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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Maceo is not that interesting. Holly should be the focus!, August 27, 2004
This review is from: The Last King: A Maceo Redfield Novel (Strivers Row) (Paperback)
I read "The Dying Ground" several years ago and while I thought that book was fair, "The Last King" isn't much better. In fact, it's less of a novel than the first one and by no means is it a hip-hop mystery. Everything happens around Maceo; he's not a catalyst for anything; he's not involved in what's going on. In reality, he's a peripheral character and we're waiting for Holly to appear and move the story forward. For the life of me I can't understand why Holly isn't front and center. If the goal is to show crime, broken dreams, survival, noirish elements, etc. in Oakland, Maceo is, indeed, the wrong character to use as the mouthpiece. Holly, at least what we get of him, is the central character to express those images. Maceo is an observer to the action and not really part of the fabric of what's going on.
There is a way to blend social commentary and action within a story, but it's not in evidence here. Maceo often sounds like a sociologist/observer rather than someone who's lived in Oakland; nothing he says sounds as though he really lived there. His musings about his childhood don't ring true; I don't/didn't get a sense he and Holly were ever really close; and ditto for the Cotton character. And all that background noise on the inter-relationships: It seems Daddy Al is related to EVERYONE in Oakland or had some significant input into how they turned out. It all seems "made up" to fit the tone of the story. One of my pet peeves about the current novel: the element of time. Maceo is introduced as being gone for two years. If you do the math and follow the timeline, he did a LOT of stuff in those two years and it all seems improbable given his character. He's just not the type to have a bar fight in Texas.
As a mystery, it doesn't work. Once the love interest/femme fatale character was introduced, it wasn't too hard to figure out the rest. I thought there might be a "surprise" ending, but there wasn't. I can only assume the Ms. Tramble will eventually turn her attention to Holly or Felicia because it's unlikely Maceo would be an interesting subject in a third novel. He's pretty boring and I think she's hit a brick wall with this character.
Not to diss Ms. Tramble (and the editorial above trumps my review), but I laughed out loud when I read the following: "The kids left behind by the absence of resources flowed into the streets and turned Oakland into a devil's playground. Who knew from The Cosby Show that we were in distress?" There are other internal monologues Maceo bemoans and I found myself wondering if she was reaching for "great literature." I know she can probably do it, but this definitely is not the novel.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Strong Storytelling....(3.5 Stars), February 1, 2005
This review is from: The Last King: A Maceo Redfield Novel (Strivers Row) (Paperback)
The Last King is Nichelle Tramble's follow-up to her debut novel, The Dying Ground, which unfortunately I have not read. However, the author provided enough background to establish the history and torment of the novel's hero, Maceo Redfield, with little redundancy. The Last King opens with Maceo returning from a two-year self-exile to help childhood friends and foster brothers Cotton, the professional basketball player and Holly, a local Oakland gangster. Both men are wanted for questioning in the murder of a high-priced call girl in a posh hotel room rented by Cotton. With Cotton being a star NBA player, a media scandal is brewing. Maceo's instinct is to protect his family at all costs and mend the broken relationships and open wounds suffered in the aftermath of The Dying Ground events.
We follow Maceo into Oakland's seedy underworld: the docks, dirty hole-in-the-wall diners, and crack houses. Tramble writes with familiarity of the city - vivid descriptions and imagery, local political challenges and social ills of the late 1980's and early 1990's resonate throughout the novel. The major drawback of the book is Maceo being in reactive mode during most of the novel. He is no super-sleuth and seems a bit too trusting of strangers (perhaps that's supposed to be part of his charm). He does not appear to have a clear strategy on how to resolve the murder except to find Holly - which largely involves collecting clues by visiting old haunts and sleazy contacts. He seems to accidentally discover who the real murderer is - which wasn't too difficult for the reader to figure out early on - I kept reading to figure how it was done. Nonetheless what was lacking in the mystery/suspense aspect, Tramble makes up for in creating colorful characters, insightful societal commentaries/observations , and a couple of unforeseen revelations in the end.
Reviewed by Phyllis
APOOO BookClub, The Nubian Circle Book Club
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
5 Stars For The Last King!!!!, July 2, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: The Last King: A Maceo Redfield Novel (Strivers Row) (Paperback)
I, along with my previous reviewers, agree that Ms. Tramble has done a wonderful job with The Last King as a sequel to The Dying Ground. I came upon The Dying Groud by accident and discovered a treasure. In The Last King we are reunited with Maceo Redfield who has grown as a man. His exterior is tougher but you still feel his vulnerabilities that lie beneath the surface. I really enjoyed revisiting old characters as well as being introduced to new ones. I feel like I know these people and will readily admit that I missed Daddy Al, Gra'mere, and the aunts being more involved in this sequel but I understand their absence. This novel to me was more about Maceo coming to grips with past actions that deeply affected his friends and family. I'm sure his family will play a more prominent role in future novels. Ms. Tramble has not lost her "pitching arm" in continuing to describe the city of Oakland at the time period that this novel is placed. In reading the descriptions of the city and it's surroundings you feel like you're riding along in the truck with Maceo and Kiros. If you haven't already had the pleasure of experiencing this author's writing and enjoy books that make you feel for the characters, please start with The Dying Ground. After you have taken that book trip continue on your journey with The Last King. You will not be disappointed. Hats off to you Ms. Tramble. The Last King was worth the wait and I look forward to the next novel in this series. May you have continued success.
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