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Loading... Baby Shark (original 2006; edition 2006)by Robert Fate LiteraryFeline | Jun 29, 2023 |   Although he lost his own son to the murderous biker gang, Henry Chin, owner of the pool hall where the crime went down, comes to Kristin’s rescue, pulling her out of the burning building and saving her life. Together, Kristin and Henry are determined to go after the men responsible for the deaths of their loved ones and for hurting Kristin. The police do not seem to care and someone has to pay the price of justice. Baby Shark is set in Texas during the early 1950’s, a time before DNA testing, cell phones and computers. Women and minorities had their place in society and rarely stepped outside of that. Kristin broke the mold when she picked up the pool cue, following in her father’s footsteps, and trained to be a killer. She had been victimized once and instead of turning inward, she decided to face her fear and act out against it. Kristin is both intelligent and quick on her feet. She has a hard outer shell, having built up her defenses to protect herself as best as she can. She can kill without remorse. And yet, she still holds onto her humanity. One of my favorite moments in the book is when she asks about the welfare of the dogs, knowing the owner will not be able to see to them anymore. Robert Fate brings together an unlikely cast of characters. There is Henry Chin, the cabinet maker, who takes Kristin in and helps guide her down her new life path; Sarge, a World War II veteran, who teaches both Kristin and Henry how to fight; Albert, the one legged Korean War veteran who has a weakness for booze and whose knowledge in guns comes in handy; Harlan, a con man and pool hustler who mentors Kristin in the game of pool, shaping her into Baby Shark, a force to be reckoned with at the pool table; and Otis Millett, the former police officer now private investigator, who Henry hires to find the men behind the attack at the pool hall on that fateful night. Each of these men plays an important part in Kristin’s life as she transitions over from child to woman. The novel is even more salient, coming from Kristin’s point of view. Robert Fate’s writing style is straight forward, and the story he has created is captivating. There was a split second near the beginning of the novel when I wondered if Baby Shark was for me, but that thought died a quick death the more I read. Baby Shark is one of those stories that grips hold of the reader and plays on the emotions. It is easy to understand why Kristin and Henry seek a justice of their own variety—and I cheered for them all along the way. (  ) LiteraryFeline | Jun 29, 2023 | Henry Chin, the Chinese owner of the pool hall, who's son Will was also murdered wants revenge. Since in the 50's a non-white had no power, he begins to train Kristin to take his revenge. I don't know how a 70 year old male writer has been able to so accurately get into the mind of a seventeen year old girl. But the character he has created so skillfully, is true to the period and to her age and sex. From the moment you begin this book you won't want to put it down. You will be in Baby's corner all the way. The twists and turns may surprise and horrify you but you will read to the end. And, then want to know what happens next. Enjoy!. (  ) Bettesbooks | Jul 31, 2016 | Stories of private eyes, especially female ones, occasionally give us a bit of backstory explaining how the protagonist got where she is. (For example, Charlaine Harris’s Lily Bard series does this in flashbacks and allusions to her rape and assault.) Mr. Fate’s protagonist, Kristin Van Dijk aka “Baby Shark,” has something in common with Lily, as we learn in the first chapter. She has been brutally gang-raped by a motorcycle gang in an attack that also killed her father (her mother has died before the book opens). However, she also suffers from living in Texas in the early 1950’s, meaning that she must contend with all the prejudices of the time and place about rape victims and women in general. The other survivor of the attack, who becomes a good friend to her, is a Chinese-American and has a whole other set of prejudices to deal with. In addition, the police don’t seem very interested at all in tracking down the killers. What’s a girl to do? This book, the first of a series of which at least two more are to come, is apparently setting the stage by giving us the whole story of how Kristin Van Dijk became Baby Shark. If you do not like scenes of extreme violence, you should not read this book. It could easily be made into a movie by Quentin Tarantino or Sam Peckinpah (in which case I wouldn’t go – I can read it, I just can’t watch it). Kristin or Baby Shark (her dad was a pool player and she becomes an even better one) is an exceptionally strong character, yet I found her believable (and yes, Robert Fate really is a man, and writes from a female point of view very well). Although she performs many acts that I would consider highly reprehensible in real life, I found her a sympathetic character. The book is full of action, but there is more to it than just a shoot-‘em-up. Baby Shark creates a new family for herself with the few people she’s able to trust, and they are all intriguing characters. She also thinks about her own motivations and feelings in a very intelligent way. I don’t normally like “noir” all that much, and in some ways this is a noir story. I also am heartily sick of coming-of-age stories, and in its way, this is one. Yet I could hardly put it down and finished it in one day. I’m eager to read the next two books in the series. If you can stand the heat, take a chance on Baby Shark when it comes out. ( ) auntieknickers | Jun 5, 2013 | Kristin doesn't remember getting out of the pool hall when she wakes in the hospital, but she learns that the owner - the only other survivor of the attack by a gang of bikers - dragged her from the building despite his own gunshot wounds, and manages to drive her to the relative safety of the hospital. She also learns that the police have no intention of investigating the murders and assault. Kristin and Henry find a new family in each other, drawn together by a need for both safety and revenge. Together they live, train, and plan. Baby Shark is a tale of survival and what it takes for two damaged individuals not only to recover, but to find justice. Kristin (aka Baby Shark) seeks not only to avenge her father's death, but also to reclaim her dignity and establish herself as a strong, independent figure, regardless of the abuse she suffered and regardless of her gender in a very gender-biased setting. One reviewer remarks on a lack of morality in Kristin's actions, but my own reading suggests something very different: it is not necessarily a quest for Hammurabian revenge, but justice. If the police had pursued and prosecuted the bikers responsible for these violent crimes I would suggest that Kristin and Henry would not have have sought out their own form of justice; given the circumstances of their case, they sought punishment that was otherwise denied. As I first read of the attack on the pool hall I did not expect to like this book, but the narrative quickly sped away, and before I knew it I was at the novel's end. (  ) London_StJ | May 24, 2012 | Kristin Van Dijk, 17,travels around with her pool hustler father. On the night that the book opens she is forced by four bikers to watch the murder of her father before she herself is raped, badly beaten and left for dead. The owner of the Pool Hall were the assault took place is Henry Chin, a Chinese immigrant whose grown son was one of those murdered. He drags her out of the burning building and saves her. He hides her and helps her recover. Henry finds out that the local police are not going to investigate the pool hall crime, so he hires a sleezy ex-cop private investigator to search for the gang of killers. Henry hires a martial arts expert and a weapons expert to train Kristin in how to protect herself. A friend of her father's brings up her pool talents to that of expert. She is now one tough cookie as she starts to hustles pool in west Texas and earn the nickname Baby Shark. Now comes the revenge part. I started out really getting into the story, was a fast paced start with a horrific opening followed by Baby rebuilding her life and becoming strong in every sense of the word. I really admired her fortitude. Then came the first killing - or should I say massacre!!! In the end it was just too much gratuitous bloodshed, revenge and eye for an eyemanship. Very quickly I was turned off by the whole concept of revenge that the plot is based on. The whole ethical thing worried me - if someone hurts you - then they can be justified in hurting them back? This is not what I want my grandson to learn. Sometimes bad thing happen to really good people - stay good and move on - don't bring yourself down to their level. I won't be reading the second one in the series - which I have - I will pass them on to a friend who likes the more hard core stuff. I am much more happier at the cozier and of the mystery spectrum where my ethics are less likely to be challenged. (  ) sally906 | Jan 9, 2009 | ) beccam2 | Jan 6, 2009 | At seventeen, Kristin Van Dijk sees her father murdered in a Texas bar by a motor cycle gang and is then brutally beaten and raped. The owner of the bar, a Chinese-American named Henry Chin is shot and left for dead. He pulls Kristin from a fire set to cover-up the crime. Henry's son was also killed by the bikers. When Henry finds that someone with influence has managed to get the investigation closed, he and Kristen begin planning their private war against the bikers. Along the way they find help from: an ex-cop private eye named Otis who keeps his .45 handy and isn't adverse to taking preemptive action; a psychotic Korean War veteran and small arms expert; and a former military close-quarters combat instructor. You also get really nasty bad guys, a corrupt cop, and a waitress with a heart of gold. The story and characters are well developed and the pacing pulls you along. I appreciated the care Fate took to set up the action. The narration is written in the first person from Kristin's point of view and has terrific hard-boiled dialog like Bear took that stunned look of recognition directly to hell – along with two slugs in his heart. If you like hard-boiled stories, you can't help but go "Yea!" when you read a line like that. I recommend this book to anyone who doesn't mind a lethal teenager with a grudge and much (justifable) extra-legal bloodshed. ( ) malundy | Oct 18, 2008 | Henry brings Kristen home with him to recover in peace, hidden away on his back country ranch. There they decide that the killers of their family members must be brought to justice- if the law will not do it they will take care ofn it themselves. Kristen works to get her strength up both physically and mentally. She