A Walk Among the Tombstones (G K Hall Large Print Book Series) [Large Print] [Hardcover]

Lawrence Block (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1993 | Series: G K Hall Large Print Book Series

A ruthless, ingenious pair of entrepreneurial monsters is preying on the loved ones of those who live outside the law. Though he has no love for drug dealers and poison peddlers, ex-cop-turned-p.i. Matthew Scudder now must help them put two thrill-kill extortionists out of business—before another drop of innocent blood is spilled.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Despite their dark titles (the words Slaughterhouse and Boneyard figured in the previous two), Block's splendid, award-winning Matt Scudder novels are by no means unrelievedly bleak. His latest-as well as offering the customary skillful plotting, adroit pacing and sure sense of New York character-features a wry humor all its own, along with a particularly ingratiating and convincing pair of computer hackers. The premise is grim, certainly: a pair of men who prey murderously on women progress to kidnapping the womenfolk of drug dealers and demanding huge ransoms. Former alcoholic PI Scudder-now going to more AA meetings than ever-reluctantly agrees to help one dealer, a Lebanese, after his wife is killed by the kidnappers. Slowly and methodically he discerns a pattern in the mayhem. With the help of his erstwhile police colleagues, his black Times Square sidekick TJ and his call-girl sweetheart, Elaine, Scudder tightens the net on the culprits. When they seize the daughter of a Russian dealer, he is ready for the showdown. Block isn't big on action, though when it comes it is swift, vivid and horribly convincing; his Scudder books are built on character, atmosphere, crackling dialogue and a great deal of brooding-the taste for them is addictive. An equal of Elmore Monard and Robert Parker, Block deserves similar acclaim. Author tour.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"A big bruiser of a crime novel...This is no pleasant stroll in the country, but it's some trip." -- The New York Times Book Review

"As good as the crime thriller gets." -- San Diego Union-Tribune

"Wonderful...Everyone who relishes a vicarious walk on the rough side should rejoice!" -- Arizona Daily Star --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 427 pages
• Publisher: G K Hall & Co (October 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816157596
• ISBN-13: 978-0816157594
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,085,431 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lawrence Block (b. 1938) is the recipient of a Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America and an internationally renowned bestselling author. His prolific career spans over one hundred books, including four bestselling series as well as dozens of short stories, articles, and books on writing. He has won four Edgar and Shamus Awards, two Falcon Awards from the Maltese Falcon Society of Japan, the Nero and Philip Marlowe Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the Crime Writers Association of the United Kingdom. In France, he has been awarded the title Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice received the Societe 813 trophy.

Born in Buffalo, New York, Block attended Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Leaving school before graduation, he moved to New York City, a locale that features prominently in most of his works. His earliest published writing appeared in the 1950s, frequently under pseudonyms, and many of these novels are now considered classics of the pulp fiction genre. During his early writing years, Block also worked in the mailroom of a publishing house and reviewed the submission slush pile for a literary agency. He has cited the latter experience as a valuable lesson for a beginning writer.

Block's first short story, "You Can't Lose," was published in 1957 in Manhunt, the first of dozens of short stories and articles that he would publish over the years in publications including American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and the New York Times. His short fiction has been featured and reprinted in over eleven collections including Enough Rope (2002), which is comprised of eighty-four of his short stories.

In 1966, Block introduced the insomniac protagonist Evan Tanner in the novel The Thief Who Couldn't Sleep. Block's diverse heroes also include the urbane and witty bookseller--and thief-on-the-side--Bernie Rhodenbarr; the gritty recovering alcoholic and private investigator Matthew Scudder; and Chip Harrison, the comical assistant to a private investigator with a Nero Wolfe fixation who appears in No Score, Chip Harrison Scores Again, Make Out with Murder, and The Topless Tulip Caper. Block has also written several short stories and novels featuring Keller, a professional hit man. Block's work is praised for his richly imagined and varied characters and frequent use of humor.

A father of three daughters, Block lives in New York City with his second wife, Lynne. When he isn't touring or attending mystery conventions, he and Lynne are frequent travelers, as members of the Travelers' Century Club for nearly a decade now, and have visited about 150 countries.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most chilling Scudder novel to date., December 2, 1998

By 

Harold L. Laroff - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Walk Amoung the Tombstones: A Matthew Scudder Crime Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

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 crossfire. Because he is unlicensed you can't "hire" him. Instead he does you a favor by taking your case and solving the crime. "Walk among the Tombstones," is one of the most chilling of all the Scudder novels to date. Other reviews here have said it's dark and brooding. This I agree. A drug dealer to find out who kidnapped and killed his wife hires Scudder. Even though drug dealers are low on Scudder's list even they deserve justice. Block introduces several new characters, the Kongs, a pair of teenage hackers who break into the telephone company's computers and a streetwise African-American kid who goes by the name T.J. This kid has real spunk is a very likeable character I hope Block and Scudder keep around for a while. Other characters that have been in past novels are off to Ireland. Elaine, Scudder's, call-girl friend who he has had more than a passing interest in comes center stage as a lover. Read one Scudder novel is not unlike eating potato chips. You just can't read just one. I've got others sitting on my table waiting to be read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner, June 7, 2005

By 

Lulu (Hamilton, OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Walk Amoung the Tombstones: A Matthew Scudder Crime Novel (Mass Market Paperback)

If there is a better living crime novelist than Lawrence Block, I'd like to know who it is. I have yet to read a Scudder story that did not have me riveted! Having only recently discovered this series, every time I read another one it is deemed my new "favorite."

So, until I finish "Time to Murder and Create", which is excellent so far, "A Walk Among the Tombstones" is my favorite to date - vicious killers, flawed protagonists, interesting secondary characters and lots of action - what more could you want? I am a big fan of the Lawrence Sanders Commandment and Deadly Sin series so now that he is gone, I am glad that there are so many Scudder books yet to be read and savored. By the way, I have not read these books in any kind of order and it makes absolutely no difference!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Scudder Takes a Walk, June 23, 2001

By 

Brian D. Rubendall (Oakton, VA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Walk Among the Tombstones: A Matthew Scudder Crime Novel (Paperback)

Lawrence Block's amazing Matthew Scudder series maintains a very high level of quality considering the number of novels. "A Walk Among the Tombstones," follows "A Dance at the Slaughterhouse," which was one of the best novels in the series. "Tombstones" is not quite as good, largely due to an ending that is not as satisfying, but it is hardly a dud. In "Tombstones," a drug dealer whose wife was kidnapped and hideously murdered hires Scudder to track down the perpetrators. Scudder quickly discovers that the deed was the work of a team of serial killers who have decided to turn their "fun" into profit. Like most novels in the Scudder series, this one is dark and obssessed with death. It seems that even as the alcoholic Scudder gets more of a firm handle on his sobriety and his life, his cases get uglier. Recurring characters in this novel are the street kid T.J., the police detective Joe Durkin, the eccentric informant Danny Boy Bell and call girl Elaine Mardell, who has become the love of Scudder's life. In fact, "Tombstone" features a key moment in Scudder's developing relationship with Elaine.

Overall, this is not the best novel in the Scudder series, but it is still well written and highly satisifying.