Customer Reviews

What It Was

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I've long been a fan of Pelecanos' work, my initiation starting with his novel RIGHT AS RAIN, and continuing along after that joyride to include his other works. I was struck from the beginning by the authenticity of his characters, the rhythm of his writing, and his powerful handling of violence. His work has a verisimilitude often absent in genre fiction. He isn't a crime novelist, he's a NOVELIST, period. I'm of the opinion that Pelecanos never makes a wrong note. I've read SHOEDOG, one of his lesser known novels, more than a handful of times. Now, to his latest work. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a new Pelecanos shortly on the heels of THE CUT, his hardcover released late last year (another gem, by the way). The surprise was then elevated upon learning that this newest novel would return to the world of Derek Strange, a character I've grown to love. But then, I love all of the characters in Pelecanos' world, from Nick Stefanos, to Terry Quinn, to...well, you get the point. This newest novel gripped me from page one and never let up steam. Written in scenes both cinematic and rhythmic (vignettes)told from the points of view of several characters, WHAT IT WAS is a study in how a crime novel should be written. Violent but emotionally satisfying, poignant in its rendering of the human condition (here you have the criminal perspective, the police perspective, the private investigator perspective, the girlfriends riding shotgun with their criminal boyfriends perspective--all handled with aplomb). To say that Pelecanos is a master is an understatement. I'd read a new book every month from him. Kudos.

Phillip Thomas Duck
author of Triage: A Thriller (Shell Series)

Not a bad story for the 99 cents I paid for it. Reads fast like an episode on television with about as much depth. Parts of the story seem to be put there just to make it juicy; like an HBO series in that it has pops of gratuitous sex or sensuality that don't really do much for the story and seem kind of unnecessary. For example lines like this "...his thick, helmeted c*#k plunging in and out of her warm, wet box, a pure physical act, which was what both of them were there for." It seems that the sex is just put there to be there. None of the characters sexual interactions have anything to do with what's going on with the story.

I'm a fan of noir and crime fiction and this story does fit into the genre but not high on my list. I thought the dialogue was a little flaky and there wasn't much depth in any of the characters; I would dare say zero development on the female characters. Maybe it would work out well on the big screen with a "Sin City" like vibe but didn't do much for me in print. I finished it feeling the story could have been much more than it was.

I wouldn't go out of my way to reccomend it to someone nor would I read it again; it was good for passing some time. If you want to read a gritty crime novel with real dialogue and characters check out "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" by Higgins or "Muscle for the Wing" by Daniel Woodrell. I guess I measure all books in this genre up against titles such as those.

Much of the attention around George Pelecanos' new book, WHAT IT WAS, has focused on the quite brilliant way that the good folks at Mulholland Books are publishing and marketing it. In case you haven't read about it, instead of the standard e-book and hardcover release followed months later by a paperback edition, WHAT IT WAS is available now as a 99-cent e-book, a trade paperback for $9.99, or a limited-edition, signed and slip-cased hardcover for $35.

I think this is quite brilliant, but the reality is that it wouldn't matter a whit if the story contained on the paper or e-pages wasn't up to snuff. Luckily for us all, WHAT IS WAS is one of Pelecanos' best, second only to RIGHT AS RAIN in my estimation.

WHAT IT WAS is set in 1972. Derek Strange has hung out his private investigator shingle. His former partner, Frank Vaughn, is still on the force. Red "Fury" Jones, a villain for the ages, is wreaking havoc in Washington DC, which Pelecanos brings to life in a manner that makes the reader quite certain she was actually there.

Many have called WHAT IT WAS noir, and I'm sure the label fits, but for me, it's much more than noir. Derek Strange has been a favorite character for years and for him to remain surprising and engaging is testament to Pelecanos' awesome storytelling prowess. Pelecanos obviously respects his setting, character and stories because he shortchanges none of them. Even the ancillary characters--like Red's girlfriend and sidekick or Strange's mistress or mom--are so vivid that I wouldn't have been surprised to have any one of them knock on my front door (ok, a little surprised, but you know what I mean).

Pelecanos has always been unapologetic in his storytelling, both in his books and on TV shows "The Wire" and "Treme." WHAT IT WAS continues this tradition, and I hope he never gives this up. WHAT IT WAS doesn't flinch at violence or human frailty; on the contrary, it celebrates both.

This will sound frivolous to some, but I have to also commend Pelecanos for telling a complete and complex tale in less than 300 pages. In a world where publishers put authors under contract to deliver stories that run to 400 pages and more even when they don't need to be, WHAT IT WAS is exactly the length it needs to be. It includes not one extraneous word, scene or plot element.

If you've never read Pelecanos, WHAT IT WAS is a fine place to start. While the books featuring Derek Strange are a series, they're not bound by elements of surprise that make reading them in order necessary.

Come this time next year, I expect to have seen WHAT IT WAS on plenty of Best of 2012 lists. I know it will be on mine. It is blisteringly good.

Pelecanos is a big favorite of mine and I just recently really enjoyed The Cut. But, this book seemed like kind of a "mail it in" effort by him. He's cutting his books a little short, it seems to me. Maybe that sounds odd - "the restaurant's food was lousy and the portions were so small", kind of thing. What's different here is that I felt he was shortcutting the character development. Particularly the mob guys in this book. They had a fairly important role, but I didn't think they were well described to the reader. When those kinds of descriptions are what makes you a standout author, it doesn't pay to scrimp on them.

