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Wrong Crowd
A sultry novel in which an art thief finds himself out of his depth in a criminal maelstrom when he meets a beautiful woman with no past. When Claude meets Maxine in the Caribbean he falls for her. He does not expect he will start an affair with her back in London, then again he does not expect to have to call on the help of his old mate Spike, nor that will they become embroiled with Russian gangsters Vladimir and Grigory. But then Claude will do anything to hold onto Maxine. Peopled with thieves, hustlers, gangsters, gun runners and pimps, Wrong Crowd is a slick and action-packed ride into London's low-life. East End villains and the Russian Mafia collide in a fast-paced novel of deceit and criminal obsession that sparkles as it speeds towards its astonishing conclusion. Praise for Wrong Crowd "Wrong Crowd by Richard Godwin is a tense slice of international noir that oozes atmosphere." -Paul D Brazill, author of Guns of Brixton and A Case of Noir "An extended meditation on sexual obsession, deception, and violence." -T. Jefferson Parker, author of Full Measure and The Famous and the Dead "If you get into The Wrong Crowd then you're into the 'right book.' Richard Godwin is an author's author who never fails to deliver a cracking read, and this one is no exception." -Matt Hilton, author of the best-selling Joe Hunter thriller series "When you pick up a Richard Godwin book, you can be sure you're holding the work of one of the most daring and distinctive crime writers working today. He's also one of the most versatile... Godwin can also always be relied upon to introduce a single moment of violence that permanently sears itself into the mind, and Wrong Crowd is no different... Careful you don't miss it-tonally this is a Fulham Wolf of Wall Street, exposing the emptiness at the heart of excess. Another gem from Godwin" - Mike Stafford, nudgemenow.com "Once more Richard Godwin proves he is the only worthy successor to Patricia Highsmith. The Wrong Crowd is a deliciously tantalizing bit of dark psychological thriller that will make you think twice about whom you make friends with while on vacation. You won't want to put this one down for a second." -Vincent Zandri, NY Times and USA Today best-selling author of Everything Burns and Moonlight Weeps "Richard Godwin does it again! With the adroit skill of a seasoned writer that knows that human decency is just a fragile scab on a wound that harbors a violent world seething in sex, drugs, lust and death, Godwin introduces us to the Wrong Crowd." -Lou Boxer, Founder of NoirCon "Only Godwin. It's a phrase you'll use often when you get acquainted with the sensual and sultry atmosphere of this master storyteller. Wrong Crowd is some of his most accessible work, but it's one of his most textured and refined as well. Only Godwin can pull it off every time like that." -Benoit Lelievre, deadendfollies.com "Claude meets Maxine knee-deep in the Caribbean and knows he'd do anything to make her his: anything. But keeping her means raising the stakes: cash, guns, gangsters and a return to his bad old habits. Will there be enough of him left to keep her by the time he's through? Godwin makes The Wrong Crowd lethally sexy-which makes this story just right." -K.A. Laity, author of White Rabbit "Don Juan meets the Marquis de Sade meets Kafka meets Jim Thompson meets Richard Godwin who gets them all together in one room and they collaborate on Wrong Crowd. It's a brilliant success." -Les Edgerton, author of The Genuine, Imitation, Plastic Kidnapping, The Bitch, The Rapist and others "With extraordinary writing, characterization, and storytelling, Godwin is truly one of our great writers." -Luca Veste, author of Dead Gone"
198 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2015
10 people want to read
About the author
Richard Godwin
107 books161 followersRichard Godwin is the author of critically acclaimed novels Apostle Rising, Mr. Glamour, One Lost Summer, Noir City, Meaningful Conversations, Confessions Of A Hit Man, and Paranoia And The Destiny Programme.
He is also a published poet and a produced playwright. His stories have been published in numerous paying magazines and over 34 anthologies, among them The Mammoth Book Of Best British Crime and The Mammoth Book Of Best British Mystery, as well as the anthology of his stories, Piquant: Tales Of The Mustard Man.
Richard Godwin was born in London and obtained a BA and MA in English and American Literature from King's College London, where he also lectured.
You can find out more about him at his website www.richardgodwin.net , where you can also read his Chin Wags At The Slaughterhouse, his highly popular and unusual interviews with other authors.
He is also a published poet and a produced playwright. His stories have been published in numerous paying magazines and over 34 anthologies, among them The Mammoth Book Of Best British Crime and The Mammoth Book Of Best British Mystery, as well as the anthology of his stories, Piquant: Tales Of The Mustard Man.
Richard Godwin was born in London and obtained a BA and MA in English and American Literature from King's College London, where he also lectured.
You can find out more about him at his website www.richardgodwin.net , where you can also read his Chin Wags At The Slaughterhouse, his highly popular and unusual interviews with other authors.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 1, 2015
This was really good, but I would've been creeped out if anybody but Richard Godwin would've written this. Godwin writes about desire with an amazing, brutal honesty, in a language that too many authors are afraid to use. I had my issues with the plot in the last part of the book, but the mechanics the story, how Claude gets in trouble because he cannot control his desire to please Maxine are simply amazing. A smart, sophisticated thriller written in a blunt and terrifying language.
