A Walk Among the Tombstones

Matthew Scudder #10

by Lawrence Block

Big-time dope dealer Kenan Khoury is a wealthy man, and it comes as no surprise when his wife Francine is kidnapped and a ransom demanded. Kenan pays up and his wife is duly returned to him - in small pieces left in the boot of an abandoned car, leaving private eye Matt Scudder to speculate on the motives of a very unusual kidnapper. Soon he is on the trail of a pair of ruthlessly sadistic psychopaths whose insanely cruel games have only just begun...

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Thriller, Noir, Detective, Mystery Thriller

339 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Lawrence Block has been writing crime, mystery, and suspense fiction for more than half a century. He has published in excess (oh, wretched excess!) of 100 books, and no end of short stories.

Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.

His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.

LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.

Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.

LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.

Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.

LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)

LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.

He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.

Reviews

[Kemper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Right after finishing this book, I was at the grocery store with the wife. I was daydreaming while she got some meat from the butcher’s counter. She dropped a couple of wrapped packages of steaks and hamburger in the cart. I ran screaming out of the store. So thanks for that, Lawrence Block.

Kenan Khoury is a heroin distributor whose wife Francine was kidnapped. Kenan followed instructions and paid a large ransom without contacting the cops, but Francine still got choppity-chopped and sent home like pork cutlets. Since he can’t go to the cops without a lot of awkward questions, Kenan hires Matt Scudder to try and find the men who killed his wife. Matt follows a trail that will lead him to some of the most sadistic sons-of-bitches he’s come across yet. And as he’s working on that, Matt will also have to decide what kind of relationship he wants with Elaine, the call-girl he’s been dating.

Holy shit snacks! The early books in this series always had intriguing mysteries, but I’d forgotten about the string of truly despicable villains that Block created and threw at Matt along the way. The books contained some horrifying crimes without becoming schlock serial killer thrillers, and Block always managed to use Matt as our decent anchor in a world that has seemingly gone mad.

This one also continues the trend of developing Matt’s supporting cast. TJ, the young street hustler, and Matt are starting to form a bond, and TJ is proving to be a valuable asset for Matt’s investigations. We also meet the Kongs, a couple of computer hackers circa 1992 who help Matt with some phone research and hook him up with the greatest long distance deal ever.

I like the way that Block has introduced variety of people into Matt’s life that are criminals on paper, yet they turn out to be much more than just their occupations. Matt has a lot of odd relationships for an ex-cop who takes the notion of good and evil very seriously. Mick Ballou may be a gangster and a killer, but he’s Matt’s best friend. Elaine is a hooker, but she’s a very smart and classy woman that he cares deeply for. Kenan is a drug dealer, but he’s also a very stand-up guy in his own way and Matt once again finds himself forming an unlikely friendship with someone that he’d normally expect to disapprove of.

Another gem in the Scudder series and a very powerful and disturbing crime novel.

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

As detective Scudder gets older, the books he stars in get longer, each entry filled with more Scudder reflections, more peripheral characters, more comic relief, and—page for page—less mystery. Yet this is the strange part : Scudder is still stoic, New York City and its denizens are still vivid and grim, and the later crimes—though they take fewer pages to develop—are even more compelling than before. This is something only a master of genre like Block can do can do: he fulfills the requirements of genre so efficiently that he has plenty of time left over for other things.

This time Matt is hired by heroin dealer Kenan Khoury whose wife has been kidnapped and then killed, after the ransom has been payed. Khoury feels he cannot go to the police, and he want Scudder to track down the murderers and deliver them into his hands. Tracking them down involves a knowledge of Ma Bell's intricate computer information system, and one of the amusing parts of the book is watching Luddite Scudder's uneasy alliance with the two computer hackers known as the Kong Brothers. Street hustler T.J. makes another appearance, and Scudder further deepens his relationship with Elaine.

The climax is exciting, and the ending, though grim, is not arbitrarily grim. Another admirable entry in an excellent series.

[Miriam Smith (A Mother’s Musings) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd already watched the movie "A Walk Among the Tombstones" not knowing it was based on the book of the same title by well known American author Lawrence Block. I was therefore very keen to buy the book and read for comparison. Already having Liam Neeson in my head as the main character, ex detective and private investigator Matthew Scudder, I was pleasantly surprised how much Liam's acting actually fitted with the written character, the mannerisms and dialogue being identical and in my opinion a brilliant and excellent choice of casting!
The book itself kept my attention, it had a really interesting plot line and contained some good characters. I liked Matt who was dry, straight talking and very knowledgable (apart from technology!) but for me young, black teenager TJ was the star of the show, street smart, funny and very endearing.
I was expecting quite a lot of violence, not sure why but there was very little apart from some bloody descriptions of victims injuries and because the storyline was based on kidnapped women it was obviously quite brutal but nothing was offensive and found it all in all a very entertaining story.
I've knocked a star off purely because I struggled at times with the local Brooklyn dialogue but that was just me. Having said that, it did add a definite authenticity to the story and made it very atmospheric along with the many local street and subway descriptions.
I'd happily read more by Lawrence Block, this book is apparently number ten in the Matthew Scudder series so there's many more to read and I'd certainly recommend "A Walk Among the Tombstones" both the book and the film.

