Mourn the Living

I am so far behind on writing these little reviews that I almost forgot about MOURN THE LIVING. This is a short novel from Max Allan Collins that he originally wrote in the 1960s, but let languish because it never really measured up. According to the author, this was his first shot at writing a novel and it shows. The writing is not as tight as later efforts and the plot is definitely dated in its references – small town colleges, drugs and hippies, but none of this takes away from that frisson gained from reading a Max Allan Collins original.

I have not delved into the Nolan stories that were a hallmark of Collins’ early days (I also haven’t read the Mallory books), but I can see the influence of Richard Stark (Donald Westlake) and Mickey Spillane on the style and pacing. Nolan, a fugitive from and enemy to the mob, is called in to solve the death of a connected friend’s daughter. In doing so, Nolan has to expose himself to those from whom he has concealed himself all these years. This is gritty, fun stuff. I am woefully behind on my Collins reading – I bought this book in England five years ago and am just now getting to it (and I borrowed this copy from the library to boot.)

Reading Max Allan Collins is always a bright point of my day when I can get to it. I hope I can carve out time to read the latest Quarry novels soon.