An American Cage

The story of three convicts who escape from a Texas prison serves as a backdrop to the real story embedded in this new novel by the author. Galdi has woven an intriguing tale of the battle between a young man trying to understand himself and who he really is and a professor of psychology bent on manipulating those around him.

As the novel unfolds the convicts struggle with a variety of difficulties and personalities along the way. Galdi has included twist and turns to add a suspense, although some of it is relatively predictable. But as mentioned above, the most compelling part of the book is how the Professor interacts with his victims.

The Professor is a master manipulator. Galdi crafts a dialogue which captivates the readers and pulls them into the events. It is really the best part of the book.

Enjoy the escape and the chase, but be captivated by the dialogue and the way people manipulate each other to gain what they want.

I stumbled upon this book while perusing thrillers on Netgalley. I’m always looking for new authors to read and the description sounded interesting so I decided to go for it. I love police/crime type books and this sounded like a different twist than what I usually read. The story begins with three inmates breaking out of prison. Our main character is Danny, a young man who had a brief lapse in judgment and ended up in prison. He escapes with his cell mate, scientist and mastermind Phil Zorn, and petty criminal Monty. The three have to evade capture and make it to Mexico to start their new lives. I thought it was really interesting to see the events unfold through the eyes of the escapees, primarily Danny. That’s a change from the typical crime book narrative. Danny was a criminal with a conscience who had great guilt over what he did. I enjoyed watching how he changed over the course of the book as he encountered the difficulties he expected, as well as those he didn’t. It was a well written book with interesting characters. This was my first experience with Mr. Galdi, and I look forward to checking out more of his work.

Thanks to Netgalley for a free copy of this book.

Danny Marsh, twenty four years old, was a farm boy serving time in Thurgood L. Crick Maximum Security Prison located in Texas. An error in judgement, one split second, a resultant prison stint. Deemed a "rich white boy" frightened by prison life, his panic attacks subsided when he was housed with new cellmate, soft spoken Professor Phil Zorn. Phil, forty-ish, a neuroscience researcher, offered Danny father-like support and encouragement. It is no surprise that when Phil planned a prison break, Danny, as well as penniless, ghetto raised Monty Montgomery supported Phil's escape plan.

Danny, Phil and Monty hid in the library while fellow inmates filed out to eat lunch. The trio had approximately forty minutes, thirty for lunch and a ten minute head count, to use the supplies amassed to reach the safety of the woods. Supplies included a smuggled in reciprocating saw to cut through the ventilation duct and duct tape to wrap around their hands and atlases secured to their chests to guard against the razor wire fence. Monty caught his leg on the barbed wire and Danny's spirits dampened while Phil, who had memorized the path through the woods from a Google Earth photo smuggled into prison, brainstormed an adjustment.

One stolen truck later, the trio pulled into "Splash Paradise", an abandoned water park. This rendezvous spot was designated for Phil's outside contact to meet up with them, drive them to a ready apartment in Mexico and help them obtain fake ID's and papers. Phil and contact Wade Lorendinski indicated that the escape plan had an extra step Danny and Monty might not have agreed on, but, getting to Mexico was not free. Phil told Danny that his parents must provide $250,000 in cash or else. Danny now realized the cruelty of hardened criminals. Danny would not bury his head in the sand. While his consideration of others increased, Phil's harrowing true intent manifested itself.

"An American Cage" by Ted Galdi is a riveting tome about a jailbreak replete with many twists and turns experienced by the culprits. There are continuous obstacles in their path. One such obstacle is Lt. John Ramos. If he can apprehend the criminals, his police department would get national recognition. Perhaps upon retirement, he could enter politics. The character development of the principals made me "cheer" as well as 'jeer". Galdi's sophomore novel was an excellent read that I highly recommend.