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City of Blows
Tim Blake Nelson’s debut novel is an epic group portrait of four men grappling for control of a script in a radically changing Hollywood, or The City of Blows.
It’s early 2019 and the legendary (and legendarily difficult) producer Jacob Rosenthal is hellbent on producing his next film, Coal, adapted from the bestselling novel by celebrated (but long deceased) writer Rex Patterson. For reasons profoundly personal, the project—which takes on the controversial topic of race in America—is Jacob’s envisioned magnum opus, and likely his swan song. For equally personal reasons, Jacob selects Jim Levit to direct; a major opportunity for the classically trained actor/director whose own films, while garnering some critical acclaim, have not yet resulted in box office success.
The announcement of Jim’s hiring for Coal does not sit well with another producer who has worked with Jim, Aaron Gilman. With a career spiraling out of control, Aaron increasingly needs someone to blame, and Jim is the softest target he can think of. As he channels the last remaining vestiges of his creativity into a revenge plot that will ruin Jim’s big break (and Jacob’s crowning achievement), Aaron’s tragicomic origin story is revealed. But it is his agent and boyhood friend, the handsome and successful David McCann, who triggers a greater unraveling—and a long over-due reckoning for abuse and coercion masquerading as traditional Hollywood masculinity.
A sharply crafted satire, City of Blows is both love letter and indictment of the film industry from an insider. You will find yourself laughing in spite of the ruthlessness and despair, the hubris and the sheer evil, as City of Blows accelerates to its crescendo.
It’s early 2019 and the legendary (and legendarily difficult) producer Jacob Rosenthal is hellbent on producing his next film, Coal, adapted from the bestselling novel by celebrated (but long deceased) writer Rex Patterson. For reasons profoundly personal, the project—which takes on the controversial topic of race in America—is Jacob’s envisioned magnum opus, and likely his swan song. For equally personal reasons, Jacob selects Jim Levit to direct; a major opportunity for the classically trained actor/director whose own films, while garnering some critical acclaim, have not yet resulted in box office success.
The announcement of Jim’s hiring for Coal does not sit well with another producer who has worked with Jim, Aaron Gilman. With a career spiraling out of control, Aaron increasingly needs someone to blame, and Jim is the softest target he can think of. As he channels the last remaining vestiges of his creativity into a revenge plot that will ruin Jim’s big break (and Jacob’s crowning achievement), Aaron’s tragicomic origin story is revealed. But it is his agent and boyhood friend, the handsome and successful David McCann, who triggers a greater unraveling—and a long over-due reckoning for abuse and coercion masquerading as traditional Hollywood masculinity.
A sharply crafted satire, City of Blows is both love letter and indictment of the film industry from an insider. You will find yourself laughing in spite of the ruthlessness and despair, the hubris and the sheer evil, as City of Blows accelerates to its crescendo.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published February 7, 2023
54 people are currently reading
835 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
October 19, 2025
One of the most scathing, scatological and brutally honest novels about the hypocrisy, venality, moral decrepitude, and middle finger to the public cynicism of Hollywood I've ever read. Tim Blake Nelson pulls no punches in his studiously written expose about an industry that is as mendacious as any. The novel is as black as coal, which ironically is the title of a movie in the book that never gets made. I was laughing at the thinly veiled depiction of the story's two truly contemptible characters, Charlie Gold, who is obviously a stand in for Harvey Weinstein, and Paul Aiello, neither of whom can control their sexual urges, incessantly preying on the desperate young women dreaming of becoming stars. The ending put me in mind of "Network," and "City of Blows" is to Hollywood what "Network" WAS to TV, I say WAS, because Nelson makes it clear that the old Hollywood is dead, the theatrical movie-going experience is dead, that TV is now the province of quality material, while movies are now mostly CGI explosions and theme park drivel.
The ego-driven acrimony between Brad Schlansky and Jacob Rosenthal over movie rights is hilarious. The only character(s) with an ounce of integrity in this ruthless, greedy, narcissistic lions den is David Levit (and his wife Charlotte), who only wants to make a movie from Rex Patterson's race-fueled National Book Award winning "Coal."Nelson has written a story from an insider's knowing perspective, with dialogue so authentic that it sounds transcribed from recorded conversations. It's one great big black eye to a Hollywood that deserves it.
