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Don't Ever Get Old: A Mystery
Don't Ever Get Old: A Mystery
Don't Ever Get Old: A Mystery
Ebook361 pages4 hours

Don't Ever Get Old: A Mystery

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

3.5/5

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When Buck Schatz, senior citizen and retired Memphis cop, learns that an old adversary may have escaped Germany with a fortune in stolen gold, Buck decides to hunt down the fugitive and claim the loot. But a lot of people want a piece of the stolen treasure, and Buck's investigation quickly attracts unfriendly attention from a very motley (and murderous) crew in Daniel Friedman's Don't Ever Get Old, nominated for an Edgar Award for Best First Novel.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateMay 22, 2012
ISBN9781250011282
Don't Ever Get Old: A Mystery
Author

Daniel Friedman

DANIEL FRIEDMAN is a graduate of the University of Maryland and NYU School of Law. He lives in New York City. Don't Ever Get Old was nominated for a Thriller Award for Best First Novel and won a Macavity Award for Best First Novel.

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Rating: 3.605882317647059 out of 5 stars
3.5/5

85 ratings17 reviews

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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    88 year old retired Memphis detective Buck Schantz gets involved in the search for Nazi gold. Despite his age, hes more than up for the challenge. The question is, can he survive being chased at shot and be able to find the gold? A very good debut novel that kept my interest.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Great fun!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This is an unusual setting for a detective story: our hero is an elderly cop who's been married to the same woman for 60 years and retired from the force 25 or so years before. Intertwined amid the questions intrinsic to a very good mystery are our detective’s concerns about his wife's advancing age, planning for an unknown future, and realizations that he can no longer hit with as much power (the suspect didn’t even rock) or command the respect as he did before. The ending is a pleasant surprise on more than one front! Enjoy!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Buck Shatz is an eighty-seven year old retired policeman who finds himself in the middle of a major crime - and this one is personal. A Nazi who tortured Buck during the war is still alive and living in the United States, apparently with a fortune in Nazi gold. Buck is determined to face his enemy, but he can’t follow any leads since he’s cut off from the police department and doesn’t know how to use the Internet. Enter his grandson, William Tecumseh - nicknamed Tequila, and called anything from Moonshine to Martini by his grandfather. The book was really slow in places, and Buck himself seems like a pretty fake character. It was an interesting story overall, but could have been more concise and interesting. There is a second book in the series, but I wasn’t drawn in enough to want to continue reading about Buck.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    2022 book #27. 2012. Buck Schatz is an 85-yo retired homicide detective in Memphis who learns that the man who tortured him in a German prison camp is still alive and has $3M in gold. He reluctantly joins the chase if only to stay ahead of the others who thinks he's on the trail.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Buck Shatz is an asshole and I don't like him. Or at least, not very much. His grandson Tequila is an asshole and a sap.
    I don't like him very much either. As far as Don't Ever Get Old Goes, that I do like, with some caveats. The story is reasonably taut. The characters well developed. The mystery...meh, pretty obvious. The writing is excellent, humorously dark. Friedman's themes of aging and legacy are well tied to the action, not superfluous meanderings to inject weight.
    Now for objections. Why such filthy language? Seriously! From an old man! Good grief. Old people these days! Why the idiotic nickname for the grandson? Please, please drop that. It was impossible to take the young man seriously knowing he wanted to be called Tequila. I have had 9th grade girls whose parents actually saddled them with that name. They, not their parents, had the good sense to reject it as a name. Besides it isn't believable outside of Animal House. Just because you get stuck with a fraternity nickname doesn't mean you use it into law school and expect the folks back home to call you that. It provided a bit of humor in the beginning since Buck finds it amusing to introduce Tequila by the name of every alcoholic beverage but Tequila. What humor there might have been in that floundered midway. It seems Friedman realized that and left off with that after the Mojito quip. Friedman could have made better use of the setting. Memphis is a fairly atmospheric town after all. One of the murder motives doesn't quite tie up. It does and it doesn't. The kid really got on my nerves. Advice to Mr Friedman, dump Tequila and make Rose Buck's sidekick. They could be a geriatric, Yiddish lobbing Nick and Nora. Buck smokes enough. Can't see the two tossing back all those martinis, but coffee will do.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A murder mystery with lots of humor as well as dark passages. The protagonist and narrator is an 87 year old retired police detective. His attitude and his dialog is so sharp. The murders are pretty gristly though.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I'll admit up front that I'm not a fan of humorous mysteries, but I didn't know this was one until I started reading Don't Ever Get Old.It's a somewhat interesting spin: Buck Schatz is an 87 year old, retired homicide detective. He's called to the deathbed of his former WW II comrade in arms, Jim Wallace, who tells Schatz that he let a ruthless Nazi officer, Heinrich Zeigler, escape in 1946 in a car filled with gold---Wallace got a payoff. However, Zeigler was declared dead a year before this incident. Wallace wants Schatz to hunt Zeigler down. The 87 year old former detective is an interesting spin. Having an 87 year old hunt a Nazi officer 60+ yars after the war is a bit ludicrous. (Maybe more than a bit!!!!!)So for those of you who like humorous mysteries, I'd give it a try. If you don't, pass.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This is one of those rare instances when I read a book and can see how well written it is and how well drawn the characters are... but I can't give it a wholehearted endorsement. 98% of my opinion hinges on how I feel about the main character, old Buck Schatz, and I think that would be true for most readers. Somewhere along the bookish byways I travel through the internet, I saw Don't Ever Get Old referred to as "geriatric noir." It's a fitting description. Buck definitely qualifies as geriatric, and the overall tone of the book is dark.Set mainly in Memphis, Tennessee, there's very little local color in this book; and as for the plot, I guessed the killer almost right from the start. I could say why because it's a rather witty analogy, but I don't want to spoil the book for anyone who wants to read it.I had trouble getting into the book because of Buck. He's ill-tempered, rude, crude, and mean-spirited to boot-- and his failing memory and dwindling physical strength aren't making him any sweeter. As a homicide cop, he was known as a "Dirty Harry" type who thought excessive violence and the occasional torture of a suspect were justified if it put a bad guy behind bars. If Buck ever had any real kindness in him, the death of his son must have killed it completely. Throughout the narrative, he tends to be a nasty piece of work.I came close to not finishing this book, and what saved it for me was when Buck's grandson joins him in his investigation. This "Odd Couple" pairing-- Old vs. New, Instinct vs. Intellect-- did inspire some welcome humor into this rather unpleasant tale. I'm glad that it did because my appreciation of the humor helped me go on to appreciate the writing and the characterizations of Buck and his grandson. If you're in the mood for some grit, some violence, and a cranky old man that you probably won't like, by all means, read about Buck Schatz. He's one of the most unusual characters you'll come in contact with for a long time. But make sure you hang on to your gun!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I won a free copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway.

