Stephen's Reviews > A Drink Before the War

My very first Dennis Lehane…and I LOVED every gorgeous, kick-ass, page-turning word of it.
 
I loved the writing...which paired genre grit and humor with a polished, emotive literary quality that you don’t often see in detective novels.
 
I loved the plot...which had a duo of private detectives trying to locate some “incriminating” documents for a group of political mucky mucks, and ending up mired in a conspiracy of dark family secrets, gang warfare, racial tensions and the U.S. Senate.
 
I loved the tone...a blend of world-weary cynicism and unflappable optimism, garnished with self interest, and tempered by a good heart and a working moral compass.
 
And I loved, loved, loved the characters...and their relationship with one another. Patrick Kenzie, the womanizing, authority-averse Boston boy with mondo daddy issues, and his petite, tough-as-nails, except when it comes to her abusive, alcoholic husband, partner, Angela Gennaro. These two are life long friends who, “met when we were both majoring in Space Invaders with a Pub Etiquette minor at the Happy Harbor Campus of UMass/Boston.” Their personal issues, their messed up private lives and their smoldering, just bellow the surface, attraction for one another was very compelling.

However what really sent me to happyville was the iron-strong bond of friendship and respect the two have for one another. They argue, disagree and mock each other mercilessly, but you just know that, if need be, they would literally burn the world to save the other.

She felt like everything good. She felt like the first warm gust of spring and Saturday afternoons when you’re ten years old and early summer evenings on the beach when the sand is cool and the waves are colored scotch. Her grip was fierce, her body full and soft, and her heart beat rapidly against my bare chest. I could smell her shampoo and feel the downy nape of her neck against my chin.

Oh, and speaking of burning the world, Patrick and Angie have a sociopathic, "violence junkie" named Bubba (that’s right, Bubba) who does “dirty work” for them when they need it and hates everyone and everything, except the two of them. “The world according to Bubba is simple - if it aggravates you, stop it. By whatever means necessary.” Bubba doesn't get much page time in this novel but I have it from a reliable source (i.e., Kemper), that Bubba plays a major role in future stories. I can't wait. 
 
Lehane’s writing really knocked me on my ass. I didn't know what to expect from him, and he really pulled me up on his bandwagon with his street-wise, highly literate style infused with working class indignation.

“L.A. burns, and so many other cities smolder, waiting for the hose that will flood gasoline over the coals, and we listen to politicians who fuel our hate and our narrow views and tell us it's simply a matter of getting back to basics while they sit in their beachfront properties and listen to the surf so they won't have to hear the screams of the drowning.”

Throughout the book, Lehane worked the gamut of my emotions, from anger to laughter, from outrage to compassion, from papa bear protectiveness to vengeance-seeking “kill 'em all and let the bodies fall where they may."

In short, I had an absolute blast reading this book. Lehane kept the pacing brisk and the story front and center, but also managed to decorate the narrative with honest, insightful observations about our culture, race relations and the nature of good and evil.

As I grew, so did the fires, it seemed, until recently L.A. burned, and the child in me wondered what would happen to the fallout, if the ashes and smoke would drift northeast, settle here in Boston, contaminate the air. Last summer, it seemed to. Hate came in a maelstrom, and we called it several things—racism, pedophilia, justice, righteousness—but all those words were just ribbons and wrapping paper on a soiled gift that no one wanted to open.

If you haven’t checked out Lehane before, I think you should. I'm shocked I waited this long to read him, but at least I now have a whole host of his other works to enjoy.

You should join me.  
 
5.0 stars. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!