The Last Dance

87th Precinct #50

by Ed McBain

The fiftieth is pure from the author The New York Times calls "the man with the golden ear" comes the fiftieth novel in the 87th Precinct series. In this city, you can get anything done for a price. If you want someone's eyeglasses smashed, it'll cost you a subway token. You want his fingernails pulled out? His legs broken? You want him more seriously injured? You want him hurt so he's an invalid his whole life? You want him skinned, you want him burned, you want him -- don't even mention it in a whisper -- killed? It can be done. Let me talk to someone. It can be done. The hanging death of a nondescript old man in a shabby little apartment in a meager section of the 87th Precinct was nothing much in this city, especially to detectives Carella and Meyer. But everyone has a story, and this old man's story stood to make some people a lot of money. His story takes Carella, Meyer, Brown, and Weeks on a search through Isola's seedy strip clubs and to the bright lights of the theater district. There they discover an upcoming musical with ties to a mysterious drug and a killer who stays until the last dance. The Last Dance is Ed McBain's fiftieth novel of the 87th Precinct and certainly one of his best. The series began in 1956 with Cop Hater and proves him to be the man who has been called "so good he should be arrested."

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Procedural, Detective, Thriller, Mystery Thriller

272 pages, Hardcover

First published November 17, 1999

About the author

"Ed McBain" is one of the pen names of American author and screenwriter Salvatore Albert Lombino (1926-2005), who legally adopted the name Evan Hunter in 1952.

While successful and well known as Evan Hunter, he was even better known as Ed McBain, a name he used for most of his crime fiction, beginning in 1956.

He also used the pen names John Abbott, Curt Cannon, Hunt Collins, Ezra Hannon, Dean Hudson, Evan Hunter, and Richard Marsten.

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

My second much-awarded crime writer Ed McBain book, the fiftieth (one of the last) in this series based in Manhattan's 87th precinct, part also of the Hard Case Crime series, featuring detectives Carella and Meyer investigating the apparent suicide of an old man, found by his daughter fully-clothed in bed, but with signs of his being hung. Non-politically-correct Fat Ollie Weeks gets involved, linked that (okay, murder) death with a murder in his 88th Precinct. And strip clubs, we have to go to strip clubs to wake up the older (male) readers, eh? To interview naked women about their possible involvement in the crime, of course! But I'll admit McBain is generally entertaining, still.

The thing that moves this from two to three stars for me is that the dialogue is, even at this later time in McBain's career, still sharp. And also, McBain himself reads this audio version, a plus to hear his clear New Yorker voice having fun with the story.

[James Thane · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fiftieth novel in the 87th Precinct series may not be the best of the bunch, but it's still a pretty good read. When a woman named Cynthia Keating calls the 87th Precinct to report that she has found her father, Andrew Hale, lying dead in bed, apparently of a heart attack, Detectives Steve Carella and Meyer Meyer respond.

The woman insists that she walked in the door and found her father lying just as the detectives see him, but the detectives wonder why the dead man is lying under the covers, fully clothed except for his shoes. They wonder why Cynthia called the cops instead of simply phoning for a doctor or an ambulance. Mostly they wonder why the corpse's feet and lower legs show signs of postmortem lividity, an indication that the man was almost certainly hanged.

Things are obviously not as they appear and the more the detectives dig into the case, the stranger things appear. The investigation will take Carella and Meyer into the world of the theater and into a couple of seedy strip clubs as well. Along the way, a long-time character in the series will be lost, creating yet another investigation that must be pursued. It's another very good read that nonetheless leaves any long-time reader of the series more than a little depressed, knowing that there are only four books remaining in it.

[Jiří Pavlovský · Rating 3 out of 5]

Padesátá kniha v řadě! Člověk se z jedné strany raduje, že mu do kompletnosti zbývá jen pár dílů… než si uvědomí, že vlastně provádí odpočet k McBainově smrti, což už není tak veselé.
Ale zatím ještě do konce zbývá pár dílů (a roků). A všechno je při starém. Samotný příběh, vražda opuštěného muže, maskovaná za sebevraždu, maskovaná za přirozenou smrt, není zase nic tak světoborného – a už je trochu cítit, že McBain jede na volnoběh. Ale už si za ty roky nabral takovou zkušenost, že to zvládá i se zavřenýma očima. Asi nejvíc je ale určitá únava poznat na chybějícím humoru a nadhledu, který s léty vybublinkoval pryč.
Jednou z větší změn, která ovšem bobtná s každým novým dílem, je postava Ollieho Weekse. Ten sice vůbec není z 87. revíru, ale objevuje se v každé knize a naprosto zatlačuje původní hrdiny. Je to celkem pochopitelné, ostatní jsou především nástroje a jejich charakter se projevuje pouze v mimochodných dialozích, Weeks má osobnost Ano, je to dost odpudivá osobnost, ale je tady a probublává do každé jeho promluvy. Navíc je tam dobré pnutí, kdy si je člověk sám svou největší překážkou, kdy spolehlivě nasere každého, koho vyslýchá. Nebo s kým mluví. Nebo koho jen potká.
Jo, výroční padesátá kniha už je jen solidní řemeslo. Ale mrkněte, co napsal na stará kolena Thomas Harris nebo jak se jiné spisovatelé změnili ve své vlastní karikatury. Solidní řemeslo není pořád ještě to nejhorší, jak může autor skončit.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 50th novel in the series and just as enjoyable as the first. Perhaps there are other issues of our gang at the 87th precinct that were more compelling, but this was still classic McBain-- and no one writes police procedurals and dialogue better.
Some reviews are a bit more critical, but when the author gives us a story that includes Fat Ollie Weeks-- the best cop you will ever loathe-- plus Carella and Meyer, and the interracial couple of Kling and Sharyn Cooke, the department's deputy chief surgeon, and on & on. Come on, have some fun with one of the best authors of the genre, or of any genre for that matter.

