Sounds like Lou Reed’s checklist, doesn’t it? It’s time again to delve into my vast collection of paperbacks and review a few. This time around we have a really nice cross section of material, from a mystery series with a Jewish bent to some quirky sci-fi from Christopher Priest, who some might know from THE PRESTIGE (which BOOKGASM gave a huge thumbs-up to here). Also included is one of the many fine 87th Precinct novels from the late Ed McBain, and finally one from the master of them all, Ellery Queen. (By the way, if you didn’t already know, Queen is not a real person, but a combination of two great mystery writers.) We’re covering all the bases today, folks.
FRIDAY THE RABBI SLEPT LATE – Rabbi David Small is just like a Jewish COLUMBO. Well, at least that’s the vibe I got. From 1964, FRIDAY THE RABBI SLEPT LATE is the first book in the Harry Kemelman’s Rabbi series that was so popular back in the late ’70s and early ’80s. I always remember seeing these books around my house growing up. And as Columbo was actually a small part of the show, the same can be said for Small – at least in this first book. You’re given the whole scene – not just one perspective like in most mysteries. The story cover the rabbi’s first year working in his Barnard’s Crossing congregation.
I found this book to be so on target when it came to the the scenes of the actual congregation., with how nitpicky and petty most of them are; it’s pretty much that way in most temples. Rabbi Small is not what they imagine a typical rabbi to be, and throughout the book, they are trying to decide if they should renew his contract for the upcoming year. While this is going on, we’re introduced to young housekeeper who turns up dead one night in the back of the temple with her handbag in the Small’s car. Here is where my COLUMBO comparison really comes in: Small goes about proving that one of the suspects could not have done it, shifting the blame on to him, yet all the while trying to piece together who really did by going about certain theories. Needless to say, Small figures it all out, and so begins his crime-solving career.
INDOCTRINAIRE – Months ago when I first read about the reissue of Christopher Priest’s terrific THE PRESTIGE, I went looking for a hopefully used copy somewhere, to no avail. However, I did come across what turns out to be Priest’s first full novel, INDOCTRINAIRE. For fans of THE PRISONER, LOST, and mind-fuck situations in general, this book’s for you. Dr. Wentik, a British scientist working at a vast research facility under the ice of Antarctica, is developing a drug of some sort, but all his test animals are dying off under its influence. So he quietly takes small amounts himself, which cause minor hallucinogenic effects like LSD. As the research continues, two strange men arrive unannounced with orders to take Wentik to an undisclosed location, deep in the jungle of Brazil. Once Wentik enters a circle of cleared brush there, he’s told he just stepped 200 years into the future.
He’s then taken to a building where he is interrogated, probed, prodded and God knows what else. It becomes apparent to Wentik that his jailers are not playing with a full deck and tries to turn the tables to his benefit. He plans to escape by helicopter, only to be taken down by a futuristic jet of some sort by one of his jailers and flown to the future equivalent of Brazil, where he’s first mistaken for an agent from the future, wanted because he developed a gas that causes mass paranoia leading to death. The government wants him to go back in time and stop this at once, since a major war was the outcome, destroying 70 percent of the Earth.
Like I said, this book is a major mind-fuck. INDOCTRINAIRE is just a weird read, to be blunt, but a great weird read. I’ve only glanced over the major plot points, but some of the crap Wentik goes through I would not wish on Number 6.
THE PUSHER – Or Neil Young’s “The Needle and the Damage Done” in book form. THE PUSHER is part of Ed McBain’s 87th Precinct series, and believe the hype, folks: His writing is spot-on for police procedurals, now commonplace on a nightly basis via LAW & ORDER and CSI. Most of the terms he uses were not household phrases at the time, but today, everybody knows what “latent prints” means.
This novel deals with an apparent suicide of a junkie, but oh, boy, it’s really a cover-up for a murder. As Lt. Byrnes and Det. Carella investigate the murder, they learn the junkie was also the local dealer whose sister is a prostitute with a drug habit. Carella goes on a search for a new dealer named Gonzo, while Byrnes discovers his own son is strung out on the dope. Other homicides occur related to the case, with the sister getting brutally sliced up.
Now, having read TRAINSPOTTING and the like, THE PUSHER’s detox sessions are pretty much dead accurate (except there is no baby climbing the ceiling). McBain’s book is not really a mystery per se, since one of the informants lead the cops to Gonzo’s whereabouts. From there, it comes down to a great scene of interrogation that leads to the real killer. All in all, it’s a great breezy read and makes me want more McBain.
THE FOUR OF HEARTS – Super sleuth Ellery Queen’s brief tenure in Hollywood is covered in THE FOUR OF HEARTS, as he’s hired by a studio to help write scripts. But for the whole six months, he’s been sitting around doing nothing since his calls to the studio heads go unanswered. Finally he’s given a chance to shine when he meets Mr. Butcher – think Robert Evans 30 years before his heyday – whom Queen calls “Boy Wonder” throughout. Butcher gives Queen a screenwriting assignment about these two stars engaged in a bitter feud, and the film will star the warring actors themselves: Jack Royle and Blythe Stuart.
From here, the story gets cooking, with Queen working the man-about-town routine trying to find out details about the bickersome thesps. This leads him to a gambling parlor run by a former mobster from New York who’s cleaned up his act … or has he? As this plays out, we witness the acrimony between Jack and Blythe, and their offspring, who also have a mutual hate for each other (the family that hates together, I guess). As the contracts for the movie are signed, the stars drop a bombshell: They are going end their battle once and for all and get married before jetting off to a private little island. This will be the last time you see them alive, people.
With the plane crashed and both of the stars dead – poisoned, to be precise – Queen and his superior intellect are on the case. I won’t go into further details, but let’s just say there are plenty of great twists and turns along the way. THE FOUR OF HEARTS marks the first time in all the mysteries I’ve ever read where I screamed “WHAT?!?” when I found out who the killer was. The clues are all there for you to figure out; it’s not some type of cop-out where the last clue is given two pages before the killer is named. I was so sure that I knew who it was then – wham – I was so wrong. It’s a fantastic read from Queen and I can’t wait to delve into another one.
Up next time: Some cheese, some sleaze. –Bruce Grossman
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