 First edition cover | |
| Author | Andrew Vachss |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Hardboileddetective novel |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf, New York, U.S.A. |
Publication date | 12 February 1987 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardcover and mass market paperback) |
| Pages | 293 pp |
| ISBN | 0-394-55937-1 |
| Preceded by | Flood |
| Followed by | Blue Belle |
Strega (Italian for 'witch' / 'sorceress') is ahardboileddetective novel written by American author and attorneyAndrew Vachss, first published in 1987. The story features the pursuit and destruction by the protagonistBurke, an ex-con private investigator, of apedophile ring involved in tradingchild pornography via telephonemodems. The novel was written and published long before social concern over the use of the Internet for spreading or trading child pornography became widespread.[1][2] The second novel in theBurke Series, it introduced numerous characters who would go on to appear in all of the series thereafter: Immaculata (Max's girlfriend and later mother to Flower); rescued child prostitute Terry (who would become Mole and Michelle's son); and Wolfe, who is serving as an Assistant District Attorney when the events in this story take place.
After the critical acclaim and commercial success of his first novelFlood, Vachss was contacted by Robert Gottlieb, then editor-in-chief of the New York publishing houseAlfred A. Knopf, and signed a contract with an advance of US$175,000 forStrega.[3] The novel subsequently won the 1988Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, a prestigious French award for mystery and crime novels, and the 1989 Falcon Award by theMaltese Falcon Society of Japan.[4]
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