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A review by usbsticky
The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling by Lawrence Block
3.0
I'm a big fan of the Matthew Scudder series, so much a fan that I ignored all the things I didn't like about Block's writing and finished it. I had previously read Rhodenbarr #1 but couldn't finish it. Now that I'm more forgiving of Block's writing I decided to give Rhodenbarr another try.
Spoilers ahead:
The same things I didn't like about Block's writing are still here, but now I'm an old friend and I just fast read the passages I don't like. Namely the things I don't like are: too much cutesy. It's too forced and a bit cringy. Also, Block's long writing, sometimes the extra pages of words seem like filler. The books aren't long to begin with and sometimes the dialog is just nonsensical or cringy. But now that I'm a fan of Block, I just tend to ignore the stuff I don't like.
The premise of this book is pretty good. Bernie is tasked to steal a one of a kind Kipling book. After he accomplished his mission, he was requested to drop it off at an apartment. When he got to the apartment he was drugged by a cup of tea and when he woke up, the book was gone and the woman who let him in was shot to death.
This kind of premise is line with the Bernie books. Something unusual happens and he's accused of it. This could have been the beginning of a pretty good plot but Block makes it too convoluted. Sometimes simpler is better. It's not the deviousness of the plot that appeals to the reader but the way it's presented to the reader. i.e, I would have liked it a lot more if Block had spent time on developing and writing an appealing simple plot, rather than writing a poorly written complex plot.
Still, I like the character, and I don't want to have to hunt for a new series/author to read so I'm going on to the next book.
Spoilers ahead:
The same things I didn't like about Block's writing are still here, but now I'm an old friend and I just fast read the passages I don't like. Namely the things I don't like are: too much cutesy. It's too forced and a bit cringy. Also, Block's long writing, sometimes the extra pages of words seem like filler. The books aren't long to begin with and sometimes the dialog is just nonsensical or cringy. But now that I'm a fan of Block, I just tend to ignore the stuff I don't like.
The premise of this book is pretty good. Bernie is tasked to steal a one of a kind Kipling book. After he accomplished his mission, he was requested to drop it off at an apartment. When he got to the apartment he was drugged by a cup of tea and when he woke up, the book was gone and the woman who let him in was shot to death.
This kind of premise is line with the Bernie books. Something unusual happens and he's accused of it. This could have been the beginning of a pretty good plot but Block makes it too convoluted. Sometimes simpler is better. It's not the deviousness of the plot that appeals to the reader but the way it's presented to the reader. i.e, I would have liked it a lot more if Block had spent time on developing and writing an appealing simple plot, rather than writing a poorly written complex plot.
Still, I like the character, and I don't want to have to hunt for a new series/author to read so I'm going on to the next book.