Destroying Angel

Lt. Frank Carlucci #1

by Richard Paul Russo

In the crumbling San Francisco of tomorrow, a former narcotics-squad cop is reluctantly drawn into the investigation of a serial killer's return. Louis Tanner recognizes the ugly work of the Chain Killer, a maniac who dispatches his victims two at a time, welding the corpses together in a grotesque embrace and dumping them into a body of water. Tanner's troubled conscience from a previous case compels him to reunite with his former colleague, Frank Carlucci. Together, they enter the city's notorious red-light district, chasing a vicious drug dealer who forces them even deeper into the underworld — where police are powerless and the foulest criminals live in contempt of the law.

Genres: Cyberpunk, Science Fiction, Fiction, Thriller, Audiobook, Mystery Thriller, Mystery

240 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 1, 1992

Reviews

[Michael Fierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this a century ago but I remember liking it.

Similar in vein to Blade Runner, Destroying Angel is a cyberpunk tale set in mid-twenty-first-century San Francisco.

It's got cyborgs, serial murders, sexy vixens, and a gritty world not all that removed from our own.

Here's a description from the back cover of my edition.

    A KILLER BEYOND HUMAN IMAGINATION IS STALKING THE STREETS OF THE CITY...

The bodies were found in pairs. Planted on the bottom of the Bay. Chained together in a death embrace. Tattooed with angel wings. It was the kind of sleazoid crime that made Tanner leave the force years ago. It was also the kind of sleazoid crime that would drag tanner back. ON the beat. Into the streets. Straight to hell.
  

I was obsessed with Blade Runner growing up and owned the most expensive laserdisc player on the planet - of which I still own but need to get fixed! - not even legally able to be sold in America at the time, just so I could play movies from my laserdisc collection, like Blade Runner, of which I own the Criterion Collection version, and probably watched it every week with my friends for years.

I can quote just about every line from the movie.

I wanted to read everything even remotely similar to it so I picked up several books in the cyberpunk genre.

Destroying Angel was one of them.

And since it takes place in San Francisco, where I live, there was an added element to why I wanted to read this.

Richard Paul Russo is a Philip K. Dick Award-winning author.

I remember his writing being tough, very realistic, gritty but down-to-earth, with a touch of oldschool film-noir.

Louis Tanner, ex-cop turned detective sets out to solve the mystery of a group of corpses found chained together at the bottom of the Bay. It involves him collecting info from street folk, drug dealers, and murderers, and is a well paced novel I had to read to the end.

I loved the world, and the story created a lot of imagery that stuck with me over the years, namely the angel tattoo sequences and the grimy nearly post-apocalyptic world itself.

This story was made flesh by Richard Paul Russo's skillful creation of a strong speculative premise, believable characters, while incorporating very interesting ideas throughout.

Back when I read it, I thought the ending could have been a bit more fantastical in the suspension-of-disbelief department as it ended almost too realistic and put a little hole in my over-inflated space opera balloon I was more accustomed to then.

I probably wouldn't think so now on a re-read.

I just re-read this and while the ending seemed more appropriate this time around, I still would've liked a bit more fantasy to end it all.

This is the first book in Russo's Carlucci trilogy, though this first book centers around Louis Tanner more than it does Detective Frank Carlucci, the main character of Carlucci's Edge (book 2), and Carlucci's Heart (book 3). I'd really like to read both.

I recommend it!!!!

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little mixed on this one; somewhere between 3 and 4 stars, but I will go with ⭐⭐⭐. Destroying Angel rode the wave of 80s/90s cyberpunk and Russo gives us a vivid portrayal of San Francisco somewhere in the mid 21st century. Reading near future cyberpunk decades after it came out (this was published in 1992) often feels rather dated and this has that feel for sure. Also, Russo tries to pack in so much 'atmosphere' it drags the pacing; lots and lots of minor digressions into the fashions of the day (seems faux cyborg is all the rage), the drugs of choice (lots of new and novel ways to blow your mind here)-- you get the picture.

I did like the vision of San Francisco, however. Set in the summer, the city bakes in the heat and humidity (climate change?), with pervasive smog in the air and colorful pollution in the waters. Most of the city has decayed, with the Tenderloin now a 'free zone', but the polished financial district oozes money and modernity (you need a pass to enter and even then get a full body search).

