London Boulevard by Ken Bruen (2001).
Cars, women, criminals and an
impossibly cool main guy.
The pure definition of pulp
fiction.
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layers. –Mitchell. A
mid-forty con who just gets out of prison. After a few years in jail, he wants
to put everything behind and to be a regular guy, like that’s ever going to
happen. Fat chance.
Like all the
cool characters in Tarantino movies, he spits out tons of cool phrases.
Unfortunately, like all the Tarantino dialogues, I only understand maybe quarter
of what he says. In fact, I am wondering if there are any meaning at all behind
them other than off course sounding impressively cool.
He is a man
of few words and at the same time a sole narrator of this book.
Naturally, all
the sentences are staccato short and the pace is brisk creating a perfect pulp
fiction.
He has a mentally unstable but super gorgeous sister
named Briony who has a serious shoplifting problems.
Norton. A low intelligent low life. Mitchell’s buddy
(?).
Grant. A typical British low life gang boss. A big
and mean bastard who tries really hard to get meaner and crueler with every
opportunity lies in front of him.
Lillian. An old, out of spot light but still
beautiful, semi-retired actress who hires Mitchell as a handyman.
She seduces
him and rides him like a stallion as often as possible.
Jordan. A mysterious butler who can expertly handle
everything from garden tools to heavy artilleries. Alfred with no emotion and
no empathy.
Probably the
most powerful man in this book and a dependable ally to Mitchell when it comes
down to handle the criminals because he DOES know how to deal with them
properly if you know what I mean. How and Why is for you to find out.
He is
completely devoted to his employee, Lillian and will do anything to keep her
happy.
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lace. –London,
Britain. Well, it could be anywhere really because the place doesn’t matter at
all, as long as there are bars to drink away, banks to rob of, clubs to dance
with..etc...
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lot. – It has a
common theme that fires every action packed thriller: REVENGE!
Very simple
but effective if it is handled properly and that’s what you get with this
hugely entertaining book: a masterfully crafted dark-revenge-drama with just
enough humor, action, love, betray and everything else.
Like all the
classic pulp fictions, this book is true to its formula.
Here is the
golden structure.
1. Man gets out
of jail.
2. Trouble or
unfinished business is waiting for him.
3. Man finds a
way around.
4. Trouble/s**t
stars piling up.
5. BOOM!!
6. And off course, one final twist.
7. Is he
standing on the right side of grass?
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erdict. –This book
is consisted of 30% of short dialogue, 40% of sporadic monologue and 30% of empty
space to fill up the pages. So literary, you can finish the book in 4 to 5
hours if you put your mind into it which is not hard at all because the chances
are that you won’t be able to put it down until you reach the final and
mother-of-all-twists ending.
At the end,
when it seems everything is just wounding up, true ending comes out of nowhere
and puts entire storyline into a new perspective. It’s truly fantastic!!
There is
absolutely no extra stuffs in this book. The stories (there are multiple
storylines) is told fast and straight and every other elements that makes books
thicker like detail and emotion is kept to absolute minimum.
If you are
looking for 4 hrs of pure entertainment (adrenalin rush, black humor, sweet
revenge, killer twist, Etc.), London Boulevard is your dream come true.
One more
thing. Ken Bruen throws in lots of names in conversation. All of them are not
just real writers but also masters of mysteries. So if you are looking for your
next book after this….
