Helpful Score: 4
This was the first Hard Case Crime book that I've read. I thought it would be a cheesy little book, but instead I was quite delighted. Everything "went" together and there weren't any loose threads left dangling as you often see happen with the huge best selling authors. If you would like to read a good "Who done it" in an afternoon, then this book will fit the bill.
From Publishers Weekly
Aleas's debut barrels forth at the speed of one of the Manhattan taxis its protagonist frequently catches and contains some whiplash-inducing plot twists. John Blake, an NYU dropout turned PI, is stunned to learn that his high school girlfriend, Miranda, who he thought went to medical school and then on to lead a tame life in the Midwest, actually became a stripper. Even more shockingshe's been murdered. Angry and confused, Blake looks into Miranda's past, beginning at a 10th-rate strip joint owned by some unsavory characters. A dancer there helps him at her peril, and he endures some beatings himself as he nears the surprise conclusion. Still, despite the seedy settings, Aleas's writing is more tinged with insight than blood; Blake reflects that "there is such a thing as... a sense of duty to the things of your past, even if they're not quite as beautiful as you remember." Gritty New York streets and scummy apartments flash by briskly, but Aleas has a detective's eye for detail, which allows him to create some atmospheric scenes (when Blake walks through a busy section of Queens, he notes everything from the kosher certification sign in a bakery's window to a drugstore's "out-of-season Coppertone displays"). Tightly written from start to finish, this crime novel is as satisfyingly edgy as the pulp classics that inspired it.
Aleas's debut barrels forth at the speed of one of the Manhattan taxis its protagonist frequently catches and contains some whiplash-inducing plot twists. John Blake, an NYU dropout turned PI, is stunned to learn that his high school girlfriend, Miranda, who he thought went to medical school and then on to lead a tame life in the Midwest, actually became a stripper. Even more shockingshe's been murdered. Angry and confused, Blake looks into Miranda's past, beginning at a 10th-rate strip joint owned by some unsavory characters. A dancer there helps him at her peril, and he endures some beatings himself as he nears the surprise conclusion. Still, despite the seedy settings, Aleas's writing is more tinged with insight than blood; Blake reflects that "there is such a thing as... a sense of duty to the things of your past, even if they're not quite as beautiful as you remember." Gritty New York streets and scummy apartments flash by briskly, but Aleas has a detective's eye for detail, which allows him to create some atmospheric scenes (when Blake walks through a busy section of Queens, he notes everything from the kosher certification sign in a bakery's window to a drugstore's "out-of-season Coppertone displays"). Tightly written from start to finish, this crime novel is as satisfyingly edgy as the pulp classics that inspired it.
this was my second hard case crime to read and i loved as i did the first.good fast reads.
I swappped for this book after reading The Colorado Kid by Stephen King. Little Girl Lost was described at the end since both books are Hard Case Crime books. Although the latter was better than the former, both endings were disappointing and I doubt I'll read anymore books from this genre.
4-star Hard-Case Crime novel
Excellent suspense. I loved this book.
Miranda Sugarman was supposed to be in the Midwest, working as an eye doctor. So how did she wind up dead on the roof of New York's seediest strip club? Ten years earlier, Miranda had been P.I. John Blake's girlfriend. Now he must uncover her secret life as a strip tease queen. But the deeper he digs, the deadlier the danger...until a shattering face-off in an East Village tenement changes his life forever.
Miranda Sugarman was supposed to be in the Midwest,working as an eye doctor. So how did she wind up dead on the roof of New York's seediest strip club?
Ten years earlier, Miranda had been P.I. John Blake's girlfriend. Now he must uncover her secret life as a strip tease queen. But the deeper he digs, the deadlier the danger.....until a shattering face-off in an East Village tenement changes his life forever.
Ten years earlier, Miranda had been P.I. John Blake's girlfriend. Now he must uncover her secret life as a strip tease queen. But the deeper he digs, the deadlier the danger.....until a shattering face-off in an East Village tenement changes his life forever.
