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Small Town: A Novel
A beautiful young woman called Marilyn picks up a stranger in a bar and takes him home to her Manhattan apartment. The next morning her housekeeper discovers Marilyn's body. Marilyn's life and death have far-reaching effects on others, even people she has never met: a charismatic former police commissioner on the verge of a breakdown; a struggling writer; a folk art dealer plumbing the depths of her own fierce sexuality; a lawyer who prefers murder trials because there's one less witness. And in a city reeling from 9/11, an unlikely mass murderer wages a one-man war against everyone. In this gripping, multi-faceted story, Block not only brings to life in brilliant detail the city of New York, but proves he is one of the most talented, innovative and surprising crime writers in the business.
464 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2002
85 people are currently reading
504 people want to read
About the author
Lawrence Block
761 books2,997 followersLawrence Block has been writing crime, mystery, and suspense fiction for more than half a century. He has published in excess (oh, wretched excess!) of 100 books, and no end of short stories.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 151 reviews
July 19, 2016
Apparently one of my favorite mystery writers has a bit of a kinky side.
This one seriously shocked me when I first read it back in 2002. Part of this was because Lawrence Block represents New York to me in a lot of ways, and it seemed like this book was his response to 9/11. While the shadow of that day hangs over everything, it was odd to find that a big part of the story also involved nipple rings, bondage and various sex toys.
The story starts several months after the Twin Towers collapsed. The body of a murdered woman is discovered in her apartment, and a writer named John Blair Creighton is arrested since he admits that he went home with her after they met in a bar. Art gallery owner Susan Pomerance gets fascinated by the case since the woman had been her realtor, and her morbid curiosity about the murder and Creighton comes as she discovers an increasing desire for new sexual experiences. Former police commissioner Francis Buckram is bored and killing time with public speaking engagements and considering running for mayor in the next election.
A series of shocking murders occur by a man the press dubs The Carpenter because of his use of a hammer as a weapon. Block reveals to the reader that killer was just another retired middle-aged New Yorker who lost his entire family because of 9/11, and now that grief has transformed into an insane belief that the city requires a series of sacrifices to sustain itself.
When a link is made from The Carpenter’s killings to the death of the realtor, Creighton becomes a celebrity and his stalled writing career takes off. Susan meets Buckram and seduces him with a dominatrix routine that shocks and thrills him. Susan also continues to be obsessed with Creighton while Buckram is fascinated by the manhunt for The Carpenter. Meanwhile, Creighton begins to enjoy his new found fame while having doubts about if he actually did kill the realtor while in an alcoholic blackout.
Block does a nice job of developing all of these characters and many more supporting players like a gay alcoholic cleaner who discovered the first body and finds himself an unwitting player in The Carpenter’s delusions. By putting together a series of chance encounters that have profound impacts on those involved, Block really does sell the idea that New York is really a small town when viewed from inside these webs of relationships. I particularly enjoyed the story of how Creighton’s shame at being accused of murder turns into the best thing for his life and career.
But damn there’s a lot of sex in this…..
Susan’s erotic adventures include a wide variety of encounters and Block spares no detail. It’s the same type of stuff he’s done in other books like Getting Off, but where he combined sex and murder seamlessly in that one, he never quite gets the same thing going here. Susan’s story seems removed and distant from what else is going on in the book despite her being one of the key links between everyone. Going from a story about a man driven mad by 9/11 and showing how this effects various New Yorkers just doesn’t fit with the sexual encounters of a woman exploring her kinky side.
I think part of my disappointment stems from the notion that this was going to be Block delving into what 9/11 did to New York, but other than The Carpenter, none of the characters make anything other than causal remarks or observations about how the city has changed since. For me, Block had deeper and more meaningful things to say about the subject when he wrote about how his professional killer character Keller reacted in Hit Parade.
This one seriously shocked me when I first read it back in 2002. Part of this was because Lawrence Block represents New York to me in a lot of ways, and it seemed like this book was his response to 9/11. While the shadow of that day hangs over everything, it was odd to find that a big part of the story also involved nipple rings, bondage and various sex toys.
The story starts several months after the Twin Towers collapsed. The body of a murdered woman is discovered in her apartment, and a writer named John Blair Creighton is arrested since he admits that he went home with her after they met in a bar. Art gallery owner Susan Pomerance gets fascinated by the case since the woman had been her realtor, and her morbid curiosity about the murder and Creighton comes as she discovers an increasing desire for new sexual experiences. Former police commissioner Francis Buckram is bored and killing time with public speaking engagements and considering running for mayor in the next election.
