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A review by sjlee
The Sins of the Fathers by Lawrence Block
3.0
I picked up this book because I was looking for something along the lines of a traditional detective/noir mystery. I watched the film 'A Walk Among the Tombstones' and so the Matthew Scudder character and style definitely had an appeal.
The story takes place in the 1970s and the book was written at the same time. As a result, there were aspects to it that were difficult to easily digest as a reader in 2021. The discussion or depiction of women, abuse, and queer people is definitely not what I would consider 'correct' in the current era. However, the book got a pass because certain ideas were not developed at that time. Moreover, I thought Block did a decent job of making people into characters rather than caricatures. Many of the characters in the story are dealing with trauma and their behaviours are informed by that. Some of Block's conclusions may be a bit simplistic, but one could argue it's working with familiar tropes and clichés.
Scudder is an interesting protagonist. He's clearly pressed in the noir/anti-hero mould. He's a good investigator, but he's haunted by past mistakes. He operates under his own system of morality, which at times will be in opposition to the reader's. He wasn't a clean, heroic cop, but he does seek justice - in his own terms.
Probably my principle objection was how the primary victim in the case found herself in a life of sex work. I found the narrative leading to that point off-putting. The ultimate killer did tie things together, but seemed pretty straightforward. I suppose the interesting aspect to that is the killer's motive rather than who the killer is.
Overall I am willing to give Block and Matthew Scudder another look.
The story takes place in the 1970s and the book was written at the same time. As a result, there were aspects to it that were difficult to easily digest as a reader in 2021. The discussion or depiction of women, abuse, and queer people is definitely not what I would consider 'correct' in the current era. However, the book got a pass because certain ideas were not developed at that time. Moreover, I thought Block did a decent job of making people into characters rather than caricatures. Many of the characters in the story are dealing with trauma and their behaviours are informed by that. Some of Block's conclusions may be a bit simplistic, but one could argue it's working with familiar tropes and clichés.
Scudder is an interesting protagonist. He's clearly pressed in the noir/anti-hero mould. He's a good investigator, but he's haunted by past mistakes. He operates under his own system of morality, which at times will be in opposition to the reader's. He wasn't a clean, heroic cop, but he does seek justice - in his own terms.
Probably my principle objection was how the primary victim in the case found herself in a life of sex work. I found the narrative leading to that point off-putting. The ultimate killer did tie things together, but seemed pretty straightforward. I suppose the interesting aspect to that is the killer's motive rather than who the killer is.
Overall I am willing to give Block and Matthew Scudder another look.