Customer Reviews

A Token of Remorse: A Streeter Mystery

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

 

 

First of all, this isn't a mystery. There is no complicated puzzle for the detective to solve. That's okay, though, because what this book is is a scorcher of a crime novel. The hero is likable and tough but he does make mistakes, as we all do. The villains are also tough and mean but they are also not too smart, which is probably the way most real life criminals are. The plot is fast-paced, unpredictable and realistic. Overall, just a really enjoyable read.

This guy Stone can write--characters well drawn, humor, tough broads, very devious and brutal low-lifes, a fast-moving plot that keeps you guessing and interested, and "Streeter"-tough, cautious and smart but not indestructible or infallible. Also, he got some issues about long-term relationships with the fair sex, even though he needs one. This was a great read-didn't put it down for long--wife enjoyed it too. Highly recommended as an example of the tough private eye genre. I'm about to order the other 3 Michael Stone "Streeter" books.

This is the third Streeter novel -- and happened to be the first I picked up. Unless something strange happens -- a rift in space and time perhaps -- I won't be reading any more of these. Portrayed by the marketing material as tough-guy, noir fiction akin to Chandler's Marlowe or Child's Reacher, Streeter is not even in the same league as those characters.

We wait until page 146 to get any kind of action involving the protagonist. The pacing is deadly slow and the storyline (not lines... just line) hits lull after lull. You'll know who the bad guy is within, oh, 50 pages or so.

The sad thing is that Stone has writing ability. He isn't a bad technician. And once in a while Streeter even cracks wise, like the great characters often do. Problem is, the humor and sarcastic comments are few and far between. Combine that fact with a story-line that isn't even remotely engaging... well, you pretty much get the last Streeter I will ever read.

A surprisingly good book! I have never read anything from this author (i am a scf-fi/Fantasy man) but this was a really enjoyable read... i think i will pick up some more of his works...this is what Pulp books should be...

Buy this Book!

Relic113

As previously stated--ordered (from Amazon.com) the rest of the Streeter mysteries: "Long Reach", "Low End of Nowhere" and "Totally Dead". Have gone thru all of them and want more! I only hope that Michael Stone is bound to a long-term publishing contract which requires that he write a new Streeter mystery every two months! Mr. Stone, I'm waiting.

i haven't been a big fan of what i'll blindly term "hard-boiled pulp," but this book has converted me. i picked this one up just as a "bathroom book;" but then i couldn't wait to go to the bathroom just so i could find out what was going to happen next! it started out as what i would assume the typical noir thriller would begin, but then it started plummetting, careening, slowing down, and then bam! you're shooting up another hill ready to dive to your death again. i'm psyched to try out the other streeter mysteries.

also, i'll have to argue with the last reviewer who commented that the covers are "cheesy." classic owen smith (mile-away recognizability), and one of the few covers i've actually ever seen which depicts, truly, a scene from the story.

for dark humor that's genuinely funny, read michael stone. quite a bit better than many writers who have to cough up the jokes year after year for a paycheck, this guy has a dark and hysterical outlook on life that really comes through. don't be fooled by the corny covers. stone can really write.

He only answers to the name Streeter. Though he has been married and divorced four times and seems to have a magical way with the ladies, he is a very lonely individual. He works as both a private investigator and bounty hunter, who has an uncanny ability to extradite himself out of trouble except when it comes to his financial shortfalls. Always strapped for cash, Streeter accepts all cases and clients, even when it Marty Moats, the self-proclaimed waterbed king of Colorado's Front range.

The slimy salesperson has one weakness, his wife, who has forced Marty to hire Streeter. Her nephew Richie, who she adores and he loathes, is missing. It turns out that Richie has stolen a lot of money and secret files owned by Streeter's long term nemesis, Grover Royal, a powerful criminal. Grover wants his property returned and intends to punish Richie even if it means stepping over Streeter's corpse to accomplish his quest.

Although this book is a hard boiled thriller, women will enjoy TOKEN OF REMORSE as much as male fans of the sub-genre. There is something attractive and vulnerable about Streeter that makes him an endearing antihero (than again I am female and everyone knows Streeter's reputation with the ladies). The action is fats-paced and the intriguing story line is never predictable. Although some astute readers will determine who the villain really is in spite several possibilities, this knowledge does not take away from the adrenaline rush that a Streeter mystery produces.

Harriet Klausner