runs, learns to shoot a gun and, to become Baby Shark, play pool like a pro. With the help of PI Otis Millet they begin to track down the bikers who did the killings. But someone is definitely trying to protect the bikers, especially the one they call Blue Eyes, and it is up to Kristen, Otis and Henry to figure out who is interfering with their plans. And Kristen must discover if she can carry through on their plan for revenge. This book should cause quite a discussion with its unusual heroine. Robert Fate has used first person voice to pull the reader into Kristen's world. This works to not only raise his audience's sympathy for a cold blooded killer, but causes them to stand up and cheer for her. The style of writing is cool and sparse to match the tone of the story. The characters are well defined without a lot of background to clutter up the pace. This makes it a full out run to the end, no stopping reading in between chapters. This is an exciting debut for this author and we are glad he is not done here. We are now looking forward to spring of 2007 for Baby Sharks' Beaumont Blues and later for Baby Shark's Sooner Weekends. It will be interesting to see how Robert Fate continues Kristen's story after she has exacted her revenge. Maybe a chance for romance? But it is hard to imagine Baby Shark settling for a life in the mainstream. (Wonder how long it will take movie producers to get ahold of these rights? Perfect combination of chick flick with blood gushing action- something for everyone. ) ( ) FrontStreet | Mar 29, 2008 | This is the best book yet for pure vicarious kick-ass vengeance fantasy - and for that alone I love it. Every darn character in Baby Shark is a loveable keeper, and that's saying something when their hearts are as dark and vengeance-bent as these. I'm glad RF didn't shy away from the horror of the precipitating crime. It needed to be every bit as horrible as it was. I'm equally glad he didn't pansy up the resolution, either. The bad guys were dispatched violently to hell, and Kristen & crew didn't waste a lot of time cryin over it. Second thoughts and ruined souls play hell with the reader's vicarious thrill, IMHO - when I feel like Mad Max, I want to stomp around with conviction, not hesitate with moral compunctions. Kristen is glad to see her tormentor suffer, and that read right - it would be false for her to equivocate and put him out of his misery. How about this line; "I had relinquished an irreplaceable piece of my humanity when I chose revenge." This is the quality that will set Kristen up well for further ventures. How I adored Henry! And Jim (the dog) - and Otis. And all the secondary characters. Even MacKenzie, dullard admirer, was well-turned-out. Even the cars have personalities. I have no idea how RF manages to write 19 YO female so convincingly, but I'm glad he does. ( ) swl | Dec 18, 2007 | LesaHolstine | Jun 15, 2007 | ) smik | May 24, 2007 | |
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Although he lost his own son to the murderous biker gang, Henry Chin, owner of the pool hall where the crime went down, comes to Kristin’s rescue, pulling her out of the burning building and saving her life. Together, Kristin and Henry are determined to go after the men responsible for the deaths of their loved ones and for hurting Kristin. The police do not seem to care and someone has to pay the price of justice.
Baby Shark is set in Texas during the early 1950’s, a time before DNA testing, cell phones and computers. Women and minorities had their place in society and rarely stepped outside of that. Kristin broke the mold when she picked up the pool cue, following in her father’s footsteps, and trained to be a killer. She had been victimized once and instead of turning inward, she decided to face her fear and act out against it.
Kristin is both intelligent and quick on her feet. She has a hard outer shell, having built up her defenses to protect herself as best as she can. She can kill without remorse. And yet, she still holds onto her humanity. One of my favorite moments in the book is when she asks about the welfare of the dogs, knowing the owner will not be able to see to them anymore.
Robert Fate brings together an unlikely cast of characters. There is Henry Chin, the cabinet maker, who takes Kristin in and helps guide her down her new life path; Sarge, a World War II veteran, who teaches both Kristin and Henry how to fight; Albert, the one legged Korean War veteran who has a weakness for booze and whose knowledge in guns comes in handy; Harlan, a con man and pool hustler who mentors Kristin in the game of pool, shaping her into Baby Shark, a force to be reckoned with at the pool table; and Otis Millett, the former police officer now private investigator, who Henry hires to find the men behind the attack at the pool hall on that fateful night. Each of these men plays an important part in Kristin’s life as she transitions over from child to woman.
The novel is even more salient, coming from Kristin’s point of view. Robert Fate’s writing style is straight forward, and the story he has created is captivating. There was a split second near the beginning of the novel when I wondered if Baby Shark was for me, but that thought died a quick death the more I read. Baby Shark is one of those stories that grips hold of the reader and plays on the emotions. It is easy to understand why Kristin and Henry seek a justice of their own variety—and I cheered for them all along the way. (