Reviews

The prose are crisp with very good imagery but there is no theme or character development. The plot is meh. I would say this is not a story but a series of events that are not built on each other with the glue of a coherent storytelling.

charlesrevello's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

n0rmann's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Tons of violence. Tons of fun. Can't ask for much more than that.

auspea's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Tight little noir

flexdza's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

mhall89446's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

A great debut novel chronicling the (mis-)adventures of a mob gunman. Charlie Swift tries to protect his boss and figure out what is going on with some paperwork that is wanted by a rival mob leader, the FBI, and corrupt FBI. The violence becomes unrealistic quickly, but the book is an enjoyable read and there is something exceedingly likeable about its narrator Charlie. Reminiscent of the ICE HARVEST with its dark humor.

lbw's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I picked this because I like “hard boiled noir” or “pulp noir,” and I’ve read Gischler’s books before. (I’ll never forget “Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse”—such a fun book.) This is the second one of his that I’ve read set in Florida. The first was set in my birth city.

It took me forever to get into this, and I had a hard time keeping all the characters straight....not that that mattered much because

most of them end up dead!

However, that’s on my state of mind or attention span and not a comment on anything wrong with the book.

More...