Bill Hagen:
<<One aspect of the review intrigues me. Quoting first
"...[women writers have
reimagined the hard-boiled novel, challenging not only the
patriarchal culture that defines these fictional worlds"
etc., with particular mention of Paretsky,
Grafton, and Muller.>>
Paretsky is definitely hardboiled. I dislike her work for
reasons that have nothing to do with boiling:
heavy-handedness, a somewhat careless technique, and an
overtly feminist agenda. Grafton and Mü¥² ¤on't seem hardboiled
to me. I think of Grafton as a lighter Ross Macdonald with a
wider variety of plots
(Macdonald only had one: the missing daughter or son). I
haven't found Mü¥²§³ work very appealing.
My current favorite hardboiled female writers are Billie Sue
Mosiman and Teri White. They are originals who belong in the
broader tradition of realistic crime writing started by
Hammett (rather than the Chandler-inspired lone-guy PI novel,
which seems pretty exhausted, though it can still shine in
the right hands).
In summary, whatever Grafton and colleagues have reinvented,
it isn't the hardboiled PI novel, a formula that seems
threadbare from use. If I have to take that formula, I would
rather read Greenleaf, Lyons, Estleman, or Pronzini. Their
work is entertaining without being hoaky.
Regards,
mt
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