Customer Reviews
Gutter Gumshoe is Great - By: Foggy Tewsday, 03 Jun 2007 
There are a few improbabilities in this story, things that, in terms of suspended disbelief, you have to wonder if the author might expect too much from his readership. An ex-detective has been living as a homeless alcoholic for five years after the collapse of his marriage. He takes on a case of theft as a favour to an old acquaintance. This case quickly turns into one of murder. Our hero's mind has not become completely stewed thanks to the demon drink, though. He still possesses remarkable athleticism & stereotypical prowess with the ladies.
And yet, this is a rattling good yarn. Ed McBain was truly a master of his craft. I can't claim to have read many books by him (in fact, the only other book I've read by him is `The Blackboard Jungle' which he wrote as Evan Hunter), but I know good writing when I see it, & I see it here. This novel was originallly published in 1958 under one of McBain's other pseudonyms, Curt Cannon, under the title `I'm Cannon - For Hire'.
Our hero, Matt Cordell, tells this story in the first person, and, thanks to McBain's superlative writing, the story comes to life amid New York's steaming hot summer. The dialogue is wonderfully snappy, in the manner of a classic film noir. I had Bogart's voice in my head as I read Cordell's narration. There are also some wonderfully descriptive passages. In particular, there's a scene where Cordell wants to question a musician who's taking part in a late night jam session. McBain's writing is so sharp that you can hear the music as he describes the musicians' actions. You can imagine the smoky, sweaty scene as the players do their stuff in front of their rapt audience. Cordell opines that, "racial prejudice would evaporate if everyone were taught to play an instrument. The sound is the thing & music has its own color."
The whodunit aspect is perhaps not handled as well as it could have been. That said, I didn't guess who the killer was, but the ending felt forced. The story seemed to be flowing in top gear when the author suddenly applies the brakes & wraps things up. Nevertheless, this is highly recommended for sheer entertainment with a few minor reservations in the plausibility department. `The Gutter & the Grave' is another novel from the Hard Case Crime imprint. Also recommended from this particular series is Gil Brewer's `The Vengeful Virgin'.
Good....But...... - By: CC, 20 May 2006 
I bought this book based on the review i read here. And i was not disappointed.
The book was well written & kept me turning the ages into the smalll hours. The main character was gritty & everything a good, hard boiled detective should be; unkept alcoholic who, despite appearances is good with the ladies.
However, i figured out early on in the book who done it & felt that Matt Cordell, the detective should have caught on earlier as well.
But having said this, i was not disappointed with the book & have been looking up more stories with this character in it.
Well worth the money, & i highly recommend it.
murder & drinks - By: ilyushin, 29 Jan 2006 100% slick. No time to waste; better think & move fast. Crime & seduction in New York hard concrete.
