Joe’s Comments (group member since Nov 27, 2018)

Joe’s comments from the Point Blank group.

Hello Simon, House of Fear sounds interesting...you mention horror -?... The advertising blurb says Leonora Carrington is a mixture of fiction with realty & surrealism...I'll give it a read soon... -I used to read a lot of Don Delillo (Underworld, White Noise, Libra...) who ventures in the surreal-realty territory...and of course you could draw a line back to James Joyce (Ulysses), William Faulkner (The Sound & the Fury), Thomas Pynchon (Gravity's Rainbow)...I would even put Jack Kerouac (On The Road) in that territory...but I'm sure all are stylistically different from Carrington. I started off reading crime-fiction as a teen, then fell into years & years of sci-fi and free-form as listed...but since 9/11 it seems I've reverted back to reality-based crime-fiction (and non-fiction) as is read on Point-Blank (Justin & Kurt do a great job leading the way through this genre with their podcasts). I for one feel that the noir & P.I. authors write the rules of real-life in an entertaining way that connects with me (simplified an eye-for-an-eye maybe)...That would be the classics David Goodis, Ross Macdonald, to Ed McBain & Lawrence Block to modern writers like S.A. Crosby and too many to mention...then there's the neo-noir crime-fiction movement (for lack of a better title) led by Jason Starr, and followed by Paul Heatley and many other writers in the same vein...In this heated-world realism speaks to me better than free-form, sci-fi, fantasy, etc....-I'm very impressed by your logged book count of 1,000+...LOL...I subscribed to GoodReads in 2013 but never logged a book till 2019! Oh well!

on wrote: "I am right now reading House of Fear by Leonora Carrington, which tangentially relates to horror but certainly not the realistic crime fiction this group is dedicated to."

for me it's been slim-pickin's though 2020 up to today...I've taken a new/old approach, I'm going with my old stand-by favorite authors for five books...I just finished one by Thomas H. Cook, The Crime of Julian Wells, which wasn't his best but was pretty good, plus I knew what I getting into for an enjoyable read and not rolling the dice on unknown author...I'll continue that plan with David Goodis Dark Passage up next...-Ha!!! LOL...always changes...I read The Expendable Man by Dorthy Hughes within the last year...BUT...haven't read Pink Horse...I'm gonna do it! Goodis is gonna have to wait one book!

I've been busy with digitizing old photos lately so not much on the Good Reads Point Blank scene....but I always like to list my five recent crime-fiction reads...feel free to comment, debate, list your own...-other than Dead Dogs by Manny Torres (#3) it's been kind of slim-pickins' since the first of the year...-also, I sometimes write too much...read what ya want....

1. Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden (2020), A solid first novel for author David...strong plotting beginning to end...characters realized...action scenes believable...overall a fun read about Lokota tribe enforcer Virgil who must save his nephew from evil elements. Only negative is the writing, or prose, from word to word by the author...there's this odd cadence to the way he puts words together...sentences & paragraphs....I found it repetitive & boring...I wish I could put it in words better...maybe a better editor -? But this can be can be tweaked and there will be more excellent books & stories by this author, David...3.5 outa 5 stars...

2. The Dead Are Discreet by Author Lyons...The Dead Are Discreet by Arthur Lyons (1974) is a first novel and isn't very good. I read it because I like to read crime-fiction that was written in '70's. The book introduces former reporter now a Private Investigator, Jacob Asch. to the genre. The plot is unimaginative, A to Z, Private Investigator fodder..the cast is cardboard cutout...it gets kinky near the climax (pun intended) and that twist barely makes sense, it came off obligatory...and...the final two paragraphs are absolutely horrible, made me want to puke...I'd like to exlpain why the very final was so bad, but I try my best to stay away from spoilers...if you read it you'll see why..Oh, also, the 'who done it' portion of Discreet was lame and barely made sense I am going to read the second book in the Jacob Asch series, All God's Children, supposed to be about L.A. Biker Gangs and got good reviews...we shall see...barely 2 outta 5 Stars only because it's a first book...read my entire review at My Books...the torture never stops...

