Rating: 
Summary: I have a confession...I can't follow Leonard's plotlines
Review: Every word Elmore Leonard ever wrote is engaging and clever...but true confessions time, I don't understand about half of it. The plot of Tishomingo Blues has something to do with some Detroit gangsters using a Civil War battle re-enactment as the venue for shooting up some Mississippi gangsters. Why they didn't just take a gun to the offending parties, I can't say. It would have saved at least 100 pages. About half way through I lost track of who was doing what to whom. I finished it but I still don't know. If you crave resolution in the plots to your thrillers you had better avoid this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Leonard treading water
Review: After the diversions of "Pagan Babies" and "Cuba Libre," Leonard seems to be coasting backwards in Tishomingo Blues. In fact, it's almost like reading someone trying to imitate the Leonard style without possessing his inimitable genius for plotting, character, and dialog, as if to use all the tricks and leave the reader holding the bag. The main problem is that the story itself is not in any way enthralling. I usually take a day or two to rip through a Leonard novel, glued to every word; this one took me three weeks of picking it up and putting it down, retruning almost with reluctance to the lackluster story and even more lackluster characters, who actually are more caricatures. None is in the least likeable or attractive. The main characater, a high diver named Dennis, seems almost on the sidelines of the story, while the always cool black dude is simply venal. Most of the bad guys are interchangeable, and the women--a strong suit in Leonard novels--seem pasted into the plot. Leonard's lingo is still all there, but there's a bit too much of it: Most of the book is dialog, lacking the interactive texture and rhythm of Leonard's hip narrator. Let's chalk this one up to Leonard treading water, hopeful that in the next novel strong characters and irresistible plotting will re-emerge.
Rating: 
Summary: Gettysburg meets the Godfather
Review: A wild ride into subcultures on the edge,
again, with Elmore Leonard. Mobsters, high divers and Civil War reenactors..Who but Leonard could mix these ingredients to produce such a treat. Almost as good as "naughty child pie", the pie that doesnt quite get baked at the side-splitting climax at Tishimingos first (and probably last) annual Civil War reenactment.
Rating:
Summary: Very funny, great read.
Review: As usual, this guy could write a phone book and make it fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: Classic Leonard
Review: Tishomingo Blues is a classic Leonard novel, filled with colorful characters, witty dialogue and short, brief, straightforward prose. And although some would find Leonard's style to be tiring after a while, since his writing is highly dialogue-based instead of relying on prose, this one is so much fun that you'll forget about all of that.Dennis is a diver who tours the country in order to perform for money. When he gets a job at the Tishomingo Casino and Hotel, he has no idea what awaits him there. It is here that he will meet Robert, a gangster who has a thousand different plans in his head and who is a master at scamming others. It's there that he will meet Charlie, an old baseball star who's more obssessed with the game than anything else. It's here that he will meet a slew of amusing, sexy women. And it's here that he will meet Walter and Jarvis, two bad guys who want Dennis's neck as he as witnessed them murder a man. As all these characters entertwine, we are led into a civil war reenactment that ends into a bloody battle filled with backstabbing and evil-doings. Tishomingo Blues is always taking you in various directions, as Leonard plays with his characters as much as he plays with his readers. As a matter of fact, Leonard seems to be having a blast writing this book; the whole novel has a very light-hearted, fun-filled tone to it. This is classic Leonard. I have to admit that I would love it if Leonard would rely a little more on prose. His books rely mostly on dialogue, feeling like scripts more than actual prose. But then again, Leonard is a master at writting witty, belivable and intelligent dialogue, so it's not hard to forget about the lack of narrative. Just end up just going with the flow. Toshimingo Blues is a very fun book that will keep you entertained until the very last page. It's a fast read that never disappoints. It's not Leonard at his best, but it's Leonard at his most fun.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining but not involving
Review: A new Elmore Leonard novel is always a cause for celebration, even when the novel isn't one of his best. As "Tishomingo Blues," while funny, slick and sassy, is not. Leonard prefaces the book by expressing his intention, "to entertain myself: gather an odd assortment of characters, build a story as they bump heads, and see what happens." The characters include Dennis Lenahan, a traveling high-dive champion who sees his daredevil career coming to a close; Robert Taylor, a smooth-talking black man from Detroit who descends on Tishomingo, Mississippi, with a fancy car and a photo of a lynching; several thuggish, real dumb redneck crackers, and a scheming real estate developer, Walter Kirkbride, with an enthusiasm for Civil War re-enactments. Plus a couple of cops, straight and otherwise, a gangster, a scheming wife and a few henchmen. As the novel opens, Dennis, readying his act at the Tishomingo Hotel and Casino, witnesses a murder from 80 feet up. So does Robert, perhaps, watching Dennis from his hotel window. The two, Dennis and Robert, strike up a liking and Dennis soon realizes Robert has plans for the Dixie Mafia (the redneck murderers) and they may include him. The plot makes its merry meandering way to the big re-enactment, with sidetracks to romance and star turns from secondary characters. The re-enactment, depicted with a verisimilitude which does nothing to lessen its strangeness, brings the whole big cast together with hilariously choreographed, if fairly predictable results. The dialogue is snappy and quick and the characters practically step off the page. But after a while the repartee is wearing and the characters lack the heart to engage the reader. It's Leonard, so it's good, but not his best.