While the first installment of the Carlucci trilogy, Carlucci himself plays a relatively minor role, with the protagonist one Tanner, a former cop who now works as a smuggler to make his daily bread. The gist of the story concerns a serial killer who after a hiatus of a few years once again starts killing. The killer wraps/fuses the bodies of his victims with chrome chains and leaves them in bodies of water, then a virus uploads their whereabouts to the cops. No clues, no nothing. Well, back when Tanner was a cop (he worked narcotics) a dealer offered to tell him who the 'chainkiller' was, but wanted some serious money for the intel. Before any action on that happened, Tanner and his partner got shot up in a bust gone wrong (partner died, Tanner serious wounded) and Tanner quit the force. Around that time the killings stopped, so Tanner never did anything more. Once the chainkiller starts up, however, Tanner thinks the intel might be worth acting on and comes to Carlucci...

I started this once or twice before and never got very far. If you can get past the (for me) excessive futuristic details dropped all over the tale, it does have a rather noir feel and the story progresses nicely. Some great characters as well, my favorite being Sookie, a 13 year old orphan who knows the streets.

[Jared Shurin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A long overdue (re-)(re-)re-read of one of an old favourite. I hold this up as one of the best cyberpunk novels, and, more than that, a stunning example of noir, full-stop. It has all the elements of great noir: the internalised emotional turmoil, the man out of place, the crushing system of the world, the sense of claustrophobia... And the aesthetics as well: the hard-drinking characters, shadows, rain, and diamond-hard dialogue. It is one of the few cross-genre books that does noir justice, and is well worth a read.

Tanner is an ex-cop. Now he's a half-assed Robin Hood: he smuggles contraband to rich orbital clients in turn for cutting edge pharmaceuticals that he distributes to local clinics. He may be outside of the system, but he's got a strong moral compass. So when a cold case heats up again - the Chain Killer - he's compelled to act.

One of the strengths of Destroying Angel is the incredible world in which it is set - a near? future San Francisco complete with all the highs and lows that science fiction can imagine. There's grinding poverty, rampant drug abuse, grotesque body modification, apocalypse cults and all the despair you can imagine. There's also high-flying corporate powers, stunning medical advances, and casually-impressive technology. The 'casually' is perhaps the key word here. Destroying Angel never infodumps; never explains. Despite the complex, breath-taking world, it never indulges itself in exposition. This is tightly focused on Tanner, a small cog in a big machine, who has a small part to play in a big case. Counter-intuitively, the human perspective is what makes the world so compelling, as we live it, instinctively, through Tanner's experience. We share his 'normal', and are equally impressed by the elements that are so weird that even stun his jaded, native outlook.

The mystery is largely inessential, but keeps everything moving. And I suspect many readers won't find it satisfying. Just as the SF isn't mechanically explained, the crime isn't procedurally solved. But for world, atmosphere, plot, characters... Destroying Angel succeeds everywhere it really counts.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this. This is the first book in the Lt. Frank Carlucci series. I picked up the second one first and saw that it had decent ratings on GR. I looked at the first book in this series and saw it had a rating, that to me, was not exactly glowing. The cover clearly says it is NOT my kind of book, so I was shocked I kept it in my pile.

So with that attitude, I walked into this. I should try that more often because I ended up liking this. I liked the characters and the story pulled me in. That was enough to work for me.