A series of shocking murders occur by a man the press dubs The Carpenter because of his use of a hammer as a weapon. Block reveals to the reader that killer was just another retired middle-aged New Yorker who lost his entire family because of 9/11, and now that grief has transformed into an insane belief that the city requires a series of sacrifices to sustain itself.
When a link is made from The Carpenter’s killings to the death of the realtor, Creighton becomes a celebrity and his stalled writing career takes off. Susan meets Buckram and seduces him with a dominatrix routine that shocks and thrills him. Susan also continues to be obsessed with Creighton while Buckram is fascinated by the manhunt for The Carpenter. Meanwhile, Creighton begins to enjoy his new found fame while having doubts about if he actually did kill the realtor while in an alcoholic blackout.
Block does a nice job of developing all of these characters and many more supporting players like a gay alcoholic cleaner who discovered the first body and finds himself an unwitting player in The Carpenter’s delusions. By putting together a series of chance encounters that have profound impacts on those involved, Block really does sell the idea that New York is really a small town when viewed from inside these webs of relationships. I particularly enjoyed the story of how Creighton’s shame at being accused of murder turns into the best thing for his life and career.
But damn there’s a lot of sex in this…..
Susan’s erotic adventures include a wide variety of encounters and Block spares no detail. It’s the same type of stuff he’s done in other books like Getting Off, but where he combined sex and murder seamlessly in that one, he never quite gets the same thing going here. Susan’s story seems removed and distant from what else is going on in the book despite her being one of the key links between everyone. Going from a story about a man driven mad by 9/11 and showing how this effects various New Yorkers just doesn’t fit with the sexual encounters of a woman exploring her kinky side.
I think part of my disappointment stems from the notion that this was going to be Block delving into what 9/11 did to New York, but other than The Carpenter, none of the characters make anything other than causal remarks or observations about how the city has changed since. For me, Block had deeper and more meaningful things to say about the subject when he wrote about how his professional killer character Keller reacted in Hit Parade.
August 20, 2021
I first read this book some ten years ago and though I was already a big fan of Block’s writing there was something about this particular novel that stayed with me, persuasively dragging me back to give it a second go. And this time I went the audio route, listening to the dulcet tones of George Guidall - for a long time my favourite narrator - set the whole thing out for me once more. It’s a chunky book (over fifteen hours of audio and close to five hundred pages in written form) but rich in character development and dialogue, though I’d forgotten quite how quirky the plotline is.
In the shadow of 9/11 we meet a group of New Yorkers whose lives are set to intersect as a killer goes on the rampage in the city. The tragedy had robbed him of his whole family and this has tipped him over the edge. Now his twisted mind has set him on killing spree that promises to culminate in some kind of mass event. Meanwhile, we are treated to an exploration of the lives, loves (read sex lives) and career aspirations of a motley crew of characters: a writer, a gallery owner, a former senior policeman, a lawyer and a cleaner. They’re all interesting, they all have a story to tell.
One thing that I’d failed to recall is quite how sexual the whole thing is. A number of the cast become intwined (quite literally) in graphically described BDSM encounters. I know that LB has written quite a few sassy, erotic tales – often using the pseudonym Jill Emerson – and his recent novel Dead Girl Blues is way out there in terms of testing the boundaries of what many people deem acceptable ‘entertainment’. The bottom line is that Lawrence Block is comfortable writing about sex.
So here we have an interesting premise, colourful characters and great conversation - where’s the problem. Well, that’s in the murderer’s motivation for concocting and carrying out his plan. For me just doesn’t make sense. But then again, so what? I can live with this minor (to me) anomaly because everything else is just so good! I hesitate to call it the author’s best book because he’s written so much classy stuff: his Matt Scudder books alone are regarded by many as perhaps the best crime fiction series ever penned. The bottom line is that Block is one of my favourite writers and this is one of my favourite books. I might just dig it out in another ten years for a third go-around.
In the shadow of 9/11 we meet a group of New Yorkers whose lives are set to intersect as a killer goes on the rampage in the city. The tragedy had robbed him of his whole family and this has tipped him over the edge. Now his twisted mind has set him on killing spree that promises to culminate in some kind of mass event. Meanwhile, we are treated to an exploration of the lives, loves (read sex lives) and career aspirations of a motley crew of characters: a writer, a gallery owner, a former senior policeman, a lawyer and a cleaner. They’re all interesting, they all have a story to tell.
