Customer Reviews

Out on the Cutting Edge: A Matthew Scudder Crime Novel

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
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Matt Scudder is dealing with the day-in, day-out struggle to stay sober in the Big Apple. He has a case he doesn't have much hope of solving and he's got an AA acquaintance who wants Matt to sponsor him. Eddie Dunphy is a small-time crook, sober for a little over half a year. He has something he really wants to tell Matt, but before he gets a chance, he's found dead in his apartment--an apparent suicide.

It's an open and shut case, but Matt is obsessed with finding out whether or not Eddie died sober. Dead is dead, but if he stayed sober he won the war. Of course, he finds out Eddie was murdered and he also gets a lead on his original case just when he was ready to give up on it.

This book introduces a recurring character in the series: Mickey Ballou, known as the Butcher Boy. Mickey has a reputation. Folks believe he killed a man and carried the guy's head around in a bowling bag for a week, showing it off so people would know not to cross him.

The characters all grow and change over the course of the book. This is a terrific novel and a nice addition to the Scudder series.

Matthew Scudder is Lawrence Block's remarkable private investigator. He's a former NYPD detective who left the force after an accident left a child dead in a crossfire. But that was years and probably took place sometime in the past before the first Matt Scudder novel. "The Devil Knows You're Dead," is Block's 11th in the series. (As of this writing there are 13.) This is a fast paced story in which Scudder finds he is asked to solve the death of a Yuppie lawyer living in an area of Hell's Kitchen. Matt and his girlfriend Elaine spent an evening and Glenn Holtzmann, the lawyer, and his wife Lisa. From the beginning Matt doesn't like Glenn. Glenn is killed and a homeless vet is arrested and accused of the murdering Glenn. Scudder is asked to prove that the vet didn't do the crime by his brother. Of course one thing leads to another as the truth unfolds. The relationship between Elaine, Matt's girlfriend becomes more serious as they plan on buying an apartment together. TJ, the streetwise African-American teen is back assisting Scudder. As I have said in other reviews of Matt Scudder novels. They are like potato chips. You can't quit after one.

Matthew Scudder is Lawrence Block's remarkable private investigator. He's a former NYPD detective who left the force after an accident left a child dead in a crossfire. Because he is unlicensed you can't "hire" him. Instead he does you a favor by taking your case and solving the crime. In exchange for the favor the client returns the favor by giving him some cash. Scudder is recovering alcoholic. Scudder is hired to find a missing girl, a would be actress, who came to the Big Apple from the mid-west. When her parents fail at contacting her they find that Scudder may be the one to help. He comes highly recommended by a NYPD police officer that has known Scudder for years. This Block/Scudder adventure takes us to the dark side of Manhattan's Hell's Kitchen. All this makes for excellent reading. I thoroughly enjoyed "On the Cutting Edge," and I am anxious to read the next Matt Scudder novel sitting by my easy chair.

Interesting depiction of the alcoholic detective, Matt Scudder, trying to solve cases while keeping his sobriety intact through Alcoholics Anonymous. Scudder is on a case involving a girl. a would-be actress, missing in Manhattan for several months. The police can't help but Scudder has a way of spending time and foot leather that can come up with answers. An AA friend suddenly dies and again Scudder looks to see what the real situation is. On this one he gets involved with a woman who tests his sobriety. Both cases fortuitously intertwine and Scudder has answers that he doesn't know what to do with. The book shows a side of Manhattan seldom mentioned in the papers, except when crime is involved. It is a truthful and realistic telling how people act basely

"Out on the Cutting Edge" follows the two best novels in the Matthew Scudder series, "8 Million Ways to Die" and "When the Sacred Ginmill Closes." It is also the first novel in which Scudder conducts a case (in this instance two cases) while not in an alcoholic stupor. We catch up with Scudder a few years after he joined AA. He has a sponser and has managed to recover control of his life. His day to day existence, meanwhile, hasn't changed much. He still lives in a residential hotel and still conducts cases off the books as "favors" for friends.

The two cases are interesting. One is for pay; a family wants to know the whereabouts of their missing daughter. One is personal; an AA companion apparently commits suicide just before he is ready to confess his sins to Scudder. Both take Scuder in some unlikely directions and the payoff is typically messy. Meanwhile, author Lawrence Block introduces one his most interesting side characters to the series, the Irish gangster Mickey Ballou. Overall, this is a solid Scudder novel that is not quite on par with the best of the series. But any Scudder novel makes for excellent reading.

Once again Lawrence Block has managed to blow me away with another fantastic Matt Scudder book. This one is about a guy who is looking for his daughter, who went off to New York to try and find fame. He hires Scudder to find his missing daughter, but the only problem is, there arent many leads. He searches and goes through all the motions and has stumbling blocks in his way, but manages to get around them. I wont tell you the rest, because I dont want to ruin the book for you, but I will just say this. THE ENDING WILL SHOCK YOU!!!!!

I have read other Matthew Scudder books and this recent book is on a par with the others. I enjoyed the detailed descriptions in the book.

Lawrence Block is one of my favorite authors. I bought 3 of his paperbacks to send to my grandson to introduce him to this great writer.

Anything by Lawrence Block is fabulous & I have been reading his books for (about) 15 years. The dialogue, Matthew's life progression re alcohol & his relationships & the storyline itself are always great. There has not been one of his books that I didn't like.

What can I say? It's Block, it's Matthew Scudder, and it's another great book. Now, there are one or two of his Matthew Scudder books that are really dark and this one certainly has some of those elements, especially as the main character continues to struggle with his alcoholism and recovery. But the actual stories keep you interested, the writing is excellent as always, and there are no silly twists at the end. Like where it turns out that the murderer of the first person is actually the illegitimate son of the cousin of the second murder victim's next door neighbor who once dated the father of the first victim and went to school with the detective who actually knew the woman who walked the dog of the witness to the third victim, which makes you wonder why you spent $10 to buy the silly book. This isn't one of those.

This is another very good mystery in the Matt Scudder series. I can't help liking Matt and the way his daily struggles with alcoholism are portrayed. I find him touching and heroic. His relationship with AA is poignant as well. He is a man who gives money to AA to make up for his relapses but then tries like hell to get back on the wagon. The characterizations are very good and the mystery keeps the reader turning pages.