The Big Exit Book Review

The Big Exit, by David Carnoy ($25.95)

Summary

By the acclaimed author of the remarkable debut novel, Knife Music, The Big Exit is a suspenseful crime novel that keeps the surprises coming right up to the end. Richie Forman is freshly out of prison. By night, he makes a living impersonating Frank Sinatra in San Francisco’s lounges and corporate parties. But then his ex-best friend — the man who stole his fiancée while he was in prison — is found hacked to death in his garage, and Richie is the prime suspect. In a murder mystery with the twists and turns of a microchip, Carnoy weaves his characters like a master. He has written an authentic, unputdownable thriller that is sure to chill and delight.

My review

I haven’t had the opportunity to read Knife Music, but I can tell you this: After reading The Big Exit, I will, without question. Admittedly, I am already a fan of the thriller genre, so David Carnoy already had a leg up with The Big Exit. But, wow. Just…wow.

From page one, I was drawn in. I was enthralled, intrigued, absorbed by Carnoy’s masterful storytelling. It was smart, sharp, and believable. It didn’t miss a step…it didn’t force me to suspend disbelief…it didn’t lose my interest for one single paragraph. Good — no, great — thrillers like this don’t come along every day. There are a lot of elements that go into making a great thriller…characters, dialogue, storyline, plot twists, to name a handful. The Big Exit nails all of them. It also didn’t hurt that I am a huge fan of Frank Sinatra, so I found the side job of one of the characters (as a Sinatra impersonator) just terribly endearing. The legal aspect of the book didn’t hurt either, as legal thrillers are pretty much my favorite.

It’s hard to believe that The Big Exit is but the second novel of David Carnoy — it is superb, the twists and turns and surprises flow seamlessly throughout a brilliant storyline, and it is neither predictable nor formulaic.

This is one of those rare books that you will find yourself reading whenever you find a few free minutes — during commercials, sitting in a doctor’s office, waiting for the oven to preheat, and lying in bed, fighting sleep so you can get just a few more pages under your belt (each of these examples is true!). The Big Exit is a must-read. On every level, in every aspect, it will exceed all your expectations. Mr. Carnoy, you can quit your day job. You have found your calling. In spades.

About the author

While David Carnoy lives in New York City with his wife and children, his novels take place in Silicon Valley, where he grew up and went to high school (Palo Alto). His debut novel, Knife Music (2010), was a Top-10 bestseller on the Kindle and also a bestseller on the Nook. More medical thriller than high-tech thriller, to research the novel Carnoy spent a lot of time talking with doctors, visiting trauma centers, and trailed a surgeon at a hospital in Northern California to help create the book’s protagonist, Dr. Ted Cogan.

The Big Exit (2012) isn’t a sequel to Knife Music per se. However, a few of the characters from Knife Music figure prominently in the story. His second novel has more of a high-tech slant and reflects Carnoy’s experiences as an executive editor at CNET.com, where he currently works and is trying resolve his obsession with consumer electronics products. He went to college at Wesleyan University and has an MFA in creative writing from Columbia University.

“A lot people ask me how I have time to write novels when I have a full-time job and four little kids and I just say I got a hold of some of those pills Bradley Cooper’s character popped in the movie Limitless,” Carnoy says. He adds that if Bradley Cooper is reading this, he’d make “an excellent Dr. Ted Cogan for the film version of Knife Music.”

Carnoy is also fan of The Big Lebowski and all Coen brothers movies except The Ladykillers. (I love this guy!)

And, I love his wonderful novel, which I couldn’t recommend more highly. You won’t be disappointed!

You can purchase The Big Exit on Amazon.

I was not compensated for writing this book. I received a copy of The Big Exit for review. My opinions are 100% honest and 100% mine.