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carol26388's review
4.0
What do I think? I think you should check out an excellent review:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/221045791
Or if Stephen's effusive praise gets a little windy, and the gifs are too troublesome, check out Dan's succinct thoughts:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/93909327
Really, what more is there to say?
Oh wait, don't forget Kemper's nice overview:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/148871276
Reviews brought to you by the trio of taco-talking trouble who drew me into this series.
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/221045791
Or if Stephen's effusive praise gets a little windy, and the gifs are too troublesome, check out Dan's succinct thoughts:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/93909327
Really, what more is there to say?
Oh wait, don't forget Kemper's nice overview:
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/148871276
Reviews brought to you by the trio of taco-talking trouble who drew me into this series.
satyridae's review
3.0
2014
Listening to this on audio was an interesting detour into the past, and I liked it better than I did 4 years ago. Maybe because I was listening to it and doing other things, so it was more like visiting an old friend.
2010
I remembered this series quite fondly and thought to revisit the whole thing, but have decided to bail out after book 2. This one has dated badly, and it's just not as much fun the second time through. I'm disappointed that I feel this way, but am not willing to keep at it when there are so many new and fabulous books to read.
Listening to this on audio was an interesting detour into the past, and I liked it better than I did 4 years ago. Maybe because I was listening to it and doing other things, so it was more like visiting an old friend.
2010
I remembered this series quite fondly and thought to revisit the whole thing, but have decided to bail out after book 2. This one has dated badly, and it's just not as much fun the second time through. I'm disappointed that I feel this way, but am not willing to keep at it when there are so many new and fabulous books to read.
jamespatrickjoyce's review
4.0
Lawrence Block's Scudder is a wonderful character. He and his world are entirely believable. In fact, these are stories that could be an account of a real guy's experiences, which is not usually the case in hardboiled detective fiction.
This is a hard-drinking PI (without a license) who, later in the series, kicks the booze and starts attending AA meetings at whatever church/center is closest. If you've seen the movie with Liam Neeson, then you know why he quit the police force (accidentally kills a child, while apprehending two murderers) and that's also why he becomes a functioning alcoholic. He's a complex character who is tough, but not able to kick a roomful of ass, a good detective, but not able to solve mysteries without the necessary luck and clues... basically, a believable knight in tarnished armour.
This one involves a murdered dominatrix, a framed cop who is dirty as hell, but not a murderer, political dirty dealing, and just a little bit of (off camera) sex. Oh... and a hell of a lot of drinking.
"It was a hard morning. I swallowed some aspirin and went downstairs to the Red Flame for a lot of coffee. It helped a little. My hands were slightly shaky and my stomach kept threatening to turn over.
What I wanted was a drink. But I wanted it badly enough to know not to have it. I had things to do, places to go, people to see. So I stuck with the coffee."
I like the honesty of his struggle, and how it progresses through the series.
This is a hard-drinking PI (without a license) who, later in the series, kicks the booze and starts attending AA meetings at whatever church/center is closest. If you've seen the movie with Liam Neeson, then you know why he quit the police force (accidentally kills a child, while apprehending two murderers) and that's also why he becomes a functioning alcoholic. He's a complex character who is tough, but not able to kick a roomful of ass, a good detective, but not able to solve mysteries without the necessary luck and clues... basically, a believable knight in tarnished armour.
This one involves a murdered dominatrix, a framed cop who is dirty as hell, but not a murderer, political dirty dealing, and just a little bit of (off camera) sex. Oh... and a hell of a lot of drinking.
"It was a hard morning. I swallowed some aspirin and went downstairs to the Red Flame for a lot of coffee. It helped a little. My hands were slightly shaky and my stomach kept threatening to turn over.
What I wanted was a drink. But I wanted it badly enough to know not to have it. I had things to do, places to go, people to see. So I stuck with the coffee."
I like the honesty of his struggle, and how it progresses through the series.
andrew23825's review
4.0
Solid story. Not many bells or whistles. Scudder's alcoholism is interesting. Just a good solid mystery.
ibeforem's review
4.0
I liked this soooooooo much more than When the Sacred Ginmill Closes. I like how Block doesn’t really narrate the story… he lets the characters tell you what’s going on through the dialogue. There’s no futzing around with pages of background story and set-up. The book does show its age at some points, with mentions of $20/week rent (in New York City!?) and Scudder’s reliance on pay phones, but it’s easy enough to look past. I guessed the bad guy, but not long before Scudder did. A nice, quick read.
knowledgelost's review
3.0
Private investigator Matt Scudder is back. This time he is on the case for NYPD cop Jerry Broadfield. While Broadfield was never going to be known as a pillar of society he was (mostly) an honest cop. But he seems to have rattled a few cages, mainly from the crook cops on the force. Now he is being set up.
Because The Sins of the Fathers was so short and I enjoyed it so much I went right into In the Midst of Death. Something I never do and that is normally because I never like to get entrenched in an author or a genre, so I always mix it up. But also because I find there are small elements that can become repetitive if you go from one book in a series to the next. While this is book three (which I originally thought was book two) Lawrence Block covers the same important information about Matthew Scudder; which is good for people reading out of order but jumping straight into this one after the first book, it felt more like a copy/paste job.
Unlicensed Private investigator is truly shaping into a great character and even though I’ve read two books in the series so quickly and one after the other, I still want to read more, which is a real testament to Lawrence Block’s writing skills. I love Scudder’s cynical attitude and his reluctance to work; he is truly a great hard-boiled protagonist in the making.
Corruption is a tricky game and while you are meant to hate Jerry Broadfield it is interesting the way Scudder goes about this case. While this was not as strong as The Sins of the Fathers, it still worked really well. I want more insights into the psyche of Scudder because I really think there is something dark waiting to come out. After my second Block novel, I’m starting to see just why he is respected as a modern pulp author and he is quickly becoming a favourite.
This review originally appeared on my blog; http://literary-exploration.com/2013/03/14/book-review-in-the-midst-of-death/
Because The Sins of the Fathers was so short and I enjoyed it so much I went right into In the Midst of Death. Something I never do and that is normally because I never like to get entrenched in an author or a genre, so I always mix it up. But also because I find there are small elements that can become repetitive if you go from one book in a series to the next. While this is book three (which I originally thought was book two) Lawrence Block covers the same important information about Matthew Scudder; which is good for people reading out of order but jumping straight into this one after the first book, it felt more like a copy/paste job.
Unlicensed Private investigator is truly shaping into a great character and even though I’ve read two books in the series so quickly and one after the other, I still want to read more, which is a real testament to Lawrence Block’s writing skills. I love Scudder’s cynical attitude and his reluctance to work; he is truly a great hard-boiled protagonist in the making.
Corruption is a tricky game and while you are meant to hate Jerry Broadfield it is interesting the way Scudder goes about this case. While this was not as strong as The Sins of the Fathers, it still worked really well. I want more insights into the psyche of Scudder because I really think there is something dark waiting to come out. After my second Block novel, I’m starting to see just why he is respected as a modern pulp author and he is quickly becoming a favourite.
This review originally appeared on my blog; http://literary-exploration.com/2013/03/14/book-review-in-the-midst-of-death/
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