One thing that I’d failed to recall is quite how sexual the whole thing is. A number of the cast become intwined (quite literally) in graphically described BDSM encounters. I know that LB has written quite a few sassy, erotic tales – often using the pseudonym Jill Emerson – and his recent novel Dead Girl Blues is way out there in terms of testing the boundaries of what many people deem acceptable ‘entertainment’. The bottom line is that Lawrence Block is comfortable writing about sex.
So here we have an interesting premise, colourful characters and great conversation - where’s the problem. Well, that’s in the murderer’s motivation for concocting and carrying out his plan. For me just doesn’t make sense. But then again, so what? I can live with this minor (to me) anomaly because everything else is just so good! I hesitate to call it the author’s best book because he’s written so much classy stuff: his Matt Scudder books alone are regarded by many as perhaps the best crime fiction series ever penned. The bottom line is that Block is one of my favourite writers and this is one of my favourite books. I might just dig it out in another ten years for a third go-around.
April 11, 2012
This is one of Blocks best. I listened to it on tape, narrated by George Guidell. If you see a book on tape and it is narrated by Guidell, it is worth listening to. If you find a book by Block, it is worth reading. If you find a Block novel on tape that is read by George Guidell, you have a really enjoyable time ahead of you.
August 15, 2015
I have to admit, the first chapters of this book could not hold my interest. While Lawrence Block did a terrific job introducing the characters whose lives would ultimately intertwine, I didn't really care about their individual problems. Everyone is after something, same as you or me. However, when the killer really got going, I was hooked, reading 80 to 100 pages at a clip. Give this one a chance and it won't disappoint...but if you don't care for raw, graphic details, try a lighter mystery thriller!
December 25, 2011
This longish novel isn't my favorite Lawrence Block title. I'm partial to the excellent P.I. Matt Scudder hardboiled series. Small Town is a post-9/11 book where a select few New Yorkers get a bit crazy after the horrific tragedy, including one turning into a serial killer. And somehow they're all made to be interconnected. If that seems a bit improbable--immense New York City potrayed as a "small town"--then you have the same reservations as I did. Of course, the prose is lucid and smooth. That always gets high marks from me. The kinky Susan will have both gender readers rolling their eyes. Not too many like her are around. But I stuck with the story, and I came away entertained, and that is enough for me.
December 28, 2007
Whew, I'm still blushing. This was a who-dunnit, but a who-dunnit with lots and lots o sex. And not plain old chocolate sex, but super duper whipped cream and cherries sex. Which seemed a little out of place, I guess, but hey. I get the "sex as art" theme, but the details were explicitly explicit. Penthouse letters explicit. Particularly in audio. I was expecting Patterson and got, well, something else altogether.
May 21, 2023
07/2014
Only read less than a hundred pages. I love vintage Lawrence Block so much, I thought I'd try something newer. Hated it.
Only read less than a hundred pages. I love vintage Lawrence Block so much, I thought I'd try something newer. Hated it.
March 31, 2011
I love Lawrence Block's clever, easy-on-the-brain Keller series, which follows an introspective (sort of) philatelist/contract killer. I also especially enjoy Block's early-career novellas, such as "The Triumph of Evil."
"Small Town" is something a bit different for the Edgar winner. Set in New York City shortly after the 9/11 attacks, it's a genre novel but on a grand scale. Few writers can pull this off (Stephen King and John le Carre come to mind). Block has what it takes to do it, but he doesn't quite manage it here. Ostensibly about a serial killer kicked into gear by losing his family on 9/11, "Small Town" tells multiple stories, with a fistful of subplots and diversions. Block's casual prose is a pleasure to read, as always, but it doesn't really fit the subject matter in this case. Worse, his female characters aren't even a little believable -- indeed, they're simply male fantasies.
To be sure, the book is enjoyable in spite of these drawbacks. If you like Block, you'll probably like this one. Even though "Small Town" never fully engaged me, it did whet my appetite for Keller's next adventure.
"Small Town" is something a bit different for the Edgar winner. Set in New York City shortly after the 9/11 attacks, it's a genre novel but on a grand scale. Few writers can pull this off (Stephen King and John le Carre come to mind). Block has what it takes to do it, but he doesn't quite manage it here. Ostensibly about a serial killer kicked into gear by losing his family on 9/11, "Small Town" tells multiple stories, with a fistful of subplots and diversions. Block's casual prose is a pleasure to read, as always, but it doesn't really fit the subject matter in this case. Worse, his female characters aren't even a little believable -- indeed, they're simply male fantasies.
