John Wessel is back with the third highly anticipated installment in his Harding mystery series. Wessel returns at the top of his game with the eagerly awaited third book featuring hard-boiled, ex-con, and ex-private investigator, Harding. KISS IT GOODBYE finds Harding at work on throwaway cases that other detectives won't touch. But when Tracy Lawrence (a former lover of Harding's girlfriend Alison) turns up dead in a small Illinois town, Harding is drawn into the strange circle of Grand Terrace. An eclectic University of Chicago dorm favoured by artists, writers and other social misfits, Grand Terrace was once the residence of Alison, Tracy and a cast of eccentric characters, and it soon becomes clear that someone hasn't forgotten what happened behind closed doors. Digging up a past that Alison considered dead and buried, Harding finds himself on a case that is as personal, and as dangerous as they come.
Kiss It Goodbye
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle.
Learn more
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
This Far, No Further (1996) and Pretty Ballerina (1998), Wessel's first two books about a Chicago ex-con named Harding, got a lot of attention for the lively writing and the nasty, kinky plot twists. In the author's latest, the writing is still sharp and quirky, but the level of horror and twisted sex seems to have given way to a definite aura of romantic nostalgia (albeit tinged in proper shades of noir). Harding, a closet academic and private detective who lost his license when he did a manslaughter stretch for some overzealous revenge, is an interesting if not totally original blend of brains and brawn (can you say Spenser?), and his relationship with Alison a fellow University of Chicago grad who now runs a women's gym has some of the distinctive edges of Dennis Lehane's dueling lovers. Adding to the familiarity is the rock music constantly echoing in the heads of the book's characters including the title, quoted from an Eagles song when poet Charles Muller tosses Harding a couple of lines from Shelley as a taunt which might remind readers of how much better it works for George Pelecanos. Even the plot the murder of a young woman who lived, along with Alison and Muller, in a U.C. dorm called Grand Terrace ten years earlier reads like something we've heard before. Wessel is a writer of considerable style and courage, but his imagination seems to need a recharging. Agent, Molly Friedrich at Aaron M. Priest. (Jan. 10)Forecast: Supportive blurbs from Sue Grafton and George Pelecanos for this third novel suggest the publisher is making a big push, but fans may feel Wessel is too derivative here to rank with the big names in the field.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
An old police detective friend of unlicensed P.I. Harding (This Far, No Further) wants help on a case involving the murder of a young woman who turns out to have been a friend of Harding's girlfriend, Alison. The couple are prepared to pass off the murder as an incidental tragedy until, at the wedding of Alison's best friend, Beth, the groom is a no-show. When Harding goes in search of him, he runs into another murder case with the groom as prime suspect. Energetic prose brings to life unique Chicago settings, while Harding's unusual circumstances arouse reader empathy and admiration. For most collections.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
THIS COULD'VE BEEN A LOT BETTER!!!,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Kiss It Goodbye: A Novel (Hardcover)
Though I thoroughly enjoyed John Wessel's previous two novels in the "P.I. Harding" series (THIS FAR, NO FURTHER & PRETTY BALLERINA), his newest book, KISS IT GOODBYE left me somewhat confused at the end. In fact, I'm still scratching my head in puzzlement, trying to make some sense of who the bad guy actually was and the book's finale. KISS IT GOODBYE brings back ex-con/ex-PI Harding and his tough-as-nails girlfriend, Alison, as they try to help Detective Terry Crowley of the Chicago Police Department solve the murder of Tracy Lawrence, one of Alison's old college roommates. While this is going on, Harding and Alison are attempting to keep Beth Reinhardt and Charles Muller (two more friends from Alison's college days) from splitting up and continuing on with their wedding plans. Add to this the possibility that Dr. Henry Dahlgreen, who's friends with everyone, may have his eyes on Beth, and Logan Pollard, who knows the girls from their college days, may just have his eyes on Alison. Plus, there's Henry Dahlgreen's wife, Moira, who has slept with most of the men involved, not to mention Tracy and Alison. And, let's not forget Crystal Royce, who's been just as bad as Moira with the same gentlemen and happens to have a psychopathic brother who just got out of prison and has been hired by one of the above to do some killing on the side. Last, but not least, is the murdered victim, Tracy Lawrence. Not only did Tracy sleep with everyone, she also looked a lot like Alison, which means that Harding's girlfriend could very well be the next intended victim. This isn't even the tip of the iceberg. Harding, like the reader, has to make sense of this complex plot, along with all of the multiple sub-plots that seem to intertwine with each other. It's a task that even the best PIs in the world of fiction would find daunting. KISS IT GOODBYE isn't a bad novel-it's simply a little too confusing at times with one too many plot twists for its own good. I had a difficult time keeping track of all the characters and how they were involved with each other, plus I ended up with more questions than answers when the book reached its final few pages. What did make the novel fun for me were Harding and Alison. They remind me a lot of the "Kenzie/Gennaro" characters in the series by Dennis Lehane. I enjoy their toughness, the bantering between each other, and the fact they have everyday problems just like the rest of us, especially Harding with his drinking and his inability to commit. These two together are nearly impossible to put down. Though KISS IT GOODBYE isn't as good as John Wessel's first two books, I hope the author will continue on with the series. He has some great characters here that definitely deserve a better story line. With time and a few more novels under his belt, Mr. Wessel could eventually be giving Dennis Lehane a run for his money.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very well written,
This review is from: Kiss It Goodbye: A Novel (Hardcover)
On his wedding day to Beth Reinhardt, English Professor Charles Muller fails to show up for the ceremony. Two of the guests Harding and his lover Alison try to console Beth. Harding, an ex-con who plays sleuth without a license, begins searching for Charles because Alison wants him to do this for her friend Beth.Harding quickly learns that the Chicago police seek to question the missing Charles on two murder investigations that seem linked. Harding concludes that there is more to this case then just a frightened groom fleeing matrimony. He thinks the tie in goes back to the days when Charles and Alison were University of Chicago undergraduates living in the Grand Terrace dorm. Now Harding worries that his beloved Alison may also be in peril. The third Harding tale, KISS IT GOODBYE, is suggestive of the hard boiled detective stories though the lead relationship feels more romantic then the "death ecstasy" sexual edge of the previous books. The secondary cast is an eccentric ensemble who keeps the plot running wild and making life quite complex for the hero. Still with a engaging story line, a fabulous cast, and a vivid Ferris Bueller style tour of Chicago, Harding owns John Wessel's novel as he brings most of the subplots together into a cohesive taut tale. Harriet Klausner
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Nothing impressive about this one,
This review is from: Kiss It Goodbye: A Novel (Hardcover)
I should have known this novel wouldn't be to my liking. After all, I did not particularly enjoy Wessel's two previous efforts. I was told that, when it comes to this author, third time's a charm -- that this novel shows some growth and improvement. What I got was the typical detective blabber that makes novels of this kind trite and, believe it or not, predictable. I'd skip this one if I were you.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