    This book is entertaining, well written, with realistic characters, and an interesting storyline.

    I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the story; there was a good amount of suspense. I didn't really know where the story was going (who was the killer?) but I like where and how the story ended.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The premise of this book is novel as it entails an octogenarian protagonist with a devil may care attitude in part because he is so old. He smokes, he cusses and he is generally a wise ass. He also is a retire cop who gets involved in the search for Nazi gold and face to face with a series of murders along the way. His only rudder is his wife who is spirited in her own way. Friedman is a great new author and I see why the book was up for the Edgar Award for best first mystery novel. I hope Friedman makes it into a series but just how long can an 88 year old last. Why not 5 stars? Well I figured out early on who the culprit was and that lessened the surprise at the end. Still a very nice book.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The basics: Buck Schatz is 88 and a retired Memphis cop. When one of his old war friends dies, he learns his enemy from the war may have escaped Germany with a significant amount of gold. He and his grandson set off to find the man and steal the gold.My thoughts: Buck is a unique character. He's getting old, as he tells the reader frequently. He lacks a filter, which made this novel amusing, if sometimes crass.Initially, I appreciated and enjoyed Buck's perspective:"I’ve been around eighty-eight years, Detective, and I’ve found that it’s always a good time to be a wiseass."As the novel went on, however, his memory problems, aversion to technology and medical ailments became trite and annoying.I'm of two minds about this novel, as I did enjoy the experience of reading most of it. Hearing Buck's stories about the war were intriguing. The notion of a Nazi war criminal successfully hiding with a large amount of gold is the perfect blend of possible and unlikely. As Buck tracked him, I could not put the book down. With his history as a cop, this novel didn't initially feel like a cozy. I enjoyed Buck's grandson, who used technology in ways Buck couldn't understand.For most of the novel, I enjoyed it. The more I read, however, the more the once original characters and ideas became obvious, pedestrian, and, in my opinion, neither realistic nor entertaining.Favorite passage: "In their minds, people’s boring, puerile problems always take on Shakespearean proportions."The verdict: While I enjoyed reading Don't Ever Get Old, ultimately the payoff didn't quite work for me. The mystery is simultaneously dark and comedic, but by the novel's end these two competing moods felt out of balance to me. Overall, it was a quick, amusing read, but it fell short of the novel's premise and my early expectations.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is a thoroughly enjoyable book which is easy to read and holds the attention throughout. Buck is a retired police officer who served in the second world war who, at the same time as fighting his ageing is also getting mixed up in the hunt for a nazi war criminal who tortured and maimed Buck at the pow camp he was interred in. This isn't so much about seeking revenge though, it;s about the stash of nazi gold bars which Buck discovers is in a safe-deposit box. The adventures come thick and fast after he and his nephew start to hunt it down.I like the way the author narrates through Buck's thoughts. His insights into his own ageing process is just as entertaining as the plot. I would greatly recommend this book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Daniel Friedman’s first book, Don’t Ever Get Old, is an unexpected gem. Buck Schatz is an 87 year-old Jewish long-retired police detective who gets involved with some criminal activity. He had a long decorated career with the Memphis Police Department, although he was a tough no-nonsense detective, who still holds the record for killing the most suspects as an officer in Memphis. Buck does not regret any of those killings because each of them was necessary. He is extremely opinionated and outspoken about things and people he likes or dislikes. That trait adds many interesting and amusing segments in the book. Buck is devoted to his wife and grandson, although his outspoken personality also manifests in those relationships. During World War II, Buck served his country and endured a torturous incarceration in a Nazi prison camp. Now he discovers that his torturer from that Nazi prison camp had escaped Germany with gold ingots and has been living in the US. With help from his grandson, Buck attempts to locate this fiend. However, his