To be sure, the book is enjoyable in spite of these drawbacks. If you like Block, you'll probably like this one. Even though "Small Town" never fully engaged me, it did whet my appetite for Keller's next adventure.
June 14, 2010
All I can say is that I was really surprised by this book. I have never read Lawrence Block before, and from the dust jacket I expected another run-of-the mill cop/murder mystery/thriller. But it was a lot more than that. Or maybe it was not that at all.
This was more of an entourage piece with many different characters. The book roughly follows changes in their lives in the year following 9/11. The characters' stories were all loosely tied together by their connection to the one killer (connected in a "6 degrees of separation" kind of way, not necessarily directly connected), and of course the killer's actions are what defines this book as a thriller. But the plot in no way is defined by the killings. The killer is simply one of the several characters in the entourage, his story intermingling with the others, with his murder spree roughly defining the timeline the book covers.
I think the main reason that I enjoyed this book so much was because of where I am personally- my age. All of the characters were 40ish to 60ish, and I can simply identify with a lot of what the characters are dealing with in their lives. I think if I had read a book like this when I was in my early 20's it would have not been nearly as "good" to me, simply because I would not have been able to identify with the characters as well. Life is not the same at 20 as it is at 40 or 60, as we all know!
And I very much enjoyed Block's writing style- with a lot of very dry humor. The dust-jacket states "Working with a surprising dose of eroticism and satire, Block crafts a mesmerizing portrait of modern life that is as brilliant as it is unforgettable." While "brilliant" may be a bit of a stretch, I would not disagree with the statement.
Many of the other reviews I read mentioned surprise or distaste at the sexual content. It was a bit more graphic than the average mass-market paperback, and somewhat more unusual (but certainly no more graphic) than Harlequin romances. But it was not gratuitous- it was an integral part to the character's story. And if one has ever been part of an "art" scene in any large city, well, one may just consider it par for the course.
To sum it up: character development was very strong (especially for an entourage piece), the storyline was good, dialog was very good, etc. etc. If one is looking for a real mystery/thriller, one may be disappointed. This book is more about the characters that it is about the killing.
This was more of an entourage piece with many different characters. The book roughly follows changes in their lives in the year following 9/11. The characters' stories were all loosely tied together by their connection to the one killer (connected in a "6 degrees of separation" kind of way, not necessarily directly connected), and of course the killer's actions are what defines this book as a thriller. But the plot in no way is defined by the killings. The killer is simply one of the several characters in the entourage, his story intermingling with the others, with his murder spree roughly defining the timeline the book covers.
I think the main reason that I enjoyed this book so much was because of where I am personally- my age. All of the characters were 40ish to 60ish, and I can simply identify with a lot of what the characters are dealing with in their lives. I think if I had read a book like this when I was in my early 20's it would have not been nearly as "good" to me, simply because I would not have been able to identify with the characters as well. Life is not the same at 20 as it is at 40 or 60, as we all know!
And I very much enjoyed Block's writing style- with a lot of very dry humor. The dust-jacket states "Working with a surprising dose of eroticism and satire, Block crafts a mesmerizing portrait of modern life that is as brilliant as it is unforgettable." While "brilliant" may be a bit of a stretch, I would not disagree with the statement.
Many of the other reviews I read mentioned surprise or distaste at the sexual content. It was a bit more graphic than the average mass-market paperback, and somewhat more unusual (but certainly no more graphic) than Harlequin romances. But it was not gratuitous- it was an integral part to the character's story. And if one has ever been part of an "art" scene in any large city, well, one may just consider it par for the course.
To sum it up: character development was very strong (especially for an entourage piece), the storyline was good, dialog was very good, etc. etc. If one is looking for a real mystery/thriller, one may be disappointed. This book is more about the characters that it is about the killing.
