Carlo presents a harrowing account of Richard Kuklinski, a seemingly ordinary husband and father who was also a cold-blooded killer for hire--the man the Mafia called on when they wanted a special kind of hit. Martin's Press.

Reviews

This stomach-turning account of the multiple atrocities committed over 43 years by Richard "The Ice Man" Kuklinski-as sadistic a killer as most readers would ever want to encounter in print-seems like more of an as-told-to than an independent journalistic narrative, though Carlo says that he verified Kuklinski's accounts where possible. But rather than critically assess Kuklinski's largely self-serving tales of his roles in such major mob killings as those of Jimmy Hoffa and Gambino boss Paul Castellano, Carlo (The Night Stalker) seems to accept them. Instead of applying objective insight into how such a murderer-who researched methods that would prolong his victims' suffering-came to be, the author presents instead chapter after chapter of Kuklinski summarily killing criminals he was hired to eliminate or randomly gunning down someone on the street to test out a new weapon. By disregarding the questions raised by Mafia experts such as Jerry Capeci about Kuklinski's credibility, Carlo has fumbled an opportunity. Sloppy errors (e.g., Rudy Giuliani served as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, not the Eastern District) also detract from the book, which ends with a bizarre invitation to the reader to write to Kuklinski at the Trenton State Prison. (July 11) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Carlo (The Night Stalker) has written another captivating true-crime book. This one tells the spine-chilling story of Richard Kuklinski, a.k.a. "the Ice Man" because he liked to freeze his victims to throw off forensic investigators. Born into an abusive family, Kuklinski claimed to have killed for the first time at age 14. After a run-in with the Gambino family, he became a hit man for the mob, managing to live the double life of a professional assassin and devoted family man. The author spent over 200 hours interviewing the incarcerated Kuklinski and his family. If one is to believe Kuklinski, he killed upward of 200 individuals, including Jimmy Hoffa, Carmine Galante, and Roy DeMeo. It was only through the diligent work of New Jersey police officer Pat Kane, who spent six years building a case against Kuklinski, that the killing spree ended. This work is written like a novel; readers will become so engrossed in the details that they'll forget that this is a true story. Highly recommended for readers of true crime; perhaps the finished version of this book will provide the update that Kuklinski died on March 5, 2006, at age 70 of natural causes. Michael Sawyer, Rangeview Lib. District, Thornton, CO Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

"Carlo effectively tells the life story of the family man who spent thirty years as a professional killer, while hosting barbecues in suburban New Jersey."--"New York"" Post"

"A hell of a book, a brutal page-turner."
--Larry King

"Philip Carlo captured the essence of who my husband was."--Barbara Kuklinski

"Spine-chilling...readers will become so engrossed in the details that they'll forget that this is a true story."--"Library Journal"

"Reading "The Ice Man" left me cold, perplexed, horrified. No one today writing about the criminals, the streets, has the insight and innate knowledge of the criminal mind. I highly recommend this book."--Joey Reynolds, host of WOR Radio

"Carlo writes with the sharpness of a stiletto. His words are cutting and brutal and meaningful. I could not put "The Ice Man" down. It is the most compelling book I have ever read."--Louis Free, the Heartland Radio Show

"What Philip Carlo did was capture the heart and soul of Richard Kuklinski. I cou