Vachss, author of the long-running Burke series that concluded with 2008’s Another Life
, introduces an engaging if damaged new hero in this soulful thriller. Ho, an elderly martial arts teacher who once was the master of a successful dojo, renounces all worldly goods after one of his students dies because of something he said. He takes to the mean streets of an unnamed American city to atone, joining a ragtag group of homeless men: Michael, once a high-flying stockbroker; Ranger, a Vietnam war vet; Lamont, an ex-gang leader and poet; Brewster, a psychotic; and Target, who speaks only in repetitive verbal explosions. A mystery involving a white Rolls Royce emerges early on, but as the book progresses, this plot is abandoned for another concerning Brewster’s book collection. Despite compelling prose, the author’s failure to follow through on the Rolls Royce business leads to a disappointing conclusion. (Nov.)
