TOWER authors Ken Bruen and Reed Farrel Coleman are writers of some of the darkest, most heart-rending stories in contemporary crime fiction. Their books are populated by memorable, wounded characters and marked by their strong, inescapable sense of place — most often Ireland/Galway for the Celtic Bruen, and New York/Brooklyn for East Coast native Coleman. In fact, their individual voices are so distinctive that for anyone familiar with these two, the thought of them collaborating on a novel is downright inconceivable.
Fortunately, the authors themselves didn’t think so. And the result is TOWER, one of the finest and most powerful novels of the year.
TOWER follows the life and low-level crime careers of Nick Barrett and Todd Rosen, two East Coast escapees from brutal families and suffocating cultural and religious traditions. What they share in common, in addition to their work for a syndicate based in the cargo area of Kennedy Airport, is their devotion and loyalty to each other. But as they rise in the ranks of the syndicate, their lives take an unexpected turn that comes to threaten their friendship and their lives. (Any more detailing at this point would result in an unforgivable spoiler.)
Any such collaboration would inevitably have readers guessing which author wrote what, but the TOWER guys give it away before the narrative begins, in Coleman’s introduction recalling how the two writers met and came to write this new work. (While Bruen’s previous collaborations with Jason Starr are mentioned in one of the interviews following the novel’s conclusion, it should be noted that humorous, insider-joke tone of those books is nowhere felt here.)
The opening section is Nick’s, written by Bruen, reflecting upon his life as a second generation Irishman born and raised in New York, and eventually working for bosses who claim to have first generation ties to the “ole sod.” Then the story switches to Todd, written by Coleman, and his equally depressing life that leads him and his childhood buddy Nick to their jobs with the crime syndicate, up until Todd’s life reaches a critical crossroads and an unavoidable personal decision.
A twin first-person narrative is a high-risk structure, but Coleman and Bruen bring their strong voices forward and miraculously make it work. So while the same crucial events are repeated, often with the exact same dialogue, the telling from these two individuals is so drenched in their personal experiences and emotions that any redundancy is avoided. Instead, a gripping sense of suspense is added in the retelling. And then Coleman and Bruen take the novel’s resolution to an unexpected and unforgettable place.
Themes of loyalty, betrayal, and redemption are not new to crime fiction, and certainly not new to the individual works of Bruen and Coleman. But presented here in the lives of Todd and Nick, these themes come off as fresh and memorable as their first telling.
And all this clocking in at fewer than 200 pages! So, among other things, TOWER reflects and continues the noir tradition of packing the most amount of emotion in the least number of words.
We are not likely to see the likes of such collaboration again. But thanks to the efforts and tenacity of Coleman and Bruen, we are all so much richer for this work. And kudos also to Busted Flush Press for apparently believing in it and helping make it a reality. It’s most highly recommended and should immediately be added to your “must read” list, in case you haven’t gathered that by now. —Alan Cranis
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF KEN BRUEN:
• BUST by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr
• THE MAX by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr
• ONCE WERE COPS by Ken Bruen
• SANCTUARY by Ken Bruen
• SLIDE by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF REED FARREL COLEMAN:
• EMPTY EVER AFTER by Reed Farrel Coleman
Related posts:
- The Tower
- The Black Tower
- Fake I.D.
- King climbs DARK TOWER for Marvel Comics
- Q&A with THE MAX’s Jason Starr
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve been waiting a very long time for this collaboration to come into print and I’m sure this review (albeit a good one) still doesn’t do it the justice it deserves.
I love how the cover looks like something from the ’70s, like a disaster novel that should be set in a tower.