4 stars

[brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

finished all 16 matt scudder books (+1 short story collection). that's like 5,000 pages. and now i'm kinda depressed. well, a few thoughts before i drown myself in ice cream sandwich and crap TV: ignore all the 3 and 4 star ratings with the knowledge that the series is a solid fiver. like simenon's novels, (the first 16 of) stark's parker books, PKD's mindfuckedpulperies, etc, it's a mosaic which equals more than the sum of its parts. forget elaborate mysteries and plot-stuck crime books -- that's all macguffin, anyway. the scudder books have much more in their crosshairs: character and tone and a nice kick in the old existenticles. hard-drinking PIs are fun; dry drunk PIs are infinitely more conflicted, thus more interesting. all cities are best in the middle of the night - after the partyers crash and the yuppies arise - and this is scudder's world: a mournful, soulful, lonely place inhabited by the sad and the desperate, by albino black men, irish gangsters, art-collecting pimps, & sober alcoholics. freak-of-the-week series in which nothing changes from book to book other than the central mystery are fine; watching block's characters grow older and more psychologically complex from book to book is sublime. scudder's 'in the wee small hours' conversations with mick ballou are my favorite parts of the series. while hal ashby's mangled movie version of 8 Million Ways to Die is fun when viewed as a historical artifact of garish & cool 80s neon-noir (and as hollywood cautionary tale), it has very little to do with the book. liam neeson is playing scudder in an upcoming adaptation of a walk among the tombstones. ah... he just doesn't seem right for the part. we'll see.

well, scudder withdrawal sucks. kemper thinks i might seek methadone treatment in the form of some keller novels, but it's not block i miss, it's scudder. so, i'll take a cue from the man himself and hunker down with a pot of coffee, a former hooker with a heart of gold, a black streetkid sidekick, and take it -- wait for it… wait for it… -- one day at a time.

my breakdown:

The Sins of the Fathers - ***
In the Midst of Death - **
Time to Murder and Create - ***
A Stab in the Dark - *** 1/2
Eight Million Ways to Die - *** 3/4
When the Sacred Ginmill Closes - ****
Out on the Cutting Edge - *** 1/2
A Ticket to the Boneyard - *** 3/4
A Dance at the Slaughterhouse - ****
A Walk Among the Tombstones - ****
The Devil Knows You're Dead - ****
A Long Line of Dead Men - ****
Even the Wicked - *** 1/2
Everybody Dies - ***
Hope to Die - **
All the Flowers Are Dying - **
A Drop of the Hard Stuff - *** 1/2
The Night and the Music - ****

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Walk Among the Tombstones is Lawrence Block's tenth Matthew Scudder book, first published in 1992. It’s twice as long as a few in the series I loved—it drags in the middle, it follows a pattern he sets in the last two books of crimes against women I think are too grisly/sensational for me, but much of it is really well written, and the scenes leading up to and "among the tombstones" is really, really well done. Block's ne0-noir tales don’t focus on action; they are about character, mainly established through dialogue, exploring themes of moral ambiguity. You can't live a life of crime or a life of catching criminals without being tainted:

*Matthew Scudder accidentally killed a little girl when he was a detective; he quit the force, where he was sometimes on the take, with small bribes and the like; he wasn't the worst guy, but he wasn't a saint; he quit his marriage and never sees his sons, but tithes at churches, gives money to the homeless, and takes cases almost exclusively about the murder of young women as part of the expiation for his sins. He’s a dry, rather anguished alcoholic who lives on the edge of drinking and death every day. We come to like him very much.
*Scudder’s girlfriend Elaine is a call girl taking art history classes. She’s smart, articulate, and we also like her very much.
*Scudder has a friend Mick Ballou, a gangster and sometime murderer with whom he has long philosophical conversations; Mick takes him to Mass sometimes. He’s smart, thoughtful and a good storyteller, for a gangster (but hey, this is Block's point; don't stereotype, even gangsters)! We really like Mick and Matt talking together.
*Scudder hires a 15-year-old street kid, TJ, who is my hands-down favorite character in this book:

“Then I thought, if this here’s a movie, what I do is slip in the back an’ hunker down ‘tween the front an’ back seats. They be putting’ the money in the trunk an’ sittin’ up front, so they ain’t even gone look in the back. Figured they go back to their house, or wherever they gone go, an’ when we got there, I just slip out an’ call you up an’ tell you where I’m at. But then I thought, TJ, this ain’t no movie, an’ you too young to die.” – TJ

After hearing TJ talk on the phone in a different voice, Scudder remarks:
"I'm stunned," he said. "I didn't know you could talk like that."
"What, you mean talk straight? 'Course I can. Just because I street don't mean I be ignorant. They two different languages, man, and you talkin' to a cat's bilingual."

*A guy who is an alcoholic and a heroin addict tells Scudder at AA about his brother, Kenan, whose wife has been abducted. Because he is a drug dealer he can’t go to the cops, but Scudder takes the case, even though the dealer plans to kill the guy, not bring him to the law.

With each book the killers seem worse and worse; I think Block is trying to say that the world is getting progressively worse, with more evil people, and he is also revealing how Scudder is working with morally sketchier clients, though he actually sees them fundamentally as human beings, not monsters. What I find interesting in this book is the way the characters make sense of their lives by telling stories; in AA, in the bar, driving around, they need to tell stories. The criminals and the cops, they all need to tell what they have experienced.

I like the opening 100 pages, and as I said I very much like the confrontation in the cemetery between the kidnapper and Scudder, so well-written, the work of a master. I don’t like the level of grisly violence that happens near the end, it’s seems completely unnecessary and sickening, but I love the final sweet scene with Scudder and Elaine. Scudder, who just the day before faced--with some admitted fear--the very real possibility of dying, with several guns pointed at him, is even more afraid of facing Elaine and speaking his feelings of love for her, which is cute and oh, okay, maybe even a touch moving. Again, he comes to her and needs to tell her his story of horror (the crime), and then he needs to tell her his story of love (and how he is beginning to feel about what she does for a living). This is all part of Scudder's process of redemption, and it is good.

I don’t know, this is in places a five star noir novel, and two stars when we get down to the grisly details. Block thought it was one of his very best novels. and he's right, there's some fine writing in it. I'll say 3 stars, though, because of the over-the-top rough stuff (which I know, may be a matter of taste; I'll admit I'm pretty squeamish).