attempts seem to precipitate merciless and gruesome murders and beatings. This story is remarkable in many ways. Although Buck is a colorful tough no-nonsense ex-cop, his age is not ignored. He struggles to cope with his deteriorating body and mental condition, and the inevitability of his future demise. However, when he and his grandson become murder suspects he desperately struggles to solve the crimes that are somehow connected to his Nazi nemesis. He and his grandson are also targeted for murder and their survival is very doubtful. However, Buck always remembered some advice he had personally heard from President Dwight D. Eisenhower during the war - always hang on to your gun when all else is lost. He keeps his .357 magnum within reach as much as possible, and he is someone who perseveres until the end. I liked this book very much.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Busk Schatz is an old man, who lived a long and active life that included fighting Nazis in WWII and thirty years as a police detective. Now, in his late 80s, he just wants to be left alone, but when his old army buddy calls him to his deathbed, his wife forces him to go. His buddy tells him that he let the prison camp commander that tried to kill Buck, escape, taking a gold bar as payment. Buck looses his temper and refuses to forgive Jim, causing Jim to die. Unfortunately, Jim told others about the gold the Nazi was carrying, and now everybody thinks that Buck is out to find the gold, along with his old enemy. I laughed. I cried. I loved this. It is definitely not Christian, nor is it clean. Buck is Jewish and there were several words I had to look up, along with the language that coincides the job of police detective. So, be prepared for a little profanity. It is great to see a hero that is a geriatric patient, too, but the way he blasts through life saying what ever he wants and doing whatever he wants is definitely good for a laugh. His fear of being put in a rest home is palpable. Great, fun read for mature men and women who like a mystery. Reminiscent of Clint Eastwood in that movie Grand Torino, not for the faint of heart.Received Galley from NetGalley.com.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Love Buck Schwartz, the 87 yr old octogenarian who had been a police detective for thirty years, and becomes in broiled in a mystery and a hunt for an SS officer who abused him in a concentration camp. Love his sarcastic comments and his ironic outlook on the life of the elderly as well as the grim outlook for his own future. Although the concentration camp subject matter was disturbing and serious, the book is full of humor, interesting characters and many many witticisms.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Daniel Friedman's Dont Ever Get Old starts when Buck Schatz is asked to come and see Jim Wallace in his death bed. Buck is in his eighties, fearing dementia, and not in a good mood but Jim wants to confess a shameful secret. As you can guess from his name, Buck Schatz is Jewish, lives in America and was a soldier in the World War II.One bad day, he is imprisoned and put in concentration camp Chelmno. There he was repeatedly humiliated and badly hurt by the camp sergeant, Heinrich Ziegler. Now, on his death bed, Jim Wallace confesses that he let Heinrich Ziegler go with a car full of gold. As you can imagine, Buck is not amused. The son in law of Jim Wallace, Norris Feely, thinks he is entitled to a part of the treasure, so he insists Buck tries to find the former camp guard.The reverend, Lawrence Kind, has severe gambling debts, so of course he also wants a part of the treasure. Then, a day or two after the funeral of Jim, the reverend gets murdered in a gruesome way. All and all, Buck starts to hunt the treasure, along with his grandson Tequila.He finds Heinrich Ziegler, since he came to America known as Henry Winters and gets access to his bank Vault (Heinrich Ziegler/Henry Winters lives at a home for the elderly and suffers from severe dementia). They succeed in getting the gold, but Buck realizes he won’t be able to exchange the gold bars because of the swastikas on the bars.After a chase, another two gruesome murders, the story gets to a climax. Is his grandson really guilty of the murders or is there another murderer??Reading this book, I frequently had to think of the movie Grumpy Old Men. I have never seen it, but I suppose the main character in this book could easily have been casted for the leading role. And he wouldn’t have to act much. Still, I enjoyed reading the book. Sometimes, a bit wordy, but most times very amusing. Read an excerpt online.

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Don't Ever Get Old - Daniel Friedman

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