Country: USA
Genre: Crime
Pages: 390 kb
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The infamous killers fired bullets of various calibers to fell their prey. In ascending order, Malvo shot a .223, Chapman a .38, Cunanan a .40, Billy the Kid a .41, Son of Sam a .45, Guiteau a .442 and The Zodiac Killer a monster .45. My point was each sized of caliber, small to large, killed mortals just as dead. I didn't equate any of those assassins to me, but I studied their MOs, usually on what errors not to repeat since most died young or went in stir. Zodiac, the exception, must've retired to a condo village in Boca Raton to paint his watercolors of sad clowns and fortunetellers.
Imagine. Your dad's drinking buddy of thirty years, sitting with you in your living room and schooling you on the art of murder like he could have schooled you on any matter of home improvement. Why learn how to install a shelf when you can kill people? I didn't expect much of out Ed Lynskey's ASK THE DICE. I picked it up, unsure of what to think about it and was agreeably surprised. Not only Lynskey can write, but he has a unique spin on the craft. ASK THE DICE is an off-beat staccato of toxic feelings and business partnerships gone wrong. If you walk the mean street of the underworld, how tough you are decides if you'll survive. But if you're strong enough to live the life, leaving the life is another ball game.
Tommy Mack Zane is a middle aged, mild mannered guy. He has to go to his prostate exam once a year, feeling his life slipping away from him every time he does. Tommy's been a hitman for the last twenty-something year and is looking for a way to walk in the sunset and live what he has left of a life peacefully. But it's hard to let an efficient employee go. Gwen, the niece of Tommy's boss Mr. Ogg, turns up dead with .22 slugs in her skull, just like Tommy's MO. As every head around Tommy turns up to him, he starts his own investigation and the list of suspects is rather short. On top, the name of Mr. Ogg himself. That eventuality will drive Tommy revisit his long-time relationship to Mr. Ogg in a quest to know why has Gwen died and why is he being framed for it.
While I can't say the plot sparkles with originality (double-crossing a hitman might be original, but double-crossing stories and hitmen stories aren't), Ed Lynskey makes is work with an approach as conventional as a southpaw boxer with a mild case of tourettes syndrome. Tommy Mack Zane is a protagonist so endearing, because he's a stone cold killer that acts like all the Gerald Fergusons and the Wayne Turners you know. He discusses baseball, writes poetry, does everything mild mannered suburban husbands do. But he does more. His job transformed him in a chameleon. That's where Lynskey truly shines. He is a chameleon himself and a master of vernacular. Here's an example, asTommy has to face an armed attacker fluent in street talk.
Tommy Mack Zane is a middle aged, mild mannered guy. He has to go to his prostate exam once a year, feeling his life slipping away from him every time he does. Tommy's been a hitman for the last twenty-something year and is looking for a way to walk in the sunset and live what he has left of a life peacefully. But it's hard to let an efficient employee go. Gwen, the niece of Tommy's boss Mr. Ogg, turns up dead with .22 slugs in her skull, just like Tommy's MO. As every head around Tommy turns up to him, he starts his own investigation and the list of suspects is rather short. On top, the name of Mr. Ogg himself. That eventuality will drive Tommy revisit his long-time relationship to Mr. Ogg in a quest to know why has Gwen died and why is he being framed for it.
While I can't say the plot sparkles with originality (double-crossing a hitman might be original, but double-crossing stories and hitmen stories aren't), Ed Lynskey makes is work with an approach as conventional as a southpaw boxer with a mild case of tourettes syndrome. Tommy Mack Zane is a protagonist so endearing, because he's a stone cold killer that acts like all the Gerald Fergusons and the Wayne Turners you know. He discusses baseball, writes poetry, does everything mild mannered suburban husbands do. But he does more. His job transformed him in a chameleon. That's where Lynskey truly shines. He is a chameleon himself and a master of vernacular. Here's an example, asTommy has to face an armed attacker fluent in street talk.
"Why? Are you a Sam Spade?"
"Me? Shit, I couldn't locate my ass with both hands and GPS."
"You pick a funny hour to get nosy."
"Uh-huh. Do you mind dropping your aim?"
Those idiosyncratic pieces of dialog are reminiscent of James Lee Burke's iconic character, troublemaker and policeman, Dave Robicheaux. The comparison between both writers isn't far fetched, but Lynskey is more laconic and economical. Hardboiled, in other words. ASK THE DICE is a short novel, but it's best read in a few long sittings. I took a week to read fifteen percent of it and literally twenty-four hours to read the rest. Once I sat down with it, ASK THE DICE flowed and ended before I knew it was over. While I can't say it was exactly scorching, it was an odd and pleasant surprise to read such a tender comment on growing old as well as a hardboiled novel. I've been told by readers of Lynskey that his best novel was LAKE CHARLES, so expect to see it reviewed here sometime in 2012. ASK THE DICE did enough for me. If I had a .5 rating measure, this would warrant one.
THREE STARS