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Dark End of the Street, The [Mass Market Paperback]

Ace Atkins (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most helpful customer reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars complex Jan 15 2003
By bill runyon
Format:Hardcover
This mystery contains a nice complex mix of characters and
locales. The "detective" is a minor staffer at a major southern
university who is researching early blues performers, and one
of his friends and benefactors asks him to try to find her brother, who, a blues man himself, disappeared about 30 years
before. Since he has been gone so long, he is presumed dead,
but as Nick, the searcher, looks into that disappearance, he is
surprised, under unpleasant circumstances, to learn that others
are also looking for the same 30-year-missing man.
His search brings Nick into contact with other blues performers,
gamblers, politicians, and some unsavory characters in the employ of the "Dixie Mafia."
As the search goes deepr, and becomes more complex, the action
heats up, and the violence becomes more pronounced.
Rather puzzling, though, is Nick's love for the "Old South,"
which couldn't have been that good for many people, especially
the old-time musicians he listens to and admires, because of
racial segregation, but he conforts himself with thoughts and
visions of the "Old South," while he continues his search for
the present missing brother.
His search uncovers many unpleasant truths about both the past
and the present, and he is only able to keep alive due to luck
and the "help of a few friends."
The reader will be engaged by the need to follow 30 years of
southern social and music history, while Nick fights some of
the nastiest psychopaths in print today.
Interesting reading.
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1.0 out of 5 stars Unlikely characters and events Jan 12 2003
By William F. Mckee
Format:Hardcover
It is hard to believe that an investigative reporter that had done much real life investigating could picture a bailbondsman/bounty hunter as a co-hero rather than a real (low) life bloodsucker. It may fit, however, a "yellow dog" writer that blames all bias on "R's" and omits the likes of Robert Byrd, Lester Maddox, Jesse Jackson, etc.
If you enjoy plastic construction of unbelievable characters that are fit into an unlikely stream of events in a weak plot, this is just the novel for you.
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4.0 out of 5 stars Rewarding adventure--blues, the south, & murder Nov 30 2002
By booksforabuck
Format:Hardcover
Music historian Nick Travers tracks down legendary blues musicians for a living so he isn't too surprised when his friend Loretta asks him to find her brother--except that her brother has been rumored to be dead for years. Still, Nick can't turn down a request from Loretta and heads from New Orleans to Memphis where Clyde James had last been seen. What he finds in Memphis, though, is a woman being held captive, recent murder, and a political campaign with Dixie Mafia money coming out the seams. Nick will have to call on more than music detection skills to survive this mess--let alone help things come out right.

Author Ace Atkins writes convincingly of an American south where the old and new rest uneasily with one another, where race relations are personal, and where dreams of the confederacy still motivate men to arm and train. Atkin's characterization is rich and full. In addition to Nick, the sociopathic Perfect Leigh and Jesse Garon are especially well drawn and fascinating. The rich background of the blues, of southern cooking, of friendship, and of the quiet desperation that marks so many lives makes DARK END OF THE STREET feel terribly authentic.

There is a lot going on in this novel--as Nick slams from trouble to trouble, barely ahead of a bullet. At times, the plotting can get a little confused. At other times, Nick's plots might be a little too cute. Still, Atkins's strong writing can make even the most unlikely plot turns feel natural. Watch out because DARK END can grab you by the throat and kick you in the rear.

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