The Man Who Fought Alone

Rating:
Summary: The Man Who?
Review: As a mystery fan, rather than a science fiction "crossover" reader, the abrupt introduction to protagonist Mick Axbrewder was a shock. I felt I'd been dropped into the den of a wounded bear---a bear with nerves that were frayed years before I ever met him. His keeper is a lady named Ginny that he loves, hates, scorns and reveres. Apparently, she is fed-up-to-here with Brew. He is fearful of existing without her drive and leadership, but resentful that he needs both.

Brew is on the lam in a strange city that might or might not be Phoenix (pet peeve: when authors anoint major cities with pseudonyms a la Ed McBain, Scott Turow and Richard North Patterson). He finds work on a hotel security force that needs extra help to host a martial arts conference that is going to display some Chinese antiquities consisting of tiles (called "chops") and if authentic, are priceless. During the tournament, Brew's employer is murdered and Brew is up to his earlobes in Asian martial arts intrigue.

The martial arts lore is fascinating. I understand the author is an advanced student of Shotokan, and I certainly believe it; the tournament and comments made have a fine air of authenticity. He goes into detail about the manners, honor and spirituality of these disciplines---some of which are hard for a Western reader to fathom. This back story is a good reason to buy the book, even if you don't care much about the rest of it.

Though I got over my initial alarm in meeting Brew, I ended up being mainly annoyed with him. He is so self-involved, he frequently cannot see beyond the end of his nose. He is one of these over-the-top people who, if stuck with a pin, will roar with dismay insisting he has been skewered with a sword ---- and then tell you about it in excruciating detail. He spent pages and pages trying to explain how his brain worked vis a vis his famous "intuition." I never was a whit the wiser, but he clearly enjoyed the telling! I cannot think of one major Sunbelt city where average wintertime temperatures would continually threaten anyone but our fragile Brew with imminent sunstroke and heat exhaustion.

The author gives away the mystery about one-third of the way through, but there is good action throughout. There is a fine scene that takes place in a notorious Fight Club. His descriptions of subtle interchanges between characters are good. My biggest complaint is I wish Mr. Donaldson had provided us with another guest of honor. Five stars for the martial arts and story description, knocked down to three because Brew is our narrator.

Rating:
Summary: Terrifically Tense and Intense
Review: Donaldson is definitely one of my favorite authors and I especially enjoyed his slamming, futuristic sci/fi Gap Series. This new book is written with the same intensity that I have come to appreciate so much about Donaldson's style. He grabs your attention in any number of ways and hangs on to it with plot twists and turns that he spins in a very hip way of expressing his characters' flaws and fortunes. Axbrewder "Brew" is both likeable and contemptible. He is full of flaws and fire, fear and fearlessness and his struggle to find himself now unattached at the hip from his former partner Ginny and on his own to face his co-dependency and the myriad storms of feelings over what he perceives as a form of abandonment leaves him floundering and needy both physically and psychologically. These burdens add a large dose of bitters to the task of finding his identity as a sole provider for himself at the work he is best able to do and to undo. I loved the constant tension of wondering where or when he would mess up next.

SRD paints his characters with brilliant brush strokes that leave a reader in no doubt as to what makes them tick. Additionally, I appreciated the learning curve offered by the author in this book that really helps one's understanding of the real and the more esoteric practices of the martial arts. It is a subject that can be pretty confusing unless one is involved in that area of study.

The plot was fairly straightforward and I knew about the first third of the book who the "villan" would be. This was an interesting twist in his style for the reader to have the CLUE, while the hero was left to navigate the minefields of being clueless which the author dressed up as hunches. Nice touch. All in all, I have to say that I like "Brew" a lot as a character and hope to see him around again. And again. Thanks for a cool yarn SRD!

Rating:
Summary: Couldn't hold my interest!
Review: I am always on the lookout for new crime authors, and had actually forgotten about the Mick Axbrewder novels until I picked this one up. Deciding to give this character one more try, I purchased it.
There was some initial interest generated by the premise of Axbrewder, having hit bottom and now abandoned by his ex-partner, bringing himself back up to respectability. However, the book could not sustain even that interest after the first two chapters. I found the action in this book to be slow and too methodical to be compelling. One waits much too long for something of interest to happen. Virtually every line of Brew's dialogue is prefaced by some some twitch or contortion of his body, most of which do not seem appropriate. And enough with the heat references! Every other paragraph tells us about the weather. We get it, it's hot there!
I didn't connect with the character, and found his reasons behind his quest for truth to be unconvincing. By the time I reached the last third of the book, I no longer cared what happened to anyone in it. Cannot recommend.

