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Go Down Dead
His first novel about a sixteen-year-old man-boy and leader of The Playboys, a Harlem gang of the early sixties. Dust jacket art by S. A. Summit,
- GenresCrime
Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
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About the author
Shane Stevens
16 books64 followersAka J.W. Rider
was an American author of crime novels. He was born in New York, New York to John and Caroline (Royale) Stevens. His novels include Go Down Dead (1966), Way Uptown in Another World (1971), Dead City (1973), Rat Pack (1974), By Reason of Insanity (1979), and The Anvil Chorus (1985). Stephen King has claimed to being a huge fan, and gave tribute to him in his book "The Dark Half", which features violent crime novels starring a character named 'Alexis Machine,' a reference to a character of the same name from the novel "Dead City." Appropriately Stevens was an intensely private person who avoided the limelight during his lifetime and has left many questions unanswered with his death.
was an American author of crime novels. He was born in New York, New York to John and Caroline (Royale) Stevens. His novels include Go Down Dead (1966), Way Uptown in Another World (1971), Dead City (1973), Rat Pack (1974), By Reason of Insanity (1979), and The Anvil Chorus (1985). Stephen King has claimed to being a huge fan, and gave tribute to him in his book "The Dark Half", which features violent crime novels starring a character named 'Alexis Machine,' a reference to a character of the same name from the novel "Dead City." Appropriately Stevens was an intensely private person who avoided the limelight during his lifetime and has left many questions unanswered with his death.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 4, 2021
While at the Bucheron Writers Annual Meeting in Dallas last October, I met three of my all-time favorite authors, Anne Hillerman, Joe Lansdale, and James Patterson. I might add they were incredible friendly, gracious, and generous with their time. Such a pleasure to be in their company. And the sessions at the meeting were equally fabulous.
While walking through the books being sold, I spotted mystery titles from Agatha Christie, Perry Mason, David Baldacci, and so many more I can't recite them here. While browsing, I picked up an old time paperback, the kind that are so small you could fit it in a coat pocket and for the cost (then) of 75 cents.
I picked up, Go Down Dead, by Shane Stevens, and couldn't put it down. Never, ever, have I read something so startling, so raw, so rough, and so descriptive. Every word was like a punch in the mouth about life in Harlem, Hell's Kitchen, the poverty, the drugs, the promiscuity, the gangs, and the utter hopelessness of black life in the inner city. I found that Stephen King called Shane Stevens one of his biggest influences. No one, and I mean no one, has written like this author. The reader is dragged into the nightmare of this hopeless life from the first sentence and held tight until the final page. Stevens ability to capture the dialect, the mood, the action, the vibe in Harlem is unlike anything I have ever read. I will read all of his works, and wonder about his life. There's not much on it. But this guy understood at the gut level about the characters and action. Simply extraordinary.
While walking through the books being sold, I spotted mystery titles from Agatha Christie, Perry Mason, David Baldacci, and so many more I can't recite them here. While browsing, I picked up an old time paperback, the kind that are so small you could fit it in a coat pocket and for the cost (then) of 75 cents.
I picked up, Go Down Dead, by Shane Stevens, and couldn't put it down. Never, ever, have I read something so startling, so raw, so rough, and so descriptive. Every word was like a punch in the mouth about life in Harlem, Hell's Kitchen, the poverty, the drugs, the promiscuity, the gangs, and the utter hopelessness of black life in the inner city. I found that Stephen King called Shane Stevens one of his biggest influences. No one, and I mean no one, has written like this author. The reader is dragged into the nightmare of this hopeless life from the first sentence and held tight until the final page. Stevens ability to capture the dialect, the mood, the action, the vibe in Harlem is unlike anything I have ever read. I will read all of his works, and wonder about his life. There's not much on it. But this guy understood at the gut level about the characters and action. Simply extraordinary.
December 7, 2024
I'd would have given it 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars if it wasn't for how it was written. The use of bad Ebonics and misspelling (on purpose) made it hard to read. Several times I had to reread a line or a sentence again.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews