Well, I like the cover, which was painted by Glen Orbik . . .
Actually, there are several other things to like about this odd little book. One is the dedication, which reads: “With admiration , for DAN J. MARLOWE, author of The Name of the Game is Death: Hardest of the hardboiled.” Now, I happen to think that THE NAME OF THE GAME IS DEATH is possibly the best hardboiled novel ever written, so I’m glad to see King mention it in a book with a wide readership. Maybe some people who pick up this book because it was written by King will go on to become Dan J. Marlowe fans. Another thing I like about THE COLORADO KID is that it’s short and reads very fast, and in these days when I don’t have as much reading time as I once did, that’s an important consideration. The characters are affable and the setting is well-drawn. But that ending . . .
In his afterword, King says that the book is about the nature of mystery in life, and that he thinks readers will either love it or hate it. I can see the first point, but the second doesn’t really apply to me. The mystery to me is whether I even like this book. I think I do, but I’m not sure. I don’t consider the time I spent reading it wasted, which has to count for something.
3 comments:
James, Ditto on Marlowe's "Game" being the best hard-boiled book. I think it tops Paul Cain's "Fast One" as far as the action, level of violence, and the intensity of the story. I need to read it again, but I'd also love to get the original edition. The Gold Medal copy I have says it's a revised edition, which I assume was done prior to Marlowe turning the Drake adventures into a regular series (gotta love a character with the same name as me!). I didn't like any of the follow-ups (stopped after a few), and think "Game" deserves to be a stand-alone. You can't beat the final line prior to the epiloge: "The last thing I heard was myself, screaming." Gives me chills just thinking about it!
I think ONE ENDLESS HOUR, the first sequel to the saga, is almost quite as good as the GAME. The ending is grotesque, hilarious, scary and touching at the same time.
I agree about ONE ENDLESS HOUR. It's awfully good, and anyone who reads THE NAME OF THE GAME IS DEATH needs to read the sequel, too. I haven't read any of the later books, when they turn into an espionage series. They're supposed to be okay but nowhere near the level of the first two.
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