Rum Punch: Amazon.ca: Books

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Sunday morning, Ordell took Louis to watch the white-power demonstration in downtown Palm Beach. Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

44 Reviews

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

4.1 out of 5 stars (44 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly enjoyable, May 28 2004

By

Matthew D. Johnston (Burford, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rum Punch (Mass Market Paperback)

Elmore Leonard's "Rum Punch" (which was the basis of Quentin Tarantino's "Jackie Brown") is a page-turner in the truest sense of the word - it's hard to put down. Leonard's has crafted a novel with his usual ear for fantastic and witty dialogue and fast, descriptive and fluent prose. Add a well-crafted and surprising plot and we have one of Leonard's finest works.

The story revolves around Jackie Burke (changed to Jackie Brown in the film), an airline stewardess who smuggles money between locations for Ordell Robbie, an arms-dealing hot-talking crook who uses everyone he comes in contact with for his own gain. The plot takes off when Jackie is caught by the police with the money for a delivery (along with some drugs she didn't know were in there) and Ordell is forced to bail her out through a bail bondsman, Max Cherry. Jackie sets up a sting operation which has the appearance of involving everyone -- the police, Ordell, even Ordell's discontented callgirl. In the end... well, you'll have to read it for that.

What makes "Rum Punch" a pleasure to read, like all of Leonard's novels, are the fringe characters which seemingly only he could dream up. The relationship between Louis, Ordell's dim-witted and short-tempered right hand man, and Melanie, Ordell's primary callgirl, is amusing, as are scenes like Ray Nicholette's bravado-style shootout with one of Ordell's arms-shipping lackeys. Leonard also intersperses interesting bits of character introspection, things like Max Cherry's contemplation about his relationship with his wife (with whom he's separated) and Jackie's three ex-husbands (although she only usually says there's two, because two of them were so similar, even in name, that they're hard to tell apart).

The plot itself goes off without a hitch. There's nothing profound, and probably nothing new, but the execution is suspenseful and works because of the strong characters involved.

Heartily recommended.

Matthew D. Johnston

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4.0 out of 5 stars As always, Elmore makes it fun..., Feb 28 2004

By

Brent Wigen (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: Rum Punch (Mass Market Paperback)

Elmore Leonard has made the better part of a darned good career out of writing about small-time crooks pushed along by a good guy and a bad guy. With Rum Punch, he sticks to this formula. No sense changing what works, right? The dialogue is great as always, and the plot keeps the reader interested.

Jackie Burke is an aging--yet still attractive--flight attendant who gets busted for running cash through customs for Ordell Robbie, who makes his living as an arms dealer. When the authorities put pressure on her to cooperate in their attempt to bring in Ordell, Burke enlists the help of a burnt-out bail bondsman to make the effort pay off. A game of cat-and-mouse ensues that is classic Leonard: entertaining and easy to read.

Elmore Leonard is a great storyteller. He's not someone who philosophises on life's great mysteries, he simply spins a good yarn. Rum Punch, just like his other books, is entertaining and easy to read. For fans of Leonard, this is another solid read.

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3.0 out of 5 stars Nothing special, April 21 2003

By

Jorge Frid (Mexico City) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rum Punch (Mass Market Paperback)

I can't tell you that this is a bad book, but of course it isn't a good one, the story of a stewardess who is better that a mafia person is not very real, the book will keep you reading sometimes, the way she deceive Ordell doesn't make sense, no one makes that kind of money and he just lose it so easy.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Leonard's top-notch black comedy
"Rum Punch" is Elmore Leonard's top-notch black comedy about a group of people all after the same thing: money. Read more

Published on Mar 29 2003 by Tom Benton

5.0 out of 5 stars Glad to see More Writers Using Women as Main Characters
As the writer of an action/humor novel, it is great to see another writer create such a compelling and interesting female main character as Jackie in this novel. Read more

Published on Feb 27 2003 by Gooding