Rolando and his henchmen, the rapes and the beatings, is her four-year-old daughter, Isabel, who Luz left with an aunt in California before escaping to Mexico a few years earlier.One day, Luz decides she has had enough. She takes some cash out of her husband's safe, his Colt .45, and the clothes on her back, and prepares to escape. It's not her fault that people wound up dead as she tried to leave. And although she's on the run, determined to retrieve her daughter and start a new life, she knows it's only a matter of time before Rolando tries to find her.Kevin Malone is an aging surfer who moved to Tijuana as things in his life went from bad to worse. Haunted by tragedy, he spends his time between drinking binges running Mexican immigrants across the border. When he is asked to help Luz, it shakes him out of his doldrums at the same time as it makes his memories worse, and he has no idea just how much danger he might face.Jeronimo is a convict whose time in a Mexican prison is made more palatable thanks to the support he gets from Rolando as one of his employees. He is determined once he leaves prison to set his life straight and treat his wife and two young children to better things, but that's easier said than done. And when Rolando demands a favor from Jeronimo he cannot refuse, it sends him on a collision path with Luz and Malone--and another person determined to cash in on the situation.Richard Lange's Angel Baby is a fun, action-packed book that transcends typical crime novels because of the complexity of the characters Lange has created. This is a novel where you want to root for almost everyone, even though you realize what that might mean. It's hopeful and bleak at times, and while you may figure out how the story will unfold, it doesn't matter, because the way Lange gets there is worth your time.This is a book that reads a bit like a movie, and I don't mean that derogatorily. Enjoyable, well-written, and tremendously compelling. You'll want to savor the story and devour it.

Angel Baby was worth reading, but not a mind blowing experience. The pace was good, and at no point did I feel disinterested in the story itself.The characters felt very empty for me however. Lange talked about wanting to make his characters very human, and well rounded and I felt like he definitely fell short of that goal in this book. The elements he added to show the characters were not black/white felt very forced, and at no point did I have any emotional connection with any of them. Everyone seemed to have some great tragedy that led them to be the unsavory people they eventually became, which isn't the case in much of life. In my experience it is a Lifetime of very small events that lead us to become who we are. Rarely are we defined by one incident as it seems was this case with the characters of Angel Baby.

This novel is loaded with multidimensional characters and the action packed story line will take you from Tijuana to California. It all winds up in a huge climactic ending. Yes, there is a huge blow out that would look great on a screen. But, no worries, Lange has written this novel in beautiful and graphic detail. Well, I loved this book. I went into it not knowing what to expect and left it feeling energized and looking for more Richard Lange novels. He is very similar to Don Winslow, but Lange definitely has his own style.Luz is one tough cookie. She had a very bad childhood. Her mother was a whore and the day she brought one of her customers home for Luz was the day that Luz decided to run away forever. She never expected to fall in love and have a baby. After the baby's father dies, Luz decides that she should leave her daughter with her aunt, Carmen. All she wants is a better life for her daughter, Isabel. Unfortunately, Luz ends up marrying an abusive, drug cartel leader named Rolando, El Principe. After taking one too many beatings, Luz calculates a plan that will hopefully get her across the border and reunite her with her daughter. Her plan seems to run smoothly as she loads up a backpack of El Principe's money and tucks away his gun. Her first stumbling block occurs when she is confronted by the maid and one of Rolando's thugs. After killing them and setting off into the desert, Luz knows that she is not going to let anything get in her way.Rolando is not happy and hires Jeronimo, an inmate at the prison, to search for Luz and bring her back to him. Just in case Jeronimo has any doubts about Rolando's cruelty, the El Principe hold Jeronimo's family hostage. As soon as Rolando is reunited with Luz then Jeronimo can have his family back alive. While Jeronimo enlists the help of a crooked Border Patrol officer, with his own cruel agenda, Luz enlists the help of an alcoholic, immigrant smuggler named Malone.

This book has the suspense quality of an episode of "24". It is pretty unrelenting and the end is surprising. The author does an amazing job of creating believable characters with short strokes of the pen by relying on our own assumptions about what a crooked cop might be like, what a burn out would be like, etc. It was a fun and quick read.

A couple running for their lives, a drug lord out for revenge, a crooked cop; it's all been done before but seldom has it ever been done as well.From it's attention grabbing beginning when the wife of a crime boss goes on the run, to it's satisfying conclusion, this is a book that's impossible to put down.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced, well written and drew me in from the first chapter. It's not my usual type of read, but I found it gritty (not too much) but still easy to follow.I've read so many books, but I think I'll remember this one for a while!

I'd recommend it for anyone who's a fan of Elmore Leonard, Nobody Move by Denis Johnson, and No Country For Old Men...action packed chase through Mexico/US border and up to LA, all told through 3-dimensional characters

Graphic and very violent. Interesting characters and setting. I did enjoy this but found it slightly predictable. Will try some of Lange's other books as I like this kind of border noir.

ok