April 26, 2020
Block is a master of narrative style and technique, a first-rate deviser of plots, and a supremely talented inventor of characters. His Matthew Scudder novels are absolutely first-rate, but I read pretty everything else he writes, too. And this story of sacrifice, redemption, and personal discovery is one of his best. It’s also, I think, the first novel I’ve read in which the events of 9/11, 2001 are a key factor in the plot, not directly, but in motivating the actions of the Bad Guy -- though he’s not really evil, just nuts. “The Carpenter,” as the media call him because of the tools with which he commits his early murders, loves the city and believes it requires periodic blood sacrifice to continue to thrive. And that’s where he comes in. One murder -- which we never actually are told was one of his, and there’s a clue pointing elsewhere in the very last chapter -- gets pinned, from quite reasonable evidence, on John Blair Creighton, a novelist who is successful but not wildly so. (“You can’t make a living at writing but you can make a fortune,” as they say.) But he’s on the edge of a breakthrough. An acquaintance of that murder victim is Susan Pomerance, proprietor of an art gallery and possessed of a ferocious sexuality. Susan becomes involved with Francis J. Buckram, ex-NYC police commissioner and hot prospect for the next mayoral race. Francis has his own problems, trying to figure out what else to do with his life, but having been a pretty fair detective in his day, he becomes engrossed in the Carpenter murders. Maury Winters, famed defense attorney and a piece of work, takes on Creighton’s defense, has a longstanding relationship with Susan, and also knows the movers and shakers in town, including Buckram. Jerry Pankow, a gay ex-addict, discovers a number of the Carpenter’s victims -- not all happenstantially, either -- and there goes his business. And there are any number of lesser characters -- writers, editors, piercers, bouncers, private detectives, you name it -- who seem also to fall in with each other. After all, New York is a very big city but it’s also just a small town.
November 19, 2016
Not my cup of poison, I'm afraid. I've enjoyed reading some of Block's hardboiled mysteries and assumed this would be similar, but it isn't anywhere near as enjoyable. I don't find the characters believable... and I don't want to know quite this much about their sex lives! I've given up after about 100 pages, and will stick to Block's Matt Scudder books in future.
June 7, 2019
An excellent murder mystery, where this author keep tabs on every single top character beautifully! He leaves you looking forward to his next book tremendously! And at the end ,a synopsis of each of the top characters, beautifully written exciting interesting full of action and all kinds of intrigue! :-)
September 17, 2014
First time around, Small Town made a huge impact on me. It’s very much a New York story, entirely influenced by 9/11. A decade later I was curious whether it would still feel as powerful, as involving and compelling as it did when Ground Zero was still little more than a hideous smoking hole, a raw wound at the heart of America.
This is not your typical Lawrence Block hard-boiled pulp fiction PI quick thriller. Nor is it some anti-Islamic, homeland security, global conspiracy shindig, packed with racial stereotypes, easy targets and square-jawed heroes. It is, plain and simple, a love song to New York from one of its finest writers.
This love song is threaded throughout an interwoven series of sub-plots involving a cast of New Yorkers; all of them influenced by the events of 9/11. All previously independent and all very different; now drawn together under that overwhelming shadow by a series of much smaller murders.
LB picks up half a dozen of those threads and weaves them into a nifty thriller: there’s a bad guy, of course, who lost everything in the aftermath of 9/11 and is on a mission of near-religious importance to revive the city’s fortunes by sacrificing more people to answer the appalling insult that has been done to it.
Readers more familiar with LB’s detective novels may be a bit surprised by the explicit nature of some scenes (which means, basically, that it all gets a bit kinky at times. OK?) But never fear, if you’d rather stick to the superficial story then that will keep you more than occupied. A series of grisly killings, an able unofficial investigator, a scapegoat who may actually be responsible for at least one death only even he doesn’t know the truth; the looming threat of an awful event – and plenty of naked romping.
On top of that we get to meet a slew of supporting characters all of whom feel like they’re drawn from real life, like the salon host who gave up on being skinny cos it turned out she preferred herself fat, or the wily old lawyer refusing treatment for his possible cancer and deciding to enjoy whatever time is left allotted to him. All of them, you want to spend more time with.
There's a whole heap more detail about the plot and characters over at:-
http://murdermayhemandmore.wordpress....
And at the end, I didn’t want Small Town to end. Which pretty much says it all. Although it was obviously written when the pain of 9/11 was fresh and raw, this book has matured into a tale worth reading at any time.
It almost scored a perfect 10/10 for me. However, one of the central characters is a novelist, a writer, and that felt just a touch contrived. Generally I detest books where the protagonist is a writer: it all gets way too autobiographical and just a wee bit narcissistic. Hence…
9/10
This is not your typical Lawrence Block hard-boiled pulp fiction PI quick thriller. Nor is it some anti-Islamic, homeland security, global conspiracy shindig, packed with racial stereotypes, easy targets and square-jawed heroes. It is, plain and simple, a love song to New York from one of its finest writers.
