Reviews

The Cold Six Thousand by James Ellroy

ajnel's review

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I'm still pretty awe struck after reading the first book in this historical fiction trilogy, and I must admit that the second novel in each and every regard felt like I was just reading part two of the first novel.  In this case, that is high praise indeed.  The fictional story line is so well researched and told with a full and engaging command of the era.  Though bloody violent, I feel as if I have gone through a roller coaster ride which pummeled every possible emotion. Elroy is just in a class of his own. 

cmpn's review

challenging dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

dcox83's review

3.0

Ellroy almost seems to bite off more than he can chew with this novel. It's a follow-up to American Tabloid, where we followed three rogue FBI agents through the political underworld of the 1950s.

This one picks up right where it left off as it follows three rogue FBI agents through the political underworld of the 1960s. It feels a little redundant after the first book, although no less intriguing. I kept getting tired of the numerous plot threads and putting down the book, only to pick it up later to see how the different plots of blackmail, drugs and violence played out.

ecari's review

1.0

In all fairness, I should confess that I only made it 100 pages in. But I pretty much never stop reading a book unless I'm really pretty miserable. In my opinion, Ellroy took his sparse, slang-soaked writing style a bit too far in this one. with the exception of the FBI "reports", there are no sentences longer than 6 words in the first 100 pages. I felt like the book was shooting the story at me with a semi-automatic weapon. I was able to adjust to his style in American Tabloid, but perhaps it wasn't quite so, well, SO? Or maybe I could better handle it then. But this time, no can do.

itsmedavid's review

2.0

I liked the story, but not the disjointed writing style.

cmcrockford's review

5.0

Even more exhaustive than American Tabloid if not as amazing as that weird, amphetamine-fueled piece of work. Part of it is there's almost too much plot and happenstance in the thing, gorged with excess like Pete Bondurant on a binge. It's enough that Ellroy could've made this a quartet but here we are with a despairing sequel, prophesying that the country will settle back into its dark, uninnocent form. God help us.

gregbrown's review

4.0

Not quite as tight and well-defined as Ellroy's American Tabloid, and the staccato writing can kind of grate when he sits in that mode for an entire chapter (granted, only four pages long). But damn if it isn't still a thrill to see him play around with sixties history, twisting it for his narrative and exploring the backwater impulses that led to some of its most infamous events. It took me a long time to read, and was exhausting at points, but so totally worth it. Definitely reading the followup Blood's a Rover when I get the chance.

acinthedc's review

3.0

This first part of the book feels like a rehash of American Tabloid. Once it gets past the JFK assassination, it gets a bit more interesting. Not as satisfying a read as American Tabloid. It was too long and made too many shifts between perspectives to really hold my interest.

inlostmo's review

I tried, God knows I tried. No seriously, I worked hard for this book. I was confused about what the hell was happening, so first I read a couple of critics reviews, just to confirm that I wasn't the only one struggling. I then read through the character list and plot summary of American Tabloid (it's been about five years), just to make sense of who was who. And then, at the end of each chapter, I stopped to reflect to make sure I had actually taken in what I had just read. But, I couldn't tolerate it. I just couldn't see the point.

Reasons not to read The Cold Six Thousand:
1) I'm sick of Elroy's staccato writing style. It was snappy and edgy in American Tabloid, but it just felt clinical and disinterested here.
2) I struggled with the lack of insight into characters' motivations. We knew all about actions, but almost never about WHY characters acted.
3) After reading My Dark Places, and about The Hilicker Curse, I'm generally a bit grossed out by James Elroy and his perversions.
4) I'm not terribly down with the specifics of 1960s American history, and so prefer not to have my learning of it coloured by right-wing conspiracies and fictionalised characters
5) Lastly, normally, the desire to know what happens would be a strong driver to motivate me to finish a book I'm not loving. However, as this one is based in some incredibly well-known history, I already know what happens!

Permission to abandon granted!

jakewritesbooks's review

3.0

(3.5) Among the many things I blame the Trump administration for, I can now include “being cynical enough to read and not hate a James Ellroy novel.” I wasn’t a fan of American Tabloid when I read it almost six years ago and attempts to get back into Ellroy have failed. But this time did the trick. I doubt this book is much better than its predecessor but I was in a mood to read it in a way I wasn’t before. It held my interest from beginning to end and I’m gonna miss it a little. Ellroy plays with the contextual impressions of historical events for the sake of narrative and that made me dock the book a star. But there’s an underlying sense of humanity here buried under layers of blood and white hoods that I didn’t detect when I read AT. The motivations for some characters were more realized. Or again, maybe that’s just the Trump Era cynic in me talking.