3. I liked Dead Dogs by Manny Torres ALOT! (2020, Kindle, $5.99, 151 pgs)...it's a quick slam-bang Road-Noir novel...it's follows two mis-fits, Phobos and Chuck (they kinda reminded me of the John Mellencamp song Theo & Weird Henry only dipped in a stenching, caustic, bubbling, poisonous brew of Road-Noir), who are in debt to wheel-chaired bound local kingpin Boots, who has a side endeavor of running nightly dog fights...To work off their debt to Boots, Phobos and Chuck must dispose of the Dead Dogs, and the occasional human! From this point on you delve into the carrying on of these two, and the mostly mean people they get entangled with, and the violence they encounter around every corner...Did I say Violence! Yes sir! If you like slam-bang violence this one's for you! But I wanted to point out the well crafted writing of Manny Torres...I wouldn't say he has prose, wording is pretty straight forward, but the way he pieced the novel together makes for interesting reading...He starts with Phobos and Chuck, who they are and their predicament/conflict...then he cuts to a whole, seemingly unrelated group and what they are doing...and then he jumps again...etc...makes for interesting reading, keeps you on your mental toes. In fact, I wish I had taken some simple notes of characters names etc while reading...But
never fear, all comes together quite satisfactorily at the end with a strong ending...-I plan on re-reading Dead Dogs a second time this summer and have a pencil & paper handy to jot down some simple notes and character names along the way...yeah, I liked Dead Dogs plus it's an interesting read...4.0 outta 5.0 stars!

2. Kiss Me, Judas by Will Christopher Baer Man, I've been picking a lot of Bad books lately...I was really looking forward to this one....a new author to me, pretty good reviews, a neo-noir, had me thinking maybe a new Jason Starr..also, it takes place in Denver where I live and one setting is Ft. Logan Mental Health where my wife used to work for 16 ears. It had me excited...then, I got close to the half-way point in the book and said, 'This ain't doing it for me!' The lead character was cartoon like..very quickly there's a lot of meaning-less woman and meaning-less sex...the two main crimes in the book are NOT enough to keep one centered on the plot (that's due to the writing)...so, yeah...stick a fork in me, i'm cooked...i've got some very good books on my pile, i'm-a gonna move on! 0 Stars...it SUCKS!

1. A Coffin for Dimitrios by Eric Ambler...the high-mark is Eric Ambler's writing, his prose is top-notch. It's always fun to read a writer who is unique, uses the English language like a palette, and has his own voice ( ex: Don Delillo, Ross Macdonald, Hemingway, etc.), author Eric Ambler is one of those writers...-Dimitrios was very similar in plot to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness (Apocalypse Now)...the main charactor, Englishman Latimer, a mystery writer...basically gets pulled into the case of the murdered Dimitrios in Turkey...Latimer's investigation leads him on a journey to Sofia, Bulgaria, and on to Paris. On the way Latimer interviews a number of characters...at each stop the departed Dimitrios legend builds & builds making him a larger-than-life character...See the resemblance to Heart of Darkness...a journey, characters along the way, a huge build-up of the antagonist...even the end is similar to HoD (no spoilers)...so, the story was familiar...Next, I found a lot of the scenes took place in discussion or in flash-back....there was some real time action but it happened in the last 30 pages...sooo, I got kind of bored reading this book...and for me that's the last nail in the coffin...-To sum-up, Dimitrios was well written but I feel the plot was borrowed and I got bored reading it (But, I did finish)...3 Stars from me...

Justin - There's a series called New Chicago Classics Books...the series contains six modern crime-fiction noirs including North and Central by Robert Hartley....I have Gunmetal Blue (New Chicago Classics Book 3) by Joseph G. Peterson on my Kindle pile...I'll read it next and see if it's Worthy!!! -I'm off to a bad reading year...nothing much over three Stars at my Good Reads My Books ratings...-Except...I'm now reading The Crime of Julian Wells by Thomas A. Cook...it's pretty good so far! Thomas H. Cook has become my new #1 author the last five years or so...he's a great writer and always comes through...check him out...

Justin wrote: "I'm re-reading Blacktop right now, and it's really good. It itself is a solid response to my concerns about Chandler.

I wish I could answer your question Joe re: if Chandler wrote straight. . ."

"if Chandler wrote straight. . ."...just something to ponder...Ya know, Chandler...LOL...I just don't like the guy...every time I see a photo of him I think, "Dude...you're a wad!" Ha! In Double Indemnity when he's sitting in the hallway outside the office door I always think, "Haven't you got anything better to do? Hit the road ya loitering bum!" lol...-yeah...a reread of Blacktop Wasteland coming up next book

Lawrence wrote: "I have noticed that the phone app is awful. Any time I want to pot comments, it's strictly on the pc or laptop.

I'm looking forward to the next installment. I will read Blacktop Wasteland at some ..."

Hi Lawrence, from here on out I'm going to write my long Comments on Word, or what have you, and then copy and paste to the Comments window...could be my lap-top but this disappearing-act only happens with on-line Comments window panes...lol...and that's a pain!