Only Godwin. It’s a phrase you’ll use often when you get acquainted with the sensual and sultry atmosphere of this master storyteller. Wrong Crowd is some of his most accessible work, but it’s one of his most textured and refined as well. Only Godwin can pull it off every time like that.
Only Godwin. It’s a phrase you’ll use often when you get acquainted with the sensual and sultry atmosphere of this master storyteller. Wrong Crowd is some of his most accessible work, but it’s one of his most textured and refined as well. Only Godwin can pull it off every time like that.
October 20, 2015
A sultry novel in which an art thief finds himself out of his depth in a criminal maelstrom when he meets a beautiful woman with no past.
When Claude meets Maxine in the Caribbean he falls for her. He does not expect he will start an affair with her back in London, then again he does not expect to have to call on the help of his old mate Spike, nor that they will become embroiled with Russian gangsters Vladimir and Grigory.
But then Claude will do anything to hold onto Maxine. Peopled with thieves, hustlers, gangsters, gun runners and pimps, Wrong Crowd is a slick and action-packed ride into London’s low-life.
This is a languid tale of deception, jealousy and murder. The novel opens with Claude, not the best looking guy in the world, falling for Maxine, who’s a beauty. He doesn’t understand why, perhaps it’s because Claude appears to be a wealthy man. After a brief, powerful holiday affair the pair returns to London. Pretty quickly we realise Claude is not what he seems. However, neither is Maxine.
When the pair return to London they carry on their affair, but first Claude must bolster the outward pretense of wealth. Claude was in the Caribbean spending some ill-gotten gains, the trouble is the cash is running out quickly.
One of the elements Godwin achieves very well with all of his work is the steady ratcheting up of tension. An earlier piece of work, One Lost Summer, is a particularly strong example. In Wrong Crowd the author achieves a similar effect, pulling back the cloth to reveal the frailties of his main characters. The criminal element, school friend Spike and Russian Grigory, also cast a long shadow over the tale, revealing more of Maxine’s intentions. The losers in Wrong Crowd are many and dealt with in brutal fashion, where one person will do anything they have to in order to have what they most desire.
**Originally reviewed for Books & Pals blog. May have received free review copy.**
When Claude meets Maxine in the Caribbean he falls for her. He does not expect he will start an affair with her back in London, then again he does not expect to have to call on the help of his old mate Spike, nor that they will become embroiled with Russian gangsters Vladimir and Grigory.
But then Claude will do anything to hold onto Maxine. Peopled with thieves, hustlers, gangsters, gun runners and pimps, Wrong Crowd is a slick and action-packed ride into London’s low-life.
This is a languid tale of deception, jealousy and murder. The novel opens with Claude, not the best looking guy in the world, falling for Maxine, who’s a beauty. He doesn’t understand why, perhaps it’s because Claude appears to be a wealthy man. After a brief, powerful holiday affair the pair returns to London. Pretty quickly we realise Claude is not what he seems. However, neither is Maxine.
When the pair return to London they carry on their affair, but first Claude must bolster the outward pretense of wealth. Claude was in the Caribbean spending some ill-gotten gains, the trouble is the cash is running out quickly.
One of the elements Godwin achieves very well with all of his work is the steady ratcheting up of tension. An earlier piece of work, One Lost Summer, is a particularly strong example. In Wrong Crowd the author achieves a similar effect, pulling back the cloth to reveal the frailties of his main characters. The criminal element, school friend Spike and Russian Grigory, also cast a long shadow over the tale, revealing more of Maxine’s intentions. The losers in Wrong Crowd are many and dealt with in brutal fashion, where one person will do anything they have to in order to have what they most desire.
**Originally reviewed for Books & Pals blog. May have received free review copy.**
October 1, 2015
Claude is on a much needed vacation in the Caribbean when he first sees Maxine. From that moment on, life as he knows it is completely erased. Maxine captures his every desire & fantasy. She steals his every waking moment, his every thought to the point where reality shifts like a distorted mirror. He becomes obsessed with watching her, touching her—even when (especially when) she sleeps. He lies to keep her close, and he finds himself believing in his own made up delusions. When Claude learns Maxine has been in touch with her old lover, jealousy consumes him and he does whatever it takes to make sure Maxine will stay with him, and only him, even if that means involving the Russian mafia.
Godwin writes pure criminal poetry that should only be read with the lights down low and a stiff drink.
Godwin writes pure criminal poetry that should only be read with the lights down low and a stiff drink.
August 28, 2015
Every time I pick up a book by Richard Godwin, I never know what to expect. I have read just about all of his stuff, and it all has something that just creeps me out, or makes me feel a bit dirty reading it! This X rated noir was a blast. Dark, dirty, gritty, slimy - Greatness. The book is 90% dialog, (which is hard to pull of successfully) and he does a fantastic job of it. After reading this, it made me think of early Tarantino and what a great job he could have done turning this into a raunchy noir blast. Be prepared...you may need to wash your eyes after reading this one!!
