THE ASSASSINS

Amped to both the system and the scene and accelerated to the point where it's blatantly readable, Kazan's novel begins with the shooting by USAF Sergeant Cesario (de las) Flores of Vinnie, a communal type who'd been into his daughter who'd also been into drugs, etc. Alan, who's been put on the case to defend Flores, is taken off it again having disqualified himself after his rather ambiguous attraction to Michael -- a very gentle Jesus freakish type who was a friend of the dead boy and a leader of their movement. ""Like innocent, like kids"" or is it Flores who is really innocent -- after all pressures (square to pentagonal) won't permit him' to be guilty even if he did unload his 22. As someone says en route, ""It takes an assassin to kill an assassin"" and before it's over someone of course has -- and more. Even though through most of this Mr. Kazan is exposing the guilt factor by barefooted association, it will certainly be read by those who find it's better with their shoes on.