This love song is threaded throughout an interwoven series of sub-plots involving a cast of New Yorkers; all of them influenced by the events of 9/11. All previously independent and all very different; now drawn together under that overwhelming shadow by a series of much smaller murders.
LB picks up half a dozen of those threads and weaves them into a nifty thriller: there’s a bad guy, of course, who lost everything in the aftermath of 9/11 and is on a mission of near-religious importance to revive the city’s fortunes by sacrificing more people to answer the appalling insult that has been done to it.
Readers more familiar with LB’s detective novels may be a bit surprised by the explicit nature of some scenes (which means, basically, that it all gets a bit kinky at times. OK?) But never fear, if you’d rather stick to the superficial story then that will keep you more than occupied. A series of grisly killings, an able unofficial investigator, a scapegoat who may actually be responsible for at least one death only even he doesn’t know the truth; the looming threat of an awful event – and plenty of naked romping.
On top of that we get to meet a slew of supporting characters all of whom feel like they’re drawn from real life, like the salon host who gave up on being skinny cos it turned out she preferred herself fat, or the wily old lawyer refusing treatment for his possible cancer and deciding to enjoy whatever time is left allotted to him. All of them, you want to spend more time with.
There's a whole heap more detail about the plot and characters over at:-
http://murdermayhemandmore.wordpress....
And at the end, I didn’t want Small Town to end. Which pretty much says it all. Although it was obviously written when the pain of 9/11 was fresh and raw, this book has matured into a tale worth reading at any time.
It almost scored a perfect 10/10 for me. However, one of the central characters is a novelist, a writer, and that felt just a touch contrived. Generally I detest books where the protagonist is a writer: it all gets way too autobiographical and just a wee bit narcissistic. Hence…
9/10
August 18, 2013
[Small Town: A Novel Of New York] "A Refreshing Change from the Block usual.."
I bought this book almost by accident and how glad I am that I did! To be honest I haven't read Lawrence Block for a couple of years or more, mainly because for me he had attained a 'same old' 'same old' feeling for me.
I found I much preferred Harlan Coben for his imaginative plots and unexpected denouements and Michael Connelly for his wonderful Bosch series. Of a similar genre I have also recently found Robert Crais very interesting.
But here is a new man in the block! (cough)
The way the book was written was absolutely to NOT emphasise the detective side of things, indeed the crimes themselves were quite demystified so that one was forced to look at other plots.
Susan, the kinky lady was so immensely refreshing, those who regard that character as 'going too far' or perverted are simply missing the point and really do risk being labelled narrow minded at the least. She helps develop the characters of the ex police commissioner and of course the writer; not to mention the sideline of the twosome (agent and writer) that she also had some fun with.
While the character causing all the mayhem was important he certainly wasn't particularly the primary lead; he was more a catalyst licensing the development of the other interesting participants.
I feel that Block is advancing into new avenues of interest for all of us to look forward to and I will certainly be looking for his later offerings. Regretfully for those that preferred the old Block, you might have seen the last of him.
I bought this book almost by accident and how glad I am that I did! To be honest I haven't read Lawrence Block for a couple of years or more, mainly because for me he had attained a 'same old' 'same old' feeling for me.
I found I much preferred Harlan Coben for his imaginative plots and unexpected denouements and Michael Connelly for his wonderful Bosch series. Of a similar genre I have also recently found Robert Crais very interesting.
But here is a new man in the block! (cough)
The way the book was written was absolutely to NOT emphasise the detective side of things, indeed the crimes themselves were quite demystified so that one was forced to look at other plots.
Susan, the kinky lady was so immensely refreshing, those who regard that character as 'going too far' or perverted are simply missing the point and really do risk being labelled narrow minded at the least. She helps develop the characters of the ex police commissioner and of course the writer; not to mention the sideline of the twosome (agent and writer) that she also had some fun with.
While the character causing all the mayhem was important he certainly wasn't particularly the primary lead; he was more a catalyst licensing the development of the other interesting participants.
I feel that Block is advancing into new avenues of interest for all of us to look forward to and I will certainly be looking for his later offerings. Regretfully for those that preferred the old Block, you might have seen the last of him.