The ego-driven acrimony between Brad Schlansky and Jacob Rosenthal over movie rights is hilarious. The only character(s) with an ounce of integrity in this ruthless, greedy, narcissistic lions den is David Levit (and his wife Charlotte), who only wants to make a movie from Rex Patterson's race-fueled National Book Award winning "Coal."Nelson has written a story from an insider's knowing perspective, with dialogue so authentic that it sounds transcribed from recorded conversations. It's one great big black eye to a Hollywood that deserves it.
March 2, 2023
It's a very intricate, dense text, clearly written by an insider. My main issue with this otherwise well-written piece is that there is just too much going on, and too many characters...and just as I was getting into the background of one character, we suddenly shunt to a completely different person. It's as if its trying to be the Hollywood version of "Lord of the Rings", which is ambitious and commendable, but I would have preferred to concentrate on fewer characters and spend a little more time with them.
February 27, 2023
I love Tim Blake Nelson, very interesting man with an interesting life and interesting points of view. This book on the one hand is very interesting, with deep profiles of Hollywood fictional "types" that begin in their childhood and attempt to give you a sense of why these people are so aggressive and say fuck all the time. The profiles are great to read. But in the end, all the characters kind of melt together and it's hard to tell them apart. Their personalities change through the book and in different encounters but Nelson doesn't really guide you through any personality metamorphoses; suddenly someone goes from being an animal to being the one person you trust and then back again. There is a lot of graphic description of women being sexually abused by Hollywood men; there are a lot of references to actual news events in the world and in California. I read it quickly and enjoyed it but ... it's like taking a long car ride, where you see lots of interesting things out of the window but in the end when you get to your destination it's not really clear how it all added up. Like, what you see out the window in Denver doesn't really help you understand what California is like when you arrive there. This book does make me respect how hard it is to take a complicated novel that moves back and forth through time and have it all make sense. I think this book would have been better if Nelson had been less ambitious and tried to tell a smaller story. I hope he writes further books, I think he will get better and better.
February 23, 2023
In the evergreen tradition of Nathanael West's Day Of The Locust, and Tolkin/Altman's The Player, Hollywood is ripped a new one by Tim Blake Nelson's City Of Blows in all the ways it currently deserves to be. A gripping tale and a ripping take-down!
October 17, 2023
Never less than readable, but structurally and thematically a mess. Sets up a grand epic, but turns out that’s just backstory — which we're still getting more of in the final 50 pages.
Mr. Nelson (Blake Nelson?) demonstrates a nuanced grasp of the movie industry, but he does not do the work of the novelist in shaping a narrative. (There is, for instance, absolutely no reason why the Harvey Weinstein doppelgänger's exploits should be depicted here.) His diction also wavers on most pages — though never again as badly as in the opening sections.
As the denouement looms, characters turn into mouthpieces; then, one's realization that he's a rapist is upstaged by his confession that he voted for The Candidate Who Must Not Be Named, as if that is what makes him truly unredeemable! While likely not Mr. Nelson's intent, this has the distasteful effect of minimizing the character's crimes.
Then the climax resolves in the kind of violence that signifies a failure of artistic imagination. Readers deserve better.
Recommended only to Hollywood obsessives like me.
Mr. Nelson (Blake Nelson?) demonstrates a nuanced grasp of the movie industry, but he does not do the work of the novelist in shaping a narrative. (There is, for instance, absolutely no reason why the Harvey Weinstein doppelgänger's exploits should be depicted here.) His diction also wavers on most pages — though never again as badly as in the opening sections.
As the denouement looms, characters turn into mouthpieces; then, one's realization that he's a rapist is upstaged by his confession that he voted for The Candidate Who Must Not Be Named, as if that is what makes him truly unredeemable! While likely not Mr. Nelson's intent, this has the distasteful effect of minimizing the character's crimes.
Then the climax resolves in the kind of violence that signifies a failure of artistic imagination. Readers deserve better.
Recommended only to Hollywood obsessives like me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2023
I'll admit I picked this up due to the author's acting work, but now I think he may have richer prospects. It is beautifully written, has complex characters, and it kept me glued to the page even though the subject matter is an industry in which I have very little interest. It seems the financial machinations of entertainment have always been at loggerheads with creativity.
Nelson shows a true mastery of this medium when exploring how even extreme viewpoints don't necessarily have to be mutually exclusive, absolute, or black and white…perspective. Obviously, when characters step over the line and do something morally reprehensible, we are obliged to judge and despise them. But Nelson makes a realistically uncomfortable point of showing how the path leading to some truly repulsive behavior started on its slippery slope. Judge and despise, but this isn’t Disney and it’s not as easy when you see the whole picture.
