A Drink Before the War by Dennis Lehane Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of A Drink Before the War
Book Review: Humour from the strangest situations
Summary: 4 Stars
Lehane writes with a wit that sparkles with original flair and 'A Drink Before the War' exudes confidence and charm from every pore. This is a book that shocks by submitting the reader to every emotional process imaginable, and yet retains a fast pace and is totally impossible to put down.Book Review: Great writing, but a simple plot
Summary: 4 Stars
I thoroughly enjoy the way Lehane writes and will certainly order more of his books. He writes with a good dose of wit and takes an insightful look at some important social issues.However, I found this particular story-line to be very simplistic and not particularly challenging.
Book Review: My first Lehane; it certainly won't be my last!
Summary: 5 Stars
Dennis Lehane's first book, "A Drink Before The War" is a really startling debut into thriller crime fiction. It's not that surprising if a first book is ever so slightly hesitant, perhaps because an author is feeling his way. That doesn't happen in "A Drink Before The War" - it's completely into its stride from just about the first page. I was expecting (and, to be honest, hoping) for the laid-back humour of Robert Crais and, to be sure, it was there but mostly subdued. No matter though; the story got up to speed within a page or two and from then on it didn't let up. Even the occasional and brief paragraph of philosophy, as Lehane stares moodily at American life, doesn't slow things up. If I have a mild complaint at all, it's founded on the relentlessly accurate (I think) description of Boston's highways and byways as private investigators Kenzie and Gennaro move around. For anyone living in Boston, or even slightly familiar with the city, the realism must be rewarding. Sadly, I've never been there but I certainly felt I had after I'd finished reading. Which means, I suppose, that the descriptions did just what they were supposed to do - pull me into the story. "A Drink Before The War" is a great read and well worth it.Book Review: A great rollercoaster ride !
Summary: 5 Stars
I haven't read much during the last few years, only a few biographies and the all books by James Lee Burke. I was actually under the impression that there wasn't much out there that I would be interested in but now Dennis Lehane has changed my mind, I just couldn't put down this book and have already ordered the rest of this series. Great plot, great characters, this books has it all and must be recommended to everyone who enjoys the thriller/suspense genre.Book Review: Brilliant
Summary: 5 Stars
This is Lehane's first book, and what a devastatingly brilliant book it is too. It introduces us to Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro and their private investigation business in their hometown of Boston. The Boston we get to see, though, is the lower working class and slum areas of town. This is a hardboiled thriller to the core. Patrick Kenzie is haunted by memories of his abusive father; Angie Gennaro is married to an abusive husband. Together they have a fantastic chemistry in which they can virtually read each other's minds.Kenzie and Gennaro are hired by a local Senator to find a black cleaning woman who was in his employ until she disappeared with some important documents. The case is simple, find the woman and return the documents. The woman is found, but from this point on, things start to go wrong, and it's clear that Kenzie and Gennaro haven't been told the whole story. They soon find themselves caught up in a gangland war where survival is looking less and less likely.
The dialogue is witty and sharp, the story is very well paced and the characters are very believable and all too real-life. I have read all the other Kenzie-Gennaro books before this one (shame on me for reading this out of order) and rate it very highly in comparison. In actual fact, it would have been of great benefit if I had have read this book first as it puts into perspective events that occur in the later books.