[Glen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The hanging death of an old man get the Eight Seven going. This seemed a little abecedarian for the series. There was some interesting stuff about how a play revival gets off the ground, but the rest of the book seemed a little simplistic.

[Skip · Rating 2 out of 5]

The weakest book in this series, as far as I recall. Could not wait for it to end. An elderly man, is found dead in bed by his daughter, but is fully clothed. As it turns out, he inherited the rights to a play, which a director is trying to revive, and has offered a share to the daughter. Then a series of other seemingly unrelated parties start dying. The pairing of the detectives keeps switching, and too many parties. Did not like this one.

[Cathy DuPont · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read bunches and bunches of McBain (and his other pen names) but not sure if I'm liking the 87th Precinct series.

I'm giving it one more book then I'm moving the ones I have on the shelf, out...out to the thrift shop to be replaced with some books that I know I will love to read.

So there, 87th Precinct.

[AndrewP · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid entry in the series with quite a few different crimes and themes being explored.
Only half a dozen books to go for me to finish off this series, a long haul but well worth it.

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book in the long running tale of the 87th Precinct had me wondering where the tale was going. As is usual with a McBain story, I was never quite sure who to doubt or condemn as the villain. When the story concluded the villain, and the reason, were both a surprise.

One thing that I do enjoy in these stories is that McBain seems to delight in the unexpected, and in twisting the usual into the unusual.

Another tale well done from the master of suspense. (note - did not receive 5 stars due only to the resolution needed a bit more fleshing out.)

[John Irby · Rating 4 out of 5]

McBain has earned every award ever given for cop genre writing. He's also a master at writing dialogue that always rings true. I've read and enjoyed maybe six or seven others of his, and though they are all similar, they're all very well written and always quite interesting. I heartily recommend this story and any other of McBain's if you like good murder mysteries solved by the men and women in blue. Rarely is there sex in his stories, but when there is, it's well told. John E. Irby

[Bernard A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I read this book, I found myself smiling and realizing, "This is how it's done." McBain's dialogue is an art form in itself, at once natural and funny. The plot is simple and direct with enough of a twist to keep the reader turning pages. This is a great read by a master of the art.

[David Highton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story from the 87th - Carella and Meyer investigate the apparent suicide of an elderly man and the plot gets deeper, with Kling and Brown and Willis plus Fat Ollie Weeks picking up a potentially linked murder in the 88th Precinct. Published in 2000 this is near the end of the series.

[Colin Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

When in doubt about what to read next, pick up an 87th story. This is set during the period from Thanksgiving until near Christmas and features most of the squad, Fat Ollie weeks and others including some from other units overstepping the mark. An apparent suicide turns into a murder which evolves into two other cases, involving lots of "Giving up their friends" to save their skins and money. All the expected ingredients including a shoot out.

3 stars.

[Márta Péterffy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Valójában 3.5/4
Kétféle szempont szerint: egyfelől ma már gyengébbnek érzem a szerző műveit, mint régebben-másfelől ez egy elég jó stílusú, jól felépített regénye.
A kilencvenes évek New York városa, a színdarab története elég érdekes volt.

[Steve Goble · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best in the 87th Precinct series, but even a sub-par McBain is a pretty good read. The problem with this one, compared to better McBains, is that the central mystery itself is not terribly compelling, and most of the people the cops run across in their investigation are kind of bland. The saving graces of this book are McBain's prose, the immersion into gritty big-city life, and the feeling that these are real cops on the job. This novel also features a heavy dose of Fat Ollie Weeks, from a neighboring precinct. Ollie is a contemptible human being, but he's actually an effective cop. Reading about Ollie, you are simultaneously appalled by his thought processes and behavior and inspired by the seemingly fearless way he goes into dangerous places in pursuit of clues.

This novel leaves some loose ends, not because McBain is a sloppy writer, but because, damn it, that's how real life works.

Fans of the series will enjoy this, though it won't likely rank among their favorite McBains.

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Last Dance - VG
Ed McBain - 50th in series
The hanging death of a nondescript old man in a shabby little apartment in a meager section of the 87th Precinct is nothing much in this city, especially to detectives Carella and Meyer. But everyone has a story, and this old man's story stood to make some people a lot of money. His story takes Carella, Meyer, Brown, and Weeks on a search through Isola's seedy strip clubs and to the bright lights of the theater district. There they discover an upcoming musical with ties to a mysterious drug -- and a killer who stays until the last dance.

