THE FOOLS IN TOWN ARE ON OUR SIDE by Ross Thomas

Finished We 4/29/2020

I finished this very old paperback the first time after a haircut at Chicago Hair on Su 12/22/96.

PROTAGONIST:
Lucifer Dye- He's involved with the American spy network- Section 2. He's being let go because a Chinese agent that they were trying to turn died while they were administering a lie detector test.

-Born in Montana by raised in on of Shanghai's most distinguished bordello.

After his severence he's approached by Victor Orcutt (red hair, very short, and a sharp dressed man) and asked to help 'clean up a town'. His motto is, 'to get better, it must get worse'.

The town that they have picked is nearly totally corrupt. All the group does is to replace the corrupt bosses with men that are on their payroll. "Nothing will change", it's just that the corruption will be delivered to different bad guys. 

Dye gets $50,000 to clean up Swankerton, a medium sized city on the Gulf Coast.

-Homer Necessary is the corrupt cop who is appointed the new chief in Swankerton. He's a most cagey individual.

"Hain't we got all the fools in town on our side? And ain't that a big enough majority in any town?" -- Mark Twain

Ross Thomas chose the quotation from Huckleberry Finn as the text of his post World War II story as well as for the title. When Lucifer Dye is released from three months in a Hong Kong prison, debriefed, handed a false passport, a new wardrobe and a $20,000 check, his haughty control makes it clear that Dye's career with his country has been permanently terminated. But a good agent is always in demand, and just a few hours later Dye is being interviewed for a highly ingenious position. Victor Orcutt, although a not very good imitation of a British pre-war gent, has creative talents of his own. He has his sights a small southern city, with the ordinary run-of-the-mill corruption one would expect in such a place. The canny Orcott knows there's no profit in that . His creed is "To get better, it must be much worse." He and his two associates have looked up Dye's history, and he now offers the ex-spy's a mission. For two and a half times the government's bounty, Dye is to thoroughly corrupt the town. And the sly Dye takes the offer."

The link to the book's page at Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fools_in_Town_Are_on_Our_Side

I liked the book and I would read more by Ross Thomas. 

DARK SACRED NIGHT by Michael Connelly

Finished We 4/22/2020

I ordered this from Amazon and received it on Th 1/2/20. This is the penultimate book in the Bosch series, and I finished it on We 4/22/2020.

Like all of the series there are a few cases highlighted, but the biggest case concerns a young woman named Daisy who was was murdered nine years earlier. Harry Bosch is working part time for the San Fernando Police in their Cold Case section.
A mother, Elizabeth, lost her her daughter, Daisy to murder and Harry agreed to help catch her killer. Elizabeth, a recovering addict, is living in Bosch's house (as a roommate) and she's deeply indebted to Harry. However, she leaves late in the novel and is found dead of an overdose.

This case is the cornerstone case of this novel. The serial killer was a 'cleaner' for the LA police department. He ran an outfit that cleaned up after brutal homicides or suicides and he had a 'rape/kidnapping' cage in the back of his van.

Rene Ballard is a very sharp detective working 'the late show' (third shift) for the Hollywood division. She's an avid surfer and most days sleeps on the beach in a temp with her dog guarding the area.

In the end of the book she and Bosch decide to collaborate and get the bad guys off the street. Bosch's pension is probably more than Rene makes, so he can work without compensation.

There might even be a romantic connection in the future.

A review from the Washington Post:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/two-loner-detectives-find-each-other-in-michael-connellys-darkly-brilliant-new-novel/2018/10/30/11c411fe-dbd1-11e8-b732-3c72cbf131f2_story.html

From the book's page at Amazon:

Harry Bosch teams up with LAPD Detective Renée Ballard to face the unsolved murder of a runaway, and the fight to bring a killer to justice.

Detective Renée Ballard is working the night beat -- known in LAPD slang as "the late show" -- and returns to Hollywood Station in the early hours to find a stranger rifling through old file cabinets. The intruder is retired detective Harry Bosch, working a cold case that has gotten under his skin.

Ballard can't let him go through department records, but when he leaves, she looks into the case herself and feels a deep tug of empathy and anger. She has never been the kind of cop who leaves the job behind at the end of her shift -- and she wants in.

The murder, unsolved, was of fifteen-year-old Daisy Clayton, a runaway on the streets of Hollywood who was brutally killed, her body left in a dumpster like so much trash. Now Ballard joins forces with Bosch to find out what happened to Daisy, and to finally bring her killer to justice. Along the way, the two detectives forge a fragile trust, but this new partnership is put to the test when the case takes an unexpected and dangerous turn.

Dark Sacred Night for the first time brings together these two powerhouse detectives in a riveting story that unfolds with furious momentum. And it shows once more why "there's no doubt Connelly is a master of crime fiction".

EARTHLY POSSESSIONS by Anne Tyler

Finished Su 4/19/2020

I finished this paperback in early November, 2006. On the flyleaf it shows that I was reading this novel when I was sent to 203 Goethe St., Collinsville, IL. I was to pick up a power trailer and the third wheel had sunk into the ground and I couldn't attach the cab. How much did I hate that job?

From the books page at Amazon:

"Charlotte Emory has always lived a quiet, conventional life in Clarion, Maryland. She lives as simply as possible, and one day decides to simplify everything and leave her husband. Her last trip to the bank throws Charlotte's life into an entirely different direction when a restless young man in a nylon jacket takes her hostage during the robbery--and soon the two are heading south into an unknown future, and a most unexpected fate...."

STARTS WITH A BANG:

Set in Clarion, MD

Charlotte Emory is waiting in line at the bank. She is getting cash so that she can leave her husband and children. The man behind her in line is a bank robber and he takes her hostage.

BIG QUESTION:

What would make a woman want to leave her husband and children? And the novel is a very funny, yet tragic examination of her life and how she came to believe that leaving was the only way to save herself.

Saul is her husband and he is one of four brothers. Each man has been damaged by their overbearing mother.

Saul- grim and determined to turn the whole world on to Jesus. He becomes a preacher after he marries Charlotte and she is an ardent non-believer. She learns too soon that they are vastly different people.

Linus- One of Charlotte's 'Lost Boys'. He makes tiny dollhouse furniture that's all over the house. The house is where her mother and father lived. Her mother lives with Saul and Charlotte and mom is closer to Saul and his siblings.

Julian- is a profligate gambler. He works at Saul's radio/TV repair shop to pay off his debts,

Amos- the youngest brother and he looks like Saul when he was younger and not quite so ridgid. Charlotte has an affair with Amos, but it's never really covered. It's kind of kept in the background. He wants Charlotte to run away with him, but Charlotte begins to realize that this is her life.

Jake is Charlotte's kidnapper and although he takes her at gunpoint, she develops a kind of attraction to him. They seem like the 'husband and wife' in the story.

Mindy is a young woman made pregnant by Jake. Charlotte and Jake drive to Florida to pick up Mindy who is staying in a shelter for unwed mothers. She is immature and doesn't love Jake, but she more or less kind of 'gloms onto him'. 

In the end of the novel Charlotte gives Jake the one hundred dollar traveler's check that she had hidden in her wallet 'for travel'. Jake pulls his gun and says that he will shoot her if she leaves, but he doesn't.

When Saul and Charlotte are back together Saul asks Charlotte if she would like to go on a trip. And Charlotte says no because she says that they have been traveling their whole lives and couldn't stop if they wanted.

Charlotte has changed her whole attitude to life and it's really left to the reader to determine how.

The novel unfolds with many very elegant flashbacks.

The novel's page at Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthly_Possessions_(novel)

COGAN'S TRADE by George V. Higgins

Finished We 4/15/2020

I bought this hardback on Amazon and got it on Fr 4/10/20. I had just seen the film, 'KILLING THEM SOFTLY' starring Brad Pitt and Richard Jenkins. In fact I ordered the book during the film.

This is probably the worst book (Acceptable- just old binding and pages) that I've bought used, but I'm lucky that I got it because some of the copies were going for two or three hundred bucks a pop.

PREMISE:

A small time mobster runs an after hours gambling club. He notices the large amounts of cash at his operation and decides to rob it himself thinking that no one would think that the owner would be behind the robbery. It might have worked, but he shot his mouth off about it.

A while later another crook decides that this would be a perfect place to rob because everyone would think that the owner of the club would believe that he was trying it again.

Johnny 'The Squirrel' Amato, Russell- junkie dog walker, and Frankie- small time hood are the guys that try it a second time.

Jackie Cogan is the mafia enforcer and he is sent to make things right. His liaison is  the man that is controlling the enforcer. In the movie these conversations (between Pitt and Jenkins) are the best part of the movie.

***The book is the direct opposite of a kind of book like David Baldacci. His books are novels built around 'power charged' plot driven story-lines. George V. Higgins writes from the characters' points of view. Pages are devoted just to musings and meandering discussions between the characters. Plot is very much secondary to these thoughtful posturings. It forces the reader to kind of 'read between the lines'.

From Wikipedia:

"PLOT:

Markie Trattman is the proprietor of a criminal poker ring operating in a New England neighborhood. He decides to orchestrate an inside job by paying two men to rob his poker room; although he later openly admits his involvement to various criminal figures, he suffers no retaliation. In the fall of 1974, a man named Johnny "Squirrel" Amato plans to rob Markie's next poker game, anticipating the mafia will blame Markie for the heist. He enlists Frankie, a former business associate, and Russell, an unstable heroin addict, to perform the robbery. Upon completing the crime, Russell travels to Florida.

"The driver", an emissary for the mafia, converses with a hitman named Jackie Cogan. Jackie has figured out who robbed the game, but even though he understands Markie was uninvolved, he believes Markie should be murdered in order to restore confidence amongst the local mobsters. After murdering Markie, Jackie meets with Mitch, another professional hitman, to prepare for the assassinations of Russell, Frankie, and Squirrel. Jackie becomes frustrated with Mitch's flagrant lechery and alcoholism, and convinces Driver to arrange Mitch's arrest.