I just wrote a couple of paragraphs in Reply...it was good...I neared the end, I hit a key, and poof! The f--ker disappeared! Gol, why is this Comment software so unstable? - I don't have time to re-gurge the whole thing...what I said was:
1. The Publishing angle (racism) is credible, they decide the tone of a book by committee...that includes $$$ and politics (racism)...
2. Chandler was a nasty drunk (well documented by Billy Wilder and Justin & Kurt in their podcast)...he carried baggage including racist views...to be devils advocate, would he have included his racists views if he wrote straight?
3. I've read all the Chandler's and just re-read Farewell for the podcast...The Long Goodbye is my fave and a P.I. classic...I have no desire to read Chandler again...
4. Justin & Kurt's next podcast covers Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby, a Great, New & Modern crime-fiction novel about an African-American mechanic, Family-man, business-man who returns to the life of crime...the writing show how to handle the subject correctly (for lack of a better way to put it right now)...I've read it, it's a great & fun read, and, I'ma-gonna-read-it-again! -The first time I wrote this was much better...

Thanks Nicholas for the quicky run-down on Len Deighton and Berlin Game...yes I read Berlin Game a while back...I need to review it (in fact, I just went to my entry for it on My Books and I didn't write a mini-review nor leave a score which I almost always do...what's up with that-???!!!!...:-))...let me take a look at Berlin Game and I'll get back to you in a few days...

Here's my top five for 2020...

Honorable mention: The Silence of the Rain (2003) by Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza First book of a triology...Police Procedural where an older detective investigates a murder & insurance fraud in Rio...Garcia-Roza is a word-smith who has his own style...plot-line is standard but the writing is so good it lifts the book to the next level...

5. Cold Caller (1998) by Jason Starr...Starr is the King of neo-noir, hands down...all these newer authors like Paul Heatley (Bad Bastards) owe a lot to Starr...Cold Caller is Starr's first major novel...The story follows narcissistic sociopath Bill Moss through his low-level career and love-life in New York City...and the only answer to his life issues there appears to be murder....

4. Blacktop Wasteland (2020) by S.A. Cosby...this is an Excellent crime-fiction novel...Epic in scope and very American for lack of a better word...a African-American car mechanic with a family gets pulled back into the life...no spoilers here, Justin & Kurt are going to cover this novel as a Podcast...soon...

3. North and Central (2017) by Bob Hartle (on again off again Point Blank sub)...Very Noir-ish Crime fiction in Chicago late '70's...the writing has a modern Goodis feel to it...the characters and local are very believable as is the bar-fly life for these down-and-outers...-glad my days of hanging out in dumps like this are loooooong gone....fun to read about though....

2. The Expendable Man (1963) by Dorthy B. Hughes...author of In A Lonely Place...this novel has really stuck with me...a modern day mystery taking place in Phoenix, AZ...where the desert & heat are almost a character itself...almost a sociological tale as much as a mystery...it would be very easy to slip into spoiler mode describing this novel...go read it, you'll like it...

1. The Chatham School Affair (1996) by Thomas H. Cook...This is the best book I've read in quite a while...it's just over 300 pages and I read it in two sittings, I couldn't put it down...Told in flash-back it follows the Cape Cod town of Chatham, 1926, and the uproar over the arrival of the new art teacher. Told by a 14-year old boy who is a student of the art teacher and son of the school's Head Master, a dark psychological thriller that leads to murder. Part witch-trial, part Scarlett Letter, part Hot For Teacher (rip evh), a great story...Enough said....the book won the Edgar for Best Novel in 1996 and deserved it...flawlessly written. Thomas H. Cook has become my favorite author over the last three years...

Tony wrote: "Been reading outsider/drifter american autobiographies, 1930’s to 1950’s. All have criminal elements. All are hard boiled as a 10 minute egg:

Top 5: The panzram papers, somebody in boots, daughte..."

very cool...i'll check 'em out...thanks Tony

Greetings, Happy New Year...looking forward to the upcoming Point Plank Podcast by Kurt & Justin!

Hey, what were your top five crime fiction reads for 2020? It's always interesting to see what others have read and pick-up a title or two...The books can be old or new, doesn't have to be from 2020....-I'll post my list later today!

Lawrence wrote: "I've been somewhat off the air. I'll probably watch one more episode this weekend."
Hi Lawrence, I watched the three Eps. of Criminal Spain...I liked it, it was fun...a lot of back & forth pysch dialogue that kept you on your toes...they could have expanded it easily with the sub-plots, like the ending where the jilted boy-friend detective double-crosses the head lady detective...there was a lot of ways they could have taken the story-line...I'll probably give Criminal Germany a go...thanks, again!

you bet Dennis! Than you for reading...yeah, a really good first novel!