Rating:
Summary: Book 4 in the series, but works as a standalone
Review: I have to admit, I had an awfully hard time getting started with this book. I'm a big fan of Stephen R. Donaldson, and with his recent books I realise I have very high expectations and I'm always afraid that this is where he is going to lose his edge and start going downhill.

It hasn't happened yet, though. This series of mysteries (The Man Who Killed His Brother, The Man Who Risked His Partner, The Man Who Tries to Get Away, and now The Man Who Fought Alone) is another great series, stylistically quite different from any of his other books. I find it a bit hard to describe: the previous books in the series have been almost-parodies of stock detective-book plots; stock plots that Donaldson has injected with his own unique (often dark) perspective, effectively combined with a frequently light attitude that can really be quite humorous. The Man Who Fought Alone is more straighforward and less humorous than previous books, although the overall feel of the book is a bit lighter as Axebrewder starts to bring his life under control. Donaldon has managed to work the martial arts theme quite well too, with a look inside the world or martial arts competition which is both interesting and manages to develop good characters. This is what always draws me to Stephen R. Donalson's books, the wonderfully textured and developed characters, each with their own strengths and foibles and, well, character that really stands out in a genre that is not know for such things.

Now, the start of the book is a bit slow, and it's overall not quite as tight as previous entries in the series. The first few chapters will probably have a few long-time Donaldson fans rolling their eyes a bit as old Axebrewder goes on his lengthy "woe is me" bit. After this slightly rocky start, though, the book really does take off and it thoroghly engrossed me. It's not quite the best in the series, but the series is quite good and The Man Who Fought Alone is highly recommended. I'm glad that it looks like the whole series is being re-issued in hardback under Stephen R. Donaldson's real name (they were previously published under a pseudonym, Reed Stephens); they've been hard-to-get for some time and given his success, this is long overdue.

Rating:
Summary: Number four in a series
Review: I made the error of reading this book without understanding that it is the fourth in a series. Funny, this certainly wasn't mentioned on the jacket notes or cover. See the notes on this review page for details.

This book does not read well as a stand-alone novel....in fact, it doesn't read especially well at all. The first-person narrator style of the book is very tiresome. The narrator's thoughts are laid out in excruciating detail and do little to move the story along. I couldn't follow the narrator's thoughts (he mostly relies upon unexplained intuitions more than logic) and I felt little drive to do so because the "clues" to the murder are glaringly obvious early in the book and the story advances via a few rapid action sequences. There is also a painfully awkward romantic thread throughout the novel that involves horrendous dialogue and the most laughable flirtation scenes ever written. This book does not have the same gripping quality of Donaldson's Gap into Madness series or anything else by him and so I came away very disappointed. In my opinion Donaldson never should have let his name be associated with this book.

There are two very exciting scenes, I can think of one about half way through and another about 2/3 through the book. Too bad the rest was fluff.

Rating:
Summary: an incrimental mystery
Review: I read this novel because I enjoyed Donaldson's Thomas Covenant and Mordant's Need series. I was curious how he handled the mystery genre. Although I tend to think of mystery being written in short, backhanded sentences with a minimum of description except to evoke atmosphere, and largely supported by dialogue, Donaldson is remarkably effective with his typically long, analogy-studded sentences (ie sunshine like piledrivers) and his brilliantly, meticulously drawn characterizations.

This is not an easily read novel. I'm reminded of this whenever I recommend Donaldson to someone else, and find they can't get past the first few chapters. Donaldson always builds momentum in his novels so that you love by the end exactly what you hated in the beginning; it's sort of a relationship where you get out what you are willing to put in. In this case, you have to invest in a misanthropic, unemployed alcoholic ("Brew") who seems likeable at first only because we the readers inevitably shine in comparison. But when the plot kicks in, Brew is a very real character worth following around. He's no Spenser, but his faults are refreshing in this light.

The martial arts side of this novel is well-inserted, and fascinating. I've attended tournaments exactly like the one he describes, and he gets it perfect. I would have read the book for this alone.

I recommend this novel if you know what you're getting into. If you're already a Donaldson fan, jump in. Otherwise, you might find you really like his style; it's certainly different from the majority of mystery I've happened to read.

Rating:
Summary: A powerful thriller
Review: Life stinks if you ask former private detective Mick "Brew" Axbrewder. The accidental killing of his brother years ago will always haunt Brew, a recovering alcoholic. Brew's former partner his beloved Ginny Fistoulari has barely been civil to him since he killed his sibling. He understands why Ginny loathes him, but all Brew wants is another chance to redeem what is left of his life even if Ginny is never at his side again.