More complex than some, a true police procedural

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, not the best offering by Mr. McBain, but, still a very readable book. By now, the 87th Precinct detectives are so well engrained into my psyche that I don't even pay attention to how their characters are developed. But, the others, the victims, the perps, those are the characters that I look at now. And, I didn't get that good of a hold on either of them here.

As I said, not one of his best. But, then, a bad 87th Precinct novel is better than a lot of other writers best. Just not up to the standards of Mr. McBain, in my opinion.

But, still, a readable novel. Or, listenable, in my case.

[Tony Gleeson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Number 50 in the 87th Precinct series, this one came as a pleasant surprise after its slightly disappointing predecessor, "The Big Bad City." A nondescript old man dies in a threadbare apartment. His daughter claims he had aheart attack but it quickly becomes obvious that he was killed by hanging and taken down. A broad and odd cast of suspects emerges, around the revival of an old Broadway play. McBain has great fun with a serpentine plot and his usual wry observations of show business personalities.

[Lance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Closer to four and a half stars, this 87th Precint novel has the usual detectives - Cartel, Weeks, et al at work again. This time, what starts off as an insurance fraud investigation turns into multiple murders over the rights to a play written many years ago. McBain writes in his typical character driven method that makes the reader care about each detective...And some of the suspects as well. The only reason this isn't five stars is that it wasn't the usual nice clean ending to a McBain story. Still a great read. Or in this case listen as I listened to the audio book.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first discovered Ed McBain in the early 1990s, when I worked at a library, and I devoured every 87th Precinct book I could find. I lost track of his books once I consumed every library copy, so imagine my surprise when I saw more recent books a couple weeks ago at the library (not the same one I used to work at).

Anyway, reading this reminded me why I enjoyed his work so much. The pacing, the characters, the humor, the dialog - all top-notch and great reading.

[Kristine Kucera · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good police procedural - if you enjoy the detective genre - which I do. The story was interesting and fast-paced and the characters were well fleshed out. The only thing keeping me from giving this a five-star rating is the lack of a likable main character. I believe that is the point of this series, though, to tell the stories from the precinct rather than create beloved characters. So, that said, it's not you, it's me! I will most likely read other books in this series.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Ed McBain book and I enjoyed it quite a bit although it wasn't the best murder mystery that I've ever read. Granted I've never been a police officer, but it seemed to have an authentic description of police investigation. That was contrasted however, with a Hollywood style plot involving several seemingly unrelated murders. If I'm looking for another bit of escape fiction I certainly would read another book about the 87th precinct.

[Megan L (Iwanttoreadallthebooks) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read at least 10 Ed McBain books and The Last Dance is definitely not one of his best. Too much jumping around between different detectives and cases. The main plot was predictable and not that exciting. I was glad this was a quick read because I found myself getting bored and starting to skim paragraphs (which I hate doing). Ed McBain's books usually deliver a solid mystery but this one missed the mark.

[Jan Aldergate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite reading a lot of mysteries/thrillers, I had never read an Ed McBain ( or at least, I don't remember doing so). I liked this one - a police procedural, with a lot of action and strong characters. Liked the dialogue and the insight into the 87th precinct - how all the cops interacted and how politics impinge on their jobs. Would read another one.

[Mack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most interesting aspect - McBain himself narrates this one. He doesn’t do voices, but better, you get to hear the writer’s inflections and emphases in the narrative. He has a great voice, too. The story is a shorter one, a little chopped and too easily solved.

[Doreen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not the best book in the series, but still a good solid entry that also tackles issues of race and police brutality without getting preachy. Nicely done.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good read. I was mystified as the detectives as to who was murdering people who had seemingly nothing in common. Was it a serial killer or just coincidence?

[Michael Fredette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Last Dance, Ed McBain [Pocket Books, 1999].

The fiftieth installment of the long-running police procedural series. The detectives of the 87th Precinct investigate a murder for hire plot surrounding the revival of an obscure musical production and the public assassination of police informant (and recurrent series character) Danny Gimp.

***
Ed McBain (1926-2005) was a prolific author of crime and detective fiction. His 87th Precinct novels have been adapted for movies and television, including a NBC network series (1961-62), and Kurosawa’s High and Low, a classic Japanese film noir based on the 87th Precinct novel King’s Ransom. The 20th 87 Precinct novel, Doll, is included in a Library of America collection of Crime Fiction of the 1960s, and will be available for perpetuity. As Evan Hunter, McBain wrote the classic novel The Blackboard Jungle and the screenplay for Hitchcock’s The Birds (though he was fired as screenwriter for Marnie, over a dispute with the director). McBain (born Salvatore Lombino) died in Connecticut of cancer in 2005.

[Vicky D.]

This is my 3rd book by this author, I loved that he referenced an old book/movie he wrote in the story in very coy way. I love these Characters

[David Mast · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good crime mystery. Would like to read other books by Ed McBain.