Quote:
Originally Posted by carpetmojo
Just realized - if Harry Bosch (excellent, on my rereads collection always) qualifies, then I cannot help myself - James Lee Burke !
The Robicheaux series - but really, anything by him. A truly great writer, IMHO, who happens to have chosen the genre to write wonderful stuff.
Not afraid to tackle "difficult" topics, plenty of action, superb characters, construction, storytelling, and, well, just fine writing.
And there's lots of them to read.
I know I'm a Brit, and have praised him before (I was so excited when I discovered him !) but, for example, "Tin Roof Blowdown" set in the events of Katrina, I found a pretty savage indictment of what happened - as well as being a good "detective" story.
Give him a try.
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Well, since carpetmojo couldn't help him or her self,
I'll third James Lee Burke as a truly great writer. Dave Robicheaux is a much more complicated character then Reacher but I can see the similarity to Harry Bosch. Reacher is described in terms that remind me of dessert. Dave Robicheaux is a full course meal. A heavy meal. Am I the only one who hears echos of Faukner in Burke's writing? Sometimes I wonder if the plot isn't just an excuse for Burke to explore Robicheaux's personal demons. Not that the plotting isn't excellent. Looking at the dust cover picture of Burke, he looks, to me, like a man who's had to deal with some personal demons himself.
I don't mean any of that as a put down of Lee Child. Simple can be interesting. Take haiku poetry for instance. As Stitchawl commented in regards to wish fulfillment, there is some appeal to stripping away the responsibilities of our hectic modern lives. I think it's interesting to see where that leads. I'd probably be just as interested if Reacher were a pacifist monk. Geez, I'm suddenly recalling that old TV show Kung Fu.
What do you suppose would happen if Reacher got off the bus in New Iberia, LA?
Speaking of old TV shows...
Hey JerseyBiker, if you like Reacher you might like that old TV show
And then came Bronson. This link is to the movie pilot:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0039UU3KA?...NDCSNQ7FPM87K& A Harley Roadster, a bedroll, a lonely stretch of highway: Jim Bronson (Michael Parks) is traveling where the road and the day take him, trying to make sense of things after the suicide of his close friend.
Wonder what happened to JerseyBiker?