- Paperback: 1 pages
- Publisher: Berkley (MM) (April 1 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0425174247
- ISBN-13: 978-0425174241
- Product Dimensions: 16.8 x 10.7 x 2 cm
- Shipping Weight: 136 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #499,716 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon.com
Penzler Pick, July 2000: Writers who come armed with praise from three of my favorite authors (Michael Connelly, Kent Anderson, and James Crumley) demand attention. The good news is that John Shannon lives up to his advance billing and deserves to find a devoted audience for his vividly intelligent, highly satisfying paperback originals. Shannon, with his hero Jack Liffey, a knight errant cruising the L.A. freeways and frequenting the less glamorous suburbs, is squarely in the lineage of Raymond Chandler, the man responsible for the most perfect description of the modern urban freelance crime solver, in the memorable essay "The Simple Art of Murder," published 56 years ago. He would recognize Jack Liffey's decency, stubbornness, and sense of humor. He would also find familiarity with this character's economic status. Said the creator of Philip Marlowe, "The detective in this kind of story ... is a relatively poor man, or he would not be a detective at all."
Jack is actually on his second career. Identifying himself as a "finder of missing children," he came to this calling after losing his job in the aerospace industry. On this case, the kid he's been hired to locate (whose dad is out of work, too) is a teenager who's apparently fallen prey to a secretive religious cult. Or so his mother fears. But, as Jack rather quickly discovers, the truth regarding Jimmy Mardesich is a lot stranger than he bargained for.
Meanwhile, who are the thugs with the peculiar sense of humor who've been stopping by Jack's condo and menacing both Jack and his girlfriend Marlena? They manage to be pretty scary, relying simply on such household staples as deodorant and shaving cream. And what is that toxic cloud streaming across Los Angeles, emanating from the chemical holding tank known respectfully as "Big Bertha?"
Don't be surprised if there's a happy ending. In the author's own words, the Mardesiches, with young Jimmy home again and attending community college, are yet "another family saved from the brink of doom by the timely intervention of Jack Liffey, always standing at moral attention over the world. Wire Balladin, Culver City." It is difficult to strike a balance between humor and homicide, delivering the right amount of mayhem and staying on message when it comes to the things that really count. Elmore Leonard, for one, is a genius at it. But John Shannon, a new guy on the mystery block (his earlier Liffey titles are Concrete River and Cracked Earth), is doing a fine job, and Jack already seems like an old friend. --Otto Penzler
Book Description
P.I. Jack Liffey is hired to find a runaway teen living with a group of spiritualists who harbor a sinister secret--a secret with the potential to wipe out Los Angeles....
"Witty...energetic. [Shannon is] talented way above the ordinary."--New York Times Book Review
"A stunner of a book."--The Poisoned Pen
"The hands-down winner of the 'Where is the next Raymond Chandler coming from?' sweepstakes" --Chicago Tribune
"Witty...energetic. [Shannon is] talented way above the ordinary."--New York Times Book Review
"A stunner of a book."--The Poisoned Pen
"The hands-down winner of the 'Where is the next Raymond Chandler coming from?' sweepstakes" --Chicago Tribune
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not my cup of tea.,
By nobizinfla "nobizinfla" (Windermere, Florida USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Poison Sky (Paperback)
A Michael Connelly endorsement led me to this one.I simply either didn't get it or didn't like it...probably a combination of both. I found it too dark, depressing, bleak, unfun and almost hopeless. I love the LA crime novels of Michael Connelly, Raymond Chandler and Robert Crais, but this was "too out there" for me. Seeing all the five star reviews made me wonder if I was missing something. But, most of them are from California folks. So maybe it wasn't meant for me in the first place. Perhaps one needs to have the California experience to appreciate this. In any event this Florida reader didn't enjoy it.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Welcome to L.A.,
By P. L. Pescara (Mission Viejo, CA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Poison Sky (Paperback)
John Shannon is gutsy. He's decided to show all of us mystery readers that the genre can be expanded in multi-dimensional ways. Pushed out of its comfortable confines, and layered to include social history, economic and environmental awareness, and human drama. Less of a "Who Dunnit?" than a "Why Dunnit?" and a fun read. Sure, it's weird, noir, existential fun. But that's L.A. In the third of what I hope is a long, long series, Jack Liffey is trying to find a missing kid. A cult scene, corporate corruption, and a disaster that has something to do with the book's title get in his way, as do sad, but true traffic jams caused by grand pianos and dead Guernsey bulls. Just another day in Paradise. Shannon may swear "I am not making this up," wink, wink, nod, nod. And the cool thing is that most of the time, he isn't.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shannon Does It Again,
By Angela Hynes (California) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Poison Sky (Paperback)
If you're looking for a new mystery series to sink your teeth into, check out John Shannon's Jack Liffey books. Like the previous two, this one has all the ingredients that, in my view, make for a wonderful read in this genre. There is a multi-layered case that has Liffey, finder of kids who are lost in more ways than one, mired in yet another of the seamy communities that roil behind the glitzy facade of Los Angeles; memorable characters; and a well-crafted story that involves religious freaks, industrial poison and corporate corruption. How can you go wrong! I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment.
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