Wednesday, July 05, 2006
The most recent book that I’ve finished reading was “The Dain Curse” by Dashiell Hammett. It was just OK. A good detective story needs a good detective as the lead character, and Hammett’s Continental Op is definitely an interesting fellow. Nonetheless, I found that the plot contained too many contrived twists and turns, and I was able to guess who the villain was far too early for my tastes.
It’s worth noting that I’m not a huge fan of crime fiction, but if I see something interesting at a used bookstore or laying on a bargain book table, I’ll pick it up. I've dabbled in Elmore Leonard and James Ellroy. I read “The Black Echo” after reading a profile of Michael Connelly in a magazine; the same article prompted me to read “The Long Goodbye” because Connelly cited it as a big influence on his own work. Both Harry Bosch and Philip Marlow are strong enough characters to make me want to read more of their exploits.
In the world of true crime, my good friend and former co-worker Dave Copeland is hard at work on a book called "Blood & Volume", and you can read an excerpt here.
It’s worth noting that I’m not a huge fan of crime fiction, but if I see something interesting at a used bookstore or laying on a bargain book table, I’ll pick it up. I've dabbled in Elmore Leonard and James Ellroy. I read “The Black Echo” after reading a profile of Michael Connelly in a magazine; the same article prompted me to read “The Long Goodbye” because Connelly cited it as a big influence on his own work. Both Harry Bosch and Philip Marlow are strong enough characters to make me want to read more of their exploits.
In the world of true crime, my good friend and former co-worker Dave Copeland is hard at work on a book called "Blood & Volume", and you can read an excerpt here.
Labels: crime fiction, criticism, Dashiell Hammett, Elmore Leonard, Michael Connelly, noir, Raymond Chandler
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