Because of the subject matter I probably will not see the 2014 movie version with Liam Neeson, but I am tempted because Block wrote: “[The movie version of] 8 Million Ways to Die didn't really work—artistically or commercially—although both Jeff Bridges and Andy Garcia did some very fine work in the film. A Walk Among the Tombstones is a much better film in every way, and very much reflects the book I wrote."

[James Thane · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the last thirty years or so, I've been reading Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder series which, for me at least, is hands down the best P.I. series that anyone's ever done. I mean no disrespect to authors like Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett, both of whom I admire greatly. But their body of work is relatively small by comparison. Block, on the other hand, created a fantastic character right out of the box, put him in a great, gritty setting, surrounded him with an excellent supporting cast, and then only continued to get better and better, book after book.

I normally read one about every four months or so, working my way back through the series in order. But I'd only just worked my way back to the beginning of the series when, suddenly, the release of the movie based on A Walk Among the Tombstones was imminent. I've been reading at a much quicker pace over the last couple of months so that I'd be caught up by Friday when the movie opens at a theater near me, as they say.

I confess that I have serious reservations about the whole idea of making a movie from this series. I've studiously avoided seeing the film adaptation of Eight Million Ways to Die, in which Jeff Bridges played Scudder and in which the plot was transferred to L.A., which as any fan of the series could tell you is beyond sacrilegious to the power of about ten. After spending so much time with these books, I have my own very fixed ideas about all the characters, Scudder in particular, and about the setting. And I don't want any movie, no matter how brilliant the people involved, screwing them up.

That said, I'm probably going to see the movie adaptation of this one, assuming that the early reviews are good. I like Liam Neeson, and he's probably about as close to my idea of Scudder physically as any actor could be. Plus, the movie is set in New York and, from what I've read is faithful to the setting. Finally, of course, Mr. Block himself seems genuinely enthused about the film and I trust that he wouldn't lead me down a wrong path. But still...

As this book opens, a drug dealer's wife is kidnapped, brutally raped and tortured, then killed and returned to the drug dealer in pieces. The drug dealer is actually a fairly nice guy as drug dealers go, which is to say that he's way up high in the food chain and is not personally peddling crack to small school children. The dealer's brother knows Matt Scudder from AA, and Matt agrees to investigate the case and try to determine who the guilty parties might be.

Scudder doggedly pursues the case, as he usually does, doing research and interviewing people who might be able to shed light on the situation. He discovers that the drug dealer's wife was not the first victim of these killers and doubtless won't be the last. But will he be able to close the net around them before they claim another victim? And what will happen if he does?

The tension mounts throughout the story, leading to a great climax. But, as always, the character development is key to these stories. The street kid, TJ, who first appeared in the last book, A Ticket to the Boneyard plays a larger role here, as does Matt's main squeeze, Elaine Mardell. Fans of the series know that Elaine is a high-end prostitute that Matt first met back in the days when he was still on the job as a cop. But the relationship has reached something of a critical juncture, and the tension involved in that subplot is almost as great as that in the main plot.

As ever, it's a great ride; I can only hope that the movie comes even close to doing it justice. Wish me luck...

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gang of psychopaths kidnap, rape, torture, and murder a drug dealer's wife after getting a ransom from him. The drug dealer hires Matthew Scudder to find the men for him. But was this the only time the psychopaths have struck? And will they strike again...?

As the series goes by, Matthew Scudder goes up against sicker and sicker foes and gets put into worse and worse situations. Like usual, it makes the book a page turner because you can't wait to see him settle the bad guys's hash. The high points of this books were the development of the relationship between Scudder and TJ and the conflict in Elaine and Scudder's relationship. The introduction of The Kongs was a nice touch. I'll be anxious to see if they get used again in a later book. I was eager for Mick Ballou to return from Ireland, though I didn't miss him as much as Matt did.

The Matthew Scudder series continues to impress. I heartily recommend it to noir fans.

[carol. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Block opens the book with an "English lullaby" that is pretty much guaranteed to cause sleeplessness in any child listening. It might scare them quiet, however: "baby, baby if he hears you/As he gallops past the house/Limb from limb at once he'll tear you/Just as a pussy tears a mouse." A gruesome and fitting way to start off one of Scudder's more horrific cases.

A Walk is little more to the 3.5 area on the scudder scale of awesomeness. Scudder is back in usual form, but with some of the character subtlety missing--it feel a little like--deep breath --Block might be phoning it in. It has a similar feel to the Spenser mysteries, ten or fifteen books in. Plug in the general ingredients: love interest + colorful informants + dubious client. Season with interaction with NYC's boys in blue, library newspapers, cursory sprinkles with Matt's friends, Mikey, Danny Boy and sponsor Jim, add a few AA meetings, and voila! Baked mystery. Frost with vengeance story and you are ready to serve.

I know, I know. I'm going to be punished for saying this. I think Block's strength in prior books was the sweet blend of characterization with gritty mystery. Opening with an imagined flashback to the victim's last day seems a cheap emotional trick. This time around, it's a little less focus on Scudder. TJ, the street kid from Times Square area, plays more of a role, and honestly, for me he was one of the bright spots of the books. It makes me a little uncomfortable, however, because it just misses being the funny/resourceful black man hip sidekick. Block keeps it from going quite that far, partly through Scudder's own ability to mock himself. Scenes with TJ and Elaine are where my favorite bits of dialogue show up. The hacker kids were amusing, but appear dated, circa 2012. Reading dialogue that mentions "Jolt" soda brought back a strange kind of nostalgia.

"I'm stunned," I said. "I didn't know you could talk like that."
"What, you mean talk straight? 'Course I can. Just because I street don't mean I be ignorant. They two different languages, man, and you talkin' to a cat's bilingual."

