PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Starred Review
July 26, 2010
Tyrus (Consortium, dist.), $32.95 (600p) ISBN 978-1-935562-24-5
All the elements that have made Estleman one of the best hard-boiled
writers of all time--just a notch below Chandler and Hammett--are
present in these 32 short stories. Remarkably, he has kept his
Detroit-based Amos Walker series (Motor City Blue) fresh after
three decades and 20 novels, and any fan of the genre who has
yet to encounter the ex-cop turned PI will get a great introduction
through this collection. What's most impressive is Estleman's
ability to blend sharp-edged language, cynical characters, betrayals,
twists, and a memorable narrative voice within the short story
format. He also manages to inject dark humor into his work that
keeps the violence, corruption, and double-crosses from becoming
too grim ("I don't have so many friends I can afford to
drop one just because he tried to kill me"). Longtime fans
will welcome the author's informative introduction.
LIBRARY JOURNAL
Starred Review
Detroit's most famous gumshoe, Amos Walker, is back in this mammoth
collection of short stories. The omnibus contains 32 tales, including
the previously unpublished "Sometimes a Hyena," and
flawlessly showcases Estleman's distinct and penetrating style.
With the release of Motor City Blue in 1980, Estleman was one
of the first mystery writers to set a detective series in Detroit.
For the past three decades, his gumshoe has tirelessly championed
its denizens against the crime and corruption that can often
define Motown. The collection begins with a wonderful introduction
by Estleman tracing the history of the series and the endurance
of his protagonist. The stories, much like the city in which
they are set, are gritty and tough, and yet there is always a
sliver of optimism to be found. Standouts include "Kill
the Cat," "Anniversary Waltz," and "Cigarette
Stop."
Verdict: Estleman's writing is noir fiction at its best with
a distinct sense of place that few can rival. Fans of the hard-boiled
detective genre and regional mysteries will rejoice in this collection.
--Amy
Nolan, MSIS, St. Joseph, MI
BOOKLIST
Hard-boiled Detroit
private investigator Amos Walker debuted 30 years ago in the
novel Motor City Blue (1980). The series has earned Estleman
four Shamus awards, and two entries in the series were New York
Times Notable Books selections. The 32 stories in the collection
range from standard missing-person cases, to a bizarre investigation
that hinges on a tattoo, to a few in which Walker ventures outside
his black-and-white hometown to the greener but sometimes more
deadly Michigan countryside. In the latter category is Cigarette
Stop in which deadly trouble follows Walker after he makes
a simple stop for a pack of smokes. Walker investigates a possible
suicide in Major Crimes for an insurance company
looking to avoid a large life insurance payout. Even Walkers
cynicism is tested when everyone involved in the caseincluding
the insurance companyis complicit in the victims
death. Walker has a built-in audience of devoted fans; new readers
who check out this sampler will be pleased to know they have
30 years of fine novels waiting for them.
BOOKGASM
August 13, 2010
Some 30 years ago, Loren
D. Estleman decided to write a private detective novel
and his then-editor immediately tried to talk him out of it.
The author was already enjoying respectable sales with his various
Westerns and Sherlock Holmes pastiches, so why rock the boat
with such a risky and dormant genre as a P.I. novel?
Fortunately, Estleman
didnt listen, and went on to write MOTOR CITY BLUE, introducing
readers to Detroit-based P.I. Amos Walker and reviving the genre
along the way. Now, in celebration of this anniversary, Estleman
has collected every Walker tale into one huge, 600-page volume,
AMOS WALKER: THE COMPLETE STORY COLLECTION.
(It should be noted,
however, that the edition provided to reviewers is abridged,
with roughly half of the stories promised for the retail edition.
Among the missing entries is a never-before-published story,
unnamed in the review copy, but titled Sometimes a Hyena,
according to Estlemans website.)
The stylistic challenges
of a short story, as Estleman notes in his reflective and informative
introduction, have resulted in many noteworthy authors giving
up on the form. Estleman, however, knows how to present the right
balance of ambiance and action in the shorter form and makes
it every bit as satisfying as any of his Walker novels.
Many of the stories are, at heart, intriguing and inventive puzzles,
such as Cigarette Stop, where Walker picks up a hitchhiking
sailor and ends up in the middle of an unusual robbery and murder
scheme. Or The Anniversary Waltz, where Walker finds
himself racing with a vengeful local sheriff to find an escaped
woman prisoner accused of murdering her husband as she makes
her annual visit to the dead husbands grave.
But there are also stories that manage to provoke deeper, more
thoughtful insights along with their plots. Such is the case
with People Who Kill, with its probe into the nature
of killing and murderers. And especially the stunning and subtle
Needle, involving one of Walkers neighbors,
a holocaust survivor, that quietly ends with Walker (and the
reader) questioning the very nature of the term victim.
All of these are drenched in Estlemans evocative descriptions
of Detroit and the surrounding areas. All are also narrated by
Walker with the same world-weary humor and sarcasm that distinguish
the novels. And while Walkers wisecracking attitude (and,
indeed, his entire persona) is a direct descendant of Raymond
Chandlers Phillip Marlowe, Estleman has managed to make
Walker and his voice surprisingly individual.
AMOS WALKER: THE COMPLETE STORY COLLECTION is reason enough to
not only celebrate, but finally acknowledge Estleman as one of
the essential and influential authors of modern crime fiction,
right up there with the likes of Ross Macdonald, Robert B. Parker
and all the rest. It is essential reading. So much so that at
least one unnamed BOOKGASM reviewer is now saving his milk money
to buy the fully complete, complete collection. Alan Cranis |