Girard wrote: "87th Precinct - definitely familiar ground! I haven't done any in-depth assessment of these. I've been downloading the Kindle editions when they become available at 99¢. I now have 38 of 'em. The A..."
Hey Girad, Wow! 38..you're well on your way to collecting the whole set...-You know....2020 has been such a weird & pathetic year, even my reading has gone sour!!! :-) I'm in the middle of Motor City Blue by Loren E., supposed to be a semi-classic...ahhhh, I don't like it...at all! I hardly ever bail on a book...when I was younger I NEVER bailed, finished everything, no matter...but this past year I've set aside a number of books because they were just bad...so, what am I going to do about it-? Why visit the the 87th Precinct of course! I've got a few lined up... -I'll look into Dead Lions later tonight and I'll be back in touch! Thanks!

Alright Lawrence, I'll do that right now, I'v got a couple of free hours...thanks for the recommend! -yes, i'll let you know...

Hi Girard! Sorry about the delay, been a busy week...Thanks for the 'chat'! -Eric Ambler, & Mick Herron have caught my eye, I'll check them out...-Hey, let's discuss familiar ground, Ed McBain and his 87th Precinct...yes, police procedural at their best....that's my fave element of the 87th. But I've noticed some reviews aren't too crazy about McBain's writing and I think it may be because police procedural can be cookie-cutter, so its understandable but, I like these stories (I also really like Connelly's Bosch); the inter-workings of the cops, etc...I've read maybe 20 to 30 of the 87th's since I was a teen...I now wish I had kept track because I have re-read a couple by mistake. I have a pile of about seven 87th's here that I recently bought at the used-book store...the first one I read, of my new buys, was King's Ransom (#10, 1959) ...Why?...My favorite Japanese film-noir is High and Low, an excellent film, suspenseful and gets a grip on you from beginning to end...that film was based on the 87th King's Ransom...this book was pretty good, smaller in scope than the film but also held you in suspense...I've got a review at my Goodreads My Books... I gave King's Ransom 4 outa 5 stars! -Well, I'm quite often long-winded, I'm trying to break that...here's some good Ed McBain 87th links:
Ed McBain Books in Order
https://www.bookseriesinorder.com/ed-...

 Hark! The 87th Precinct Podcast! (a good British 87th podcast...here's the link to the first episode): Ed McBain's Cop Hater: Episode One, Bonus Episode - Ken and Sandra Internet...
http://hark87podcast.blogspot.com/201...

Alice in Jeopardy (2004) – an Ed McBain stand alone that's pretty good..
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-re...

Also, the best for last...Ranking the 87th Precinct Mysteries at blog Tipping My Fedora...this a GREAT blog/site. There's a ton of crime-fiction related stuff here...At the link below, starting half-way down the page ("OK, first off let me just say that King’s Ransom,...")...here he ranks the top 12 87's with a bonus pick, and the worst five...here's the link...:
https://bloodymurder.wordpress.com/20...

Jay wrote: "Some years ago, I read an essay that concluded that all the characters in Do Androids Dream... are androids."

Yes, there's a lot of chatter out there that Deckard is an "Andy"...I'll dig in and research what the examples are in the novel...give me a week or so...

Kurt wrote: "Welcome and thanks for listening. I’m glad your both enjoying the bio segments. I “know” we aren’t supposed read to much of the author into the work, and let the work speak for itself....but I can’..."
Hi Kurt, Almost two years since you posted but I thought I'd reply... I also can't not "read too much of the author into the work"... Along with taking in a book's story-line I always research the author and find out what makes this person tick, in fact I can't continue forward with a book without knowing his/her bio and how the writers past effects the writing (a little bit)...a simple example: Faulkner grew up in Mississippi, so, this explains why Faulkner writes about Mississippi...but I like to take it a little further and get an introduction to what influenced an authors views...example, Philip K. Dick took A LOT of drugs as a young adult....LOL...so, Philip K. Dick is quite often soft on drug use in his novels...-so, that's just me but i gotta know, a little bit, about the author and what was behind, or led up to, the point of pen to paper...

Hello Lawrence, Criminal has piqued my interest as well...I'll watch an episode this weekend and let's discuss next week...

Greetings...are there any Point Blankers who are aficionados of Spy fiction who could enlighten us for Justin & Kurt's upcoming podcast, E52, Spy Fiction? -I've read a fair amount of Spy fiction and there's a few that I would consider noir. In my teens I read the entire Bond series by Ian Fleming (still have them stashed in the basement)...my favorite was On Her Majesty's Secret Service. An excellent book...but not noir. I really liked Six Days of the Condor by James Grady, Grady is a really good writer. From memory I'd say Condor comes close to noir-fiction with the man on the run theme, etc...The one novel that I think is close to qualifying as noir-fiction though, is, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold by John le Carre. Now I'm not a big fan of Le Carre...Tinker, Tailot, Soldier Spy was a snooze fest imho...BUT, The Spy Who, etc, is excellent, and dark, dark, dark! The entire book is noir-ish right up to the bitter end...-What Spy fiction have you read?