After The First Death [Hardcover]

Lawrence Block (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: The Macmillian Company; First Printing edition (1969)
• ASIN: B001LP525Q
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Lawrence Block (b. 1938) is the recipient of a Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America and an internationally renowned bestselling author. His prolific career spans over one hundred books, including four bestselling series as well as dozens of short stories, articles, and books on writing. He has won four Edgar and Shamus Awards, two Falcon Awards from the Maltese Falcon Society of Japan, the Nero and Philip Marlowe Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the Crime Writers Association of the United Kingdom. In France, he has been awarded the title Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice received the Societe 813 trophy.

Born in Buffalo, New York, Block attended Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Leaving school before graduation, he moved to New York City, a locale that features prominently in most of his works. His earliest published writing appeared in the 1950s, frequently under pseudonyms, and many of these novels are now considered classics of the pulp fiction genre. During his early writing years, Block also worked in the mailroom of a publishing house and reviewed the submission slush pile for a literary agency. He has cited the latter experience as a valuable lesson for a beginning writer.

Block's first short story, "You Can't Lose," was published in 1957 in Manhunt, the first of dozens of short stories and articles that he would publish over the years in publications including American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and the New York Times. His short fiction has been featured and reprinted in over eleven collections including Enough Rope (2002), which is comprised of eighty-four of his short stories.

In 1966, Block introduced the insomniac protagonist Evan Tanner in the novel The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep. Block's diverse heroes also include the urbane and witty bookseller--and thief-on-the-side--Bernie Rhodenbarr; the gritty recovering alcoholic and private investigator Matthew Scudder; and Chip Harrison, the comical assistant to a private investigator with a Nero Wolfe fixation who appears in No Score, Chip Harrison Scores Again, Make Out with Murder, and The Topless Tulip Caper. Block has also written several short stories and novels featuring Keller, a professional hit man. Block's work is praised for his richly imagined and varied characters and frequent use of humor.

A father of three daughters, Block lives in New York City with his second wife, Lynne. When he isn't touring or attending mystery conventions, he and Lynne are frequent travelers, as members of the Travelers' Century Club for nearly a decade now, and have visited about 150 countries.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 1969 Block Thriller Does Show Its Age in Parts, March 1, 2006

By 

James N Simpson (Gold Coast, QLD Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: After the First Death (Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is not a bad short thriller, originally published in 1969 references throughout do definitely constantly highlight this is not a modern tale. A pack of cigarettes is purchased for 4c, you can get a taxi from one side of Manhattan to the other for just over $2 and chocolate bars cost 10c are factors in the first few chapters that keep reminding you of this fact. Still After the First Death is a pleasant light quick easy read and is definitely ideal for the commute to work or to read somewhere like on a plane.

In After the First Death Alex awakes with a killer hangover and has suffered another severe blackout where he cannot remember a thing from the time he started drinking. As he tries to work out where he is and gather his clothing he is shocked to see they are covered in red wine. Closer inspection reveals they are in fact covered in blood and the girl with the slit throat next to the knife covered in blood seems to be the source. Alex has been in this situation before and was recently let out of jail on a technicality after four years for that murder. Like now he blacked out after a heavy drinking session. He was sure he was innocent then, but knows no one will believe him this time round. He isn't even sure of his innocence himself.

4.0 out of 5 stars Why eBooks are great., January 16, 2012

By 

skotjay - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: After the First Death (Kindle Edition)

This story is definitely dated, and that's a compliment. I love it when a novel can transplant me, and have me inhabit the world of another time. Especially when that time is as gritty and hard as the New York of the 1960's that Block gives us here. I found the surroundings to be as much a draw as anything else.

Very solid story, with characters that any fan of the genre would not want to miss. Novels like this make me glad that Block has gotten so solidly behind ePublishing, especially with his backlist titles that would be hard to come by otherwise. Money well spent.