Russell is arrested on a drug possession charge; meanwhile, Jackie confronts Frankie and agrees to spare him his life, on the condition he reveal Squirrel's whereabouts. Jackie murders Squirrel before murdering Frankie; he then meets with Driver to collect his fee. Driver refuses to pay Jackie in full, and Jackie demands his payment.

CHARACTERS:

Jackie Cogan, an enforcer/hitman for the New England mob. He is married and keeps his mob activities separate to his personal life, although his wife is aware of his work. His boss is Dillon who returns from The Friends of Eddie Coyle.
Frankie, a low level thug, just out of prison where he met his partner Russell.
Russel, an unstable, heroin addict thug, who robs liquor stores and clinics. He has a side gig stealing and breeding dogs. He was in prison 10 years prior to the novel.
Johnny 'Squirrel' Amato, a local mobster who employs Frankie and Russell to knock over the card game.
"The driver", a mysterious man who informs Cogan of his tasks that the mob have set."

HELL'S CORNER by David Baldacci

Finished Sa 3/11/2020

This is a paperback that Janny loaned to me.

This is the last of 'The Camel Club' series. Oliver Stone, his real name is John Carr, formed a group of political watchdogs that are always looking for conspiracies. The group is composed of a half dozen people who have various areas of expertise. John Carr was formally involved with a secret assassination wing of the CIA know as 'The Triple Sixes'.

PLOT EXPLAINED:

The novel begins with an explosion in Layette Park. A park in Washington DC directly across from the White House. Four People in the park; Woman who worked nearby is sitting on a bench talking to her lover, an overweight Hispanic runner who dives into a hole that was left open to plant a tree, an important international double agent, and Oliver Stone.

The woman who worked in a building near the explosion is the bad guy.

Stone and the authorities are stymied as to the reason for the explosion. Right after the blast, a group of terrorists opened fire with automatic weapons, but they were firing blindly. Why?

The reason for the attack is to test an application of 'nanobots'. They are trying to develop a way to render illegal goods undetectable by smell. This would allow the South American cartels a way to smuggle guns, drugs, atomic material, and anything else through the toughest security measures with zero chance of being detected.

The whole 'explosion exercise' was designed to see if the many police dogs in Lafayette Park were able to detect the smell of a bomb. So the blast was secondary to finding whether or not the nanobots masked the smell.

There were a million plot twists and turns and many red herrings.

The plot percolates right along, but the characters are mere cutouts or shells. I prefer novels with very rich character development and Baldacci is not known for this. 

All of Baldacci's stuff is very readable, but never rises to a level higher than an 'airport or beach read'.

VIVA LA MADNESS by J.J. Connolly

Finished Su 4/5/2020

This is a hardback that I got on Amazon and received on Mo 4/22/19 and I bought it because this author wrote 'LAYER CAKE'. I loved that book and it was made into a dynamite movie starring Daniel Craig. Connolly also wrote the screenplay.

I loved the book and wish Connolly wrote more books. I don't even know if he is still writing. He might have given it all up... maybe for the movie industry?

Apparently these are the only two novels that he wrote and 'VIVA LA MADNESS' might be a movie. Hope it is, but the book is ten years old.

Crazy wild story line with one ripoff and plot twist after another. The strength of the novel is the crazy characters.

Unnamed Lead Character- He is a holdover from the first novel. In this book he is living in Jamaica trying to leave the drug game. He was a drug importer centered in London. This novel is about how he is lured back into 'the game'. But, the rip-offs are dizzying.

Mr. Mortimer (Morty)- A large black man. He's a boss and an enforcer.

Sonny King- A roided-out crazy man. Violent psychopath with no boundaries. He kills and changes points of view randomly. A very dangerous man.

Roy Burns- Another boss, but certifiably crazy. Twitches when nervous and he's always nervous. Good with listening devices and surveillance equipment. Very violent man.

Ted Granger- A bigger boss in the English drug culture. He fakes his own death.

Bridget Granger- She's Ted's brother and also a boss. She's the brains of the outfit, yet Ted takes the credit. Also very violent and good with weapons.

Set in Jamaica, Barbadoes, and England.

 From the book's page at Amazon:

"Now Connolly is back with a sequel that sees him on the same stunning form, with his trademark razor-sharp dialogue and quick-fire violence, but also finding dark humor and pathos in the lives of violent men. From the London underworld, Viva la Madness moves to international crime with trans-Atlantic drug deals, money laundering, and high-tech electronic fraud, portrayed with the same uncanny believability. The anonymous hero of Layer Cake is pulled back into the drug game before he can escape to a sunny retirement. In a dazzling combination of London low-life, Caribbean high-life, and Venezuelan drug cartels toting machine-guns in Mayfair, our hero's voice and mission are authentic, thrilling, and whiplash-inducing in equal shares."