Rating: Summary: slick crime story; better than average Elmore Leonard book Review: As with most of the other amazon.com reviewers before me I am a loyal Elmore Leonard fan. And it is likely only Elmore Leonard fans would pick up the (relatively obscure) 'Unknown Man #89'. This is unfortunate because most of the world will miss out on this compact jewel.'Unknown Man #89' is one of those stories hard to describe without giving the plot away. Broadly speaking we have con artists trying to make a fast buck off folks whom they thought would be total suckers. Wrong. Frustration and violence ensue. While not winning any awards for originality 'Unknown Man #89' is very well written. Elmore Leonard does a brilliant job on the characterizations, and the prose is very slick. There is also some humour, albeit rather rude and crude. Bottom line: certainly among Leonard's better efforts. Recommended.
Rating: Summary: slick crime story; better than average Elmore Leonard book Review: As with most of the other amazon.com reviewers before me I am a loyal Elmore Leonard fan. And it is likely only Elmore Leonard fans would pick up the (relatively obscure) 'Unknown Man #89'. This is unfortunate because most of the world will miss out on this compact jewel. 'Unknown Man #89' is one of those stories hard to describe without giving the plot away. Broadly speaking we have con artists trying to make a fast buck off folks whom they thought would be total suckers. Wrong. Frustration and violence ensue. While not winning any awards for originality 'Unknown Man #89' is very well written. Elmore Leonard does a brilliant job on the characterizations, and the prose is very slick. There is also some humour, albeit rather rude and crude. Bottom line: certainly among Leonard's better efforts. Recommended.
Rating: Summary: takes a slight detour... Review: Elmore Leonard does not write 4-star books. I subtracted a star only relative to his other works that I've enjoyed more. This book is the only instance I know of where Leonard intentionally leads us into the distorted world of Alcoholics Anonymous. Whenever the scene was an AA meeting, or an aspect of alcoholism, I became impatient to move on. This was no doubt the direct result of my own personal experience with the AA dogma, with I found so vacuous and annoying. So if AA stuff doesn't bother you...FIVE stars it is!!
Rating: Summary: Surprise to me Review: I have always been an Elmore Leonard fan and have read everything he's published. I just can't get enough of him. His concise way of writing is superb. He doesn't overengage in descriptives, thank goodness - that gets boring - yet manages to convey exactly what he wants more succinctly than any author I've ever read. The characters never disappoint and the sense of humor displayed is simply unsurpassable. Another fantastic book by an author who is the best.
Rating: Summary: No One Does it Better than Leonard! Review: I have always been an Elmore Leonard fan and have read everything he's published. I just can't get enough of him. His concise way of writing is superb. He doesn't overengage in descriptives, thank goodness - that gets boring - yet manages to convey exactly what he wants more succinctly than any author I've ever read. The characters never disappoint and the sense of humor displayed is simply unsurpassable. Another fantastic book by an author who is the best.
Rating: Summary: The Best Leonard Novel You've Never Heard Of Review: I stumbled upon 'Unknown Man #89' while looking for something else. I've read over two dozen Leonard novels, so at first, I thought it had to be new. Checking the back of the title page, I noticed it was copyrighted in 1977. So, I wondered why I had never heard of it? And I'm still wondering. 'Unknown Man #89' (UM89) is fantastic. The protagonist is Jack Ryan, who was featured in 'The Big Bounce', an earlier Leonard novel. UM89 is a superior novel though. The stakes are higher and the characters more real than in 'The Big Bounce'. Opening in Detroit, Ryan is a process server. He thinks he has finally stumbled on his calling. He is also a recovering alcoholic who attends AA meetings. An acquaintance, Jay Walt, sets him up with Frank Perez, who is trying to locate a Mr. Robert Leary with a business proposal. Before he knows it, Ryan is siding with Leary's widow in an attempt to get her dead husband's property while dodging shotgun blasts from Perez's associate Raymond Guidre. The novel has a strong beginning that lets the reader learn who Ryan is up front: how he acts, what he believes, and what he does. The search for Leary brings in the rest of the characters and draws the reader into the plot quite well. The middle of the novel bogs down with events that lead to a key AA meeting, but then the action picks up and sprints towards the conclusion. Overall, the novel is well paced. The characters are some of Leonard's most believable and interesting to the point you can picture what actors you would cast for the movie version, if there ever was one. I'd recommend this to any crime fiction fan, and as a must read for any Leonard fan. I still don't know why this novel was so obscure.
Rating: Summary: The Best Leonard Novel You've Never Heard Of Review: I stumbled upon 'Unknown Man #89' while looking for something else. I've read over two dozen Leonard novels, so at first, I thought it had to be new. Checking the back of the title page, I noticed it was copyrighted in 1977. So, I wondered why I had never heard of it? And I'm still wondering. 'Unknown Man #89' (UM89) is fantastic. The protagonist is Jack Ryan, who was featured in 'The Big Bounce', an earlier Leonard novel. UM89 is a superior novel though. The stakes are higher and the characters more real than in 'The Big Bounce'. Opening in Detroit, Ryan is a process server. He thinks he has finally stumbled on his calling. He is also a recovering alcoholic who attends AA meetings. An acquaintance, Jay Walt, sets him up with Frank Perez, who is trying to locate a Mr. Robert Leary with a business proposal. Before he knows it, Ryan is siding with Leary's widow in an attempt to get her dead husband's property while dodging shotgun blasts from Perez's associate Raymond Guidre. The novel has a strong beginning that lets the reader learn who Ryan is up front: how he acts, what he believes, and what he does. The search for Leary brings in the rest of the characters and draws the reader into the plot quite well. The middle of the novel bogs down with events that lead to a key AA meeting, but then the action picks up and sprints towards the conclusion. Overall, the novel is well paced. The characters are some of Leonard's most believable and interesting to the point you can picture what actors you would cast for the movie version, if there ever was one. I'd recommend this to any crime fiction fan, and as a must read for any Leonard fan. I still don't know why this novel was so obscure.
Rating: Summary: Leonard at his rollicking best! Review: I was happy to see that this book is finally back in print. While I think the publisher tripped up with going the mass market route rather than trade edition, it's better than nothing at all. This book features Jack Ryan who many will know from The Big Bounce and who it has on occasion been hinted at as being Frank Ryan also. That's a mystery right there. To the point, this has everything we expect from Leonard at his best but it was written before anyone had such expectations. Quick, lean and mean, and plenty of laughs in all the right places. If you're a new fan or an old one and you haven't read UM#89, do so at once. It really is one of his best pieces of work and you won't be disappointed.
Rating: Summary: Leonard at his rollicking best! Review: I was happy to see that this book is finally back in print. While I think the publisher tripped up with going the mass market route rather than trade edition, it's better than nothing at all. This book features Jack Ryan who many will know from The Big Bounce and who it has on occasion been hinted at as being Frank Ryan also. That's a mystery right there. To the point, this has everything we expect from Leonard at his best but it was written before anyone had such expectations. Quick, lean and mean, and plenty of laughs in all the right places. If you're a new fan or an old one and you haven't read UM#89, do so at once. It really is one of his best pieces of work and you won't be disappointed.
Rating: Summary: Between a Rock and a Hard Place Review: In the unknown man Leonard has Jack Ryan a process server who is one of the best in the business looking for a man known only as "Unknown Man #89". Not truly unknown a few know him to well. A blonde hates him with a passion and a very bad guy wants him in hell. This all makes it hard for Jack Ryan as he has to get between those two people in order to capture #89. A very good read.
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