“Lamb” is the best Christopher Moore book. This one, is a very close second. Enjoyed this from start to finish. It also helps that the audiobook was p“Lamb” is the best Christopher Moore book. This one, is a very close second. Enjoyed this from start to finish. It also helps that the audiobook was performed by one of the best in the business…Johnny Heller.
How can you not love a Jimmy Cagney sounding dragon?...more
Images of Bogart, Mary Astor and Sydney Greenstreet are inescapable while reading this Gore Vidal piece, set Sam Spade and Brigid O'Shaunessy in Cario
Images of Bogart, Mary Astor and Sydney Greenstreet are inescapable while reading this Gore Vidal piece, set against the criminal faction of Egypt. However, where Sam Spade was tough yet classy, the protagonist here is an arrogant jerk, and certainly not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Not very appealing as a main character. Still, Vidal's writing keeps things moving along at a good clip until the last few pages, where the story just.....ends. And quite abruptly. It felt like he was writing against a tight deadline and tied plot lines up regardless of characters. I begrudgingly give three stars - more like 2.5....more
A thinly veiled love letter to the pre-code comics area, with a special tip of the hat to the dawn of Mad magazine (which Collins freely admits in theA thinly veiled love letter to the pre-code comics area, with a special tip of the hat to the dawn of Mad magazine (which Collins freely admits in the afterword), the first third of Seduction reads like those pre-code gems with Dick Tracy-esque characters; not much depth but sarcasm to the gills. It's only after the first hundred pages or so that the action starts and the story earns its "Hard Case" stripes. This is the third in the Jack and Maggie Starr trilogy and I'd like to read more about them, but in a different world - a grittier Matt Scudder atmosphere. There's a lot bubbling under with these characters, which Collins hints at but steers clear of in favor of remaining loyal to the style and memory of the times....more
The quintessential hard-boiled New York dick, Mike Hammer, is the character upon whom all other PI's are based. This book delivers the goods - sex, viThe quintessential hard-boiled New York dick, Mike Hammer, is the character upon whom all other PI's are based. This book delivers the goods - sex, violence, wise-assery - all served up against the gritty streets of The Big Apple....more
Early Ellison works including a novella-of-sorts - will bring back memories of greasers, the 50's and West Side Story without the Sondheim lyrics. InsEarly Ellison works including a novella-of-sorts - will bring back memories of greasers, the 50's and West Side Story without the Sondheim lyrics. Instead of the Jets and the Sharks, there's the Cougars and the Cherokees. The local-hang-soda-shop is run by Pops and the cops are the bad guys everyone is against. Grit is Ellison's forte and while the language of the time doesn't hold water anymore, his ability to capture the essence of it still makes for writing evocative of the time period and worth studying, if not enjoying....more
Even though his name became synonymous with dirty tricks in the Nixon era, Hunt knew how to write well. This is one of the more enjoyable Hard Case boEven though his name became synonymous with dirty tricks in the Nixon era, Hunt knew how to write well. This is one of the more enjoyable Hard Case books I've come across. Good tough guy noir; images of Sam Spade and The Maltese Falcon came to mind more than once during the read but that's to the work's credit. ...more
Yuk. I dislike stories that serve no purpose other than product promotion. The Hard Case series has undoubtably captured my interest and some of the rYuk. I dislike stories that serve no purpose other than product promotion. The Hard Case series has undoubtably captured my interest and some of the reprints are great reads. This one is just a bit too cute for my tastes. Fifty-to-one references this as the 50th hard case release written especially for the series, there are 49 chapters, each one titled with the corresponding Hard Case release, one of the characters is the Hard Case crime book publisher hiding from a disgruntled writer etc etc etc. Just not my cup of tea. I'm all for humor, but not variety show level spoofs....more
Fast read involving post WWII espionage behind the iron curtain (so don't expect a standard hard case story here), but not without flaws, such as an aFast read involving post WWII espionage behind the iron curtain (so don't expect a standard hard case story here), but not without flaws, such as an abrupt and summarized ending that is woefully unsatisfying. In addition the first chapter didn't grab me straightaway but the bulk of the book kept me going. ...more
With Killing Castro, originally published in 1961 under a pseudonym, Block opts for a style thoroughly unlike his own but has trouble sustaining the fWith Killing Castro, originally published in 1961 under a pseudonym, Block opts for a style thoroughly unlike his own but has trouble sustaining the false authorship. First off, the book is two-thirds story and one-third college term paper on Castro's rise to power, which may have been interesting at the time but reads as unnecessary historical malingering today.
This is an ensemble piece so the POV keeps shifting. Unlike Michener’s The Drifters where the opening chapters detail individual characters that come together in an ensemble finish, Killing Castro is the opposite, meeting the group up front with each going their separate ways, the stories separated by a Castro history lessons, which, without spoiling it, get a factual thrashing leading to a thoroughly unsatisfying conclusion.
The audio presentation borders on annoying, with the reader doing his best Rod Serling inflection throughout; introducing Twilight Zone episodes is one thing, but four hours straight? It’s a bit much. ...more
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