Right As Rain

Rating:
Summary: OK, so we learn all about pop...
Review: George Pelacanos has detailed knowledge of a certain kind of pop music, seems to have a passion for cars and an excellent grasp of D.C.'s map. Is that enough ?

"Right as Rain" is the second book of his which I read, and most likely the last. On a rather flimsy plot, we are made to amble around the city with a taxi driver's descriptive driness, to endure a DJ's self-important opinion of whatever is playing wherever it is playing (and God knows it IS playing everywhere...), and to yawn at a garage mechanic's description of cars which only another garage mechanic would love.

The plot moves slowly, everybody guzzles galons of beer (Tsingtao, for Chinese color; Heineken for that touch of elegance; Bud for beaten up, soulful characters who have had it "bad"), smokes and solves most conflicts with beatings and shootings. Characters, except for those with a white hat, are caricatures, clichés. And, of course, there's that racial moral high-ground, with lots of 60's "flower children cum Harvard professor" posturing.

As for style, this book is obviously written to ease the pain when it shall have to become a TV or movie script. Almost all one has to do is change chapter numbers and little paragraph separations by "Scene number" and...voilà ! another Gooding/Pitt mold has been poured.

"Right as Rain" is wrong as drought.

Rating:
Summary: A Tough, Intriguing Story
Review: George Pelecanos introduces us to 2 new characters, Derek Strange and Terry Quinn. Both are ex-cops, but there the similarities end. Strange is in his 50's, is a private investigator and black, Quinn is in his late 20's, works in a second-hand bookstore and is white. This book is as much a commentary on racial tensions in today's society as it is a well-crafted thriller.

Strange and Quinn meet after Strange is hired to investigate the shooting of an off-duty black police officer by another policeman. The other policeman was Quinn. The two team up because Quinn would also like to know the truth as to what really happened that night, and is also keen to prove that he is not a racist.

A subplot involving a drug-dealing father and son team and their dealings with their suppliers and distributors keeps pace with the main story and inevitably mixes together in a happy union creating a sizzling finale of revenge and violence.

Once again, Pelecanos' characters are heavily influenced by music and have definite ideas on what is "good" or "bad". The use of music is a big indicator of the personalities of each character and is a very clever and unique means of characterisation.

Unlike some of Pelecanos' earlier characters, I found both Strange and Quinn to be strong, capable and (to a point) moral. Overall, they are likable men. This has led me to look forward to more books involving them. Right As Rain is a compelling mystery containing all the elements that has made Pelecanos books so popular: violence, drugs, music...and Washington D.C.

Rating:
Summary: Getting a whole lot better
Review: I have tried to read Pelecanos' earlier books but could not get through them. Not sure why. He has a great gift for dialogue, writes smoothly, and in patches his books were terrific and reminiscent of the best of Elmore Leonard. That was the problem -- patches. He still does not quite have tight plotting down right and sometimes Right as Rain meanders around the landscape for a while before it gets back down to business. Still, this book is a quantum leap ahead of his earlier stuff and encouraged me to buy his next book, Hell to Pay. There are some authors who decline as they write (John le Carre) so their earlier works are their best. Others, like Pelecanos, just get better and better. So start with the most recent and work your way back if you care to. It helps to know DC and the surrounding area to really get into his work.

Rating:
Summary: Best Modern Crime Noir Writer (And A Springsteen fan!!!!)
Review: I read five of Pelecanos' books in a row, and finally had to stop myself- not because I was burning myself out on them, but because they're simply that good and I want to savor them. Unfortunately, some of his earlier Nick Stefanos and Dimitri Karras books are hard to find and exist only in overpriced paperback editions. Knowing that, I started with the Derek Strange books, since they're in print and easy to find at bookstores and libraries. Pelecanos is frequently compared to Micahel Connelly and Dennis Lehane, but I think he's a lot better. Given that those two are fantastic writers, that's quite a compliment- sort of like saying that The Beatles are better than The Stones and The Who...

Derek Strange is one of the more realistic characters I've met in any genere. He's a flawed but basically decent man struggling with the social issues that confront him in his personal and professional life. Pelecanos conveys a social conscience without becoming preachy, and Strange is the perfect vehicle for this. His settings are not the tired, overused streets of NYC or Los Angeles, but instead the familiar but less literary-travelled areas surroudning Washington DC. His DC is not the political Beltway, but rather the complex urban area that offers the tremendous positivies and the horrific negatives of any major city. In addition to a remarkably sympathetic and detailed protagonist, Pelecanos creates some truly repulsive bad guys- thoroughly evil, but utterly impossible to turn away from.

