Customer Reviews

Stone Quarry (Bill Smith/Lydia Chin Novels)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My introduction to the work of S.J. Rozan took the form of a short story. After reading one or two of her novels, I was telling friends on the internet that this writer was a major talent, someone I believed would be a strong voice in mystery.

With the publication of STONE QUARRY, the sixth book in Rozan's Lydia Chin/Bill Smith series, St. Martins Press has proved me right - but then, I knew that about the time that CONCOURSE, won the Shamus Award back in 1995. Rozan has not only developed a continually fascinating series, with fully developed characters, well-described settings (mostly in and around New York City), but she has successfully created a series with two distinct voices. In books one, three and five, Lydia Chin takes the narrative. She is a young, optimistic Chinese-American private eye who tries to balance the needs of her family and her own need to declare her independence and intelligence. The older, far more cynical private eye Bill Smith takes the lead in the other books. STONE QUARRY is, technically a "Bill Smith" book, while Lydia still participates. While Smith seems to fit the mold of he standard white guy p.i., he is anything but typical and is as interesting as his more "exotic" partner.

In this dark mystery, Bill is in upstate New York where he's had a house for years - a place he retreats to. He's in town primarily to assist Eve Colgate, a somewhat reclusive resident who wants him to check out a theft, without reporting that theft to the police. He is as well known as anyone in the area, but still seen as an outsider; even when he helps someone, he's somewhat resented. There is corruption, there's the arrogance of wealth and small-town attitudes for Bill to deal with. He calls Lydia, who is clearly out of her element in this rural setting, but still insistent on helping her friend and some-time partner.

STONE QUARRY continues an excellent series. It tells you more about Smith and Chin, two of the most intelligently drawn private eyes in modern day. Rozan, who won the Anthony for best novel for A COLDER PLACE, writes as effectively about this dark place as she does the bright lights of Chinatown and the upper west side and Brooklyn. The conflicts between Lydia's fairly upbeat attitudes and Bill's world-weariness only serve to highlight the way the two characters care for each other and keep each other balanced, keep each other from going off the deep end in either direction. This is truly one of the best mystery series available today - never a disappointment, cleanly, sharply written with warmth and wit and compassion, but the author never forgets to tell the story.

Shamus winner S. J. Rozan tries something new: setting a book in upstate New York instead of New York City. The city was such a strong presence in the earlier books that I was afraid this one would be weaker, but it's a great read: atmospheric, dark and moving. Good plot, good characters, too. BTW, it's a Bill Smith book, so Lydia Chin fans, wait your turn.

The setting is different in this book (rural upstate New York vs NYC) but in every other way this book is very similar to Rozan's other novels, which is a good thing. As usual, this is a very well-written book; Rozan obviously puts a good deal of thought and effort into her writing; she tries hard to describe things and people in a way that is fresh and that puts vivid images of the scene into the minds of the readers. The plot is complex and satisfying, which is one of the things that Rozan always does well that most of the current mystery writers do not. This series is made up of real, quality mysteries, in the tradition of Chandler, Hammett and Ross MacDonald; these are not thrillers masquerading as mysteries. There is a good bit of action here, though, and the ending is a real barnburner. My only quibble, and it is a small one, is that Rozan needs to either have Smith and Chin get together or have them decide to be strictly friends. The quasi-relationship that they have been in for several books now is starting to wear a little thin.

Stone Quarry is one of S.J. Rozan's best books yet. The feel for the landscape, both natural and social, is particularly strong. The isolated rural county where the novel takes place really comes to life. The story grips you by the neck and propels you forward, and keeps you guessing until the unexpected but convincing end. In its twists and turns, the plot put me in mind of The Big Sleep. The narrator, Bill Smith, is a complicated, private person, and we learn a little more in this book about what makes him tick. Some interesting changes in the relationship between Bill and his partner, Lydia Chin-- Rozan handles this with a skillful, subtle touch. Another strong character is Jimmy Antonelli, a working-class kid in deep trouble who Bill has helped out before. Jimmy reminds me of some guys I've known-- a bundle of bravado and contradictions, caught between wanting to do the right thing, and internal and external pressures that push him in the wrong direction. Rozan herself goes in exactly the right direction with this novel, a story that slowly builds to a fast and furious conclusion.

S.J. Rozan gets better with every book. I can't think of many writers with a more vivid sense of place: whether it's the kitchen of a dim sum palace in Chinatown, or a roadhouse in upstate New York, the settings of Rozan's novels, like her protagonists, are engaging and original. Bill Smith and Lydia Chin are rarities in the mystery genre: heroes with evolving inner lives, moral conflicts, and intelligent and humorous voices. Stone Quarry is Rozan at her best: it is wonderfully written and impossible to put down.

Bill Smith returns in another winner by Shamus-winning S.J. Rozan,who takes three seemingly unrelated events (the murder of a local ganster, the disappearance of a millionare's daughter and the theft of a local artist's early paintings), adds the tention of Bill and Lydia's complex relationship and creates a terrific whodunit sure to please fans of Chandler and Hammett. The subtext of the story is unconditional love, for family, for lovers, for the land. This is fresh territory for Rozan and a strong addition to a consistantly entertaining and evolving series. Don't miss it.

You can tell the Audiofile person wrote a review without listening to it, since the character's name is Bill Smith, not Bill Stone.

Anyway, all of the Bill Smith/ Lydia Chin books are terrific, especially since the point of view for each book switches from Lydia to Bill. Lydia's problems with being female and Chinese in a white man's world are my favorite part of the books. Poor Bill! Carrying a torch for Lydia and trying not to mess up a fine partnership. They have such a strange relationship, but it works. Get the books or tapes, curl up in a chair and enjoy.

Bill Smith returns in another winner by Shamus-winning S.J. Rozan,who takes three seemingly unrelated events (the murder of a local gangster, the disappearance of a millionaire's daughter and the theft of a local artist's early paintings), adds the tension of Bill and Lydia's complex relationship and creates a terrific whodunit sure to please fans of Chandler and Hammett. The subtext of the story is unconditional love, for family, for lovers, for the land. This is fresh territory for Rozan and a strong addition to a consistantly entertaining and evolving series. Don't miss it.

This is a very interesting series since each book toggles back and forth between the two main characters point of view. I probably enjoy the "Lydia" prospective a bit more because of the view into her Chinatown world, but the Bill perspective has always been satisfying. The author successfully works hard at breathing new life into what has been a very over-worked genre. She obviously likes her main characters which makes it easy for the reader to become attached to them also. I look forward to more books in this series since each one has gotten better and better.

Rozan keeps getting better with every book. Stone Quarry is beautifully written with well-realized characters, and an engaging plot. I couldn't put it down. She's one of the few "mystery" writers whose books should be counted as literature. Can't wait for the next one!