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Suicide Blonde: Three Novellas
Three Stories. Three Eras. Three Crimes. A 1960s mob fixer is drawn into a Vegas fix that might just put the fix on him. Dead Chinese immigrants wash up on the beaches of 1889 Seattle and one government official refuses to look the other way. An Italian ex-galley slave, sometime thief, and full-time rogue masterminds a one-of-its kind jail break in 1581 Constantinople. Praise for SUICIDE “Brian Thornton’s trio of historical novellas—Suicide Blonde—affirms his status as a star of the genre. A true wordsmith, Thornton paints rich, evocative portraits of early 1960s Las Vegas mobsters, nineteenth-century Pacific Northwest racial strife, and sixteenth-century Venetian maritime adventures. These novellas brim with characters full of life and personality, and the storytelling transports the reader to fascinating—and dangerous—times. Top-drawer stuff.” —James W. Ziskin, Anthony and Macavity Award-winning author of the Ellie Stone mysteries “Evoking Dashiell Hammett and Phillip Kerr, Suicide Blonde conjures a world of pulp adventure and hardboiled grit. From the Vegas Strip to the Mediterranean, this trio of historical crime tales surges with period precision and Black Mask-worthy thrills. Thornton delivers.” —Sam Wiebe, award-winning author of Invisible Dead and Last of the Independents “A trio of tales that span the globe and the centuries, each one told with a historian’s eye for detail and a storyteller’s gift for pacing. Suicide Blonde is not to be missed.” —Renee Patrick, Anthony and Macavity Award-nominated author of Design For Dying and Script For Scandal
Kindle Edition
Published October 19, 2020
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About the author
Brian Thornton
15 books15 followersBrian Thornton is the author of twelve books and a whole bunch of short stories. He does all of his own stunts, loves the color blue as well as singing in the car with his wife and son, and lives with his family in Seattle, where he recently completed his third term as Northwest Chapter president for the Mystery Writers of America.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 21, 2020
I have a soft spot for novellas. I like a tight story that packs a punch and moves on. This is a very nice trio of stories because all three are historical but run the gambit of time periods from Vegas rat pack to the Turkish renaissance. My favorite is Paper Son which deals with Chinese in Seattle in the 1880's. Overall, this is a very nice threesome of stories.
November 2, 2020
There are great historians, and great storytellers, but not so many great storytelling historians. Either they fancifully bend documented fact to simplistic fiction for page-turning purposes, or they overseason their story pot with stultifying detail so that they never feel that their time doing exhaustive research has gone to waste.
But Brian Thornton, author of several nonfiction books of history in addition to SUICIDE BLONDE, masterfully blends rich historical minutiae with contemporary thriller pacing, making the pages turn through a rare instinct for knowing what to put in and what to leave out. You emerge from each story feeling smarter about the era he's writing about — Rat Pack-era Las Vegas, 1880s Seattle, Turkey in 1581 — while thoroughly involved in the mysterious central question posed in each in the tradition of the best crime fiction.
And just as impressive is Thornton's utility. Most authors of historical fiction pick an era and place of interest and double down on it throughout their careers. But, as evidenced the impressive range of these three novella-length tales you get the sense that Thornton's powers of storytelling and historical knowledge are strong enough to be sustained in any historical context — that he could essentially plug and play into an era and any place in time and his natural curiosity and strong character-driven story values could carry any day. (And he is working on a novel set in 1840s Washington D.C.)
The first story, "Suicide Blonde," neatly inverts the detective-story trope by presenting a crooked mob lawyer as the book's hero, racing against time to protect his client and push for a rough sort of justice at the same time. And the historical detail is such that a key plot point turns on characters who remain rigidly loyal to their preferred brands of cigarette. And I loved the detail about how men who merely looked like mobsters served a vital function: they took the attention off the real men who controlled Vegas, who put great stock in coming across as legitimate citizens and businessmen: "Look, guys like Johnny Rosselli? They serve a purpose. Be colorful. They're out there to draw attention, to look an act the part. All so guys like my boss can go about their business quietly, profitably,. These guys plant roots here. They serve as alderman. Sit on school boards. make sure the schools get funded because they send their kids there."
