I like to think of Small Town: A Novel of New York as Lawrence Block's homage to New York in this post 9/11 tale. His love of the city is obvious as he brings in several disparate characters and shows the effects on their lives. However, once the gay cleaning guy served his purpose as the discoverer of bodies, he vanished into the woodwork. The erotica was so out of place in this story that it felt uncomfortable. Overall, well-written but not Lawrence Block's best.