October 7, 2015
Wrong Crowd, a novel mostly told in dialogue, focuses on objects of desire, a combo of sex and money, and secondarily tropical beaches, high tech weapons, luxury mansions, high-end haberdashery, food and wine—although some key characters are from the underclass. The sex and money, it seems, must be a result of blood, mutilation, and the fantasy of more to come. The story is told with a clear, cold assurance. It’s a very human document. It reveals the point that must be reached (Kafka) that precedes either damnation or recovery.
October 2, 2015
Don Juan meets the Marquis de Sade meets Kafka meets Jim Thompson meets Richard Godwin who gets them all together in one room and they collaborate on Wrong Crowd. It’s a brilliant success.
October 1, 2015
Disclaimer: I received, at my request, an advance copy of this book from the publisher. This in no manner or form had any bearing on my review. Thank you. vmls
In this slick, fast-paced noir thriller, Richard Godwin brings the same verve and compelling narrative style that is the trademark of all of his writing, crossing genres as effortlessly as one crosses a street. Stories with sharply drawn characterizations, crisp dialogue and action that keep the reader moving as the suspense builds to its inevitable conclusion.
Wrong Crowd is a voyeuristic view of one man’s desires and the passion, if I may use such a mundane word to describe a woman who is anything but ordinary, which drives him back to a life he had thought left behind. But, to paraphrase a character in a popular American movie.... "They keep pulling me back."
That passion is Maxine. A woman who demands little and gives all. A woman whose very existence consumes Claude. Every waking moment. Every second of sleep.
Desire is a powerful force.
Claude is a man with desires... appetites… waking dreams. And neither Russian gangsters nor cheap East End hoods are going to come between Claude and the woman he would possess. Totally. At any cost.
And with each line Claude crosses, there is a little cut to his soul, a blood trail leading back to…
Ahh, but one does not want to reveal too much, does one? I will say this about Claude…
The adage 'the means justify the ends' has never been more apropos than in Wrong Crowd as Claude plumbs the very depths of his soul in his quest.
Wrong Crowd is an erotic tour de force, interwoven with cheap but deadly Russian mobsters, East End low-lifers and one man's erotic desires brought to life as only Richard Godwin can do. Godwin is like a knowing lover, his tales leaves one sated, yet eager for the next encounter.
Memorable characters, fast-paced action and more than a little ‘undercurrent’ of sex, Wrong Crowd delivers and will leave even the most die-hard reader breathless.
I recommend without reservation, Wrong Crowd. Richard Godwin often surprises, but never disappoints.
Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw
1 October 2015
(Writing under a large mushroom somewhere in the Pacific Northwest)
In this slick, fast-paced noir thriller, Richard Godwin brings the same verve and compelling narrative style that is the trademark of all of his writing, crossing genres as effortlessly as one crosses a street. Stories with sharply drawn characterizations, crisp dialogue and action that keep the reader moving as the suspense builds to its inevitable conclusion.
Wrong Crowd is a voyeuristic view of one man’s desires and the passion, if I may use such a mundane word to describe a woman who is anything but ordinary, which drives him back to a life he had thought left behind. But, to paraphrase a character in a popular American movie.... "They keep pulling me back."
That passion is Maxine. A woman who demands little and gives all. A woman whose very existence consumes Claude. Every waking moment. Every second of sleep.
Desire is a powerful force.
Claude is a man with desires... appetites… waking dreams. And neither Russian gangsters nor cheap East End hoods are going to come between Claude and the woman he would possess. Totally. At any cost.
And with each line Claude crosses, there is a little cut to his soul, a blood trail leading back to…
Ahh, but one does not want to reveal too much, does one? I will say this about Claude…
The adage 'the means justify the ends' has never been more apropos than in Wrong Crowd as Claude plumbs the very depths of his soul in his quest.
Wrong Crowd is an erotic tour de force, interwoven with cheap but deadly Russian mobsters, East End low-lifers and one man's erotic desires brought to life as only Richard Godwin can do. Godwin is like a knowing lover, his tales leaves one sated, yet eager for the next encounter.
Memorable characters, fast-paced action and more than a little ‘undercurrent’ of sex, Wrong Crowd delivers and will leave even the most die-hard reader breathless.
I recommend without reservation, Wrong Crowd. Richard Godwin often surprises, but never disappoints.
Veronica Marie Lewis-Shaw
1 October 2015
(Writing under a large mushroom somewhere in the Pacific Northwest)
October 1, 2015
Claude, a divorcee with a dark past, holidays in the Caribbean where he meets Maxine, a beautiful woman who is out of his league. A night of passion leads to a dangerous obsession as Godwin twists and turns the story like a corkscrew and we encounter low rent thugs, London gangsters, psychopathic Russian mobsters, art theft and a great deal of violence.
There is a great sense of the grotesque about the characters and an almost Dickensian feel for London, with its low life bubbling just below the surface of all the glitter and glitz.
Wrong Crowd by Richard Godwin is a tense slice of international noir that oozes atmosphere and is his best novel yet
There is a great sense of the grotesque about the characters and an almost Dickensian feel for London, with its low life bubbling just below the surface of all the glitter and glitz.
Wrong Crowd by Richard Godwin is a tense slice of international noir that oozes atmosphere and is his best novel yet
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews