Blue Murder

Rating:
Summary: Nobody does it like Bellem. Maybe nobody wanted to.
Review: First things first: this is not a Dan Turner book. It is a Duke Pizzatello book. That said, Bellem still does embellish every page with his trademark supersonic slang. And the persona of Duke may be even more hard-boiled than Dan, if a little less intelligent.

However, this book is quite unpleasant, dealing with rampant adultery, VERY graphic murders, and 'operations.' (Duke gets into so much trouble basically to cover up a past indiscretion.) Yes, he is certainly a typical detective antihero, only without even Dan's limited conscience, nor Sam Spade's self-awareness. So the almost-campy, overwritten tone makes the grimy topics explored seem even sleazier here, without either the irony a deeper writer would have injected (Chandler, anyone?) or any particular courage or authenticity to its convictions (a la Hammett). This is merely under-the-counter men's sensationalism. He is perhaps closest in feel to Mike Hammer, minus the kill-crazed vendettas. Duke winds up with about 4 women per night, sometimes the same one twice. (He makes Wilt Chamberlain seem like a prude!) Just once, just for kicks, I'd like to read Bellem describe a woman's nose. Or elbows. Anything but her "creamy white thighs," etc.

Bellem's limitations as a writer are more easily overlooked in short story form, or when the events portrayed toe a line closer to comedic. In short novel form, with subject matter this dark, it's hard to get excited about his fun turns of phrase. You may only smile faintly, as opposed to howling or pumping a fist. (You mean I'm the only one who does that?)

The mystery is appropriately twisty, which is not to say it is unpredictable; intuition may take you a long way toward solving the case. (I'm one of the world's worst mystery-guessers and I figured the culprit by Chapter 3.) Also, there is very little exposition, and little to no character development. Duke just hustles about town to set up the next roscoe fight or harlot or to give Bellem an opportunity to try matching Chandler's gift for simile.

When Bellem is good he's very good, to paraphrase Mae West, but when he's bad he's not necessarily better.

P.S. I wholeheartedly recommend High Adventure #60, if you can find it, and if you can't find it, keep looking, because it's tremendous, and you won't feel like you need a bath after reading it.

Rating:
Summary: Of all the pulp novels I¿ve read, this may be the pulpiest.
Review: More willing dames, more violence, more doublecrosses, more plot twists, more death, more coincidences and a quicker pace than just about anything else out there.
Here's a brief outline:
Intro
Slang (throughout)
Sex
Fight
Sex
Doublecross
Plot twist
Violence
Plot twist
Sex
Murder
Murder
Doublecross
Coincidence
Violence
Plot twist
Sex
Violence
Plot twist
Coincidence
Death
Doublecross
Doublecross
Plot twist
Violence
Plot twist
Coincidence
Death
Solution
Sex

Get the picture? Fun trash.