Where Block seems to have concentrated his subtle awesomeness is in the characterization of his client(s), a drug moving middleman and his alcoholic-in-recovery brother. While one scene with him seemed particularly awkward to me--the scene where they discuss the morality of selling drugs versus arms--I suppose it does fit within the context of the dealer questioning life choices of the awful event that happened. Still, it's a little pat and though the dealer is reasonably educated, he doesn't go the route of "all business is based on exploitation," a rejoinder that seems rather obvious to anyone in New York.

I was charmed by a group of drug dealers acting like a band of merry men, but I wonder... really? I was aware I was believing this section of the plot because I wanted to, not because Block was writing a story that seemed remotely plausible. The final disposition scene was a hard one to stomach. Necessary? I'm not sure. I also felt like some of Scudder's personal story was tacked on at the end, rather than growing organically through the book.

Still, it was gripping, a fun fast read, and several bits made me smile. It was a diverting. Three and a half stars.


Cross posted at http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/0...

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 10 in the Matt Scudder series first published 1992.

This is hard hitting story about hard people living hard lives and is not recommended for readers with weak stomachs.

There are no clichéd nice people here. Matt Scudder, an unlicensed private investigator and principal character, is a sober alcoholic, his love interest is a working prostitute, the principal victim is a drug trafficker and the two villains are outrageous psychopaths. There are no shrinking violets here. By any standards this is a dark tale.

Kenan Khoury’s, the drug trafficker, wife has been kidnapped and is told if he wants to see her again he will have to pay the kidnappers 1 million dollars. Khoury negotiates the price down to $400,000. The agreement is made, $400,000. for the return of is wife. The villains get their money and Khoury gets his wife back but not in one piece. He finds her in the boot of a car bundled up in little bits.

Being a drug trafficker the last thing Khoury wants is for the police to become involved. Khoury’s bother Peter is a recovering alcoholic and knows Matt Scudder from AA meetings. Enter Matt Scudder.

What follows is an intriguing, if dark, story of how Matt goes about discovering just who the two psychopaths are and how to find them.

This is without a doubt powerful writing but I have to say that, for me, there was a lot of unnecessary dialogue that interrupted the flow and tension of the story.
Having said that this is a book I will find hard to forget.

Admittedly this book will not appeal to everyone; this is not a cozy mystery. But for readers like me who like their thrillers to take them to the edge this book definitely fits the bill.

4 stars.

[Metodi Markov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Поредицата на Лорънс Блок за Мат Скъдър е много любима за мен криминална серия. За съжаление, тя така и не бе издадена изцяло на български. Няколко издателства публикуваха три или четири части от нея през годините и до там.

"Билет за отвъдното" е малко старомодна "noir" кримка, с напрегнато развитие на сюжета и интересен край.

Съпругата на Кенан Кури, наркотрафикант от средно ниво е отвлечена и похитителите искат милион за живота ѝ. Както при почти всяко отвличане, нещата се объркват и тогава Мат Скъдър е въвлечен в този проблем. Ще успее ли обаче да разплете случилото се?

P.S. Всеки роман от серията може да се чете отделно, макар и да има свързващи нишки през всичките книги от поредицата.

Има и филм направен по тази част, гледах го преди няколко години - доста зле е направен. Дори и Лиъм Нийсън не успява да го спаси...

[Ayz · Rating 5 out of 5]

dark and haunting, yet filled with humanity and empathy. i love scudder’s morally see-sawing universe.

really a masterful detective novel by block and very likely his best.

worth all the accolades and then some.

[Dana-Adriana B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐
Un roman politist care m-a surprins placut. Un fost politist cu foarte mult bun simt este platit sa descurce itele unui caz urat de tot. Actiunea este plasata in anii 80, cu telefoane fixe, telefoane publice (greu se descurcau, dar nu ai ce-i face).
Multumesc Crime Scene Press pentru acest cadou.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young lady is snatched by a pair of lowlifes and held for ransom. Her husband, drug dealer Kenan Khoury, is forced to cough up four hundred thousand for her safe return. Upon payment, her husband is told to collect her from the trunk of a car not far from his home. Hoping to reunite with his missing wife, Kenan finds her in less than desirable shape.

Distraught over his wife’s murder and unable to reach out to the police, Kenan turns to his brother Peter who suggests bringing in Matt Scudder, a man Peter met while at an AA meeting.

Ten books in and Matt’s vision of black and white has morphed into a solid grey. Matt admits that if this case had been presented to him years ago, he may have passed on it. However, over time, he’s been involved in a lot of shady situations and even once framed someone he had found out was guilty after initially clearing him of another crime. Matt knows that what happened to Kenan and his wife was undoubtedly wrong but helping a drug dealer achieve vengeance against those responsible wouldn’t exactly fall in line with the Matt Scudder who worked for the NYPD.

The thing I liked most about this story is that even before Matt can start turning over some stones, he’s already got his back up against the wall. Kenan immediately cremated his wife after her murder so there’s no longer a corpse, there’s no witness who can verify the abduction taking place and because of points one and two, there isn’t a great starting point for Scudder. Matt knows that solving this case is a long shot but he jumps on board anyway. Wouldn’t you if you were handed a $10,000 retainer?

While the case itself is interesting and the villains are twisted monsters, it’s the development of Scudder’s supporting cast that takes center stage. TJ, a fifteen year old street-wise kid that Scudder met a few books back shows that he can be incredibly resourceful. Elaine, Scudder’s girlfriend, succeeds in ways that he didn't predict. Block also introduces a pair of hackers dubbed The Kongs, associates of TJ that are so entertaining that I’m hoping they make another appearance down the road.

It should be noted that Block created a bone chilling killer that rivals Motley from A Ticket to the Boneyard – which isn't easy to do. Each phone call with the abductor grows more and more unsettling leading up to their ultimate confrontation near the end. I won’t be so bold to spoil anything but there’s some dialogue coming from that psychopath that hits hard.