Rating:
Summary: Top of his game
Review: I love this kind of Elmore Leonard. He's a master at creating great characters with a little bad boy or girl in all, and he blends them together in a Mississippi backdrop. What could be a preposterous scene at the reenactment of the Battle of Brice's Cross Roads becomes not only plausible but perfectly natural when told by Dutch. Dennis Lenahan the daredevil diver signs on for two shows a day at Billy Darwin's Tishomingo Lodge and Casino. Charlie Hoke the ex-pitcher who had a cup of coffee with the Tigers and appeared in the '84 Series is Billy's pitboss, runs a "let me see your arm" sideshow and calls Dennis's 80 foot spectacular dives, always with a baseball analogy. Two guys shoot Floyd the setup man Charlie hired, and Dennis sees it all from his 80 foot perch. Robert Taylor also saw the hit. He's a hip black Detroit version of Chili Palmer whose great granddaddy was lynched by an ancestor of Mr. Kirkbride (maybe), the guy building the immobile mobile home parks that populate the area. Add in Vernice, once Charlie's "girlfriend" now Dennis's landlord and more, Arlen Novis the ex-deputy, ex-con now Dixie Mafia guy and CIB investigator Jerry Rau, and the plot begins to take shape. Robert is down from Detroit with Jerry (Caesare Germano Mularoni) to move in on the lucrative drug business of Novis and Kirkbride. Each side plans to use the reenactment to lure the other into the woods to finish them off. A lot of great set up, but cutting to the chase... Fish, Arlen's triggerman shoots Eugene's dog. Jacked on shine and ready for the battle, they shoot each other. Their buddy Newton the racist with the tobacco stained beard sees it all. "Jesus Christ." Then Kirkbride shoots Arlen, just like Robert figured it would happen. "Jesus Christ." In the final clean up, Hector and Tonto, a couple of Robert's boys from Detroit.... well, there's still enough left so I won't spoil the climax. One line from Arlen's widow Loretta captures the essence of Dennis. "God you're a daredevil and your're fun. You aren't the least bit stuck on yourself." How will the good guy Dennis get out of the life of crime his buddy Robert is offering? Or will he? I loved it, doubt the movie will be anywhere near as good and hope there's a sequel.
Rating: 
Summary: Blues
Review: I am a long term and dedicated Leonard fan. However, Tishomingo Blues is quite a disappointment. The work lacks the taught style, clarity and purpose of his best work. The plot wanders around a Civil War reenactment (which itself is more a gimic than a plot enhancer) with a number of characters who seem, and are, unconnected to the direction of whatever action there is. I long for the good old days of Out of Sight.
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Summary: Vintage Leonard
Review: I ordered Tihomingo Blues before it was released, hoping that I would get a vintage Leonard novel, but prepared to have my hopes dashed. As I started reading, I was beginning to think I got a dud. The characters and the situation sounded a little too corny - the dixie mafia, red necks involved in high crime, and a diving show? However, I stuck with it, and I am glad I did. Once the story really gets into gear (when Dennis Lenahan witnesses a shooting from 80 feet, and I'm not giving anything away here, read the jacket of the book), it takes off. As the protagonist, Lenahan gets dragged along by confidence man Robert Taylor from one confrontation to another until the dramatic finale in a Civil War re-enactment. Beyond the protagonist and Taylor, there are a dozen other great characters, from Charlie the ex-baseball player, who can't resist working a reference from his baseball days into every situation, to Jerry Germano the ex-bomber turned money laundering genius. The ending is what you should expect from Leonard: a dash of humor, several characters "taking care" of each other conveniently, and a few questions unanswered. That's what Leonard novels are frequently about: a moderate narrative with distinctively differnt elements, coming together in a punch line of sorts in the last two pages of the book. My favorite bit from the novel was about "Rose" the dog. Don't ask, I don't want to spoil it for you. Just read. If you ever wanted to get into Leonard, but didn't know where to start, this is as good a place as any. The characters are all unique to this novel. Once you start reading Leonard, you'll keep going.
Rating:
Summary: Elmore Leonard must wake up laughing every day.
Review: He knows that everything he writes will be published, and the movie rights are probably sold before the book ever sees print. But Leonard has already told all his good stories, and now he just has to mail in the manuscript and pick up the check.
So it is with Tishomingo Blues, a book impossible to read without visualizing the movie trailer. Not the whole movie, mind you, there isn't enough meat there.
Charles Willeford once learned a lot about the cockfighting industry, and turned his knowledge into a novel; not a particularly good one, but a complete one. Leonard might have thought he had something similar going when he got some inside dope on the Civil War reenactment scene. Unfortunately, the ins and outs of that game don't add up to much, so he threw in a shallow glimpse of exhibition diving just to flesh out the story.
The slick, seemingly omniscient ex-gangsta Robert Taylor was probably written with Denzel Washington in mind. Oh yeah, he throws in some blues lore so we can be introduced to one more arcane subject. Denzel should turn down the part.
I give it a second star because, despite its lameness, Tishomingo Blues is still a typically slick Elmore Leonard read. It just makes me long for Swag and Killshot, or, more to the point, something new from Daniel Woodrell or Mike Magnuson.
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