"Paper Son" tells the compelling story of a federal Treasury agent, new to Seattle, who gets a crash course in the complicated political power structure that controls the labor in this still-frontier town. But there's the white version of it, and there's the more pragmatic and clear-eyed kind delivered by a Chinese fixer who helps the agent solve the murders of two Chinese men for reasons of his own. The whites see the Chinese as a force in need of strict controlling to maintain a balance in which whites maintain control while looking past some less savory aspects of Chinese self-policing in order to keep the labor supply steady and semi-happy. The Chinese simply want respect for who they are and what they provide that no one else will. The result is a fascinating disquisition that has strong echoes of relevance to today, given the rising anti-China sentiment in the air in 2020 America:
“You think because you are different from those who beat Chinese, who cheat Chinese, who lynch Chinese, that you are better person? Straightforward bigots like Munro are easy to deal with. They usually have their price, and I am good at finding it. “But improvers?” he clucked through his teeth several times in rapid succession. “Civilizers? I am a Christian, did I tell you that? Been one for over twenty years. I wear white man’s coat, got a white man’s hat. I have worked hard and prospered. “This is both the Chinese and the American tradition. Porter likes to use the phrase, ‘Protestant work ethic.’ But I have never seen a Protestant who could outwork a coolie from Guangdong. “I find so much to love, so much of value here in America. I embrace this country. But the riots, they taught me a valuable lesson. “I can dress like you, talk like you, walk like gweilo, make money like gweilo, but to the ghosts like you, the ones who haunt Gold Mountain, all I am, all I will ever be, is a Ch*nk."
Fascinating stuff, because this is as much plot point as polemic, a proof of Thornton's enviable ability to carry forward two or more levels of story theme at once. The third story, "Bragadin's Skin," is cut from the same ambitious cloth. Altogether, they comprise an impressive showcase for this historian with the heart of a classic bestselling mystery author. Keep an eye on Brian Thornton; his star is on the ascendant.
But Brian Thornton, author of several nonfiction books of history in addition to SUICIDE BLONDE, masterfully blends rich historical minutiae with contemporary thriller pacing, making the pages turn through a rare instinct for knowing what to put in and what to leave out. You emerge from each story feeling smarter about the era he's writing about — Rat Pack-era Las Vegas, 1880s Seattle, Turkey in 1581 — while thoroughly involved in the mysterious central question posed in each in the tradition of the best crime fiction.
And just as impressive is Thornton's utility. Most authors of historical fiction pick an era and place of interest and double down on it throughout their careers. But, as evidenced the impressive range of these three novella-length tales you get the sense that Thornton's powers of storytelling and historical knowledge are strong enough to be sustained in any historical context — that he could essentially plug and play into an era and any place in time and his natural curiosity and strong character-driven story values could carry any day. (And he is working on a novel set in 1840s Washington D.C.)
The first story, "Suicide Blonde," neatly inverts the detective-story trope by presenting a crooked mob lawyer as the book's hero, racing against time to protect his client and push for a rough sort of justice at the same time. And the historical detail is such that a key plot point turns on characters who remain rigidly loyal to their preferred brands of cigarette. And I loved the detail about how men who merely looked like mobsters served a vital function: they took the attention off the real men who controlled Vegas, who put great stock in coming across as legitimate citizens and businessmen: "Look, guys like Johnny Rosselli? They serve a purpose. Be colorful. They're out there to draw attention, to look an act the part. All so guys like my boss can go about their business quietly, profitably,. These guys plant roots here. They serve as alderman. Sit on school boards. make sure the schools get funded because they send their kids there."
"Paper Son" tells the compelling story of a federal Treasury agent, new to Seattle, who gets a crash course in the complicated political power structure that controls the labor in this still-frontier town. But there's the white version of it, and there's the more pragmatic and clear-eyed kind delivered by a Chinese fixer who helps the agent solve the murders of two Chinese men for reasons of his own. The whites see the Chinese as a force in need of strict controlling to maintain a balance in which whites maintain control while looking past some less savory aspects of Chinese self-policing in order to keep the labor supply steady and semi-happy. The Chinese simply want respect for who they are and what they provide that no one else will. The result is a fascinating disquisition that has strong echoes of relevance to today, given the rising anti-China sentiment in the air in 2020 America:
“You think because you are different from those who beat Chinese, who cheat Chinese, who lynch Chinese, that you are better person? Straightforward bigots like Munro are easy to deal with. They usually have their price, and I am good at finding it. “But improvers?” he clucked through his teeth several times in rapid succession. “Civilizers? I am a Christian, did I tell you that? Been one for over twenty years. I wear white man’s coat, got a white man’s hat. I have worked hard and prospered. “This is both the Chinese and the American tradition. Porter likes to use the phrase, ‘Protestant work ethic.’ But I have never seen a Protestant who could outwork a coolie from Guangdong. “I find so much to love, so much of value here in America. I embrace this country. But the riots, they taught me a valuable lesson. “I can dress like you, talk like you, walk like gweilo, make money like gweilo, but to the ghosts like you, the ones who haunt Gold Mountain, all I am, all I will ever be, is a Ch*nk."
Fascinating stuff, because this is as much plot point as polemic, a proof of Thornton's enviable ability to carry forward two or more levels of story theme at once. The third story, "Bragadin's Skin," is cut from the same ambitious cloth. Altogether, they comprise an impressive showcase for this historian with the heart of a classic bestselling mystery author. Keep an eye on Brian Thornton; his star is on the ascendant.
December 5, 2020
Suicide Blond is both the title of the book and the title of the first of the three novellas that comprise the book. Three stories set at different historical times and place - Las Vegas in the 60s, Seattle in the late 1800s, and 1500 Constantinople. What great variety!
