A Ticket To The Boneyard: A Matthew Scudder Crime Novel

Rating:
Summary: Great character study as well as a crime story
Review: Matthew Scudder, P.I., fights the urge to return to the booze as vigorously as he battles an old nemesis who's killing friends, family, associates and even people who share the surname Scudder.

Fortunately Matthew, like Lawrence Block's bookstore owner/cat burglar/sleuth Bernie (THE BURGLAR WHO TRADED TED WILLIAMS), has good friends, including a prostitute ex-lover with whom he rekindles a romance. The dialogue is as sharp and explosive as the action scenes. My personal favorite bit, after Bernie and his ladylove go to a Kevin Costner/Michelle Pfeiffer caper...

"She's (Michelle Pfeiffer) not really pretty, but there's something about her, isn't there? If i were a man, I'd want to ----- her."
"Repeatedly."
"Oh, she does it for you, huh?"
"She's all right."
"'Repeatedly.'"

Rating:
Summary: Another great one!
Review: This was another great work of crime fiction. The story is a little familiar, reminiscent of old Dirty Harry films, but this isn't just a novel about plot. It is about style, Matthew Scudder and New York City. My favorite flawed hero, Scudder, is a complex character who has several fascinating and oddly compelling relationships with the various types of citizens of New York. It is also a novel about alcoholism, loneliness and friendship; at one point Scudder reflects that his best friends are a prostitute and a career criminal. Ironically, it is the prostitute and the criminal who lifts Scudder from the depths; not his law abiding friends. A moving, reflective and skillfully written novel, it is about as good as crime fiction gets. Highly recommended.