Murder and More- Gerald W. Darnell
A detective mystery set in the 1960s with
an authentic feel of the 1960s. The book could so easily have been written then
rather than in 2015. The read is nicely scattered with illustrative pictures
from the period, which I can see adding a lot to the reading experience of
those born later. I felt that I could be reading a period Mickey Spillane
novel; the script felt that authentic. I'd even say that there are more than a
few similarities between Mike Hammer and Carson Reno— well at least as how I remember the
character. Then again, possibly Reno is a more James Garner in the Rockford
Files TV series. Okay, that was very 1970s scripted, but the Rockford character
could have been slotted seamlessly into any '50s/60s detective series. So then,
for me, Carson Reno is possibly best described as a blend of Mike Hammer and
Jim Rockford.
The writing has a sharp journalistic
economy, never burying us in irrelevances and keeping a brisk pace. Some of the
bit players are easy to confuse, but that problem is relieved by the index of
characters. This is the first Darnell book I've read. Love it. I can see this
series of books on every paperback turntable in front of every '60s newspaper
store. The mass market paperback days are, generally speaking, history, but
that shouldn't limit the availability and popularity of Darnell's Carson Reno.
This book is an object lesson in how to get that old paperback buzz into the e
market. For those still addicted to traditional paper, the lovers of the smell
and feel of 'pulp', for those that still have or are discovering vinyl records
and classic cars, the hands-on version looks just as 60s slick. The period will
always be culturally cool and so will Carson, with bourbon and coke and an
after dinner cigar.
This is a mystery detective novel, not a
voyeuristic trip through violence and death, as so many modern genre books are.
A read that may seriously damage your place in time.
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