The Big Sleep

Enter The Big Sleep.  Can I use this made up verb " Wodehousesque" for every book that makes me feel this way?    It flowed.  It had a life of it's own with simple language that described an atmosphere unmistakeably Hollywood.  This book was Hollywood to me, and there are only an extremely small amount of writers that can do that for me (Ray Bradbury being the only other...see? That small!).  I am extremely ignorant of many things, so when I begin to read or even write about things I hardly ever do any research (no risk of spoilers that way!), so I really did not know that this book had been made into a movie and that Humphrey Bogart was the protagonist.  All the while I was reading it, I pictured, and heard Humphrey in my head.  And it was not until I was looking for a picture to post with my blog entry that I saw that was the case.  Funny how that happens eh?  Usually though, my modus operandi is to research the movie, and not watch it until I have read the book. 

 

Next in the series (isn't it exciting to discover a new series that is already complete?).  With the set-up already in place ( The Big Sleep), it was so easy to just slide in to this world.  Some guys are just heroes, without really saying anything at all, and Philip Marlowe is a man of action.  His moves speak volumes which is pretty fabulous to come across in a novel.  I was reminded of  Ray Bradbury's "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" when I read this book, and it gave the story an extra dimension, and an emotional attachment to me because I love all things Bradbury.  I have ordered the next in the series, and look forward with great anticipation to revisiting Philip Marlowe's world again.  It was after reading this book that I began The Last Policeman trilogy, and I am pleased to say that the contrast between characters was pratically non-existent.  Both protagonists are true heroes and real men in  my eyes (well...not real men, I mean ideal men, my definition of men with strength of character and convictions... you didn't think I thought they were real honest to goodness people did you?)

World of Trouble

I was having a difficult time sleeping last week, and on this particular night, as it was a weekend, I decided to stop just lying there tossing,  turning, and twitching, so I finished this book.  I was close to doing so, but had decided to hold off until the next day and give it my complete attention ( I was getting pretty tired...).  So I did, I stayed up and read on until it was finished.  Guess what I dreamt of when I finally went to sleep that night?
Which brings me to my next thought.  While I read these books, every now and then mild curiosity would graze my consciousness about what I would do if I were in the same situation?  I tried not to spend any thought on it at all... I am the kind of person who prefers to deal with it if it comes, and not imagine desperate scenarios.  Why waste time on something that may not ever happen? While I do not live as if every day is my last, I sure as heck don't like to waste time, so I live my life doing what I love doing best.  My dream showed me what I would do.  I was in a room (with loved ones supposedly, but as it is with dreams, there is not really anyone specific), but I knew I was with people I loved, and I was getting annoyed, because as the time grew closer to the inevitable, these shadows would keep on closing the curtains, and I would struggle to open them again, because I wanted to see!   In lots of my dreams there are bizarre obstacles to overcome, and I struggled through each one to make sure that I could see what was happening...kind of like a Robert Munsch book, where I repeated actions over and over again to get to the end result.  Finally, after pulling down curtains, breaking blinds, and ripping apart with my bloody hand's storm shutters, I saw.  I saw an eclipse, then some spectacular aurora borealis, and then a rapidly brightening light in the sky...which was when I woke up. 
Wow!  How's that for a book that made a powerful impact? (and I totally did not mean for that to be a double entendre, but clever me anyway har har!).  I wish I could speak to Ben H. Winters in person and thank him for such an amazing tale.  An adventure that had me fan-girling Hank, thinking in ways that had me reaching conclusions and seeing things that I have never considered before.  
So if you are looking for an apocalyptic crime fiction which will lead you through to the end of the world with lots of adventure and food for thought along the way, a story that feels real, this is the biscuit!  I mean it.  I can't wait to see what Winters does next as you know I will be first in line to buy it!

Countdown City

The second installment of The Last Policeman trilogy, it does not disappoint.  I have sometimes found that when a trilogy is planned, the middle book is mostly stuffing, a little bit of filler before the exciting stuff happens in the last book, not so with Countdown City.  The protagonist Hank Palace is to me, a very 'Harry Dresdenesque' character (the kind my best friend and I fan girl about).  He fights the good fight no matter what, he cares beyond the reason of his peers, and he suffers for his attempts to do the right thing.  Enmeshed in the drama of this amazing policeman's life is the other drama surrounding him, of the world about to end.  This book packed a powerful punch and in all the right places, and I'm looking forward to and dreading at the same time what happens next in World of Trouble.

The Last Policeman

                                    

I first read this two years ago and them promptly forgot it.  Why? Because it was  going to be a trilogy and I was not going to think about it again until I had the complete set beside my reading chair.  And it worked!  I actually did forget most of what happened (though really, after reading at least four hundred books between then and now, I guess it wasn't something I had to put too much effort into...).
I have, since the first time, developed a strong fondness for Ben H. Winters (well...Quirk Publishing in general).  Okay, I can even go as far as saying that I love this guy!  Since my first reading of The Last Policeman I have also read, Bedbugs, and Android Karenin (which was no small feat of adaptation!).  So I feel that I have come to know the author a little better.  Coming back to The Last Policeman was a treat (and considering that I had just finished Farewell, My Lovely by the great Raymond Chandler that's really saying something!).  I really paid attention to all the details, noticed more than I had forgotten, really got to know the protagonist Hank Palace. 
Now that the other two are published Countdown City and World of Trouble, I freely recommend this pre-apocalyptic, police detective series, it's a different spin on chaos, on humanity in a crisis, with a plot that is engrossing, and not too hard to follow.  Getting close to the end of Policeman I really felt the excitement, the build up to the finale which was not disappointing and it left, naturally, questions which I look forward to getting the answers to in the next two installments.

Clouds of Witness

                   
The second book in Dorothy L. Sayers' series Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries, it moved along at a very decent clip, was funny in parts, and re-established bonds from the previous book, as well as adding more for future stories.  I definitely prefer the cosy mystery, and with this series there is the added bonus of cultural references which, for the most part, I actually get.  I have grown fond of our leading man, and find his personality endearing.  I enjoyed this one like I did the last, and look forward to reading the next.

Just a Touch of Whimsy

                 
This year's reading theme is all about reading on a whim, and not to a set program of categories or amounts.  So far it has been kind of boring, not knowing what to read next, but I have been getting used to the idea, and have even begun to enjoy it.  I have not been reading as much as I have been previously, and it feels strange not to (so this month I have been focusing more on books).  Fellow members from the 2014 Reading Challenge have been very encouraging of my scheme and have also mentioned the crime fiction of Dorothy L. Sayers and her character Lord Peter Wimsey.  So, on a whim, I have decided that it might be fun to read some.
Naturally I started at the beginning with Whose Body.  I found the story to be quite shocking, actually.   Written in the twenties, it has that Wodehouse kind of flair (sans humour), being situated in London, and  this time period 1920's) has always been one of my favorites.  I liked Wimsey, and his universe.  I look forward to reading more about this character.