Heat 2: A Novel

Michael Mann’s first novel - co-authored by Megan Gardiner - is fantastic! If you’re a fan of Mann’s original film HEAT or crime dramas in general, you will love this one. HEAT is in my top 5 favorite crime drama films, and Mann is somehow still able to capture the magic of what made that film special in his expansion of the story and the characters, doing so brilliantly in this different medium.Mann takes an approach akin to THE GODFATHER Part 2, in that the book is both a prequel and a sequel for the characters from the film. The “present-day” storyline picks up with Vincent Hannah finalizing his investigation into Neil McCauley’s crew, while Chris Shihirlis attempts to flee Los Angeles, finding a new life and purpose on the run. The story then moves back and forth between 1988, 1996, and eventually 2000. Despite the time jumps, no momentum is lost in the storytelling. Just as in the original film, where Mann introduced multiple plot points that didn’t intersect until the third act of the film, Mann replicates that same result here brilliantly. The action-heavy climax in this story is very different from the classic bank heist scene and shootout from the film, but it is equally thrilling and intense.Everything I knew and loved about Al Pacino’s Vincent Hannah and Robert DeNiro’s Neil Mccauley is brought to life on the page. The amazing fiery dialogue from Hannah when he is interrogating a suspect is just as electric and entertaining on the page as it is on the film screen. Likewise, McCauley’s cool and calculating approach to the planning and execution of his heists is ever present here just as it was in the film. Spending more time with these two lead characters was fully enjoyable for me.While Val Kilmer’s character Chris Shihirlis played sort of “second-fiddle” to McCauley in the original film, his role is far more prominent here. I ended up really enjoying the arc of this character far more than I thought I would, based on what we knew of him from the film. Likewise, both Vincent Hannah’s and Neil McCauley’s stories in the past provide new insights into their characters, feeding into where we first meet them in the film.To make this story distinct from the original film, however, Mann provides a straight-up villain whose path intersects with all of the characters, old and new. While McCauley and his crew were the clear antagonists of the original film, Mann still injected them with just enough humanity so they felt real and relatable. You could sympathize with them to a small extent, getting a window into the personal lives of Neil McCauley and Chris Shihirlis. Not so with this new villain! He is menacing, scary, mysterious, and incredibly smart, making him a force to be reckoned with by all of the characters, present in almost every setting of the story.The conclusion to the story is quite satisfying while still leaving the door open for more to be told between two of the main characters. So I wonder if there will eventually be a HEAT 3 in some form. A part of me wishes that I could see this prequel/sequel brought to life on film, but this book is more than enough to satisfy that itch for more from Mann’s original masterpiece. I knew Mann was a brilliant screenplay writer on his own, but paired with Gardiner he shows he is just as good of a storyteller regardless of the medium.

Haven't even finished the book but so far it is one of the best, perfectly paced books I have ever read. I am so glad that Mann wrote this with the help of Gardiner. The characters are spot on. The dialogue is perfect. You can tell the author is a screenwriter, but that only makes the experience better because the conversations feel all the more authentic.

For fans of the movie "Heat," this will be hard to put down. Although the writing is pulpy and repetitive and given to vague sentence fragments where better description would have helpfully clarified some of the complex set pieces, the pacing is brisk and cinematic. The story (or interwoven stories) has a lot of heart-pounding action, and it's easy to picture the established characters moving through their environments. The settings are interesting, especially Ciudad del Este, the bustling, unpredictable energy of which is easy to imagine pictured in Michael Mann's characteristic long lenses and kinetic dioramas. The narrative relies on at least one too many amazing coincidences for it all to work. But it's all fun to picture on the screen of one's mind. It could make a tremendous miniseries, although having to recast all the indelible characters from the original movie could really put a damper on it.

For anyone who loved the movie "Heat" this book which uniquely serves as a prequel and sequel is a must read. Excellent work. You won't be disappointed!!

Just finished reading the book; it was a great read overall, minus some characters and plots that left me conflicted. I think the film adaptation can and should leave out some of this to make it a remarkable follow-up to the 1995 film.***Begin Spoiler Section***The beginning of the book detailing what happened immediately after the film ended was great, so too were the flashbacks to Chicago in 1988, then what happened by the US/Mexico border, and later the climax in L.A. in 2000. The new characters that came out of those sections (Wardell, Elisa, Gabriela etc) were memorable and integral to the story; so too were the recurring characters of McCauley's and Hanna's crews (respectively), and others along the way.The character of Claudio Chen was a joke. I couldn't take him seriously and regularly caught myself questioning whether I was still reading the same book I had intended to pick up. He should be left out of the film 100%. Either that or remade to be more believable. Dressing like a goth dandy with fake-colored contacts?! Come on already.The same goes for Chris' time as a contract security specialist in Ciudad Del Este. The story development between him and Ana Liu worked in that plotline, and so did his at-times gray area working relationship with Paolo. But everything else from the Liu family organization, Felix Chen etc, and later with the international black market business deals tested my ability to suspend my sense of disbelief enough to get through those parts.By the way, whoever plays these characters will make or break the film adaptation's success. And casting's not going to have an easy time with it. I picture a heavy like Jon Bernthal or Tom Hardy being able to take on Wardell. Mann should reconsider Bernthal for the role. It's gotta be an actor with surefire and unquestionable brute masculinity to pull that character off.As for the rest I couldn't tell you. Maybe Ryan Gosling as Chris Shiherlis, and Oscar Isaac's name's been getting tossed around on blog sites as a worthy contender for Pacino.

Really enjoyed it! Hope the movie stays close to the book. Didn’t see the ending coming, good suspenseful action book!

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Perfeito. Obrigatório pra fãs do Michael Mann

I really enjoyed this book. I thought it did the original movie justice and was a good continuation of the story.

The book will keep the reader in suspense till the end. The book spans the period from 1988 to (2) 2000 and has two or three stories running parallel which can be a bit off-putting for when you get to a point like the end of a chapter and expect the story to continue you are taken to another developping story with no apparent connection which in turn will go on over a number of pages to be interrupted suddenly to go back to the previous one and so on . The link between the stories are the characters. The reader then has to adjust to this combination or intermingling of stories happening in different places ,at different times knowing that everything will be resolved in the end.