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duparker's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Great DC vibe to this book. The characters are flawed and real and the tale is the right amount of gritty.
helen_z_sweeney's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
dantastic's review against another edition
4.0
When an old man that knew his grandfather asks Nick Stefanos to find his missing grandson, Nick agrees out of a feeling of kinship for the boy. But what does an ad man in an electronics store know about detective work?
Here we are, George Pelecanos first novel. The more Pelecanos I read, the higher he is elevated in my esteem. A Firing Offense is no exception.
A Firing Offense starts off with a standard hard boiled plot: someone is missing. In this case, it's Jimmy Broda, a young man that reminds Nick way too much of himself at that age. Nick embarks on an investigation that is equal parts The Long Goodbye and the Last Good Kiss, an investigation that mostly consists of driving around, talking to people, and drinking a small lake of alcohol. For most of the story, Nick was in the dark as much as I was.
What sets Pelecanos apart from a lot of his contemporaries is his sense of time and place. Washington DC is as much a character in the book as Nick Stefanos and the pop culture references, mostly the music, paint a good picture of the time the story was occurring.
The music references lead me to believe George Pelecanos might have run into each other if I'd been going to shows in DC bars in the 90's. He mentions Night Boat to Cairo by Madness, a song I've listened to myself at the tail end of a long night out, and The Raybeats, a obscure Link Wray inspired band featuring Danny Amis, who is now one of the guitar players for Los Straitjackets.
It's an easy four star read. Washington DC is as much a character in Pelecanos' books as New York is in Lawrence Block's.
Here we are, George Pelecanos first novel. The more Pelecanos I read, the higher he is elevated in my esteem. A Firing Offense is no exception.
A Firing Offense starts off with a standard hard boiled plot: someone is missing. In this case, it's Jimmy Broda, a young man that reminds Nick way too much of himself at that age. Nick embarks on an investigation that is equal parts The Long Goodbye and the Last Good Kiss, an investigation that mostly consists of driving around, talking to people, and drinking a small lake of alcohol. For most of the story, Nick was in the dark as much as I was.
What sets Pelecanos apart from a lot of his contemporaries is his sense of time and place. Washington DC is as much a character in the book as Nick Stefanos and the pop culture references, mostly the music, paint a good picture of the time the story was occurring.
The music references lead me to believe George Pelecanos might have run into each other if I'd been going to shows in DC bars in the 90's. He mentions Night Boat to Cairo by Madness, a song I've listened to myself at the tail end of a long night out, and The Raybeats, a obscure Link Wray inspired band featuring Danny Amis, who is now one of the guitar players for Los Straitjackets.
It's an easy four star read. Washington DC is as much a character in Pelecanos' books as New York is in Lawrence Block's.
rocketiza's review against another edition
2.0
Spends about 200 pages trying (and failing) to convince you the main character is soooooooooooooooooooooooo cool before actually getting to anything fun.
btmarino84's review against another edition
I really dug the way this was a mish mash of crime-mystery and a character piece about a lot of damaged people and their wild days. It ends on a perfectly melancholy note that makes me very interested to see where the next book in the series goes. Also very excited for his more renowned Quartet of period novels.
padraic_'s review against another edition
4.0
Nick Stefanos starts the book as a smart aleck advertising manager in an electrical retail chain. A kid who works in the warehouse goes missing, after being fired or abandoning his job. Nick gets a call from the kids grandfather who mentions a mix tape that Stefanos had put together and thus begins an unconventional noir.
The story has a number of familiar elements. Narration is in the first person throughout, Nick is hard bitten, drinks too much, has a sense of responsibility that won't let him give up the case, an anti-authoritarian streak and an instinct for rubbing people up the wrong way. When you add in a femme fatale, and a couple of plot 180s it seems like a traditional noir.
Pelecanos avoids a mystery by the numbers and keeps things fresh. The gumshoe goes to work in a hardware store in an attempt to crack the case, and the intricacies of shopfloor retail inform the stories progress. It all takes place in an insiders Washington DC, seen from the street view of those working in service industries and heavily accented by Nicks love of punk and new wave. Bars, nightclubs, bosses and thugs are all described by their musical taste and sense of style.
As with the traditional noir no-one comes across as innocent as they first appear but the plot twists and story developments never get overly predictable.
Definitely well worth a read and after starting here I'm plotting a course through the rest of the Stefanos novels.
The story has a number of familiar elements. Narration is in the first person throughout, Nick is hard bitten, drinks too much, has a sense of responsibility that won't let him give up the case, an anti-authoritarian streak and an instinct for rubbing people up the wrong way. When you add in a femme fatale, and a couple of plot 180s it seems like a traditional noir.
Pelecanos avoids a mystery by the numbers and keeps things fresh. The gumshoe goes to work in a hardware store in an attempt to crack the case, and the intricacies of shopfloor retail inform the stories progress. It all takes place in an insiders Washington DC, seen from the street view of those working in service industries and heavily accented by Nicks love of punk and new wave. Bars, nightclubs, bosses and thugs are all described by their musical taste and sense of style.
As with the traditional noir no-one comes across as innocent as they first appear but the plot twists and story developments never get overly predictable.
Definitely well worth a read and after starting here I'm plotting a course through the rest of the Stefanos novels.
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I made the mistake of starting in the middle of Pelecanos' canon instead of the beginning. The sense of desperation so familiar to most crime novels is what I found lacking in Drama City and while I enjoyed King Suckerman, I recall it mostly for the sum of its parts than the book as a whole. What It Was entertained with an interesting lead but too often, I felt like I was reading about an episode of The Wire while missing out on the whole show.
That's not the case with this one. Yes, it is a first novel to the nth degree. Characters come and go, scenes drag on too long, while others are too short, women and minorities are mostly disposable. But there's a kinetic energy here that Pelecanos just doesn't bring to his later works, which sustains the reader right up to its explosive conclusion. It's got plenty of DC but it's not a tour guide. The guys on The Watch podcast capably described it as "Punk Rock Chandler."
It's usually hit-or-miss when you read a first novel where an author is finding their voice. Here, it's mostly hit. You see good ideas fomenting, with a slight need for better execution, which usually comes with experience and more qualified editors. Pelecanos may be a more competent writer now but this energy is missed. He says he can't write these books anymore and I get it. He does a good job teasing out social dynamics in his later work. But still. I'm going to finish this trilogy sooner than later.
That's not the case with this one. Yes, it is a first novel to the nth degree. Characters come and go, scenes drag on too long, while others are too short, women and minorities are mostly disposable. But there's a kinetic energy here that Pelecanos just doesn't bring to his later works, which sustains the reader right up to its explosive conclusion. It's got plenty of DC but it's not a tour guide. The guys on The Watch podcast capably described it as "Punk Rock Chandler."
It's usually hit-or-miss when you read a first novel where an author is finding their voice. Here, it's mostly hit. You see good ideas fomenting, with a slight need for better execution, which usually comes with experience and more qualified editors. Pelecanos may be a more competent writer now but this energy is missed. He says he can't write these books anymore and I get it. He does a good job teasing out social dynamics in his later work. But still. I'm going to finish this trilogy sooner than later.