Riding the Snake by Stephen J. Cannell




A thrill ride - and a joy to read

Published in 1999

After having slogged my way through a couple of books lately Riding the Snake was a real pleasure. Now, don't get me wrong with the 5 star rating here - it's not a life-changing book. It's just a whole lot of fun.

And it should be since it comes from famed television producer and writer Stephen J. Cannell (1941-2010). One can tell that he has plenty of experience (what kind of experience? How about working on Adam-12 and Columbo, creating the Rockford Files, Baretta, 21 Jump Street, The A-Team , The Greatest American Hero and at least a dozen more) with creating likable, interesting characters and putting them over their heads in difficult situations.

In this case, a white ne'er-do-well playboy from Beverly Hills and a black female street-hardened cop from South Central team up (out of desperation) to take on the Chinese Triad criminal syndicate in Los Angeles and Hong Kong while trying to solve two murders.

Sound hoaky? Sure, it does.

But, it works anyway.

Lots of fun and a breeze to read means that this reader gives this one 5 stars out of 5.

 This book can be found here: Riding the Snake.

 Reviewed on March 22, 2006.

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