There was a fair amount of repetition and I would have liked to know more about this world, but all in all, It was enjoyable. I like reading things that are new to me....and this was definitely new to me.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Russo is a mysterious author. Far from prolific at the best of times and then nothing at all, radio silence. Not sure if he’s retired from writing, but what a shame that would be, because every book of his I’ve read, I liked. A lot. Not just me, either, and he’s got the awards and nominations to show for it. But at any rate, his two standalones I’ve read were terrific, in fact instrumental in igniting a passion for science fiction. And then this one turned up on Netgalley, a first book of Corlucci trilogy, so naturally I went for it without even checking out the plot summary. This was something different, though, not the traditional scifi of his other books, but a near future dystopia along the lines of cyberpunk genre. I’m not sure I’ve read that before, I might have, in fact, odds are, must have, but this time I was actively aware of reading it. Cyberpunk is defined by Wikipedia as a futuristically set science fiction featuring a combination of high tech and lowlife. So you got a fascinating juxtaposition of technological advancements and degeneration of social order to play with. Interesting, right? You bet it is. It also creates for a very dark, atmospheric, almost noir like mood. Some might say a perfect setting for a serial killer story. Which this is. Frank Corlucci, SFPD detective, oddly enough isn’t the main protagonist, Louis Tanner is. Tanner is a former cop, who still got all the connections for detective work, but not the passion for it, instead pursuing other conscience driven venues. Still, he gets, reluctantly, dragged into the investigation and sets off to find a man who just might help them find the killer. His journey takes him into Tenderloin district, which is the nightmarish center of the grim, gloomy, swampy, polluted and dirty place that San Francisco has become. Variegated cast of characters will either assist him or stand in his way, but Tanner’s determination will see him through. So it’s all pretty straight forward as far as the mystery thriller aspect of it goes, but then it’s also so much more. I love Russo’s writing, it’s succinct and yet manages to bring pages to life in an awesomely vivid manner. And his world building is absolutely superb. Oddly enough, despite some serious technological advances, it seems that the characters still used landlines and payphones and music still came on discs and tapes. Not sure if this was a failure of imagination (this would be difficult to believe with Russo) or a deliberate anachronism. But other than that the future world is a bleak grotesque place and all the cybernetic progress doesn’t even come close in compensating for the decline in quality of life. The characters’ desperation is tangible as they fight to survive in this new and augmented reality. But then again it makes them all the more interesting, compelling and engaging. You wouldn’t want to visit the place, but it makes for a great read, one about as enjoyable and entertaining as something this dark and heavy can be. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.

[Malum · Rating 4 out of 5]

A grim, gritty cyberpunk (or at least cyberpunk adjacent) noir detective story. People who like their stories with any kind of happiness or optimism need not apply.

[Ericka Clou · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main police investigator in this one is Tanner, not Carlucci. Perhaps I am the wrong audience for this book as I don’t particularly enjoy horror-thrillers, but even more than being the wrong audience I thought the almost-ending was bad. It’s a trilogy though so I am a bit tempted to continue since I’ve already invested this much.

[Mpho3 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ho hum. There's absolutely nothing special about this book, which bears some of the sadly typical flaws of much of the genre, including wooden characters and a plot that's going nowhere. A lot of the "action" revolves around the main character going out to eat, with poorly made coffee as an ongoing theme. If I had a dollar (quarters don't amount to much anymore) for each time one of the main characters utters the following lines--"I don't like it at all. But what the hell else are we going to do?" I could retire. Also, while I realize this book was published in 1992, but there's nothing to really warrant calling it a "cybershock thriller." It's not even thrilling. I apologize to all the Russo fans, but I can think of four books off the top of my head that I'd recommend instead: if you're into disaffected youth and futuristic urban decay try Samuel R. Delany's Dhalgren . If you're looking for an "exotic" futuristic thriller, try George Alec Effinger's When Gravity Fails or David Mack's graphic novel Kabuki Vol 1 Circle of Blood . And if you want to read a more original suspense thriller set in San Francisco's Tenderloin, try The Magician's Tale by David Hunt.

[Joey Brockert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mr. Tanner used to be a detective with the drug squad for San Francisco PD. In this story, the world has not collapsed, yet. The very wealthy have moved off planet to satellites, leaving the pollution and crime for others to deal with. There is a lot of pollution and crime, and people just make the best of it. It is unclear how Mr. Tanner makes his living, but some of his money comes from smuggling drugs from satellites above in return for exotic food. He tries to pass on as much of the drugs to needy hospitals and ER's as he can, hoping to help those who can use them.
The clinker in this mess is a serial killer. The killer has been quiet for a couple of years, so when he reappears, and starts killing again, it is a surprise.
Sookie is a thirteen (13) year old homeless girl who sees Mr. Tanner on the day the first two new bodies are pulled from a slough. They both watch and are not involved, but that changes. As a cop, Mr. Tanner got information that the police can use to catch the killer, even though he is not on the squad, he gets to help. Sookie gets an eyeful by accident and eventually helps solve the crimes.
The location is San Francisco. The society has fallen into disarray, but there is some order even in the most untamed parts of the city. I liked this story as much for the plot as the romance and growth and development of Mr. Tanner.