February 7, 2010
This is my first thriller by Lawrence Block, and it was a compelling read, all about a man's killing spree in Manhattan, the character's reaction to his own personal tragedies on September 11th. The other reviews I read can't help but mention the kinky nature of the sex scenes of the story, which are numerous, and very, very kinky; unfortunately, I don't think they much mattered to the story. And as someone who lived as a single woman in New York for many years, and had a lot of single female friends, most of the scenes struck me as more of a man's fantasy than anything approaching reality. Oh, sure, there's a LOT of S&M in the city (and elsewhere) but the female character who is enmeshed in the lifestyle doesn't ring true. Also, Block, who has apparently lived in NY for a long time, and knows and appreciates this beautiful city, tries to make it seem like it is really just a 'small town,' everyone connected in some way. Not true, however; the characters in the story are connected but the other millions of citizens are conveniently forgotten. And the ending was just a tad bit anticlimactic (no pun intended). I would have to say, however, that the real problem I had with the story was the connection to 9/11, which I just don't enjoy reading about,, even when connected in such a powerful, well written way. I will be looking forward to reading other Block novels, though. He tells an engaging story, without too much gore, a true thriller.
October 17, 2015
I've read quite a few Lawrence Block novels, and this is quite a departure. It's a disturbing book with some rather bizarre characters. Block makes the case that even a mega-metropolis like New York City can function as a small town, with characters' lives intersecting like strands of a spider web. He apparently wrote the book shortly after 9/11, which forms the basis for the plot: a retired manager loses both of his children, son-in-law, and unborn grandchild when the Twin Towers collapsed. Subsequently, his wife commits suicide by swallowing a bottle of pills. All of these tragic events unhinge him and he begins murdering people as sacrifices to his beloved city. It's certainly a unique premise, but is so unbelievable as to be ludicrous. Throw in an art gallery owner whose tastes run to the deviant, a novelist accused of one of the murders who isn't sure if he actually committed it, a former police commissioner who uncovers his kinky side, and a gay house/office cleaner whose clients appear to be targets of the killer and you have one very strange book. I'm still on the fence about it. Parts of the book were fascinating, and it was as well-written as any of Block's other books. But much of the book was needlessly voyeuristic, and the storyline was quite a stretch. I'm glad this wasn't my first Lawrence Block novel, because it doesn't adequately represent his larger body of work. If you've never read Block, don't start with this book.
September 16, 2010
I thought this would be an interesting mystery for this time of year. The story takes place in Manhattan, just after the 9/11 tragedy. The killer becomes a lunatic after the loss of his daughter in the Twin Towers collapse, and his son, a firefighter, in the rescue efforts lead his wife to kill herself. When his suicide attempt fails, he launches a killing spree to make the city pay for taking his family. In his demented mind he blames the city for the death of his loved ones. Other main characters include a falsely accused writer, a nymphomaniac art dealer, and Francis, a retired chief of police. On the anniversary of 9/11, the killer, known as the carpenter, (because of his deadly use of a hammer found at the crime scene) plans an explosion as a finale to the year of terror he has subjected the citizens of Manhattan to. His plans go awry when Francis catches on to his evil deeds and brings an end to the madness. When deciding how to rate this book I had to consider the explicit wording and scenes … especially when Susan, the art dealer, appeared on the scene. Her outrageous behavior would have been better off omitted allowing more focus on the main clues and tracking the killer. I wouldn’t recommend this book to anyone offended by graphic sex scenes. In my opinion it should be rated XXX.
November 3, 2014
An enjoyable novel about glamour and crime in Manhattan. I believe that this interesting story had a unique and distracting fault. Many authors interject a parallel story into a novel and often switch back and forth. This book had a parallel to break up the story called graphic and gratuitous sex and violence. You would be rolling along in the story and suddenly someone would disappear under a table in a French restaurant that was not looking for their napkin. I am by no means a prude, but it occasionally got so thick with body parts that it began to remind me of monkey island at the zoo. The story itself was fun, fast and often clever and featured a variety of fascinating characters all of which were well suited for the environs of New York City.
December 30, 2008
Oh, I so wanted to give this five stars based on sheer ambition alone. Block is one of the ultimate NYC writers and here he confronts NY post 9/11 by telling an ambitious, interweaving tale from a variety of walks of life. He tries to do something akin to Wolfe's Bonfire of the Vanities, but never quite manages to pull it off. Nonetheless, it's a beautiful miss and a fantastic read.
June 7, 2014
Strange "bed"fellows makes for an interesting capture of the criminal in this story. The story is quite sexually explicit, but this is what really brings the story together and solves the mystery. The ending was a bit predictable and not as exciting as I like--didn't have my ah-ha moment. 5 out of 10 for me.
