"Yes, he’s my son and, yes, that reeks of nepotism, but please bear in mind that the novel was just nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award for best mystery novel by an American author. What makes it special, in my opinion, is a hefty dose of something that’s been largely missing from crime fiction since Donald Westlake passed away: rib-splitting humor."

"A sociological study disguised as a crime novel, set in New York City. While reading this, I was completely submerged in his words, and this world. I didn’t want it to end. Richard is extraordinary with dialogue. The jigsaw of a narrative is as complex as the city it describes."

"Like Nietzsche, Genet believed in the "transvaluation of all values", by which bad is good and the ugly is beautiful. Whereas most writers treated homosexuality as a disease, Genet took the stronger position in linking it with evil and crime and sin. He invented the drag queen for literature in Divine in this novel."