The first story, Suicide Blonde, involves a mob boss in Vegas and his fixer attorney. Fixer is tasked with babysitting his boss's brother prior to testifying before an investigation that affects the boss. Brother has become somewhat of a liability and embarrassment because he’s not all that stable. Unfortunately, his brother may have murdered his next-door neighbor, a comely female. Or maybe not. How Fixer handles it, and the ultimate denouement, makes for a great story.
I was in Las Vegas when I was 12 years old, in 1967, and the feel and description of the locale at that time was spot-on. The author has done some deep diving research, and it shows.
The other two stories have that same, authentic feel. The first one is set near and in Seattle, which was just a small town at the time, but expanding rapidly, with a significant Chinese population, there as laborers in the city's growth, with their own little community. Thorton gets the racial tension between whites and Chinese right too. The plot involves Chineses bodies found floating in a nearby lake, and a newly appointed Treasury agent curious enough to care to get to the bottom of it.
The last story is more sublime. I’m still pondering The Who and What, involving breaking into a Turkish prison to break a prisoner out, but it’s a great read. Cultural and historic references were over my head, because I’m not that well versed in Renaissance era Turkey, but it again felt authentic and historically accurate, and that's a comforting setting for the story.
Novellas are great for quick reading. I read each one in a single setting, so I finished the book over three days. Well worth the read.
The first story, Suicide Blonde, involves a mob boss in Vegas and his fixer attorney. Fixer is tasked with babysitting his boss's brother prior to testifying before an investigation that affects the boss. Brother has become somewhat of a liability and embarrassment because he’s not all that stable. Unfortunately, his brother may have murdered his next-door neighbor, a comely female. Or maybe not. How Fixer handles it, and the ultimate denouement, makes for a great story.
I was in Las Vegas when I was 12 years old, in 1967, and the feel and description of the locale at that time was spot-on. The author has done some deep diving research, and it shows.
The other two stories have that same, authentic feel. The first one is set near and in Seattle, which was just a small town at the time, but expanding rapidly, with a significant Chinese population, there as laborers in the city's growth, with their own little community. Thorton gets the racial tension between whites and Chinese right too. The plot involves Chineses bodies found floating in a nearby lake, and a newly appointed Treasury agent curious enough to care to get to the bottom of it.
The last story is more sublime. I’m still pondering The Who and What, involving breaking into a Turkish prison to break a prisoner out, but it’s a great read. Cultural and historic references were over my head, because I’m not that well versed in Renaissance era Turkey, but it again felt authentic and historically accurate, and that's a comforting setting for the story.
Novellas are great for quick reading. I read each one in a single setting, so I finished the book over three days. Well worth the read.
October 29, 2020
Brian Thornton’s trio of historical novellas—SUICIDE BLONDE—affirms his status as a star of the genre. A true wordsmith, Thornton paints rich, evocative portraits of early 1960s Las Vegas mobsters, nineteenth-century Pacific Northwest racial strife, and sixteenth-century Venetian maritime adventures. These novellas brim with characters full of life and personality, and the storytelling transports the reader to fascinating—and dangerous—times. Top-drawer stuff.
December 16, 2020
I have followed Brian Thornton's short stories for some time, and was happy to hear he'd written a novella collection. This trio of novellas really shows Thornton's skill: such well-written crime fiction, with character depth and a tight plot, plus a thorough understanding of each era of history.
I couldn't recommend this collection more. Perfect for the crime fiction fan who likes a knowledgeable historical angle, like me. Looking forward to Brian Thornton's next work.
I couldn't recommend this collection more. Perfect for the crime fiction fan who likes a knowledgeable historical angle, like me. Looking forward to Brian Thornton's next work.
December 9, 2020
Brian Thornton has a knack and voice for historical crime fiction like no other author. I blew through these three novellas and they left me wanting more. Highly recommend!
February 24, 2021
This was a *GREAT* read - perfect for reading on a vacation or for anyone who reads for kicks. In addition to its top-notch entertainment value, Thornton laces extremely insightful and well-researched history throughout. The result is coolness on the scale of a Guy Ritchie movie. I found myself turning each page like a machine and cracking grins throughout. Each novella - one set in 1960s Vegas, 1880s Seattle, and 1580s Constantinople, could be a blockbuster film. The dialogue was razor sharp. In addition, there are serious moments that make the reader think (my favorite being a race-related conversation with a Chinese man with an Irish man in the 1880s Seattle story).
First rate. I hope author Brian Thornton writes many more of these!!
First rate. I hope author Brian Thornton writes many more of these!!
May 12, 2021
Excellent noir. If you like a dash of literary in your hardboiled, this is it.
December 3, 2020
Excellent little collection of three novellas by Seattle writer Brian Thornton. For more of my thoughts, anyone can check out my interview with him at this link:
https://www.thebigthrill.org/2020/11/...
https://www.thebigthrill.org/2020/11/...
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews