Light Before Day [Hardcover]

Christopher Rice (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 16, 2005

Adam Murphy, a twenty-five-year-old journalist, is chasing a career-making story of a serial killer preying on young gay men in West Hollywood when he is abruptly fired by the magazine that employs him. He soon learns his former lover has disappeared, but what hes about to uncover is far more diabolical than he could ever have imagined. Light Before Day is a riveting and complex mystery set against the gothic landscape that Rice has made his own.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A 20-something magazine reporter becomes embroiled in a Hollywood murder mystery in Rice's (The Snow Garden) third, richly developed thriller. It's a blessing in disguise when Adam Murphy is fired from racy fluff rag Glitz, since he'd been chasing a real story involving a closeted Marine helicopter pilot, Daniel Brady, whose association with a pedophilic pimp produced a sordid videotape that led to Daniel's suicide plane crash. But Adam's still reeling from the demise of a heated, three-week affair with hunky but secretive Corey, who'd outgrown Adam's blackout-inducing drunkenness. Adam soon becomes the assistant to sharp, sarcastic straight mystery novelist James Wilton, who instructs Adam to continue researching Daniel Brady. One of Rice's most spirited characters, James consistently counteracts Adam's hyperactive enthusiasm with candor and a sensible "working theory," and when Corey disappears, Adam discovers that three other gay men have inexplicably vanished over the past few years, supposed victims of the West Hollywood Slasher. Armed with a dossier from a trustworthy Hollywood reporter, Adam sets out to solve the crime that swells into blackmail, murder, a child porn ring and a subplot involving a "rogue assassin" who blows up methamphetamine labs. Though this is a step up from the author's previous efforts, Rice has yet to leave behind the sometimes awkward prose and dialogue (which veers between frivolous and woodenly expository) that dampens the narrative tension he cultivates. Agent, Lynn Nesbit. 12-city author tour. (Mar. 16)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Rice's third novel is a departure from the eerie gothic atmosphere of his first two novels, A Density of Souls (2000) and The Snow Garden (2002). Like the previous ones, this is a mystery--a pure West Coast mystery, set in West Hollywood, where 26-year-old Adam Murphy toils for the fluffy gay men's magazine, Glitz. Adam is desperately in search of a real story that will launch his career, and he thinks he has found his ticket when he learns that Daniel Brady, a marine who died in a helicopter crash, was cruising around with Scott Koffler, a sleazy man who procures teen boys for older gay men, just days before his death. Adam is immediately suspicious--Brady was piloting the helicopter when it crashed, and Adam thinks it may have been suicide. When his investigations into Scott's business cost him his job at Glitz, Adam takes a job as an assistant to thriller- and true-crime-writer James Wilton, who is intrigued by the Brady case as well. But when Adam's ex-boyfriend, Corey, goes missing, Adam begins to learn that both he and Corey are more involved in the case than he first thought. Rice's latest is a complex mystery that should please his many fans. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Miramax; 1st edition (March 16, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401300391
• ISBN-13: 978-1401300395
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #660,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Christopher Rice is the son of author Anne Rice and the late poet Stan Rice. He lives in Los Angeles. The Moonlit Earth is his fifth novel.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable, though underexplained, March 16, 2005

By 

Chantrea Johari (Santa Clarita, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light Before Day (Hardcover)

I have to confess that Christopher Rice's latest book left me a little bit disappointed. It seems that in this book, Rice was striving to write something more complex - perhaps a bit too complex for his own good. While it seemed in his first two novels that he dotted all the i's and crossed all the t's, this novel left me with significant questions throughout.

It was rather difficult to keep track of all the characters and how they were related to each other. Not only that: it seems that Rice declined to fully explain certain plotlines that were essential to the the story, or refused to follow them to a logical conclusion. Characters seemed to be appearing and disappearing at all the wrong points, and it was slightly anti-climactic that the reader neglects to even meet more than one character who seemed essential to the plot. There was too much of the main character and so much wild speculation that the end left me wondering which one of the characters' ever-changing theories was correct; too much was given in bits and pieces over numerous chapters that it was difficult to realize the big picture. Too many things seemed to only be added in as an afterthought and were not, in my opinion, addressed or explained aqequately at the end. While the story was full of intrigue and action, it seemed that the end of each subplot was too abrupt and lacked the impact that his previous books provided. The ending, overall, didn't pack as much of a punch as either of his previous books, or as the action in the rest of the novel would have suggested.

This is not to say that I didn't enjoy the novel. It was a very enjoyable read overall, though a work that was by no means flawless. In comparison to his previous novels, I would definately say that this was below my expectations in the way of plot. Rice's technical writing style, however, seems to still be maturing in ways that I find to be very pleasing. Also, I think that Rice did write a cast of rather enjoyable characters, though I wish there had been more focus on some of the considerably "main" characters. As a resident of Los Angeles County, I can also say that it was very enjoyable to be able to identify with the places that Rice described.

The book certainly had its ups and downs, though my main grievance with the novel was the way that the ending was dealt with. As a whole, though, I found the novel to be both interesting and intriguing, and it is only in comparison to his previous novels, of which I am an avid fan, that I am critical of his most recent work.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A Density of Souls & The Snow Garden Part Two: Lost in LA, September 30, 2005

By 

Maggie Tulliver (Palm Beach, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light Before Day (Hardcover)

I was extremely disappointed in this novel, especially after reading his first two. It was far too redundant. It was the exact same thing I had read twice before. Except this time they were in LA and everyone was attractive. I live in Palm Beach, I don't need more hotties in my life. I need realistic gay porn. Dammit. Heh, ok, kidding. But, it was just too cliche'. I couldn't bring myself to finish it, despite my best attempts. I was bored out of my mind. AND ... for back up ... my dear friend who turned me on to Rice in the first place couldn't stand the novel either and refused to finish it. So, I don't think I'm alone on this one. It's not bad ... but it's not worth reading either ... especially if you've read his other two novels. The whole time I was reading going "been there, done that, give me NEW!!"

Don't waste your time. Just re-read one of his others instead.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very Mediocre...Very Unfulfilling, March 21, 2007

By 

Steven James (Washington State) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light Before Day (Paperback)

This book was a little confusing and difficult to follow. I always read before I go bed each night and usually can't wait to do so. In this case, I wasn't excited to crack open my book each night. There were too many similar characters and not enough substance to hold my interest. Granted, I did read the entire book and enjoyed the denouement, but getting to that point was hard. I learned a lot about the meth problem in Central California and was surprised at the extent of havoc it wreaks. This book was definitely written for a gay audience (not that there's anything wrong with that) and that particular population might enjoy Light Before Day more than your garden-variety reader. I would NOT recommend this book to readers under the age of 16, or to anyone who is not completely open-minded. Overall, there is nothing really special about this book, skip it and find something better. I usually read about one book per week. I feel like this past week was a waste of time.