Nelson shows a true mastery of this medium when exploring how even extreme viewpoints don't necessarily have to be mutually exclusive, absolute, or black and white…perspective. Obviously, when characters step over the line and do something morally reprehensible, we are obliged to judge and despise them. But Nelson makes a realistically uncomfortable point of showing how the path leading to some truly repulsive behavior started on its slippery slope. Judge and despise, but this isn’t Disney and it’s not as easy when you see the whole picture.
June 15, 2023
At multiple points, the characters in this clamorous story interlace with Nelson’s background and career; the novel is stippled with the kind of inside takes on Hollywood sausage-making that a veteran like Nelson could use to fill many more books. But City of Blows is less a warts-and-all showbiz tale than a study of what happens when sky-high expectations meet the buzzsaw of reality—albeit a reality radically distorted by an industry awash in outlandish promises, byzantine court politics, and juvenile score-settling…
Full review is in Rain Taxi Review of Books.
Full review is in Rain Taxi Review of Books.
August 5, 2023
Not so much the day I finished as it as the day I gave up. Needlessly verbose, it takes a long time to get anywhere. There are some moments clearly lifted from Nelson’s career, but none of them add anything to the plot or the characters as far as I can tell.
April 23, 2024
Not for me.
Started this book but stopped reading it.
Started this book but stopped reading it.
August 17, 2025
Hollywood, the saying goes, isn't a city so much as an idea shared by a million assholes.
It turns out, predictably, that one of my favorite character actors — who has already proved himself to be a capable director, producer and playwright when he's not in front of the camera — is a pretty decent novelist as well, choosing, for his debut, to write what he knows from the inside: the architecture of ugliness that lurks just beneath Hollywood's glamorous façade.
Despite the first line of his acknowledgements asserting that these are entirely fictional characters, the principals include an actor-director who shares a background similar to Nelson's own origins and education; an aging producer who has more than a little Scott Rudin in him; and, well, two brothers who are incontrovertibly Harvey and Bob Weinstein.
If the early chapters setting up these characters' backstories seems a bit of a slog, the novel quickly becomes a propulsive, page-turning read as they each go west to seek their fortunes in the movie business, to create art, to court fame, to spend other people's money and, inevitably, to compromise their ideals, sleep with the wrong people, ruin their reputations, turn against their allies, and risk their own livelihoods in a race to the bottom while struggling to hang on to the remaining shreds of their integrity and humanity.
My own experience in Hollywood was never quite this sordid, bleak and chaotic, but then, I operated on the lower rungs and left town before I was ever offered a chance to sleep my way to the middle.
It turns out, predictably, that one of my favorite character actors — who has already proved himself to be a capable director, producer and playwright when he's not in front of the camera — is a pretty decent novelist as well, choosing, for his debut, to write what he knows from the inside: the architecture of ugliness that lurks just beneath Hollywood's glamorous façade.
Despite the first line of his acknowledgements asserting that these are entirely fictional characters, the principals include an actor-director who shares a background similar to Nelson's own origins and education; an aging producer who has more than a little Scott Rudin in him; and, well, two brothers who are incontrovertibly Harvey and Bob Weinstein.
If the early chapters setting up these characters' backstories seems a bit of a slog, the novel quickly becomes a propulsive, page-turning read as they each go west to seek their fortunes in the movie business, to create art, to court fame, to spend other people's money and, inevitably, to compromise their ideals, sleep with the wrong people, ruin their reputations, turn against their allies, and risk their own livelihoods in a race to the bottom while struggling to hang on to the remaining shreds of their integrity and humanity.
My own experience in Hollywood was never quite this sordid, bleak and chaotic, but then, I operated on the lower rungs and left town before I was ever offered a chance to sleep my way to the middle.
April 2, 2023
Tim Blake Nelson is always a welcome presence when he pops up on your screen and his debut novel shows promise but ultimately gets bogged down in "doing the most". (If half-stars were allowed I'd give this 2 1/2.)
In-depth backstories are given to 3 major characters but then equal weight is placed on a 4th character later in the book. All of them are terrible people. Theres an avatar for Harvey Weinsten that is given intermittent bursts of attention, and he's not the only rapist here. I found the Jacob Rosenthal backstory of being a lawyer in the South while cheating with a married Black woman a poor attempt at garnering sympathy. Natch to the Paul Aiello backstory of sleeping with a Dominican girl in Washington Heights and getting cold feet when his classism has him fleeing her project apartment.