Some reviews criticize Pelecanos for his overuse of musical references. I disagree- I think that the constant reference to the music being listened to by the character sets the mood and tone as much as do the descritions of place. I'm not familiar with everything he mentions, but it certainly makes me want to go seek out each song and artist he so casually namedrops. Plus, he's a Springsteen fan, so that ups his credibilty a thousandfold in my book!!!!

So this review seems to be as much about Pelecanos' overall works as about "Right As Rain". It's a fine mystery/urban crime novel with no shortage of violence and drug references, but they are never gratuitous and never portrayed without some moral and social context. Pelecanos clearly weighs heavily the social issues that confront our culture, and he does a fine job of expressing these through his characters. I look forward to more stories with Derek Strange, Terry Quinn and the rest of the profound people that populate Pelecanos' only-slightly fictional world.

Rating:
Summary: Best Modern Crime Noir Writer (And A Springsteen fan!!!!)
Review: I read five of Pelecanos' books in a row, and finally had to stop myself- not because I was burning myself out on them, but because they're simply that good and I want to savor them. Unfortunately, some of his earlier Nick Stefanos and Dimitri Karras books are hard to find and exist only in overpriced paperback editions. Knowing that, I started with the Derek Strange books, since they're in print and easy to find at bookstores and libraries. Pelecanos is frequently compared to Micahel Connelly and Dennis Lehane, but I think he's a lot better. Given that those two are fantastic writers, that's quite a compliment- sort of like saying that The Beatles are better than The Stones and The Who...

Derek Strange is one of the more realistic characters I've met in any genere. He's a flawed but basically decent man struggling with the social issues that confront him in his personal and professional life. Pelecanos conveys a social conscience without becoming preachy, and Strange is the perfect vehicle for this. His settings are not the tired, overused streets of NYC or Los Angeles, but instead the familiar but less literary-travelled areas surroudning Washington DC. His DC is not the political Beltway, but rather the complex urban area that offers the tremendous positivies and the horrific negatives of any major city. In addition to a remarkably sympathetic and detailed protagonist, Pelecanos creates some truly repulsive bad guys- thoroughly evil, but utterly impossible to turn away from.

Some reviews criticize Pelecanos for his overuse of musical references. I disagree- I think that the constant reference to the music being listened to by the character sets the mood and tone as much as do the descritions of place. I'm not familiar with everything he mentions, but it certainly makes me want to go seek out each song and artist he so casually namedrops. Plus, he's a Springsteen fan, so that ups his credibilty a thousandfold in my book!!!!

So this review seems to be as much about Pelecanos' overall works as about "Right As Rain". It's a fine mystery/urban crime novel with no shortage of violence and drug references, but they are never gratuitous and never portrayed without some moral and social context. Pelecanos clearly weighs heavily the social issues that confront our culture, and he does a fine job of expressing these through his characters. I look forward to more stories with Derek Strange, Terry Quinn and the rest of the profound people that populate Pelecanos' only-slightly fictional world.

Rating:
Summary: Pelecanos Knows DC!
Review: I read this novel after reading SOUL CIRCUS and this was one of the prequels to that novel which unfortunately is probably the last novel that the character Terry Quinn will appear in. RIGHT AS RAIN introduces Derek Strange and Terry Quinn and the origins of their friendship and their differences (other than race) that they often have to contend with. I would have to say that Terry Quinn is a more developed character in this novel than in SOUL CIRCUS but I have yet to read HELL TO PAY which next on my reading list. The story is fast paced and gritty. Washington, DC is described with every brutal and gritty detail. It reads like a postmodern Chester Himes novel. A clear distinction of good and evil in some instances but also grey and shady areas where the lines are not so easily drawn. Quinn is actually a likable character in this novel.

Rating:
Summary: Great story....good take on racism
Review: I've added Nick Pelecanos to my favorites list based on this book. He combines great characters, fast action plot and a both sides of the race issue (if there are just two sides...). And he doesn't cop out to make the story have a happy ending, the way Lescroart did in The First Law recently.

Get it - you'll enjoy it!!

Rating:
Summary: WHAT IS "RIGHT AS RAIN" -- THIS BOOK IS!!!
Review: In a recent issue of Book Magazine, George Pelecanos claims that hedoesn't want the words "cool and tough" to dominate his dustjacket blurbs in describing his writing so I'll have to come up withsome other adjectives to describe his explosive storylines and quickdialogue. He describes one of the characters in his book as being"violent, fearless, sensitive and disturbed" -- come tothink of it, these are the adjectives that could be used to describehis own writing in this book. I had an opportunity to see Pelecanosin person at a book signing in Philadelphia and if the words cool andtough shouldn't be used to describe his books, they certainly can beused to describe this author, as the picture in his book doesn't dohim justice.

In Right As Rain, Derek Strange is a 50 somethingex-cop who now has his own investigation agency. Terry Quinn is a 30something ex-cop who now works in a bookstore. The shooting death ofblack cop Chris Wilson at the hands of a white cop will bring thesetwo together as the white cop and shooter was Terry Quinn. Strange ishired by Wilson's mother to clear her son's name since Quinn said heacted in self-defense in shooting Wilson. The investigation will leadDerek Strange to a drug trafficking ring originating out of Floridaand supplying the D.C. dealers with enough drugs to make everyonerich. The middlemen in D.C. are lowlifes and their connection is evenworse. Pelecanos explores the lives of the junkies, the dealers, thebad cops involved and some good cops trying to come to terms withurban life in D.C. as well as their own prejudicial agenda. Thisisn't the Washington, D.C. you see on CSPAN. The author states thatthere are "more violent criminals there, per capita, than in anycity in the country." Yet it is quite obvious that GeorgePelecanos loves this city and knows its good points as well as its badones. His research is extensive and I've heard he's been known todrive around with D.C. cops at night to further understand the innerworkings of the beat....after signing stacks of liability releases I'msure.

The story comes to a cataclysmic end as all roads lead to oneand everyone's story becomes connected. It was at this point in thebook that I truly became nervous wondering how it would all end up.This is the true sign of a good mystery writer -- one who can keep youon the edge of your seat.

Pelecanos makes some very good points onsocial reform yet he doesn't lecture you as some other authors might.He just throws his thoughts out there perhaps hoping they'll stick.He's also obviously a music lover and aficionado of books with awestern theme as most every scene in the book has accompanying musicmentioned as well as many western book titles being read in thebookstore where Quinn works. Lovers of music and westerns will eatthis up.

The teaming up of Derek Strange and Terry Quinn is one thatdefinitely works and this reader hopes to meet up with them again inanother Pelecanos' offering. If you've yet to check out GeorgePelecanos, I'd suggest starting with this one since you'd be hardpressed not to enjoy it. I know that Pelecanos is being compared tomany other authors out there right now. Believe me, there's nocomparison -- he's in a class of his own.

Rating:
Summary: Urban noir crime fiction as only George R. Pelecanos does it
Review: In Washington DC, Caucasian cop Terry Quinn sees a black man holding down a white man to the ground. Terry tells the individual to put down his gun, but instead the culprit points the weapon at the police officer. Terry reacts and kills the assailant. It surfaces later that the dead man was a cop in civilian clothes and the person he held to the ground claimed police brutality.

Following that incident, terry quits the force to work at a bookstore, the "injured" party receives a huge settlement from the city, and the dead officer's reputation is shredded. Mrs. Wilson wants to clear her son's name, so she hires Derek Strange, a former police officer turned private detective. After investigating the case and meeting with Terry, Strange surprisingly likes the man. Both share a desire to learn why Officer Chris Weston was drunk an in an uncharacteristically killing rage.

No writer today does urban noir crime fiction as well as George R. Pelecanos does. He always tells quite a good story while smoothly weaving social commentary into the plot. The realistic charcaters are likable even if they do not appear anything like the boy next door. RIGHT AS RAIN is an urban suspense thriller that that showcases the author's immense talent.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Right On!
Review: It has been a long time since I read a top-notch mystery novel from someone other than by one of my favorite authors (a short list that includes Lawrence Block and James Lee Burke among others). Pelecanos has written a stylish and gritty PI novel set in the lesser-known parts of DC. He introduces two new and very interesting characters, and I hope we will be seeing much more of them in the future.

The novel is loaded with atmosphere, much like Block does for NYC. It is well written and moves along at just the right pace. It is a story about perceptions and betrayals, and Pelecanos cleverly portrays the gray areas that exist between right and wrong, black and white, and love and friendship. I highly recommend this novel for anyone who likes to read fiction.