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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
This novel works expertly as both a detective story and a character-driven story on the struggle to keep the light on in our soul. Chapter 8 is a great example. Matt Scudder goes to talk to a woman familiar with the nine-year-old murder he is investigating. But they both happen to be incipient alcoholics, a condition they slowly begin to sense about each other in a long conversation with some difficult and revealing questions. As it develops, you suddenly realize that Block has set the crime story aside to favor the deeper concerns of a mainstream novel. Later, Scudder’s ex-wife calls him to say that the aged family dog had to be put to sleep. Their sons had grown so old that they ignored the pet, but the wife cherished and misses the dog. She has no one else who knew of him to talk to. Block devotes a page and a half to that awkward, human moment. Again and again lonely people reach out or fool themselves into thinking they don’t need to. The book is a dark but honest meditation on human need.
I continue to find Matt Scudder’s unconventional sense of justice engaging. Coupled with his increasingly perilous relationship with booze, his hero persona has begun to have leanings towards the ‘anti’ side of the hero spectrum, adding complexity and intrigue to these short investigative stories.
Steamy scale 0.5 of 5. (Audible)
Steamy scale 0.5 of 5. (Audible)
Made a recent commitment to make my way through Lawrence Block’s Matthew Scudder series. I found the first three enjoyable enough for passing the time but mostly unmemorable. This was the first one that really moved me.
And that’s surprising because the crime itself is based on a mystery trope I hate: slashed women/murdered women/serial killer. When I saw the plot for A Stab in the Dark, I audibly groaned. I can’t stand books like that and I rarely read them. Had I not already been familiar with Block’s work, I might’ve just dead ended the series here.
Fortunately, Block does not give in to cliches. Sure, his Scudder is an alcoholic ex-cop working as a PI but I knew I wasn’t going to get any We have to protect the city from the bad men who seek to ruin it kind of bs. Scudder doesn’t have the energy to be a cynic; he’s too drunk and depressed most days. He’s just trying to do his job because it gives him focus.
So no, there are no genius serial killing masterminds. Just a guy taking a case in part for cash and also to stave off the boredom that leads to binge drinking. We get a whirlwind tour of the city, from Scudder’s Hell’s Kitchen haunts out to Brooklyn and even as far as Long Island. The people he interviews feel real and not like stock characters. The plot is tense. The conclusion is iffy; it’s probably my least favorite part of the book. But it works.
I’m excited that Block took this series up a notch and am looking forward to getting to the rest of it.
And that’s surprising because the crime itself is based on a mystery trope I hate: slashed women/murdered women/serial killer. When I saw the plot for A Stab in the Dark, I audibly groaned. I can’t stand books like that and I rarely read them. Had I not already been familiar with Block’s work, I might’ve just dead ended the series here.
Fortunately, Block does not give in to cliches. Sure, his Scudder is an alcoholic ex-cop working as a PI but I knew I wasn’t going to get any We have to protect the city from the bad men who seek to ruin it kind of bs. Scudder doesn’t have the energy to be a cynic; he’s too drunk and depressed most days. He’s just trying to do his job because it gives him focus.
So no, there are no genius serial killing masterminds. Just a guy taking a case in part for cash and also to stave off the boredom that leads to binge drinking. We get a whirlwind tour of the city, from Scudder’s Hell’s Kitchen haunts out to Brooklyn and even as far as Long Island. The people he interviews feel real and not like stock characters. The plot is tense. The conclusion is iffy; it’s probably my least favorite part of the book. But it works.
I’m excited that Block took this series up a notch and am looking forward to getting to the rest of it.
Eredetileg: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/2008/01/22/lawrence_block_dofes_a_sotetben/
Block főhőseinek mind van egy kisebb-nagyobb hibája. Bernie Rhodenbarr tolvaj, J.P. Keller embereket öl, Matthew Scudder pedig, ennek a könyvnek a főhőse magányos és iszik. Többnyire magában, bár itt éppen találkozik valakivel, aki mellett még ha részegen fekszik le, akkor se ébred másnaposan, de ezt az állapotot nem lehet tartani. Scuddert egy kilenc éve történt gyilkosság megoldásával bízzák meg. Vagyis felkérik, hogy tegyen szívességet, hisz ő hivatalosan nem magánnyomozó. Akkoriban ugyanis sorozat gyilkos jégcsákánnyal nőket ölt, méghozzá nyolcan estek neki áldozatul. Most elfogták a tettest, aki hét gyilkosságot be is ismert, a nyolcadikat azonban nem. Az áldozat apja kéri fel Scuddert, hogy derítse ki, vajon ki ölte meg Barbarát. Senki se áltatja azzal, hogy könnyű dolga lesz: hisz annak idején azonnal úgy gondolta mindenki, a jégcsákányos a gyilkos, ezért aztán nem is nyomoztak más irányban, hanem egy kalap alá vették a többivel, ezért nincsenek meg a rutin kihallgatások, nyomozások amik egyedi esetekhez kijárnak. Ráadásul mintha mindenkinek, akinek köze lett volna az esethez, felfordult volna az élete, akárcsak Scuddernek, aki anno részt vett a nyomozásban. De ő módszeresen beleveti magát a nyomozásba, s a maga tempójában egyre több mindent talál, ami érdekes lehet. Nagyon bírom, hogy Block nem kendőzi el, mennyi felesleges talpalással, telefonálással, kutatással, hány zsákutcával jár egy ilyen nyomozás, nem minden pikk-pakk oldódik meg, mint a filmeken.