It’s worth noting that there’s a film adaptation in the works that I believe just finished filming and is in the post-production stage. There’s no set date for release other than "2014" but I’m hoping it’ll be received better than the last time Scudder hit Hollywood in the 1986 adaptation of Eight Million Ways to Die. I have a hard time seeing Neeson as Scudder but I’m sure someone knows what they’re doing.

Cross Posted @ Every Read Thing

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

"A Walk Among The Tombstones" is Lawrence Block's tenth Matthew Scudder book and was first published in 1992. This is a review of the book. I have not seen the movie. Scudder is an ex-cop who fell into the bars in Hell's Kitchen and had a hard time falling out of the bars. He does some private detective work without a license and often relies on his old NYPD connections in between going to AA meetings and he goes to a lot of them.

This book is about a high-end drug dealer middleman who is very much insulated from street activity. That is, he thought that living in a fancy gated house kept him insulated from the violence and pain and it did, until someone kidnaps his wife and demands a million dollars. He pays the ransom and they return pieces of her in a box, like so many chops wrapped from the butcher. This dealer has a brother who met Scudder at a AA meeting and asks for help tracking down the guys who did it.
Scudder does an excellent job of piecing together tiny little clues and tracking down the killer gone mad.

What's great about this book is the realistic dialogue. This is not a bang-bang, shoot-em-up, kind of novel, although it has its share of gruesome violence. This book is about how the brothers and Scudder talk about what happened and what they should do and what Scudder is comfortable with. It is about Scudder and his assistant TJ and the telephone hacker brothers piecing together from so many payphones tiny bits of information. It is about Scudder tracking down other women who might have been attacked and mutilated and piecing together the bits of information.

For those of us who have been reading Block from his early days, it is evident how mature and focused his writing has become. This is an excellent novel and is highly recommended.

[Toby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Block was really taking Matt Scudder to some dark places in the early 90s, as if a psychotic killer hell bent on revenge and a couple of evil snuff film makers weren't enough hell for one man to face whilst trying with all his might to stay away from the hard stuff he's now faced with some joy killers who abduct and dissect women in broad daylight. Luckily he has a great group of friends and a growing sense of "home" in a light place to counteract the dark. But surely there's only so much of the banality of evil that men can commit upon each other that Scudder can witness before his will fails him?

I'd like to think this isn't one of those scenarios where we all keep reading waiting to see the head roll after the horrible accident, but the fear you have for Scudder and his friends, who are seemingly willing to go in to harms way to fight Matt's fight alongside him, is palpable from the opening paragraphs of these books. The more you care about a character the more the reader has riding on their success and there can be no greater series to demonstrate the truth of that statement as in the hands of Lawrence Block you can never be sure what hell he is going to run his protagonist through next.

Tombstones deviates slightly from the "standard" Scudder pattern, the way his private detective work evolves in to something else entirely as the case picks up pace makes it clear why somebody thought it would be a fantastic post-Taken vehicle for Liam Neeson but the magic of Block's writing is that he visits the edges of a different sub-genre without it feeling false to the world and characters that he's already created.

Gary watchers will be disappointed by the brevity of his work here but it's more than made up for by the growth of TJ in to a series character AND what I hope will be the first of many appearances for the Kong Brothers as Scudder struggles to come to grips with the exciting technological advances the 90s are bringing him.

Personally it doesn't reach the heights of Slaughterhouse or 8 Million Ways but it's another stellar instalment, another superb piece of work from the Grandmaster and another example of all that can be great in noir fiction.

[Tony Vacation · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Walk Among the Tombstones is a prime choice cut of detective fiction—heck, it’s maybe worth two or three or a whole car trunk full of packaged slices on ice of high quality writing. All the necessary tasty bits that make the Matthew Scudder novels so savory are on full display in this tenth entry into the series. Dialogue that sizzles, suspense that slow boils over the cooking pot, and characters as complex and heady as a carefully-prepared dish of steak tartare. This time around, Scudder takes a butcher at the life of a heroin dealer when said white collar criminal hires our hero to track down the psychopathic scumbags who kidnapped his wife and sent her back home in doggy bags. Along the way, Scudder hangs out with all his friends, as well as makes a few new ones in the form of an ex-junkie and a pair of teenage hackers, and when he’s not too busy schmoozing, he does some damn slick work at tracking down the kidnappers who like to moonlight as shoykhets. But as is always the case with these books, you read them for Block’s crisp and nuanced writing, for the ponderings on mortality and on the nature of evil, and because Matthew Scudder is a wonderful character with wonderful friends and this book is a tender, succulent full-slab rib-platter of superlative crime fiction.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

After having read the Keller series and having seen the movie with Liam Neeson I was kind of interested in reading the basis of the movie.

The book and the movie are actually pretty similar which makes me hope fora few more Scudder movies starring Neeson.

The story is basicly about a kidnapping gone horribly wrong from the viewpoint of the husband who receives after paying the ransom his wife back albeit in pieces.
It is the brother of the victims husband who finds Scudder due to their connection through AA. And while Scudder has some moral ideas about working for drug-dealers he has a lot more trouble with the MO of the kidnappers. When he takes on the case he pretty soon finds traces of similar crimes, but are they related? Scudder travels through the darker side of the city where we find that even criminals have morals and weaknesses easily to exploit. A dark story that does end in lightness for Scudder which is fitting considering the journey he just traveled.

A first literary acquaintance of a more modern PI that feels more realistic than the likes of Robert B. Parker's hero's, far less smart talk of glib one-liners but a lot more flawed humans who try to live.

Read the book and watch the movie, they are both worth your while, my preference lies in the literary field which cannot be too surprising considering my taste in books.

This book really makes you want to read more, hence the next seven books I found concerning Scudder that are heading towards my house as I write this review.

[William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good start and finish, but with a plodding, lifeless middle.