[Dan McCollum · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this novel. The concept itself - that of a crime thriller mixed with Cyberpunk - seems sp natural that I'm shocked one doesn't see more of it; especially as Cyberpunk wears it's noir inspiration on its sleave.

Having said that, the main weakness in the novel is that many of the cyberpunk elements seem to be simply slapped on. Until the very end (If even then) the technological aspects are not central to the story itself. In many ways, Russo seems to have wanted to write a crime drama (and a pretty good one at that) and added the science fiction elements as window dressing more than anything else.

Which is a shame, because the world sketched out here is an interesting one. Russo knows San Francisco well and seems to really enjoying projecting a dystopia future for the city. The characters are also good - even if they might have benefited from being a bit more fleshed out at times.

Without spoiling anything, there is a twist near the end that left me thinking "Wow, he actually went there." and it does carylry emotional weight.

All in all, despite my reviewing being middling, I'd suggest "Destroying Angel." I ordered the second book in the series and am looking forward to seeing how Russo develops the world and characters.

[Christopher Bassett MD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blade Runner-ish crime novel. It’s good that this is the start of a series bc there’s not THAT much to this short novel on its own. But it sets us up with Carlucci, who seems to be a character worth development.

[Florin · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Destroying Angel" is a gritty murder-mystery story set up in a near-future, cyberpunkish word. The main protagonist is an ex-cop, tormented by nightmares and guilt (?) trying to make peace with his past.
So I was excited because there are a lot of boxes checked on a noir, detective story checklist and it had a bonus - it is setup in a cyberpunkish environment.

But it doesn't deliver.

The book feels like a good movie script - a lot of visuals could save the story- because the background world isn't really build in the book. Glimpses of a decaying/ toxic world exists - but not explained or explored. Glimpses of cyber enhancement are present but again why, how ? Some near space endeavors are mentioned but again - not explored.

The mystery solving is anti-climatic, and you would think you are in for the atmosphere but the atmosphere is shallow, underdeveloped.
It feels like you are dropped in the author's unfinished dream.

So I go for 2 stars, it was ok but I will not read the rest of the series.

[Stephen Poltz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cyberpunk murder mystery set in the near future. It takes place in a decrepit San Francisco about mid-21st century. The best thing about this book was that there wasn’t a lot of jargon and the number of characters wasn’t astronomical, like the last cyberpunk book I read. The worst part of the book was that it had no tension, no development of or insight into the character of the killer. The main narrative follows the ex-cop named Tanner who is tracking down a lead into the identity of the killer. A secondary narrative follows a street punk named Sookie who for some reason begins to follow Tanner. We get nothing on the killer until the very end. I was bored by the lack of tension and action, but still impressed that what was there was written pretty well. This book was nominated for an Arthur C. Clarke Award back in ’93.

Come visit my blog for the full review…
https://itstartedwiththehugos.blogspo...

[Jordan Frankel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just watched Bladerunner and I was feeling a little nostalgic when I went to the bookstore, so I picked up this in the $1 section. It turned out to be pretty good. It is slightly dated cyberpunk (which is fair since it was written 20 years ago), but really that is what I was going for. The great thing was that nothing was illogical given contemporary technology.

The characters are decent, but the novel is too short to really dive in too deep. Definitely looking forward to more Carlucci, and I hope Tanner is in the sequels.

If you're looking for a quick action read with a Total Recall feel, Russo is your man. His writing is certainly a refreshing throwback in the current sea of blockbuster young adult novels (all of which I have read and love except Twilight. Those were truly awful).

[Scott Holstad · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book had potential, but the author continually did something that just made me want to gag. He was obsessed with San Francisco's Tenderloin district and made it out to be the worst, vilest, most dangerous place on the planet and that got really old. I've been to the Tenderloin, and it's got nothing on Compton, which I've also been to. Of course, since this is sci fi and set in the future, I suppose it is possible that the place has gotten worse, but he went on and on about it and it really started to piss me off. Enough so that I didn't finish it. I made it to page 87 and gave up. If you're really interested, it's about an ex-cop, Tanner, who goes after a serial killer. Yep. Old plot line. It's supposed to be cyberpunk, but I don't know that it is. It does have a futurist noir feel to it, but that's about it. I'm sorry, but I just can't recommend this book.

