Friday, September 28, 2012

Dana King and I

Dana King has long been a friend of Detectives Beyond Borders, a loyal reader and occasional commenter I've known since he was still in short pants at his first Bouchercon in 2008. Back in 2009, he even interviewed me on his blog, One Bite at a Time.

These days he's a two-time novelist, and I'm happy to report that his Wild Bill is the most fun I've had with a mob story since I last read Charlie Stella.  The link is apt; Stella has nice things to say about King's work, and King thanks Stella in the acknowledgments to his other book, Worst Enemies.

If you like Stella's writing, as I do, you'll likely like King's. Each writes books that follow parallel groups of characters, mob and police/FBI. Each uses multiple viewpoints, creating sympathy for characters good and bad. King's fiction is slightly more violent than Stella's; Stella's offers slightly more humor. But really, each is great fun, and I can picture the two writers as older and younger brothers, each slapping the other in the head as he tries to negotiate a forkful of steaming pasta.

Here's a brief example from Wild Bill, beguiling in its straightforward simplicity:
"You can't call someone who might put an ice pick in your ear a friend."
Can't argue with that. Now, goodnight. I have some reading to do.

© Peter Rozovsky 2012

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4 Comments:

Blogger Dana King said...

Thank you, Peter. This is much appreciated. See you in a few days.

September 29, 2012  
Blogger Peter Rozovsky said...

My pleasure. I finished reading the book on my dinner break and I shall read the next one as soon as I get this Bouchercon stuff out of the way.

Good job.

September 29, 2012  
Blogger Charlieopera said...

I'm so late to this dance it's embarrassing. Listen to me: King is the King, make no mistake. This guy has it all ... wonderful dialogue and absolutely riveting narrative. I never understood how he wasn't in print a few years ago when I first read him. He's the goods. Hell of a nice guy, too.

October 10, 2012  
Blogger Peter Rozovsky said...

You're right on both counts, and you read him before I did, so you're a lucky man.

The bar never closes at Detectives Beyond Borders, so you're not too late. I just received and replied to a comment on a post from April.

October 11, 2012  

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