Jim Beaver wrote: A little belatedly, I've just finished Paul
Cain's widely and wildly praised FAST ONE. I can't say I
caught the fever. Aside from the ending, which is bleak as
they come and worthy of the other Cain, I found the story
very hard to follow, motivations cluttered, and characters
barely distinguishable. It's good, hard writing, but I had to
force myself to stay with it, as I couldn't pick it up again
after a few hours and remember who was who and what it was
about. Those last three or four pages, though, are worth
remembering.
************* A lot of characters do come online fairly
quickly. My big complaint is that he's knocked unconscious at
least three times, and when he comes to, he immediately
springs into tough, fast action. One time he's even got a
bullet (shotgun pellets?) in him. It gives the book a
marginal sort of comic book credibility, sort of like Mickey
Spil- lane's I, THE JURY. Suspense of disbelief is a handy
tool for reading pulp.
I also think that he was often beyond terse all the way to
choppy. Reminded me of that Hammett story that starts out
something like,
"Dick likes Jane. Jane likes Dick." Ridiculous.
miker
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