Customer Reviews

One Too Many Blows to the Head

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an absolutely amazing read. Written by two authors, it reads as if one mind sat down and wrote it from start to finish in one sitting. It is that seamless of a read and it does flow that smoothly. As far as the story and characters go, it will truly captivate you. This is not a book you will want to put down until it's finished and when you are done, it will leave you breathless. This would make an amazing film--of course, shot in black and white to keep it's gritty and realistic feel. I highly recommend this book.

One Too Many Blows To The Head has been on my must read pile for a while and I finally got around to it while we were away.

Their book is sublime.

Set in the boxing world of 1939/40 it follows the lives of two characters, Ray Ward and Detective Dean Fokoli. They take alternate chapters to give their first-person accounts of what happened after the slaying of Ray's brother Rex in the ring.

Essentially Rex has been set up and Ray needs to get revenge. Fokoli is the man charged with the responsibility of cleaning up the mess to avoid a war between the mobs of Chicago and Kansas City.

Their lives that have strong parallels, though for now they seem to be working in reverse order. Ray has spent his whole life on the boxing scene and has always tried to be as good as he could; it's only with the death of his brother that he releases the demons he's kept buried. Fokoli, on the other hand, has spent his working life on the take, a cop in the pockets of the mob; it's only in recently that he has seen the light and has turned his back on corruption and back-handers.

Not that it really matters which way these guys try to go, for it seems inevitable that they're both completely on the skids whatever happens.

It's a simple idea, I suppose, but it's so brilliantly written that every page is a joy. I had the need to race through the plot and yet to savour the language and the atmosphere created at one and the same time. Somehow I think I was able to do both.

I rate it so highly because it picks many of my soft spots and exploits them with sucker punches.

The two main guys are tough men. Macho guys who can fell a sturdy opponent with a solid blow or a well-placed knee. Their lives are messed up, their loyalties strong (if sometimes misplaced), they speak in quips and lurk in shadows.

They're supported by a list of characters who play their parts perfectly. Seedy landlords, drunken bums, prostitutes, victims, bartenders, cops and robbers all bring an array of shades to the piece.

It has one of the best atmospheres and scenes that I've come across in a good while. In my head it was all black and white like the films of the time. I could smell the rings and the gyms, I kid you not, had a sense of the racial tensions and segregation, felt the blows as they came in, understood the need to start the day with a shot of the hard stuff. I was with them every step of the way and loved the journey they took me on.

Strung throughout, like pearls on a string, are the boxing tips of Ray's father (all the philosophies Ray has seem to come from boxing):

'Pop always told us that if you get into a fight outside the ring, you don't want to play it for the decision. You hit that guy until he goes down and you hit him so he'll stay down. Only thing worse than a guy who is pissed off to come at you in the first place is a guy who's doubly pissed because now you hit him.'

and sharp lines:

'There was a dead plant in a pot by the window. I figured it for a suicide.'

or:

'Memory lane is a dangerous street to walk down.'

and they use objects to tell a story with a simply turned phrase:

'I banged on the window with my wedding ring. It was still good for something.'

The book's a collaboration between two people who haven't actually met. How they produced something so seamless is impossible to tell. I looked for the joins and couldn't spot a single one. What I know they managed was to cut out any waste and perfected their use of words as they worked. If collaboration is this good, then I'm going to try getting in touch with some of my hidden personalities to see what we can come up with.

It's a book that might well have turned out as a painting-by numbers exercise; instead these guys have produced a masterpiece.

An absolute gem.

One can feel the impact of fists and slash of the razored knife in this powerfully dark story of murder, corruption, and revenge. Vivid, fast-paced, grim, with plot surprises and dark twists. One Too Many Blows to the Head is classic noir. A totally fun read.

Though I shouldn't be, I'm surprised I liked this book as much as I did. I shouldn't be surprised because it has so many elements I love: darkness, kind of a period piece (Kansas City in 1939), and some great hardboiled action. I think what pushes it over the edge from 4 stars to 5, for me anyway, is that it is centered around the underworld surrounding boxing, a subject I love.

The characters are memorable and perfectly flawed. The noir is deep and dark. The action builds to a memorable climax, and there are a couple scenes of violence that, if they were a movie, would probably have me averting my eyes. Great stuff.

I'm glad I picked this book up.

It is pure pleasure . The expression `a page turner' is pretty much overused but One Too Many Blows To The Head is just that. It flows beautifully and is full of great lines that I really wish I'd written. One Too Many Blows To The Head is knockout, of course

Definitely get it and read it. Like finding an old crime book that you never knew existed and reading it for the first time. Great characters, details, atmosphere, twists and action. Great stuff.

first rate! hopefully there will be more to come from these very promising authors. it is a very tough book to put down. luckily, i read it over a weekend. otherwise, i may have had to call in sick to finish it....

The authors alternated chapters, each voicing one of the two protagonists. The difference in authorial style adds to the unique perspective of the main characters. The story is engaging with a very nice twist at the end. Having just finished Shutter Island with its, in my opinion, very poor ending, OTMBTTH has a much more satisfying and believable yet unexpected closure. I hope the pairing of Kohl and Beetner continues and I look forward to future development of the two main characters.

Dave.

If you are a fan of noir, boxing or just plain old good novels, you ought to check this out. The way the story flows seamlessly between the two main characters, it is hard to believe One Too Many Blows to the Head was written by to authors. At the same time, the unique perspective the authors bring their respective characters adds authenticity and draws you into the shady underworld of 1939 Kansas City. Once I picked up the book, I could hardly put it down.

One of the most appealing aspects (if not the most appealing) of noir fiction is it allows readers to plumb the depths of life, to observe characters pushed to their limits and beyond, into a very gray moral area. What Beetner and Kohl have done here is approach that gray area from both sides. One man is on a quest to avenge the death of his brother. Another is ostensibly out to stop him before he brings chaos down on the city, but what he's really doing is searching his own soul and scrounging for a reason--any reason--to not allow such chaos to descend. Both have high aspirations, but neither has convinced himself that he's worthy of them. A gripping character study sent in the nearly lawless, Wild West-esque days of Depression-era Kansas City, One Too Many Blows to the Head will deliver much the same to your own noggin.