Jack's Return Home (a.k.a. Get Carter) by Ted Lewis

(pb; 1970: first book in the Jack Carter trilogy)

From the back cover

"Doncaster, and Jack Carter is home for a funeral - his brother's. Frank's car was found at the bottom of a cliff, with him inside. Jack thinks that Frank's death is suspicious, so he decides to talk to a few people. Frank was a mild man and did as he was told, but Jack's not a bit like that."


Review

Return is a nasty, violent and excellent revenge–mystery tale that raises the bar in the crime genre. Carter is amoral, reckless and unrelenting in his quest to solve the mystery of his estranged brother’s death, meaning everyone around him feels the fire of his rage. Carter’s rampage through his hometown is a sometimes chatty journey, one that is memorable, not for sensitive, PC-minded readers. Fans of the twenty-four-book Parker series by Richard Stark, a.k.a. Donald E. Westlake, might enjoy this.

Followed by Jack Carter's Law.

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The first film version, titled Get Carter, was released in the UK on March 10, 1971. It was released stateside on March 17, 1971. Mike Hodges directed and scripted the film.

Michael Caine played Jack Carter. Petra Markham played Doreen Carter.

Ian Hendry played Eric Paice. Britt Ekland played Anna. John Osborne played Cyril Kinnear. Tony Beckley played Peter the Dutchman. George Sewell played Con McCarty.

Geraldine Moffat, billed as Geraldine Moffatt, played Glenda. Dorothy White played Margaret. Rosemarie Dunham played Edna. Alun Armstrong played Keith. Bryan Mosley played Cliff Brumby. 

Glynn Edwards played Albert Swift. Bernard Hepton played Thorpe. Terence Rigby played Gerald Fletcher.

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The American remake, also titled  Get Carter, was released stateside on October 6, 2000. Stephen Kay directed the film, from a screenplay by Dave McKenna.

Sylvester Stallone played Jack Carter. Rachel Leigh Cook played Doreen. Miranda Richardson played Gloria. Rhona Mitra played Geraldine. 

John C. McGinley played Con McCarty. Alan Cumming played Jeremy Kinnear. Michael Caine, who played the lead role in the original film, played Cliff Brumby. Mickey Rourke played Cyrus Paice.

John Cassini played Thorpey. Mark Boone Junior, billed as Mark Boone Jr., played Jim Davis. An uncredited Gretchen Mol  played Audrey. An uncredited Tom Sizemore provided the voice of Les Fletcher. An uncredited Frank Stallone, brother of Sylvester, played "Man at Funeral".