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A review by eleellis
Atlanta Deathwatch by Ralph Dennis, Joe R. Lansdale
4.0
Atlanta Deathwatch by Ralph Dennis is the opening novel involving former police officer, now private investigator-slash-utility-man for-hire Jim Hardman and his close friend, ex-NFL player Hump Evans.
The series of novels were written in the 1970s and in an obvious hard-boiled style that belies that era when it comes to an urban environment. Joe Lansdale pens an excellent explanatory introduction to the series and describes how novels written by Dennis did not receive the attention they deserved, which is probably true.
The novel is a decent, rough-edged crime novel where Hardman and Evans are hired by a local crime baron nicknamed "The Man" to find out who murdered his girlfriend. The young woman is white and "The Man" is black, which adds to the complexity of the tale, especially when most are baffled of the relationship between a straight-laced woman and a crime lord.
Recommended for readers that enjoy novels as those found in the Hard Case Crime series and fans of Hap and Leonard by Joe Lansdale.
The series of novels were written in the 1970s and in an obvious hard-boiled style that belies that era when it comes to an urban environment. Joe Lansdale pens an excellent explanatory introduction to the series and describes how novels written by Dennis did not receive the attention they deserved, which is probably true.
The novel is a decent, rough-edged crime novel where Hardman and Evans are hired by a local crime baron nicknamed "The Man" to find out who murdered his girlfriend. The young woman is white and "The Man" is black, which adds to the complexity of the tale, especially when most are baffled of the relationship between a straight-laced woman and a crime lord.
Recommended for readers that enjoy novels as those found in the Hard Case Crime series and fans of Hap and Leonard by Joe Lansdale.