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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
‘Viper’s Dream’ is a hard-boiled tale set in Harlem from the 1930s to 1961 and follows the life of one Clude Morton. I loved this book as it fully immersed me into a culture and place and I don't really know too much about. It shows us how history can be twisted, places evolve and how people either cause this evolution or are evolved along with it. Society is as fluid and unpredictable as jazz is and although this book focuses on one man, it's really about how individual strings come together, intertwine and make great music.
It opens in 1961 with Clyde ‘The Viper’ Morton sitting in the legendary Cathouse. He has just committed the murder of the love of his life, Yolanda. He has been given three hours before he is going to be arrested and he is using it to contemplate his life and relationships.
This book is a love letter to Harlem and to jazz. It oozes off the page and I picked the perfect place to be reading this book, New York itself. Harlem and The Bronx have always fascinated me and of course I have a thing for jazz. Unfortunately, I didn't get to hear any this time around but I definitely lucked out by reading this book. Spoitify didn't know what hit it as I hopped from artist to artist!
This is a gritty book and evokes the feelings and temperament of the hard-boiled detective books ala Chandler. It was dark and moody. You could picture every scene vividly as the rich descriptions made it feel like you were slipping into a different reality.
Let me know if you pick this one up!
It opens in 1961 with Clyde ‘The Viper’ Morton sitting in the legendary Cathouse. He has just committed the murder of the love of his life, Yolanda. He has been given three hours before he is going to be arrested and he is using it to contemplate his life and relationships.
This book is a love letter to Harlem and to jazz. It oozes off the page and I picked the perfect place to be reading this book, New York itself. Harlem and The Bronx have always fascinated me and of course I have a thing for jazz. Unfortunately, I didn't get to hear any this time around but I definitely lucked out by reading this book. Spoitify didn't know what hit it as I hopped from artist to artist!
This is a gritty book and evokes the feelings and temperament of the hard-boiled detective books ala Chandler. It was dark and moody. You could picture every scene vividly as the rich descriptions made it feel like you were slipping into a different reality.
Let me know if you pick this one up!
Quick read, great for fans of SA Cosby. A modern day look into the jazz scene of the Harlem Renaissance, chalk full of suspense, drugs, opportunity, and love. Short and tight writing, but I could have used a longer story!
This story has really good bones, unfortunately I felt that I never got enough of Viper's inner life to get invested in him as a character or on his love for Harlem after he initially fell in love with it to get invested in the setting. I saw the things he did but it all felt clinical and it only rarely felt engaging even though a lot of tragic events happed to him. I assume the intent was to convey Viper's own sense of disconnect from his own actions but the result wasn't convincing for me.
I ended up being more invested in Yolanda whom I found to be a tragic but sweet character and Pork Chop who seemed to have a richer inner life but sadly we don't get their side of the story.
I received a review copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I ended up being more invested in Yolanda whom I found to be a tragic but sweet character and Pork Chop who seemed to have a richer inner life but sadly we don't get their side of the story.
I received a review copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
This crime fiction was a true depiction of Black Crime fiction and is a product of its time. There is homophobic slurs used for the time frame of book, misogyny, and sexism! Overall this was a quick book about loss, grieve, and greed. What happens when you never get what you think you deserve?
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a sad read for me. I have often wondered how people get into dealing drugs and that life and now I have at least 1 perspective. This was my 1st book by Jake Lamar and I will def read another book by him.
#VipersDream
#NetGalley
#VipersDream
#NetGalley
Thank you to Libro.FM for this Audio ARC.
Viper’s Dream felt like a Noir movie. It was really gritty and dark. I really enjoyed all the aspects of the Jazz Age in Harlem. It was so vibrant, even with the darker themes of the book. This book covers some really heavy topics. CWs: mentions of drugs, drug abuse, overdose, violence, murder.
Viper’s Dream felt like a Noir movie. It was really gritty and dark. I really enjoyed all the aspects of the Jazz Age in Harlem. It was so vibrant, even with the darker themes of the book. This book covers some really heavy topics. CWs: mentions of drugs, drug abuse, overdose, violence, murder.
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced