Book Reviews

[jeffingoff]

What a great image that is! haha

That is the problem with some limited edition books, you want to read them, as books should be read, but at the same time you don't want to sully them.

I don't know what the HELL I'm going to do when I get my remarqued AE of The Shining! With all the restored material, it MUST be read. But I am a filthy mortal whose pores secrete unholy oils! I am not worthy of handling this book!

[Theli]

I look for any excuse to pick up a Centipede Press edition. I recently bought Tem's Out of the Dark from them and it's gorgeous. I haven't read it yet, but I keep staring at it. Hahahaha not the proper way to love a book, I know. I feel like I'm stalking it on the shelf. Eventually I will read it if it doesn't get a restraining order against me.

What a great image that is! haha

That is the problem with some limited edition books, you want to read them, as books should be read, but at the same time you don't want to sully them.

[jeffingoff]

And Jeff, if you don't pick up this release, I hope you'll read it another way and pass it on to a deserving friend (or enemy).

I look for any excuse to pick up a Centipede Press edition. I recently bought Tem's Out of the Dark from them and it's gorgeous. I haven't read it yet, but I keep staring at it. Hahahaha not the proper way to love a book, I know. I feel like I'm stalking it on the shelf. Eventually I will read it if it doesn't get a restraining order against me.

[RonClinton]

Great review, and, you're right, it's one of Woolrich's best.

[bugen]

Thank you, Theli! This thing was twisted...a work of diseased, dark genius. Too much for some, I'm sure, but anyone here is perfectly suited.

And Jeff, if you don't pick up this release, I hope you'll read it another way and pass it on to a deserving friend (or enemy).

[jeffingoff]

If I don't get picked in the lottery for Gwendy, I'm buying this.

[Theli]

Another top notch write up! I really need to start up the Woolrich books.

[jeffingoff]

I did not need to read this. I should not go anywhere near my credit card until this fever dies.

[bugen]

Rendezvous in Black - Cornell Woolrich

“I haven’t an enemy in the world.”
“No man can safely say that until after his death.”

A young man meets the love of his life every day at 8 p.m. in front of the local drugstore. One days he’s running a couple of minutes late, and when he arrives she’s been killed and is lying in the street among shards of glass. He sets his watch for slightly before 8 p.m. and stops it, to remain at the time forever after.

He’s constantly found at the spot of the former lovers, until the regular beat cop is replaced by the new guy who drives him off. Then the nightmare begins as young Johnny embarks on an unstoppable murder spree to rival anything you’ve ever read in terms of cruelty. He tortures his victims; not the torture of flayed skin and raw nerves—that stuff’s for rookies. Real torture, the kind that works on the mind, is his weapon. The kind that forces the victim to be aware the world is cruel, dispassionate, and unfair. The kind which you go to your grave knowing you were tortured, beaten, and everything you cared about has been ripped away from you forever.

What’s so effective here is your own yearn for justice as this poor kid has his world disintegrate. The young love so passionately, leaving the world behind, and we remember this no matter how jaded, no matter how many divorces or betrayals we’ve gone through--we can still remember our pasts when those loves meant more than everything. So when it happens to Johnny it strikes a nerve.

Then when he goes about the business of tracking down any and all responsible for his loss with the aim of causing them the same pain, we get attached to the victims' relationships and that strikes a nerve, too. So we’re being hit from both sides. Even during the carnage the author ping-pongs this successfully.

The investigator assigned to the first case, Cameron, is another compelling character. Approaching everything as if he’s new to it, he bumbles through situations on the outside while shrewdly calculating on the inside, paving the way for detectives like Columbo. He’s an excellent sleuth, but it almost doesn’t seem to matter as his opponent brings a supernatural-like omniscience up against his victims. He will not be stopped. For anything.

Having now finished the six Black novels, I can say this is undoubtedly the best. Woolrich may have written another novel that reaches the same heights this one did, but he did not beat it. Novels like this are never beaten by anyone. They can be equaled, but only by the masterpiece.

This book breaks your heart as you hold your breath, and it absolutely is not to be missed.

When you want to believe, you believe.

5 stars

DOROTHY
I shall be waiting

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[bugen]

Posting this next one because while it's brilliant crime fiction, it's also horrific in ways you'll find shocking and compelling. This one's going to knock the socks off those who read it (and as of this post Centipede still has a few copies left).

[RonClinton]

I think I like them better not as short reviews themselves but as augments for the written reviews and picture elements, focusing on the publisher's physical presentation.

That's what I was really taken with. There are a myriad of places where you can read reviews of the books themselves, but for those already familiar with the text but considering a $40+ limited edition purchase, there's nowhere to learn more about the presentation and production values, for the most part...so capturing that in your reviews is, I think, smart and very appreciated.

[bugen]

Thanks guys, and thanks Ron for the tip on the video titles; I'll do that. I've only recorded a few of these, and even over those few they've changed somewhat. I think I like them better not as short reviews themselves but as augments for the written reviews and picture elements, focusing on the publisher's physical presentation. People should be able to get a much better idea of the tactile feel of the specific book by seeing it manipulated on video. I probably won't go back to older reviews but want to try to include something like this going forward, especially on limited editions.

[RonClinton]

By the way, if you're interested in boosting your views, you may want to include the authors' name in the video title...with just the book title (e.g. PICK-UP, COMPLETE SLAYERS, et al), there aren't going to many who are able to find your videos with a typical search, which would be unfortunate as the couple I've now watched are great.

[Theli]

I have both books (outstanding volumes!), but not this slipcased set...very attractive. You're right about the paper stock...kind of fragile, given that its so thin.

The video review was nice to see...didn't realize you did these. I'll have to check and see if you have more.

Love Willeford. If you're looking for more, hit me up for recs.

As far as the two collections go, I hope you'll also take an opportunity to read the Goodis and McCoy novels as well. No offense to the other fine authors included, but Cain, McCoy, Woolrich, Thompson, Willeford, and Goodis are all just spectacular reads. McCoy is kind of the forgotten among them, which is really a shame, as he's every bit as compelling. I wouldn't go so far as to say that THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY? is his best work (I'd give that one, probably, to KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE), but I do understand why they chose that one, his most popular.

I'd read They Shoot Horses, Don't They? from this anthology last year. Very interesting and unique read. Dark, depressing, insightful, yet also a bit humorous. In a way I could even draw comparison's to Steinbeck, in that both were very insightful yet potentially satirical at times, especially for that period in time around the Great Depression.

I didn't get the chance to view the video yet since I'm at work. The pages are really thin, but they feel like quality stock. I like the edition overall.

[RonClinton]

I have both books (outstanding volumes!), but not this slipcased set...very attractive. You're right about the paper stock...kind of fragile, given that its so thin.

The video review was nice to see...didn't realize you did these. I'll have to check and see if you have more.

Love Willeford. If you're looking for more, hit me up for recs.

As far as the two collections go, I hope you'll also take an opportunity to read the Goodis and McCoy novels as well. No offense to the other fine authors included, but Cain, McCoy, Woolrich, Thompson, Willeford, and Goodis are all just spectacular reads. McCoy is kind of the forgotten among them, which is really a shame, as he's every bit as compelling. I wouldn't go so far as to say that THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY? is his best work (I'd give that one, probably, to KISS TOMORROW GOODBYE), but I do understand why they chose that one, his most popular.