Hogan, Chuck 1967–

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Hogan, Chuck 1967–

PERSONAL: Born August 4, 1967, in Boston, MA; married Charlotte Bright (a teacher).

ADDRESSES: Home—MA. Office—Struggling Artists, Inc., Boston, MA. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Simon and Schuster, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

CAREER: Writer. Formerly worked in a video store.

MEMBER: Authors' Guild, Authors League of America, Writers Guild of America East.

AWARDS, HONORS: Hammett Award, International Association of Crime Writers, 2005, for Prince of Thieves.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS

The Standoff, Doubleday (New York, NY), 1995.

The Blood Artists, William Morrow (New York, NY) 1998.

Prince of Thieves, Scribner (New York, NY), 2004.

The Standoff has been translated into fourteen languages.

ADAPTATIONS: The Standoff has been adapted for film by New Line Cinema.

WORK IN PROGRESS: Another novel.

SIDELIGHTS: Chuck Hogan is a popular author of thriller novels. His debut, The Standoff, tells the story of white supremacist Glenn Ables and FBI agent John Banish. Banish is a hostage negotiator who must deal with Ables after the latter has ambushed a local lawman who was trying to serve him an eviction notice at his remote Montana home. A Publishers Weekly contributor called the novel a "beautifully paced debut," and also wrote that the author "brings an added edge of humanity to this finely crafted and compelling read." Emily Melton, writing in Booklist, commented that Hogan "takes care with structure, with pacing, with the sound of language, and with the placement of one taut scene after another."

Hogan's next novel, The Blood Artists, takes place in the year 2016 and focuses on a deadly virus that has struck Nobel Prize winner Stephen Pearse. Pearse's former colleague Peter Maryk sets out to track down the source of the deadly airborne virus with the help of the dying Pearse. Reviewing the book in the Library Journal, Alice DiNizo felt that the author "has created a well-paced medical thriller with interesting characters and a believable story line." A Publishers Weekly contributor commented: "There's much to admire here: full-blooded … characters, resonant prose, a scattering of crackling action sequences and an abiding and affecting sense of melancholy."

The Prince of Thieves is a thriller focusing on four friends—Duggy, Jem, Dez, and Gloansy—who rob banks but otherwise live regular, middle-class lives. They are smart and efficient and seem to be one step ahead of the law until Duggy goes back to meet Claire, with whom he has become infatuated even though she was once their hostage during a bank robbery. Claire does not know that Duggy was one of the robbers, but their romance threatens the four robbers' friendship and may lead to their capture by FBI agent Adam Frawley. The author "writes with cool precision and a great eye for detail, progressively building suspense," according to a Kirkus Reviews contributor. In a review in Booklist, Stephanie Zvirin appreciated the author's "ability to blend weighty emotions with riveting shootouts." A Publishers Weekly contributor concluded that Hogan's "original writing style and knack for unusual metaphors can make for engaging reading."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, January 15, 1995, Emily Melton, review of The Standoff, p. 869; November 1, 1997, Gilbert Taylor, review of The Blood Artists, p. 435; June 1, 2004, Stephanie Zvirin, review of Prince of Thieves, p. 1707.

Entertainment Weekly, March 24, 1995, Mark Harris, review of The Standoff, p. 57.

Kirkus Reviews, July 1, 2004, review of Prince of Thieves, p. 597.

Library Journal, January, 1998, Alice DiNizo, review of The Blood Artists, p. 141.

Publishers Weekly, December 19, 1994, review of The Standoff, p. 44; February 9, 1998, review of The Blood Artists, p. 72; June 28, 2004, review of Prince of Thieves, p. 30.