While Ginny finds work with another sleuth, an apprehensive Brew accepts a security job at martial arts tournament. Surprising, at least to Brew ,is how deep two rival schools hate each other as both claim ownership of antique Chinese print blocks containing martial art poses. When someone is killed, Brew believes the murder is associated with the valuable blocks, but struggles to uncover whom committed murder.

In the fourth "The Man Who" series, Stephen Donaldson provides quite an antihero battling his own demons in a seemingly futile attempt to salvage his scarred soul. The who-done-It of THE MAN WHO FOUGHT ALONE engages the audience though the culprit seems obvious relatively early into the plot. Still, readers will relish this tale because Brew's quest for redemption makes his efforts to solve the murder quite appealing to readers in this terse private investigator thriller.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Interesting mix of martial arts and mystery.
Review: Over the weekend, I read Donaldson's new book, titled _The Man Who Fought Alone_. This is either the fourth or fifth Mick "Brew" Axbrewder mystery, but the first published under Donaldson's own name (the others were published under the pseudonym "Reed Stephens"--guess we know what the "R." stands for).

This was an excellent book, though at first I wasn't sure I was going to like it. As the book opens, Brew and his partner, Ginny Fistoulari (there are some really memorable names in this book) have just relocated to the city of Carner, after a run-in with the criminal elements of their former hometown, Puerta del Sol, has left Brew with a bullet wound in the stomach. As he's recovering, and feeling sorry for himself, Ginny seeks out an old acquaintance and lands a job with his detective firm. Brew starts to look for a job and winds up at the same firm, which recommends him as extra security for a martial arts tournament that is coming up.

This was where the book really hooked me. I didn't care for all the wishy-washy angst at the beginning, which reminded me a lot of Donaldson's Thomas Covenant fantasy series and why I finally had to stop reading it. Brew, a recovering alcoholic, has begun to feel like a burden to Ginny, and circumstances have forced them apart and he's wondering how he'll continue on without her, etc., etc. But once he's hired to watch over the tournament, this becomes a really interesting book.

As Brew wanders around the convention center where the matches are being held, he talks to a number of people, trying to get some sort of a handle on the various martial arts and "artists." This allows Donaldson to provide explanations of the different styles, which can be loosely characterized as "hard" and "soft," as well as the various conflicts between different nations and their preferred styles. The reader learns an awful lot about the martial arts and it's never presented in a didactic fashion. Brew, at first, is very condescending in his attitude, but he gradually develops more and more respect and at the end of the book has become a student of Shotokan, under a Japanese master.

The tournament is being put on under the auspices of an American karate master whose International Association of the Martial Arts is an attempt to bridge some of the gaps between the different styles, etc. At the tournament, a set of "chops" or ivory tablets with the stances of Wing Chun, a traditionally Chinese martial art, are being displayed. They are presently in the hands of the Japanese Shotokan master, which has lead to more bad blood between the various schools. When a murder occurs, Brew suspects that it has something to do with the chops, but he isn't sure just how or why.

As I said, the martial arts stuff really drew me into the book. There's a lot of information in the book, but it's never presented in a way that makes it difficult to understand or follow. Once the action gets underway, there isn't as much focus on the wishy-washiness of Donaldson's protagonist.

The fictional locales threw me for a bit, but then I started to think of Carner as a stand-in for Tucson, or perhaps Phoenix, and the book started to feel a bit more realistic. It also might be a bit far-fetched to have a hero recovering from a gut-wound rebound after only three weeks and be as involved in as much physical activity as Brew is in the book--he gets a number of heavy-duty beatings in the course of events.

Still, it was a very entertaining book, which has me interested enough in the characters that I'll go back and seek out the other books in this series. Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Interesting mix of martial arts and mystery.
Review: Over the weekend, I read Donaldson's new book, titled _The Man Who Fought Alone_. This is either the fourth or fifth Mick "Brew" Axbrewder mystery, but the first published under Donaldson's own name (the others were published under the pseudonym "Reed Stephens"--guess we know what the "R." stands for).

This was an excellent book, though at first I wasn't sure I was going to like it. As the book opens, Brew and his partner, Ginny Fistoulari (there are some really memorable names in this book) have just relocated to the city of Carner, after a run-in with the criminal elements of their former hometown, Puerta del Sol, has left Brew with a bullet wound in the stomach. As he's recovering, and feeling sorry for himself, Ginny seeks out an old acquaintance and lands a job with his detective firm. Brew starts to look for a job and winds up at the same firm, which recommends him as extra security for a martial arts tournament that is coming up.

This was where the book really hooked me. I didn't care for all the wishy-washy angst at the beginning, which reminded me a lot of Donaldson's Thomas Covenant fantasy series and why I finally had to stop reading it. Brew, a recovering alcoholic, has begun to feel like a burden to Ginny, and circumstances have forced them apart and he's wondering how he'll continue on without her, etc., etc. But once he's hired to watch over the tournament, this becomes a really interesting book.

As Brew wanders around the convention center where the matches are being held, he talks to a number of people, trying to get some sort of a handle on the various martial arts and "artists." This allows Donaldson to provide explanations of the different styles, which can be loosely characterized as "hard" and "soft," as well as the various conflicts between different nations and their preferred styles. The reader learns an awful lot about the martial arts and it's never presented in a didactic fashion. Brew, at first, is very condescending in his attitude, but he gradually develops more and more respect and at the end of the book has become a student of Shotokan, under a Japanese master.

The tournament is being put on under the auspices of an American karate master whose International Association of the Martial Arts is an attempt to bridge some of the gaps between the different styles, etc. At the tournament, a set of "chops" or ivory tablets with the stances of Wing Chun, a traditionally Chinese martial art, are being displayed. They are presently in the hands of the Japanese Shotokan master, which has lead to more bad blood between the various schools. When a murder occurs, Brew suspects that it has something to do with the chops, but he isn't sure just how or why.

As I said, the martial arts stuff really drew me into the book. There's a lot of information in the book, but it's never presented in a way that makes it difficult to understand or follow. Once the action gets underway, there isn't as much focus on the wishy-washiness of Donaldson's protagonist.

The fictional locales threw me for a bit, but then I started to think of Carner as a stand-in for Tucson, or perhaps Phoenix, and the book started to feel a bit more realistic. It also might be a bit far-fetched to have a hero recovering from a gut-wound rebound after only three weeks and be as involved in as much physical activity as Brew is in the book--he gets a number of heavy-duty beatings in the course of events.

Still, it was a very entertaining book, which has me interested enough in the characters that I'll go back and seek out the other books in this series. Recommended.

Rating:
Summary: A not so decent Man who lives for trouble.
Review: This is one in a series of THE MAN WHO which followed all those CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT, a kind of follow through with some of the same characters. This one is a violent man involved with the martial arts and who kills without conscience. He had killed his own brother while drunk. Enough said.

This is touted to be a 'tale of a hero's dark night of the soul.' I feel he has no soul. Any killer is lacking morals and any other virtue. Most drunks lack all the needed virtues to function in this world.

Stephen Donaldson is one of my favorite writers for the trio he did with A MAN RIDES THROUGH as one of them. He had a good woman in these about time travel back to medieval times. I read his GAP series, GAP INTO VISION, GAP INTO MADNESS; I think there had to have been a third in this series. Anyway, I read them but did not understand much, so I classed it as science fiction.

If this book is based on real life, it is a life I know nothing of and wouldn't want to -- I had a young neighbor boy back in Pulaski who watched KUNG FO on t.v. and would get out in the front yard and perform all those moves with a long stick. Before I realized what he was emulating, I thought the child had gone crazy. To me, the martial arts are too noisy to begin with and ridiculous to watch. I suppose you're supposed to scare off your opponent by kicking high and yelling. To me, that is the coward's way out, not real fighting.

Brew fits his name as he is an alcoholic whose loved ones have turned their backs on him (mainly because of the murder he committed), not his drinking. The love of his life seems to be as seedy a character as he.

Donaldson, who lives in New Mexico (my daughter-in-law said she had met him when my son was a teacher in Alburque), is perfect with his use of the English lalnguage, the thing which attracted me to his writings. Now, he is on a MAN thing, THE MAN WHO RISKED HIS BROTHER, THE MAN WHO KILLED HIS BROTHER, THE MAN WHO FOUGHT ALONE, (a new series, I guess) and A MAN WHO RIDES THROUGH (which I loved, he was not a modern man but was from the medieval times). We need more dignity and humility as they practiced back then, even with the cruelty in wars.

We still have much cruelty in war. Consider the beheadings which are a continuing thing going on at the moment in Iran. Where has civilization gone -- to the dogs?! A dog-eat-dog world, what a drudge for sensitive, civilized folks.