The story was pretty predictable. I enjoyed it, but I know the author can do better. I hope he gets back on track with his next book. I've read all of his books and just didn't find this one to be of the same quality as others.

This is well written thriller well detailed. It switches between long ago to the time of the Watts riots and current times which is at times confusing for those who are not familiar with the the writers main characters but a welcome addition to the canon for George Pelecanos fans.
The slip case edition is nicely presented.

I'd only read one Pelecanos novel before, years ago, but I've greatly enjoyed his TV writing, so that when this new novel was offered as a $.99 ebook, I couldn't resist, and I'm glad I didn't. It's a fine novel, nice and gritty, with believable characters and terrific dialogue. The only thing that drove me crazy was that every time the characters were in a situation where music was playing, Pelecanos goes into excruciating detail about the song, artist, and lyrics. It's almost as though he wanted to show off every bit of research he'd done into the music of 1972, and it quickly becomes distracting. Same with the clothes the characters are wearing -- colors, fabrics, styles -- and I really don't care unless it helps to illuminate character (which it does in some cases, but not in most). It just feels like research used for padding. However, it's still a very readable and well-written book, with those few caveats. I was astonished at the $.99 price, though. You'd think a writer of the quality of Pelecanos wouldn't have to bargain-basement price a new novel. But it worked -- I bought it.

This novel stemmed from George Pelecanos's novel The Night Gardener where a character Red `Fury' Jones was planted as a fable, he wanted to give a whole story with him in as the bad boy.
And what a story it is, well done this is a throwback to the bygone days of Plymouth automobiles, Afro puffs, when single tracks were on 45 records needed of a spacer, no mobiles, social media, or CCTV. Good old detective work knocking down doors and shacking up perps.
He delivers a kind of tale that could be quite true by the letter.
Red and his Madame Coco are wreaking havoc in town and making themselves known.
They are robbing, killing dealers, testers and suppliers.
Bobby Odum a tester of substances is the main focus of Frank "Hound Dog" Vaughn a Washington, D.C. cop investigating his death by the gun of notorious Red. He's been smoked and his stash taken, that stash happens to be on loan from The Syndicate an out of town mobsters, a whole load of fireworks is about to go off. The syndicate hire two contract man Lou Fanella and Gino Gregorio.
Red is biting off more than he can chew.
Derek Strange our other main character a P.I, that George has been running with in previous novels, has been hired by a lady to recover her precious ring that was in possession of the murdered Bobby by the hands of Red. This interlocks Derek Strange a P.I and Vaughan a cop together in an unofficial way in hot pursuit of bringing down and catching the over eager gun totting up and coming bad guy Red.

This is the kind of story I was waiting to read from Pelecanos, he writes with good characters, crisp dialog and slick style. The pace gathers momentum and delivers a satisfying entertaining rumble tumble tale.

Watergate, Afro puffs, colt 22 Woodsmen and Plymouth Fury GT Sport V8 are all from a period of time we will look back on and this story makes you feel part of.
One Red `Fury' Jones is leaving behind a trail of fire making this one, a must read.

Settle up and listen to the track of this stories days and featured in this book `If Loving You is Wrong' by Luther Ingram via a single 45 (don't forget the spacer in the middle) and savor.@more2read.com

If the author had left out the descriptions of the clothes worn by every character in every chapter, the constant listing of the song being played in almost every scene on the radio, juke box, phonograph,etc, and the unexplained ghetto slang, this might have been a good book. It certainly would be a third shorter.

If you've read Pelecanos, you know what to expect: The razor-sharp dialogue, perfect pacing, insightful social and racial commentary and brilliant characterization. If you haven't read him yet, this might be a good place to start. The plot, which follows a Washington police officer and private detective on the trail of a criminal in the midst of a crime spree, has the usual twists and turns of Pelecanos's prior work. In the case of this particular novel, I'd like to point out that Pelecanos does a masterful job of handling one of his trademarks: The frequent instances where the various plot threads converge so that the reader experiences a major event (usually an explosion of violence) from multiple points of view. If you like complex plots that fit together nicely at various key points throughout a novel, you are in for a treat with Pelecanos.

To summarize: Yet another outstanding work from Pelecanos. Read it; then dive into his other novels. I haven't found a weak one yet.

If you've never read George Pelecanos before, this is a great place to get your feet wet. If you're already a fan and familiar with the Derek Strange character, here's your latest fix. Pelecanos is a master. He gets labelled 'crime fiction' which is complete b.s. because what the guy is writing is excellent literature that transcends any genres. This book flows...and not because it is 'simple.' It is not.

Where other authors will spend three pages of densely worded paragraphs cluing us in to a character's internal state, Pelecanos will write something like, "Strange considered the man standing before him" and from that one sentence we understand exactly what is going down.

If you're nostalgic for the 70s this book will especially resonate with you. Pelecanos' books could easily come with CDs of music mentioned/referenced in his stories. And his characters: vividly drawn, from their idiosyncrasies to their clothes. Red Fury is a great 'bad guy' and, like a lot of Pelecanos' stories, he introduces a couple of other connected (in this case, Mob) hitters. I can't say enough good stuff about this author and this book. Bravo, Mr. Pelecanos!