Sweet and Vicious

Rating:
Summary: "A highly sexed criminal fairy-story"
Review: ... such is the description that appears on the cover of the UK edition of Sweet and Vicious and which I think accurately conveys the style and substance of this very entertaining novel. What cannot be so easily described is the writing, which often stopped me in my tracks as I found myself re-reading passages in admiration. The other reviews posted here should already give you a pretty good idea of the plot and main characters, so I'll let Schickler's writing speak for itself and try to point out some of the nuances that I think make this book not only a great read, but also demonstrate the author's talent and imagination. Take, for example, the following passage that describes Hilda Reisch, a sexual conquest of secondary character Roger Pobrinkis (one of the gangsters pursuing main characters Henry Dante & Grace McGlone): "Hilda was a towering, pale-skinned adjunct professor visiting from Denmark, maybe thirty-five, a woman who rarely showed smiles but always showed leg. She shod herself daily in skirts and low boots. She wore her black permed-out hair like an explosion on her head, and her eyes, also black, dismissed almost everything they saw." Or, take this description of Grace's reaction to hapless Stewart McFigg and the sincere yet inadvertently hilarious valentine that he presents to her in front of their sixth grade class: "In response, Grace delivered a stinging public rebuke of Stewart, in which she blamed him for all the freckles beginning to plague her body, claiming that the years of blushing brought on by his advances had triggered the speckling of her skin." These are but a sampling of inspired passages to be found throughout the novel, making for a unique and memorable reading experience. I highly recommend this book.


Rating:
Summary: I Get My Kicks on Route Schicky Schick...
Review: As a person who favors realism almost every time, I was surprisingly swept up in this bizarre-but-beautiful fairy tale. Schickler established enough credibility through his thoroughly developed cast of quirky characters that I not only accepted whatever absurd, over-the-top thing he threw at me, I ate it up. Vulnerability, weakness and all things utterly human is what makes the otherwise disagreeing themes---gangster life, religion, sex, innocence, love, revenge---come together so perfectly.

Rating:
Summary: Wish It Were Twice as Long
Review: David Schickler achieves, in a few deft strokes, more character definition than most novelists can achieve in a dozen lumbering paragraphs. In the space of a few short pages, I lost all sense of aesthetic distance and began to care about the two main characters, Henry and Grace.

If viewed from the outside looking in, Henry and Grace would appear to be the recurring inscrutables who populate the stories recounted in our local newspapers and by our network affiliates. These are the stories that, once told, don't make a lot of sense to us and leave us wondering how anyone could do something like that.

But Schickler portrays Henry and Grace from the inside looking out. We understand each character. We quickly share the interior logic that informs their actions.

Schickler writes readable prose. But, for all its accessibility, the prose is rewarding. Schickler's style is spare, but effective. Transparently, Schickler switches from the first-person for Henry to the third-person for Grace and the other characters. By the end, a reason for this device emerges.

My only complaint, when I finished the novel, was that Schickler didn't give us another 100 pages of Henry and Grace. Maybe it would have jeopardized the balance of the story or the elegance of the style, but I'll bet Schickler could have pulled it off. All I know is that I could have found the time for another 100 pages of Henry and Grace.

Rating:
Summary: First-time novelist hits BIG time!
Review: I consider The Frog King: A Love Story by Adam Davies one of the great first novels. Up there with Bright Lights, Big City. I'm proud to say I was one of the first readers to fall upon this wondrous work.

And now, once again, I'm proud as acid-laced punch to introduce to one and all another finely written, beautifully crafted first novel: Sweet and Vicous by David Schickler.

It's a great read and a new author to be reckoned with; one that's in the mode of a Tom Robbins and Elmore Leonard, if you can imagine such a marraige.

Yes, I recommend it highly.

Rating:
Summary: Not your normal gangster romance
Review: I picked up "Sweet and Vicious" along with a pile of other books, many of which have received critical acclaim and much praise. Having slogged through several of the others and having wondered why anyone thought they were important, well-written, or even in the least bit entertaining, I finally got to this novel's place in the stack. I couldn't put it down, and I was never disappointed. When so many novelists are falling for their own hype, David Stickler manages to write about imperfect people and allows me understand and care for them.

Rating:
Summary: Sour and Tame
Review: If you think preciously cute whimsy is the pinnacle of comedy, love to listen to NPR and visit websites like salon.com, this book might be up your alley.

Schickler's fiction is populated with cartoon characters who are oh-so-quirky (the "look at me, I quirk," kind of quirky, as if giving a character some odd-for-the-sake-of-odd habits is being original. argh!). There was a severe lack of believable human moments, and much of the book read like some macho violent misogynistic fantasy. Every time Schickler mentioned God and tried to wax philosophical it was just painful, he would've been better off not adding his commonplace thoughts to the story. On top of that, much of the plotting and symbolism is a bit too neat (oh MFA program, how I hate thee!), and he has this annoying thing he keeps on doing-- I believe it's called syllepsis-- where two things expressing different senses are linked by one word. For example, Schickler will write something like "bonfires and tempers flared", and he does this constantly. A couple of times is okay, but not over and over.

So what I'm saying is that this book, while not abysmal, is amateurish and unremarkable-- which is worse, because at least an abysmal book can provide enjoyment in the form of unintentional humour. I don't know how this man has gotten such recognition and positive reviews.

Rating:
Summary: Who really wrote Kissing in Manhattan?
Review: The main question I had after reading this book -- Who really wrote Kissing in Manhattan? If Schickler wrote "The Smoker" and Kissing in Manhattan, then who wrote this book? It's not the same author. This is writing I would expect from a high school student's rough draft. The dialogue is pathetically horrible, and while the characters are believable, it is achieved through too much backstory, making the whole tale feel unbelievable and contrived. I've read that people thought it was funny. There is nothing even remotely humorous in this book. The item about "I tolled the f'ing bell" is so lame and freakishly unfunny, I was beginning to think the author was making fun of his own writing. I admit I was expecting a lot from Schickler, but this book was so poorly written, it made you want to laugh (at him), then ultimately cry.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing. I had a great time reading this book!
Review: The story may sound like you've seen it all before - star crossed lovers on the run - but it's Schickler's incredibly imaginative voice that sets it apart from the rest. His creativity is so stunning I found myself whispering in awe, "wow," more than a few times.

It's a swift read but this is no plot-point then plot-point novel. It's the characters that are in the driver's seat here. Fresh and inspired, some shocking, some hilarious (and heartbreaking), they're not tired retreads with the old predictable tics and traits. Add to that Schickler's unique ability to seamlessly blend the fantastic with the everyday and you're holding a very special book.

With muscle, wit, and heart, Schickler takes us on a wonderful ride to a place I thought was truly beautiful. This is a tight and entertaining novel that shouldn't be missed.


Rating:
Summary: Juicy
Review: This book has it all - violence, gangsters, diamonds, religion and rambunctious sex. If you think you know what to expect, you're wrong. The characters are fantastically unusual. Well written and exciting. Pass the merlot Honey!

Rating:
Summary: Great idea
Review: This book was just one great idea after another. The spontanaety of all the characters, and the situations that they go through are adventurous and exciting.