These men regret these decisions of their past and this is supposed to...explain why they are still terrible today? I don't get it. I feel like we are expected to give Rosenthal some sort of "liberal pass" because he wants to produce a movie like Coal and did that lawyer work.
Ending with Brad Shlansky killing Paul Aiello the serial rapist (not because he's a rapist btw) was schlock. A more adept writer wouldn't close with something so ridiculous as a shooting. Brad doesn't have the stones to carry out such violence. I didn't buy it.
In-depth backstories are given to 3 major characters but then equal weight is placed on a 4th character later in the book. All of them are terrible people. Theres an avatar for Harvey Weinsten that is given intermittent bursts of attention, and he's not the only rapist here. I found the Jacob Rosenthal backstory of being a lawyer in the South while cheating with a married Black woman a poor attempt at garnering sympathy. Natch to the Paul Aiello backstory of sleeping with a Dominican girl in Washington Heights and getting cold feet when his classism has him fleeing her project apartment.
These men regret these decisions of their past and this is supposed to...explain why they are still terrible today? I don't get it. I feel like we are expected to give Rosenthal some sort of "liberal pass" because he wants to produce a movie like Coal and did that lawyer work.
Ending with Brad Shlansky killing Paul Aiello the serial rapist (not because he's a rapist btw) was schlock. A more adept writer wouldn't close with something so ridiculous as a shooting. Brad doesn't have the stones to carry out such violence. I didn't buy it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2023
I was minimally familiar with the writer from his work in movies like Minority Report, Holes, The Incredible Hulk, and most recently the Ballad of Buster Scruggs. I have nothing against his work in films and neither really like or dislike his roles. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for this book.
Tbh, the glowing review by Guillermo del Toro was what drew me in, as my hubby and I are big fans of his horror movies and thrillers. But maybe that was the point. Just doing a favor for a friend? Regardless, his summation is more or less accurate. This scathing “story” covers the cliche ills of Hollywood. Violence, deceit, and more violence.
I don’t have any issues with the “big words” as I possess an extensive vocabulary myself. However, I can’t tell whether Nelson used such verbiage because he was trying to sound smart or because he’s actually a knowledgeable philologer. Either way, the plot came off as verbose and jumbled. It got even more detestable when a political spin was brought it. As if voting for one person or another were a worse crime than that of S*A!!?! What on earth?! I found that minimizing and unnecessary. I felt too dirty and confused to continue down the dark rambling road with no end in sight so I gave up halfway through. Would NOT recommend.
Tbh, the glowing review by Guillermo del Toro was what drew me in, as my hubby and I are big fans of his horror movies and thrillers. But maybe that was the point. Just doing a favor for a friend? Regardless, his summation is more or less accurate. This scathing “story” covers the cliche ills of Hollywood. Violence, deceit, and more violence.
I don’t have any issues with the “big words” as I possess an extensive vocabulary myself. However, I can’t tell whether Nelson used such verbiage because he was trying to sound smart or because he’s actually a knowledgeable philologer. Either way, the plot came off as verbose and jumbled. It got even more detestable when a political spin was brought it. As if voting for one person or another were a worse crime than that of S*A!!?! What on earth?! I found that minimizing and unnecessary. I felt too dirty and confused to continue down the dark rambling road with no end in sight so I gave up halfway through. Would NOT recommend.
June 3, 2023
The Industry survives, but it is not thriving. The City of Blows rates a 4 because it is believable. Blake Nelson is clearly someone who has lived there. He knows the lingo, understands the weaknesses of the players, and recognizes it's all about money, power, and whether something is commissionable. His characters, mainly producers, directors, and agents, appear to be on the edge of something; balancing deals, uncontrollable appetites, or, occasionally, conscience. The book introduces a film that touches on race, another that has been languishing for lack of funding, and a group of directors, producers, and directors with conflicting interests. Minor characters include actors, attorneys, assistants, and family members. Although I liked the book a lot, it was almost too busy with characters and side stories.
May 19, 2023
"Among other head scratchers, the woman, within days of being raped by her husband's two murderers, pursued sex with her liberator, which felt unlikely."
If that sounds like an interesting movie, maybe you will like this book. This is so depressing and hard to read that I would not recommend it to anyone. The men are all terrible people who justify their own bad behavior over and over again, just in case we might get the idea that they are in touch with reality. There are no women, just cardboard characters who are raped, demeaned, cheated on, and gas-lighted throughout. I read it for a book club and I still feel dirty for having finished it.
If that sounds like an interesting movie, maybe you will like this book. This is so depressing and hard to read that I would not recommend it to anyone. The men are all terrible people who justify their own bad behavior over and over again, just in case we might get the idea that they are in touch with reality. There are no women, just cardboard characters who are raped, demeaned, cheated on, and gas-lighted throughout. I read it for a book club and I still feel dirty for having finished it.
November 20, 2023
City of Blows is a very meticulous story with detailed characters. The author's intelligence shines through in the twisting developments and motivations. Tim Blake Nelson is a gifted actor, as well as an under-appreciated writer/director. That experience is apparent in the manner that this story unfolds not only in the setting and plot, but in interiors of the characters. They move and act consistent with the compulsions embedded in their pasts.
I was fully invested in the characters and was as engaged by the detailed back stories that the Julliard trained author gave them. The commitment required by the reader is paid off well. A good but somewhat challenging book.
I was fully invested in the characters and was as engaged by the detailed back stories that the Julliard trained author gave them. The commitment required by the reader is paid off well. A good but somewhat challenging book.
April 7, 2024
Fascinating!
One cannot help reading a book like this without keeping in mind who the author is. That being said, its a great book regardless of who authored it. I laughed, cringed and shook my head. There were a few characters I actually liked. I don't do synopses, you need to read this for yourself. Really, its well worth it! I already know of at least one person who is getting this as a present!
One cannot help reading a book like this without keeping in mind who the author is. That being said, its a great book regardless of who authored it. I laughed, cringed and shook my head. There were a few characters I actually liked. I don't do synopses, you need to read this for yourself. Really, its well worth it! I already know of at least one person who is getting this as a present!
April 23, 2025
Too many characters all terrible in equally horrendous ways. A lot of insider baseball which is ok for me but t everyone seemed a lil too similar and there are frankly way too many characters and way too much backstory and development and then immediately switching back to the plot. It made it a bit too dense for me and the ending is so abrupt after such a climb to get there. I think another edit would have done wonders.
May 15, 2023
This was a slower read than I anticipated because it has A LOT of character backstory and development. Way more technical re: film production but I enjoyed that. Part 3 is very straight from the headlines.
I do think this is one of the most poorly edited books I’ve read? Many many typos/word omissions. One section had the wrong character’s name repeatedly used???
I do think this is one of the most poorly edited books I’ve read? Many many typos/word omissions. One section had the wrong character’s name repeatedly used???
August 23, 2023
I love Tim Blake Nelson as an actor, but had no idea he also writes fiction. When I saw this in my Vine recommendations, I grabbed it!
And I'm glad I did. I'm always down for a good Hollywood power story, and that's exactly what this is - Funny, horrifying, and hard to put down. Highly recommend this!
And I'm glad I did. I'm always down for a good Hollywood power story, and that's exactly what this is - Funny, horrifying, and hard to put down. Highly recommend this!
October 2, 2024
Tim Blake Nelson pulls back the curtain on Hollywood with a satire both laugh-out-loud funny and thinly-disguised powerful creeps making this reader long for a long cleansing shower. Although this would make a great series, it'll never get made - too close to the bone. Highly recommend for anyone who is a Hollywood aficionado, warts and all.
April 13, 2023
Third in the Hollywood Trilogy
Day of the Locust, the Loved One, and City of Blows dissect and report the Industry. And as some wild drunken hillbilly named Hunter S. Thompson once wrote: “The best fiction is far more true than nonfiction.” Or something like that…
Selah.
Day of the Locust, the Loved One, and City of Blows dissect and report the Industry. And as some wild drunken hillbilly named Hunter S. Thompson once wrote: “The best fiction is far more true than nonfiction.” Or something like that…
Selah.
April 29, 2023
This book is entertaining and very well written; the back stories were a bit more detailed than I needed, but especially with Brad’s character they were useful for context towards the end of the book.
Read
February 20, 2023At The Millions, I interviewed Tim Blake Nelson about the book.
https://themillions.com/2023/02/tim-b...
https://themillions.com/2023/02/tim-b...
May 19, 2023
I got a chance to meet him as he signed my book. It’s a good book but the ending left me wanting more. The end felt like an incomplete story. I just wanted a conclusion of the characters.
February 25, 2024
A terrific look at present-day showbiz and how it writhes, evolves, corrupts and shines in the 21st century. I can’t recommend it enough.
April 29, 2024
sadly i hated it
September 26, 2023
You can check out my review here:
https://youtu.be/zjQtxs80TqA
https://youtu.be/zjQtxs80TqA
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews