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emckeon1002's review against another edition
5.0
Though you could read this as a standalone, I'd recommend reading The Power of the Dog and The Cartel first. At 700 pages, there's plenty of story here, and no filler. There is a bit of catch-up explication to start, but once it picks up speed, hold on. There's much to recommend it, from the returning characters, to the cartel which regenerates lost limbs like a starfish. The plot is, unfortunately, altogether too familiar, with a criminal administration in the White House, and a corrupt shadow government fueled by drug money. Another great read from Winslow.
lavoiture's review against another edition
4.0
A fitting end to this American epic. I did have to skim and skip some chapters that were too focused on kids; I do wish the book had stuck just with the drug story.
rocketiza's review against another edition
3.0
With all he did in the first two, I felt like he'd already explored the drug culture to the point where this wasn't as interesting. Also, as a reader for escapism from the current political environment, involving it while I applaud him for doing it still at the same time limited my ability to enjoy. The plots weren't as quite as tightly woven as the first two either. Basically, he set the bar so high that this was fine but didn't make me run around telling everyone they needed to read this after.
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Someone I follow on Instagram did a “What are you reading this weekend?” post. I responded with this book. The person replied: “I’ve never read Don Winslow but I’ve heard good things.”
Hmm.
On the one hand, Winslow is one of my favorite, reliable writers. He churns out some incredible crime fiction, including epic historical crime fiction that integrates real events into the narrative. I’m reading what he’s writing.
On the other hand, Winslow’s art is hard to separate from the artist, especially when he intentionally clashes the two as he does in this book.
Mind you, Don Winslow’s not a bad guy as far as I know. This isn’t art-from-the-artist criticism of a guy who is an abuser or racist. To my knowledge, Winslow is neither.
What Winslow is, indeed what he thrives on being, is one of the many persons who either found or grew in popularity (Winslow is the latter) by being an obnoxious anti-Trump pest on social media.
Now, I’m anti-Trump as far as things go and if Don Winslow and I were going to chat about politics, we’d probably agree on 80-90% of things.
What I could never abide by in the four miserable years of the Trump presidency (and the two years since) is this cottage industry of people constantly tweeting, posting, memeing the same stuff over-and-over again with no depth, no understanding, nothing beyond getting the likes and RTs and clicks, clicks, clicks.
It was weird when I’d see Winslow’s stuff suddenly pop up in the feeds of those who I knew weren’t crime fiction fans. He had found his niche among the Resistance Twitter movement that was so popular and so incredibly proud of itself. It’s absolutely not my thing, it’s a massive turnoff, and I worry about its impact in politics in the long term.
So 300 words since I began, what exactly does this have to do with The Border?
Well somehow, Art Keller, perhaps one of the dirtiest soldiers in the War on Drugs, becomes head of the DEA under Barack Obama for reasons that aren’t very clear. There’s no way in hell someone turns an assassin into a bureaucrat in DC. But ok, for the sake of the story, I let it go.
And what a story it is! The familiar maneuverings of drug lords and the American government that tries to stop them (or do they?). It’s Winslow at his finest! It’s why I love his work so much.
But then, inevitably, we get to Keller’s confrontation with Obama’s successor, a man named John Dennison who is Trump in everything but name, down to the hair, the New Yorkness and the Tweets. His son in law, whose last name is “Lerner,” is transparently Jared Kushner.
Like many Americans who woke up on 11/9/16, I was horrified at what my country had done and felt like a stranger in a foreign land. And there are very legit criticisms for me, a cishet white guy of high education and relative middle class comfort feeling that way.
What I cannot buy, and what indeed soured me on the rest of the book, was Art Keller feeling this way.
Art Keller?
Art Keller???
The same guy who did covert ops in Vietnam? Who joined the DEA under Nixon? Who took part in this universe’s version of Iran-Contra? Who did a bunch of stuff in the first two books that was certainly illegal, blatantly imperialistic, and occasionally evil?
That Art Keller was surprised??? And hurt? And shamed to be an American?
Yeah, so I, as the young people say, could not.
At any rate, the rest of it devolves semi-predictably with a conclusion that I can’t decide if it’s cathartic or (Benoit Blanc voice) just dumb. And thus, it makes it impossible to separate the art from the artist here: A Hashtag-The-Resistance binge tweeter turning the most compelling character he’s ever created into the same thing.
It’s a great series, one I go back fifteen years on. And this needs to be read if you want to complete it. It will still probably go down as one of my favorite books of 2023, cuz Winslow is a great writer despite himself.
But man, oh man, I wish I didn’t know the artist.
Hmm.
On the one hand, Winslow is one of my favorite, reliable writers. He churns out some incredible crime fiction, including epic historical crime fiction that integrates real events into the narrative. I’m reading what he’s writing.
On the other hand, Winslow’s art is hard to separate from the artist, especially when he intentionally clashes the two as he does in this book.
Mind you, Don Winslow’s not a bad guy as far as I know. This isn’t art-from-the-artist criticism of a guy who is an abuser or racist. To my knowledge, Winslow is neither.
What Winslow is, indeed what he thrives on being, is one of the many persons who either found or grew in popularity (Winslow is the latter) by being an obnoxious anti-Trump pest on social media.
Now, I’m anti-Trump as far as things go and if Don Winslow and I were going to chat about politics, we’d probably agree on 80-90% of things.
What I could never abide by in the four miserable years of the Trump presidency (and the two years since) is this cottage industry of people constantly tweeting, posting, memeing the same stuff over-and-over again with no depth, no understanding, nothing beyond getting the likes and RTs and clicks, clicks, clicks.
It was weird when I’d see Winslow’s stuff suddenly pop up in the feeds of those who I knew weren’t crime fiction fans. He had found his niche among the Resistance Twitter movement that was so popular and so incredibly proud of itself. It’s absolutely not my thing, it’s a massive turnoff, and I worry about its impact in politics in the long term.
So 300 words since I began, what exactly does this have to do with The Border?
Well somehow, Art Keller, perhaps one of the dirtiest soldiers in the War on Drugs, becomes head of the DEA under Barack Obama for reasons that aren’t very clear. There’s no way in hell someone turns an assassin into a bureaucrat in DC. But ok, for the sake of the story, I let it go.
And what a story it is! The familiar maneuverings of drug lords and the American government that tries to stop them (or do they?). It’s Winslow at his finest! It’s why I love his work so much.
But then, inevitably, we get to Keller’s confrontation with Obama’s successor, a man named John Dennison who is Trump in everything but name, down to the hair, the New Yorkness and the Tweets. His son in law, whose last name is “Lerner,” is transparently Jared Kushner.
Like many Americans who woke up on 11/9/16, I was horrified at what my country had done and felt like a stranger in a foreign land. And there are very legit criticisms for me, a cishet white guy of high education and relative middle class comfort feeling that way.
What I cannot buy, and what indeed soured me on the rest of the book, was Art Keller feeling this way.
Art Keller?
Art Keller???
The same guy who did covert ops in Vietnam? Who joined the DEA under Nixon? Who took part in this universe’s version of Iran-Contra? Who did a bunch of stuff in the first two books that was certainly illegal, blatantly imperialistic, and occasionally evil?
That Art Keller was surprised??? And hurt? And shamed to be an American?
Yeah, so I, as the young people say, could not.
At any rate, the rest of it devolves semi-predictably with a conclusion that I can’t decide if it’s cathartic or (Benoit Blanc voice) just dumb. And thus, it makes it impossible to separate the art from the artist here: A Hashtag-The-Resistance binge tweeter turning the most compelling character he’s ever created into the same thing.
It’s a great series, one I go back fifteen years on. And this needs to be read if you want to complete it. It will still probably go down as one of my favorite books of 2023, cuz Winslow is a great writer despite himself.
But man, oh man, I wish I didn’t know the artist.
citizen_noir's review against another edition
5.0
Don Winslow’s “Power of the Dog” trilogy comes to an end with “The Border.” This final brilliant book is the exclamation point for the entire brilliant trilogy, which is as gripping and un-put-down-able as anything I’ve read in years.
These books aren’t for everyone. The depictions of violence, brutality, cruelty, and abuse of all manner can be hard to stomach, but none of it felt exploitive to me.
Instead, it’s clear that Don Winslow has strong feelings about the War on Drugs and the failures of so many institutions and people - from the junkie on the corner to the POTUS - to alleviate the scourge of drugs and addiction on society.
I’d give this six stars if there was an extra one and highly recommend it, with the aforementioned caveat about some of the depictions.
These books aren’t for everyone. The depictions of violence, brutality, cruelty, and abuse of all manner can be hard to stomach, but none of it felt exploitive to me.
Instead, it’s clear that Don Winslow has strong feelings about the War on Drugs and the failures of so many institutions and people - from the junkie on the corner to the POTUS - to alleviate the scourge of drugs and addiction on society.
I’d give this six stars if there was an extra one and highly recommend it, with the aforementioned caveat about some of the depictions.
pio_near's review against another edition
5.0
Brilliant! A tour de force of crime writing today!
Drug families, double-crosses, vendettas... they're all there!!
In a superb narrative of the ongoing drug war, Winslow gives voice to thousands of affected men, women, children, agents and shot callers that both perpetuate and seek to dismantle the drug cartels that plague society. Painting real stories from both the distributor and user perspective, Don pays homage to the fallen of this war... those shot down in deals to those looking to score on corners.
With overflowing humanity, Winslow paints people at their lowest point and at their shining peak to encapsulate the difference of wealth the government, trust-funders and politicos have from the average, down-on-their-lucks and hardworking folks today.
While abjectly bleak at times, this book (and though I have not read it personally, the series) shows us that there is overwhelming good in society.
I feel the real question Don raises is... will WE be the change. Do we stand up to wrong, tyrany and crime, or do we go along with what the past has wroght?
A strong series, and an obvious choice for Greg Isles lovers!
Drug families, double-crosses, vendettas... they're all there!!
In a superb narrative of the ongoing drug war, Winslow gives voice to thousands of affected men, women, children, agents and shot callers that both perpetuate and seek to dismantle the drug cartels that plague society. Painting real stories from both the distributor and user perspective, Don pays homage to the fallen of this war... those shot down in deals to those looking to score on corners.
With overflowing humanity, Winslow paints people at their lowest point and at their shining peak to encapsulate the difference of wealth the government, trust-funders and politicos have from the average, down-on-their-lucks and hardworking folks today.
While abjectly bleak at times, this book (and though I have not read it personally, the series) shows us that there is overwhelming good in society.
I feel the real question Don raises is... will WE be the change. Do we stand up to wrong, tyrany and crime, or do we go along with what the past has wroght?
A strong series, and an obvious choice for Greg Isles lovers!
cgcang's review against another edition
2.0
Winslow should have waited a few years before writing this book. Giving a Don Winslow book 3 stars feels absolutely awful.
The Power of the Dog and The Cartel are both masterpieces. I was under the impression that The Border would live up to them. I was also very worried that Winslow's political sensitivities would turn this book into a 800-page-sermon. Turns out, I was right. The Border is yet another example to prove that when political prose overshadows fiction writing, the end product is almost never good literature.
Winslow seemingly felt he had to write this book because he had to get ahead of whatever stupid shit the Trump administration was about to do. He had more than enough political motivation. He had very little literary motivation. And this shows in the book.
The plot is all over the place. The characters are all over the place. The book feels forced and dragged out at almost every turn. And the ending is absolutely terrible. Endings are very very important to me and this is hands down the worst ending in any Winslow book that I read.
Is it all bad? No. Up until the last 100 pages the plot was actually promising. It was a hard sell but the book had me interested throughout. Some character arcs and plot threads were good. Bobby Cirello was a very good character. Sinaloans and the cartel people were more or less interesting. Belinda was a good character. But that's about it and the ending didn't even do these characters justice.
Sean Callan was in the book but was totally unnecessary as a character. Nora Hayden was back, but in the end it felt like she was brought back only for a scene in which she confronts the president and threatens him with releasing information about his sexual kinks and perversions. Different cartel factions and characters had different story arcs that in the end either did not go anywhere at all or were wrapped up unsatisfactorily. Nico's and Jacqui's character arcs connected in the end but it was so rushed that it didn't really mean anything. And so on...
Winslow botched the ending. There's no other way of saying it. The story is laid out in 750 pages. And Winslow tried to wrap it all up in 30 pages. And failed. By the way, these 30 pages include the repetition of the whole prologue. The action in the end was weak. Many story threads were left incomplete. The ending was overall very unsatisfactory.
If my review feels messy, it's primarily because the book itself is.
Despite my disappointment, The Border is a big and mostly fun book. It would have easily deserved 5 stars with a good enough ending. But as it is, if you liked The Power of the Dog and The Cartel, you really don't need to read The Border. If you are curious about Winslow's take on the US-Mexico border or the war on drugs, just find any Youtube video in which he talks about The Border and he'll bring you up to speed. You won't find much else in the book anyway.
Edit: On second thought, The Border is a huge step down from The Cartel and it doesn't even deserve 3 stars.
The Power of the Dog and The Cartel are both masterpieces. I was under the impression that The Border would live up to them. I was also very worried that Winslow's political sensitivities would turn this book into a 800-page-sermon. Turns out, I was right. The Border is yet another example to prove that when political prose overshadows fiction writing, the end product is almost never good literature.
Winslow seemingly felt he had to write this book because he had to get ahead of whatever stupid shit the Trump administration was about to do. He had more than enough political motivation. He had very little literary motivation. And this shows in the book.
The plot is all over the place. The characters are all over the place. The book feels forced and dragged out at almost every turn. And the ending is absolutely terrible. Endings are very very important to me and this is hands down the worst ending in any Winslow book that I read.
Is it all bad? No. Up until the last 100 pages the plot was actually promising. It was a hard sell but the book had me interested throughout. Some character arcs and plot threads were good. Bobby Cirello was a very good character. Sinaloans and the cartel people were more or less interesting. Belinda was a good character. But that's about it and the ending didn't even do these characters justice.
Sean Callan was in the book but was totally unnecessary as a character. Nora Hayden was back, but in the end it felt like she was brought back only for a scene in which she confronts the president and threatens him with releasing information about his sexual kinks and perversions. Different cartel factions and characters had different story arcs that in the end either did not go anywhere at all or were wrapped up unsatisfactorily. Nico's and Jacqui's character arcs connected in the end but it was so rushed that it didn't really mean anything. And so on...
Winslow botched the ending. There's no other way of saying it. The story is laid out in 750 pages. And Winslow tried to wrap it all up in 30 pages. And failed. By the way, these 30 pages include the repetition of the whole prologue. The action in the end was weak. Many story threads were left incomplete. The ending was overall very unsatisfactory.
If my review feels messy, it's primarily because the book itself is.
Despite my disappointment, The Border is a big and mostly fun book. It would have easily deserved 5 stars with a good enough ending. But as it is, if you liked The Power of the Dog and The Cartel, you really don't need to read The Border. If you are curious about Winslow's take on the US-Mexico border or the war on drugs, just find any Youtube video in which he talks about The Border and he'll bring you up to speed. You won't find much else in the book anyway.
Edit: On second thought, The Border is a huge step down from The Cartel and it doesn't even deserve 3 stars.
nixieknox's review against another edition
3.0
Such a great ending. Marisol is so bad-ass -I wanted to be invited to her Christmas Eve party. As always there is a LOT to take in and remember, but less so than the previous book. I remain hopeful for the kid. Completely forgot about Sean and Nora but was so glad they made an appearance. This had the best parts of the first two books.
Heartbreaking portrayal of the drug war in that corner dealers get tossed in jail but major money players get nothing.
Heartbreaking portrayal of the drug war in that corner dealers get tossed in jail but major money players get nothing.
bryce_is_a_librarian's review against another edition
4.0
It doesn't have the focus of Power Of The Dog, or the relentless apocalyptic sprawl of The Cartel, but The Border is a fitting capstone to a trilogy that will go down as one of the great visions in pulp fiction Winslow's vision of the cartel as a self perpetuating structure that corrupts all it touches remains one of the most vivid in crime fiction.