Sadly, the middle half of this 10th Matt Scudder book is dull, repetitive crap, honestly. Very tedious to slog through. Even the famous "Lawrence Block genius dialogue" is not in evidence here. The whole of the middle of the book is just padding to tie the ending to the start. More pages = Higher price?

Block has famously never talked of his possible AA membership, but I would strongly suggest that every book he wrote after Matt (Block) goes sober is a "virtual AA meeting" for Block. They start out fine, you fall asleep in the too-dull middle, and then wake up for a rousing coffee/shootup at the end. Yes?

Thankfully, the first and last quarters of the book are very good. Early on, the prose has tightened up quite a bit compared to some of the previous books. Unfortunately, Matt seems to have lost his soul, more and more with each new book. He seems to be working for far too many scumbags lately, mostly just for the money, a very disappointing dive for his character.

One thing to note is this book was written 16 years after Sins of the Fathers. It could be that Block only had ten good years in him. Given the masterpiece of 8 Million Ways to Die, and the superb On the Cutting Edge, perhaps Block is just tapped out. Or perhaps his publisher is pushing for More, more, more pages for more money. I sure do see this a lot.

Sadly also, other than the lullaby below, there's not a single quotation from this book worth repeating.

A few positive things:
1. The character of TJ is a delight.
2. Elaine and Matt move their relationship forward very nicely at the end.
3. The character, Kenan, is well-drawn and surprisingly sympathetic.
4. The obscene bloody parts can be skimmed to improve the book overall.


"Jolly English" (scary psychotic) lullaby -
Baby, baby, naughty baby
Hush, you squalling thing, I say
Peace this moment, peace,
or maybe Bonaparte will pass this way

Baby, baby, he’s a giant
Tall and black as Monmouth steeple
And he breakfasts, dines and suppers
Every day on naughty people

Baby, baby, if he hears you
As he gallops past the house
Limb from limb at once he’ll tear you
Just as pussy tears a mouse

And he’ll beat you, beat you, beat you
And he’ll beat you all to pap
And he’ll eat you, eat you, eat you
Every morsel snap snap snap!

The Movie
I watched the movie with Liam Neeson today. It starts out following the book closely, the turn the corner into a completely different plot. Towards the end, the plot swings back much closer to the book. Perhaps the screenwriter thought the middle of the book was crap, too. It's not a great movie, a bit dull, but it's a lot less dull than the book. Quite a bit of the good Block dialogue has been kept, especially at the end.

In the movie, Matt explains to TJ about the bullet that took a "bad hop" and killed the little girl. Very poignant, beautiful, sad. Better than in any of the books. The reading of the 12 Steps over the shootout at the end was very powerful.

Honestly, I enjoyed the movie more than the book.


Notes:
1.0% ... After book #8 was awful, and book #9 included graphic torture of children, I’ve almost given up on Block. He's clearly had a mental breakdown. Ugh.

I did see the Liam Neeson movie of this a few years ago, and although it was violent, it was not solely a shoot-em-up revenge-fest.

2.0% ... I've noticed that Block's prose has become ever more verbose as time's gone by. This book was published when he was 54.

3.0% ... the prose has tightened up substantially..

5.0% ....pacing. Good, dialogue good...

25.0% .... awfully repetitive dialogue and plotting...

45.0% ... "high tech" scene written in 1992. Authors should stay away from this stuff

52.0% ... repulsive, gratuitous sex torture scene starts here. As if Block couldn't find another way to pay the bills. Just skip ahead!

55.0% ... as they get older, most authors tend to blather more and more. I guess it beats having to think or work

61.0% .... dull, dull, dull.

67.0% ..... dull, linear plotting. Step by tiny step, setting us up for the big action ending. There's no real subtlety here. Block has lost it, and his editor isn't doing his job.

71.0% ... The pace is picking up some, finally.

.

[Jason Koivu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm trying to figure out why they picked this one to make into a movie out of so many great Matt Scudder books. It's good, but the pace is a bit slow and frankly computer/phone hacking is never a terribly exciting action to read about or watch. I liked the evolution of the TJ character and the development of Matt's relationship with Elaine. I always enjoy the subplots and "real life" details in these books. Those alone made it another enjoyable read in the series.

[Maxine (Booklover Catlady) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Showing at cinemas now, the movie version! I must go! This book was my introduction to Lawrence Block's writing and I am not left feeling let down one bit. What a fantastic novel that gripped me from the start and did not let go. Exceptional crime fiction with everything you would want.

What's the book about?

The dark thriller from crime fiction master Lawrence Block, soon to be a film starring Liam Neeson in September.

Big-time dope dealer Kenan Khoury is a wealthy man. One fine spring morning his wife Francine is kidnapped and a ransom is demanded. Kenan pays and his wife is duly returned to him in small pieces in the boot of an abandoned car.

PI Matt Scudder is left to speculate on the motives of a very unusual kidnapper. And soon he is on the trail of a pair of ruthlessly sadistic psycopaths whose cruel games have only just begun...

My Review:

I can imagine Liam Neeson who has been cast as PI Matt Scudder doing a great justice to the character in the upcoming movie, it will make a GREAT movie.

PI Matt Scudder is an ex-detective turned Private Investigator, he gets a call to help Kenan Khoury, his wife has been kidnapped and ransom demands have been made. Hot on the tail of the kidnappers Scudder rallies up as much help as he can get from his contacts on the street and in the police force, he's a connected man. But despite meeting ransom demands Khoury's wife, Francine, is returned, in pieces, chopped up, wrapped in garbage backs in the boot of a car. Not nice. Not nice at all.

The plot expands with Scudder finding links to previous murders and suddenly he knows he is looking for a pair of thrill kill serial murderers who have no mercy and no regrets. It's good against evil. He's smarter than the cops in putting all the pieces together. He is a flawed yet likeable character, with a good heart and a smart mind.

The book is highly descriptive with a gritty theme all the way through it, the writing seems to be like music when you read it, hard to explain but you get caught up on the lull of the words and taken with it. A bit like riding a wave. Block stands out to me with a very unique style of crime writing from many authors I have read. I am certain to read more of his work.

I love the way Scudder has versatile ways of investigating, some of the characters he hooks up to in the book on his hunt for the killers are fantastic. I won't share spoilers but the scene in the hotel room? You will know it when you get there was great, I loved it, brilliant.

This is a book that does not hold back, it can be gruesome and violent in parts, you certainly get enough description of events to be there and know what you are seeing. These killers are relentless and dangerous, and escalating. Sadistic and cruel, enjoying killing just for the thrill of it. The chase to find them and the methods use makes for fascinating and gripping reading.

A tight plot, riveting reading, fantastic writing, likeable flawed characters, and an ending that satisfied me fully. I can't wait to read more of Lawrence Block's books featuring PI Matt Scudder.

I received a copy of this book thanks to NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the tenth Matt Scudder mystery, a particularly nasty one, some unknown person- or duo, or possibly trio- is targeting the family members of drug-dealers for kidnapping and extortion. And why not? Drug-dealers tend to have cash on hand, and also tend to be disinclined to go to the police to solve their problems. When Matt agrees to meet with Kenan, a young heroin-dealer based in Brooklyn whose brother knows Matt through AA, Kenan's wife has already been kidnapped and murdered- despite the fact that Kenan paid the ransom. Matt is reluctant to abet a mission of extrajudicial revenge, but nevertheless suggests to Kenan that the smartest thing he can do is to contact others in his line of work...and wait for the kidnappers to try again.

This is the Scudder novel that they turned into a relatively faithful movie with Liam Neeson, and it wasn't a bad choice. I think most of the books in the series could make good movies, but this is one of the stand-outs for action and dramatic set-pieces. Granted, there were a few things that I didn't love. The dialogue between Matt and a couple of recurring characters- Elaine and TJ respectively- has become a little too quip-filled and pleased with itself. Or so it seemed to me. I feel a little bad about wondering if I found Matt more interesting when he was unhappy, single and drinking himself to death, but what the hell- it's not like he's a real person. The sadism of the kidnappers (why do we call them kidnappers even when their victims are adults, by the way? Why not "adultnappers"?), meanwhile, is so over-the-top that it takes away from the story in a few instances. Sure, the underlying viciousness of many of the Scudder stories is one of the elements I enjoy, and I'd rather Block's villains be too evil than too milquetoast- it wouldn't be very exciting if they just went around kicking over kids' lemonade stands- but the last few books in the series including this one are definitely of a moment in the 90s when thrillers were competing with each other along the lines of "wait, he does what to their bodies? My god." And unless it's truly integral to the story, those shock tactics often feel like wasted creative energy to me.

That said, it's still one of Matt's more compelling cases, and Kenan and his brother Pete are two of the more memorable non-recurring characters Block has created. Despite the empathy derived from his insights into his own addictions, Matt is still an ex-cop and has his limits, and therefore is not a big fan of heroin-dealers; but it's also evident from the development of his relationship with Kenan that he believes in the possibility of personal reinvention. He would have to, really, considering his own past. Matt also probably sees something of himself in Pete, by turns a junkie and alcoholic who sometimes uses what Kenan sells, an aimless and depressed guy who nevertheless does the best for his brother that he can when it's time for the final showdown with the kidnappers.

And that climax, the titular stroll in the company of obelisks, is one of the most suspenseful of the series. So I still rate this one pretty highly, even with a few misgivings and even though one of my favorite characters, Matt's criminal friend Mick Ballou, sits out this adventure almost entirely, marooned in Ireland while his lawyer works out certain, ahem, legal troubles. 

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard-boiled, heartfelt, and compelling.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good Scudder novel as Matthew tries to find who killed a drug dealer's wife. Block gets lots of N.Y. atmosphere into this one. Well written and exciting. This was made into a decent Liam Neeson movie with a few major differences within the story. Recommended.

[Bill Riggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark, gritty and suspenseful. Matthew Scudder, private investigator, is hired by Kenan Khoury to find the men who kidnapped and killed his wife. Khoury happens to be a drug dealer so going to the police is out of the question and Scudder is his only chance to see the brutal killers brought to justice.

[Robbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

His darkest and his best. The children and the helpless, and the voice for those who have been taken / murdered. Block is almost as good as they get, even though his writing does not have the poetry of some of the more modern writers out there now. Or the varnish of the great Noir creators - the Sam Spade and such. But wow, this is so good.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

What is it about having a hooker with a heart of gold in so many books? She’s going to school too, learning about archeology. Is she? Is she really? Spare me. Our hero thinks they’re in love with each other, even to the point of “forsaking all others - with the singular exception of clients”. What the fuck, dude? Have some self-respect.

So the plot starts out with a yuppie drug lord who loves jazz having his wife kidnapped (she doesn’t love jazz, she loves classical chamber music) and being extorted. The drug lord’s brother doesn’t want to get involved with drug lord stuff, but he tags along to pay the ransom with a gun in his lap. Something bad happens.

Oh, and the drug lord can’t believe anything would happen to his wife because she’s an “innocent gentle lady who never did anybody any harm, never had an unkind thought”. Except you are super rich drug lord man who has a half million in cash in your house. Anyone find it believable that his wife is some kind of saintly creature? You don’t? Me either.

A surprising pile of shit. DNF page 27.

[Aditya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series continues to get more depraved with every passing entry since A Ticket to the Boneyard. More shocking seldom equates better, but somehow it worked out that way. Ever since it subtly changed genres from mysteries to thrillers, the books feel more intense. Earlier in the series the middle of the books used to lag (never boring, not even slow), it just ebbed a bit, it felt natural but noticeable. That is gone now, the pacing feels more consistent.

A bunch of perverted sadists abduct women in broad daylight, brutalize and ultimately murder them. Scudder's client's wife was the latest victim. She being a convenient target for kidnapping as her husband was a drug dealer, so a high chance the cops won't be involved. Scudder already had the world's most polite pimp as a client in a previous entry, this time his client is the world's most decent drug dealer. He befriends them both and the world's sweetest slut is also his girlfriend. Scudder's allies tend to have a halo over them even though most of them are criminals. Just shows Block's characterization outside his protagonist is more serviceable than stellar. His no-frills writing however is smooth and sophisticated often covering up his deficiencies and highlighting his strengths - authentic dialogue and a tremendous recreation of atmospheric lived in NYC.

Of the recurring characters Ballou sits out of this one. Though I miss his late night drunken discussions with Scudder, his absence is a blessing to the narrative. Block uses him as a get out of jail free card too frequently for my liking. Scudder's personal life gets more interesting as long gestating plot lines with Elaine finally bear fruit. A streetwise black kid from the ghettos with a solution to every problem under the sun and a couple of nerdy genius hackers are added to the mix of Scudder's associates. The new characters are straight out of central casting but the writing once again comes to the rescue and stops them from being corny.

I enjoyed the book a lot, it will probably even be in my top 3-4 in the series. Unlike a lot of other entries this doesn't add anything new to the series but while A Walk among the Tombstones might be covering the same beats, it does play them masterfully. Rating - 4/5

[Hester · Rating 1 out of 5]

So I keep seeing those commercials for the film adaptation of A Walk Among the Tombstones, the critics say it's scary, so I say to myself, I say "Hester you gotta read that" and of course I agree with myself. I wish I would have ignored me.

My first clue this book was not going to be that great is the fact that it's number 10 in a series, well I wasn't going to waste my time with books 1-9 but thought that I'd give it a try anyway. As a rule I'm not that fond of series, something about them gets on my nerves, and I'm sure if I had started with book 1 in the series I never would have made it past book 1.

This book just isn't any good, the characters are dull, especially Matthew Scudder. The bad guys aren't scary, I wish there would have been more about them. Like I give a fuck about Matthew meeting people for lunch and what they ate and where he goes to get coffee or to hang out. His food and beverage intake don't add to the story, it just drags it out. What kind of lame ass drug dealers are Kenan and Yuri? They seriously suck, not that I know any drug dealers in real life, but I would imagine that they would be more dangerous and menacing, but no they're just two nice guys who peddle drugs. Mainly there was no pay off, it started boring and ended on an icky note of Matthew and his girlfriend Elaine talking about their feelings for one another. Ew, no, just no.

[Joe Noir · Rating 4 out of 5]

The essence of the private eye in fiction is that the individual detective works outside the system and can make the decision to dispense judgment as he sees fit, or not. To bring true “justice” when the authorities would not, or could not. Or, he can choose not to do so. The job could be simply following the instructions of the client, and securing their desired result; completing the task. Or, it could place the detective in such a position that his own personal code would be violated if he failed to get more involved, and take more direct action. There are several terrific characters who are not themselves actually “detectives” who will work on the behalf of clients; from Travis McGee to Nick Escalante in William Goldman’s Heat. At or near the top of this list is Matthew Scudder.

Horrifying, thrilling, intriguing, insightful, and very realistic this is the very best Matt Scudder novel; even better than my previous favorites A Dance at the Slaughterhouse and Eight Million Ways to Die.

We are treated to some of Block’s finest writing, and deepest insights into alcoholism and drug addiction, twelve step programs, “bad guys” who aren’t necessarily bad guys, and “bad guys” who are truly evil. It asks the reader to think about who might hire an unlicensed private detective like Scudder? Would it be someone who was unable to go to the police, and why would such a person be targeted by true evil? This appears to relate to one very subtle unanswered question for which the reader can come to their own conclusion. The novel also has exceptional insight into relationships, and some laugh out loud funny lines that appear in the most unusual spots. A meeting with true evil in a cemetery at night is the equal of any similar scene by Stephen King.

This is obviously a well thought out novel. There are some truly terrifying scenes, and some grisly violence. There is unexpected softness and love. I found it a maelstrom of thought provoking ideas swirling around a stalwart figure working his way through a very entertaining crime novel. I was disappointed in the last Scudder I read The Devil Knows You’re Dead, but I loved this one and didn’t want it to end.

[Larry · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the cops in "A Walk Among the Tombstones" notes that there is a new recreational class of crime--thrill killing--that seems to be on the rise. That kind of crime is at the heart of this book. Matt Scudder is approached by someone he knows through AA whose brother's wife was snatched off the street, held for ransom, and then returned in pieces. The husband, who makes his money as a high-end drug dealer, doesn't want to go to the cops, so he approaches Scudder. The husband makes it clear from the start that vengeance is his purpose. Given that Scudder has engaged in vengeance and retribution in a couple of earlier books in the series, he doesn't shy away from the job. The process by which Scudder tracks down the killers, who have struck before and who are getting worse with each crime, is interesting, as is a parallel story line about Matt's relationship with his girlfriend and with TJ, his street savvy apprentice of sorts.

Block writes well, as usual, though there's a flatness to his writing that has always been apparent. It doesn't detract from the books. If anything, it matches the dogged qualities that Scudder exhibits throughout the series.

NOTE: Yesterday I watched the film version of this book, starring Liam Neeson as Matt Scudder. Though there have been a couple of 87th precinct movies, this is the first Matt Scudder movie that I've seen. It was pretty faithful to the book, the guys who played the killers were genuinely creepy, and Neeson did a nice job as Scudder. T.J. (played fairly well by "Astro") is a character, but Scudder doesn't have his long-term call-girl-turned-girlfriend in the movie. The procedural slog of the book is captured in the movie, as is the overall drab and foreboding atmosphere. It was at least 3 stars out of 4.