Szóval Scudder nyomoz, járja New York utcáit, ahol spórolásból egyre rövidebb ideig tartanak nyitva a könyvtárak, fogyatkoznak a rendőrök, nő a bűnözés és folyik az alkohol. A főhősnek pedig a saját életével, múltjával és a pohár fenekével is szembe kell nézni. Rövid regény, de a Blocktól megszokott tömör stílus mögött van elgondolkodtató mondanivaló is. Na és persze a nyomozás is izgalmas.
Block főhőseinek mind van egy kisebb-nagyobb hibája. Bernie Rhodenbarr tolvaj, J.P. Keller embereket öl, Matthew Scudder pedig, ennek a könyvnek a főhőse magányos és iszik. Többnyire magában, bár itt éppen találkozik valakivel, aki mellett még ha részegen fekszik le, akkor se ébred másnaposan, de ezt az állapotot nem lehet tartani. Scuddert egy kilenc éve történt gyilkosság megoldásával bízzák meg. Vagyis felkérik, hogy tegyen szívességet, hisz ő hivatalosan nem magánnyomozó. Akkoriban ugyanis sorozat gyilkos jégcsákánnyal nőket ölt, méghozzá nyolcan estek neki áldozatul. Most elfogták a tettest, aki hét gyilkosságot be is ismert, a nyolcadikat azonban nem. Az áldozat apja kéri fel Scuddert, hogy derítse ki, vajon ki ölte meg Barbarát. Senki se áltatja azzal, hogy könnyű dolga lesz: hisz annak idején azonnal úgy gondolta mindenki, a jégcsákányos a gyilkos, ezért aztán nem is nyomoztak más irányban, hanem egy kalap alá vették a többivel, ezért nincsenek meg a rutin kihallgatások, nyomozások amik egyedi esetekhez kijárnak. Ráadásul mintha mindenkinek, akinek köze lett volna az esethez, felfordult volna az élete, akárcsak Scuddernek, aki anno részt vett a nyomozásban. De ő módszeresen beleveti magát a nyomozásba, s a maga tempójában egyre több mindent talál, ami érdekes lehet. Nagyon bírom, hogy Block nem kendőzi el, mennyi felesleges talpalással, telefonálással, kutatással, hány zsákutcával jár egy ilyen nyomozás, nem minden pikk-pakk oldódik meg, mint a filmeken.
Szóval Scudder nyomoz, járja New York utcáit, ahol spórolásból egyre rövidebb ideig tartanak nyitva a könyvtárak, fogyatkoznak a rendőrök, nő a bűnözés és folyik az alkohol. A főhősnek pedig a saját életével, múltjával és a pohár fenekével is szembe kell nézni. Rövid regény, de a Blocktól megszokott tömör stílus mögött van elgondolkodtató mondanivaló is. Na és persze a nyomozás is izgalmas.
Block is always better than I think he will be. He does what he does perfectly and then some. If you are in the mood for a classic hardboiled big city private investigator mystery, then look no farther than the Matthew Scudder series.
Besides writing a tight, well paced mystery, Block imbues his lead with believable, relatable emotions and actions. Scudder is a flawed human and not just a two dimensional protagonist solving a tricky crime. The development of his character isn't perfect (must Block always have Scudder fall into bed with a woman? Can't he ever get turned down?) but maybe having a love interest, no matter how tenuous, is something most readers want?
As for the mystery itself, it was compelling and kept me reading. Of course, like in most mysteries, there is the cliched final scene where the killer has to explain everything in great detail - too bad that doesn't happen more in real life. On the upside, all the main characters weren't assembled in the drawing room for the explanation haha. Honestly, though, I have to admit I kinda like it when mysteries end that way. It just rings more false in urban, cop mysteries than it does in quaint English villages.
Besides writing a tight, well paced mystery, Block imbues his lead with believable, relatable emotions and actions. Scudder is a flawed human and not just a two dimensional protagonist solving a tricky crime. The development of his character isn't perfect (must Block always have Scudder fall into bed with a woman? Can't he ever get turned down?) but maybe having a love interest, no matter how tenuous, is something most readers want?
As for the mystery itself, it was compelling and kept me reading. Of course, like in most mysteries, there is the cliched final scene where the killer has to explain everything in great detail - too bad that doesn't happen more in real life. On the upside, all the main characters weren't assembled in the drawing room for the explanation haha. Honestly, though, I have to admit I kinda like it when mysteries end that way. It just rings more false in urban, cop mysteries than it does in quaint English villages.
For the most part it was decent, but points off for having a lesbian turn straight due to the charms of the detective. Weird story choice but I guess it was a different time.