To mark Bleeck Midwinter month, I read the recent St.
Martin's Press reissue of this 1978 Ross Thomas novel. It
introduces his recurring con men characters Artie Wu and
Quincy Durant. The typically corkscrew plot involves a
missing folk singer, two million dollars stolen from the U.S.
embassy during the fall of Saigon, a dead Congressman, and a
Southern California town ripe for the picking.
It's a bracing piece of work. Not quite as good as Thomas'
masterpiece THE FOOLS IN TOWN ARE ON OUR SIDE, in which
Lucifer Dye's backstory has genuine weight, but it's
close.
No one writes Establishment types better than Thomas, and the
scenes where Mr. Simms negotiates with gym owner/money lender
Solly Gesini have a real crackle to them. I never completely
bought Lace Armitage as "one of the two bankable actresses in
the world," but her late scene with Durant has a
psychological acuity and an insider's feel for
Hollywood.
As for the scheme involving Pelican Bay ... I still think
that would work. Any of you rare birds want to throw in with
me, I can get the ball rolling.
Someone -- I believe it was Edgar nominee Larry Beinhart in
his book on writing mystery fiction -- said that every Elmore
Leonard novel was essentially the same: a big tough guy
irritates a little tough guy and ends up ruing the day.
Thomas' novels are similar. They generally follow the same
paradigm. There are two sets of criminals, and we root for
one because, well, they're our guys. I don't intend this as a
knock. Just as Leonard is able to wring infinite variations
on the theme, so is Thomas.
An earlier comment described Thomas as a writer of first-rate
light entertainments. I'd credit his books with more heft
than that. Reading them, you get a sense of how the world
actually works. They're often breathtakingly cynical. The
forces of law and order are always pursuing their own agenda.
And while the place names may change (the role Vietnam plays
in this book is taken by El Salvador in Thomas' last outing
AH, TREACHERY!), that agenda remains the same.
In their own way, his books are quite hard-boiled. Part of my
problem with a lot of contemporary HB fiction is that the
authors are so intent on proving their badass bona fides that
the books become almost comic. Thomas' overtly light touch
allows his work's darker nature to sneak up on you.
Great pick for the month, Bill. Thomas is a huge personal
favorite, and I'll take any excuse to read him.
Vince
www.vincekeenan.com Pop culture, high and low, past and
present. One day at a time.
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