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Partners
The year is 1975. Kyle Marshall needs a job. The ad said partner wanted, work nights. 'Partners' begins and ends in a frigid Wisconsin winter, from the first frost of November to snowbound Christmas, a February blizzard, finally a freak March ice storm, an actual event that occurred in 1976 and paralyzed the city of Milwaukee for an entire week. When the ice storm melts, winter is over and the tale ends, four months of gun battles, love, and loss. There are several reasons why this is an important novel, not least of which is its historical significance. It depicts an era in which men were men and women liked them that way. Mafia influence and corruption of city government was profound. Wisconsin Avenue had strippers and mob-controlled nightclubs and hotels. They had a lock on cigarette vending and pinball, prostitution, sports wagering, liquor, loan sharking, longshoremen and truck transport. Rivals were eliminated with car bombs.
172 pages, Paperback
Published July 5, 2018
1 person want to read
About the author
Wolf DeVoon
27 books8 followersNew!
Chiseltown
Funny, sexy adventure of making a movie. Beta readers welcome. Email wolfdevoon@gmail.com for a pdf.
Funny, sexy adventure of making a movie. Beta readers welcome. Email wolfdevoon@gmail.com for a pdf.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 21, 2020
This book will stay with you long after its ended
The book is told through the eyes and mind of Kyle Marshall. First-person perspective is notoriously difficult to execute well but DeVoon excels at it. The style of narrative is skilfully written to portray the character of Kyle and his evolution as the story progresses. There are echoes of Raymond Chandler’s style in the narrative in the way Kyle describes his actions in a matter-of-fact manner in short sentences with added observations.
The complex psychology of comradeship between men in a time of war is thoroughly explored through a human lens that pulled me in and kept me reading to the bitter end. This ending left me reeling with emotion and stayed with me long after I’d finished the book. I found myself thinking of the characters whilst replaying the events of the book in my mind’s eye.
There are scenes of a sexual nature in this book, along with swearing and innuendo. These aren’t used for mere shock value, though. Instead they add value to the characters’ development and story. For example, the descriptions of Kyle and Karen’s lovemaking evolves from the classic “fade-to-black” to intimate detail the more Kyle allows Karen into his heart.
“Partners” perfectly encapsulates the Wisconsin of 1975. It therefore doesn’t attempt to either apologise for or defend the attitudes, prejudices and social “norms” of the time. Instead, it simply presents them as the back-drop they were without placing too much emphasis upon them or attempting to “white-wash” them. In other words, there feels to be a balanced approach to this aspect of the novel. Therefore, readers shouldn’t feel wary of reading this book simply due to the period in which it’s set.
I absolutely adore Raymond Chandler’s Phillip Marlow books, and would recommend “Partners” to anyone who relishes hard-boiled of the 1940s & ‘50s and/or gritty thrillers.
The book is told through the eyes and mind of Kyle Marshall. First-person perspective is notoriously difficult to execute well but DeVoon excels at it. The style of narrative is skilfully written to portray the character of Kyle and his evolution as the story progresses. There are echoes of Raymond Chandler’s style in the narrative in the way Kyle describes his actions in a matter-of-fact manner in short sentences with added observations.
The complex psychology of comradeship between men in a time of war is thoroughly explored through a human lens that pulled me in and kept me reading to the bitter end. This ending left me reeling with emotion and stayed with me long after I’d finished the book. I found myself thinking of the characters whilst replaying the events of the book in my mind’s eye.
There are scenes of a sexual nature in this book, along with swearing and innuendo. These aren’t used for mere shock value, though. Instead they add value to the characters’ development and story. For example, the descriptions of Kyle and Karen’s lovemaking evolves from the classic “fade-to-black” to intimate detail the more Kyle allows Karen into his heart.
“Partners” perfectly encapsulates the Wisconsin of 1975. It therefore doesn’t attempt to either apologise for or defend the attitudes, prejudices and social “norms” of the time. Instead, it simply presents them as the back-drop they were without placing too much emphasis upon them or attempting to “white-wash” them. In other words, there feels to be a balanced approach to this aspect of the novel. Therefore, readers shouldn’t feel wary of reading this book simply due to the period in which it’s set.
I absolutely adore Raymond Chandler’s Phillip Marlow books, and would recommend “Partners” to anyone who relishes hard-boiled of the 1940s & ‘50s and/or gritty thrillers.
August 19, 2019
Full disclosure. My uncle wrote this book. Still it was a decent plot and kept me reading until the end. As someone who takes pleasure in what could be called classic novels, it's really weird seeing how family experiences get interwoven into an authors world. Anyways pretty good work.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews