I was very much looking forward to reading Chinaman's Chance.
My excitement only increased when I read the blurb by Brian
Garfield (should I know who he is? is he on this list?) on
the dust jacket of the copy I got my hands on. It said
something like, "combines the compassion of Ross MacDonald,
the descriptive insight of John D. MacDonald, the toughness
of James M. Cain, the breeziness of Rex Stout and the
recovered memory and command of French of Marcel Proust."
(Okay, I made up the last part about Proust.)
Well, I guess I couldn't help but be underwhelmed after that
kind of buildup.
Struck me as much more in the jokey school of Robert
Parker et. al. than the real tough-guy school. The politics
of the book, and the sense of evil, were shallow, and the old
stock figure Eastern Establishment Wasp pulling the strings
was way too much of a deux ex machina to my taste.
I coincidentally read Kem Nunn's Tapping the Source right
after Chinaman's, which is much more in line with Garfield's
quote than Thomas' book, and also managed to contain that
special evocation of Southern California that seems to also
be a hallmark of the genre.
That said, it was an enjoyable read, but I was surprised at
just how breezy it was. I have a stack of Thomas' book coming
my way courtesy of Ebay, and I am interested in delving
deeper into his oevre to try and get a better sense of what
the fuss is all about.
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