[Logan Doyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite cheesy-ass cover art and a title as generic as they come I enjoyed this one. Basically a Noir detective book with a coat of cyberpunk paint. Highlights include the atmospheric rendering of urban sprawl and interesting mystery. However, the writing choice to alternate POV chapters didn't land for me and just made the pacing a bit jittery. I didn't mind the ending, I think it fit with the themes, but it was certainly an anti-climax.

[Craig Pearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because this is set in near future San Francisco, the author can make changes to the city environment to fit the story. Russo is to be commended for not going overboard with future developments. He never fully explains the origins of the Destroying Angel, other than being the result of a military experiment. These types of stories, the what-ifs, are always fun to read and break apart.

[Love to Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

I never know how many stars to give books like this because I recognize that it was a well written and a well thought out book, but I didn't enjoy it. For someone who likes cyberpunk and mystery and crime, I would recommend this book. I'm not a fan of that genre and it's hard for me to get into, unfortunately.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don’t know what I was expecting this book to be (and still don’t know what “cyberpunk” as a book genre is), but this was not it.
It was interesting enough to make me want to know what happens, but also it doesn’t exactly end in sunshine and roses. Not the sort of book I would normally read, but not a badly written book (though rather dark themes/tone).

[David]

available as http://kcls.bibliocommons.com/item/sh...

[Florin Pitea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read it back in the early 1990s. I liked the detailed noir atmosphere and the literary style.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book by chance in a library in early high school, and for some reason it stuck in my head and made me want to revisit it. I know its book jacket was the first time I saw the term “cyberpunk” and was intrigued but didn’t know what it meant. Ultimately it’s a bit of a guilty pleasure but a solid, briskly-paced pulpy noir set in a weirdo Blade Runner dystopia. I can picture a world where I fell deep into this type of sci-fi novel rather than just skimming the PK Dick/Vonnegut surface as I did.

[The Angry Lawn Gnome · Rating 4 out of 5]

Russo was obviously riffing on Blade Runner with this one. But that's okay, because it was a very solid entertainment....for the first 95%. The ending was far too abrupt, alas, and annoyed me to the point where I had to subtract a star. I'm assuming things are further sussed out in the sequels, which, annoyingly, the listener has no clue exist from anything in the titles's description.

Pity, because the narration was also excellent.

[Alfred · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic surprise. The short version; this is quality noir in a cyberpunk disguise. Don't let the cheeseball cover art dissuade you, you don't win Phillip k dick awards by accident. The fantastic atmospheric san francisco of the future takes a back seat to what is ultimately a wonderfully developed protagonist (not carlucci) and a brilliant yet simple classic noir reminiscent of the best Phillip Marlow ever had to offer. A must read.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reasonably well written, some nice ideas here and there, but overall nothing special. The story is rather randomly constructed and the characters are all rather forgettable.

Its easy to see the influence of amazing writers like William Gibson and Raymond Chandler, but this is quite inferior to any of their novels.

I also find it hilarious that it's supposed to be book 1 in the Carlucci trilogy, except this character is a very minor one in this story and he is rarely even mentioned.

[Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well paced cyberpunk detective story with interesting background. The psychological evolution of the main character is what gives the book extra dimension, although the story itself is built within very confined space. At times it feels like some chapters are unfinished or incomplete, but it makes the book short enough to read it in one breath. (3,5 stars)

[Kit Garrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt that the characterisation was fairly strong, with Tanner and his quarry being particular highlights. However, this is very much a novel of it's time, and as such falls into some exploitation traps that made me cringe to read.

Curious to see how the setting develops in the rest of the trilogy.

[Marty Solotki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kristoffer Tabori is a great narrator for Audible, perfect for a gritty sci-fi pulp like this. A wild murder mystery with an even wilder cast of characters. A few of the characters get lost in the shuffle and the ending felt rushed, but this is a very interesting read.

[Danny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written. It’s clear from the start this is a not book that is going to have a happy ending where the hero rides into the sunset having fixed everything. It’s an extremely dark hardboiled cyberpunk detective story.

[Jared Benson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This turned out to be surprisingly good! I look forward to the others in the series.