May 21, 2017
This is a horrible book. The author tried to put about 5 plots into one book and it didn't turn out well. On top of that, there's pornographic material that doesn't belong in a mystery book. There is no reasoning, nothing is logical, and my opinion of men has declined several notches based on the male stars in this book. I'll not be reading any more of this author.
October 5, 2012
Listened to this one. Narrated by the excellent George Guidall. This was my second Block book and probably my last. If he'd kept to the main story, it would have been a lot better. The sex was gratuitous and some of the characters/storylines really didn't propel the novel. Felt slow and labored.
July 29, 2013
I am not a prude but I have to say that I was annoyed by all the explicit sex in this book. I didn't feel like it added anything to the story. If I wanted to read porn I would have picked up 50 Shades of Grey...
May 19, 2009
This was a little too rated "R" for me. I was surprised because I read another of this author's stories and it wasn't like this at all.
March 27, 2022
While it has crime and a bit of thriller to it, this is more sweeping character /period piece than Block's typical novels (e.g. Scudder). An interesting read with some very colorful characters - I can think of 4 that I've never met in a book before . . . . particularly Susan and Francis.
High level of sex and freaky-deaky . . . in case you want to avoid that sort of thing (or are drawn to it).
High level of sex and freaky-deaky . . . in case you want to avoid that sort of thing (or are drawn to it).
August 13, 2007
This was a real romp. I found some parts of it a little indulgent (but then I'm known for hating novels about novelists and have told my partner to load the 12-bore if I start writing one myself), but Block has a sure and witty touch with dialogue that redeems almost any indulgence.
The thing that peeved me most was that this post 9/11 book has three mentions of Arabic people; all taxi-drivers - I thought Block could, and actually might, do better at bringing some depth as well as width to genre fiction.
The American 'post 9/11' book industry is something I find pretty odd, I can only find two British books that deal with 7/7 and we don't even say 7/7 because we'd feel daft ... but Block's done a good non-sentimental job of revising his view of the city to cope with the 'new world' everybody seems to think that New York has entered. Read it if you like Block, I certainly didn't feel I'd wasted my time.
The thing that peeved me most was that this post 9/11 book has three mentions of Arabic people; all taxi-drivers - I thought Block could, and actually might, do better at bringing some depth as well as width to genre fiction.
The American 'post 9/11' book industry is something I find pretty odd, I can only find two British books that deal with 7/7 and we don't even say 7/7 because we'd feel daft ... but Block's done a good non-sentimental job of revising his view of the city to cope with the 'new world' everybody seems to think that New York has entered. Read it if you like Block, I certainly didn't feel I'd wasted my time.
October 26, 2013
Well, Lawrence Block has written so many things, he was bound to disappoint me at some point. Unlike his other books I've read, this is an ensemble piece with multiple protagonists and points-of-view. I guess this was his 9/11 novel, showing its after-effects on various New Yorkers in the year following. It doesn't fail because of its ambition (it's honest and unsentimental), and it doesn't fail because of its meandering tangents, (Block's tangents--Keller's stamp collecting, Scudder's AA meetings--are normally the most engaging parts of his books) It just sort of doesn't all come together. It's long, it's pace is off, the dialog isn't as sharp as it normally is. Maybe Block, just like his characters here, was just too damn weary after 9/11 to be totally on his game.
May 30, 2017
Yuk! This is bad, bad, bad, stomach turning bad. A terrible mixture of violent terrorism and really stupid porno writing. I feel like I need my mind washed out with soap after reading this. Their is very little coherence within the book because each chapter is presented by a different character, sometimes more than one character per chapter. You often have to read a couple of paragraphs to figure out who is the narrator. This is so sexually explicit I think I would rather just read a porno novel. At least that would be titillating, this is just moronic. Did I mention it was bad with a capital B?
June 22, 2013
Very different from the author's Mathew Scudder series, which is what I've read so far. The Scudder series is pretty relaxed, as far as crime fiction goes. This book on the other hand had an intense cast of characters...the novelist who may or may not be a murderer, the sex addict art dealer and her cast of unlikely playmates, the unassuming serial killer that surfaces. Block has all of their lives intersect in unusual ( and sometimes unbelievable) ways. Sex, violence, and politics? Yes. Explicit? Yes. Entertaining? Hell, yes!
February 17, 2022
I’m a fan but even I had to absolutely force myself to get to the halfway point before giving up on this one… not a single likeable, or even interesting, character and so many mentions of 9/11 even Giuliani would’ve said “no mas”. I skipped to the end to see if the killer did something cool but nope, even the ending sucked.
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