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A Case of Noir
In snow smothered Warsaw, Luke Case, a boozy English hack with a dark secret, starts a dangerous affair with a gangster’s wife. Case escapes to the sweltering Spanish heat where he meets a colourful cast of characters, including a mysterious torch singer and a former East End villain with a criminal business proposition. In stormy Toulouse, he encounters a blast from the past that is positively seismic which forces him to return to England and confront his past. A Case Of Noir is a strong shot of international noir from Paul D. Brazill.
- GenresNoir
136 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 7, 2014
6 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
About the author
Paul D. Brazill
99 books172 followersPaul D. Brazill is the author of A Case Of Noir, Guns Of Brixton & Roman Dalton- Werewolf PI. He was born in England and lives in Poland.
He is an International Thriller Writers Inc member whose writing has been translated into Italian, Polish and Slovene.
He has had writing published in various magazines and anthologies, including The Mammoth Books of Best British Crime 8,10 and 11, alongside the likes of Ian Rankin, Neil Gaiman and Lee Child.
He edited the best- selling anthology True Brit Grit – with Luca Veste.
He is an International Thriller Writers Inc member whose writing has been translated into Italian, Polish and Slovene.
He has had writing published in various magazines and anthologies, including The Mammoth Books of Best British Crime 8,10 and 11, alongside the likes of Ian Rankin, Neil Gaiman and Lee Child.
He edited the best- selling anthology True Brit Grit – with Luca Veste.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
March 4, 2018
--Words on Words 60-Second Spotlight video review at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PQk5...
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started reading Paul D. Brazill’s “A Case of Noir (Near to the Knuckle),” but it more than exceeded my desire to find an entertaining read. The term noir definitely describes this book, and the author delivers a polished set of stories guaranteed to keep you riveted all the way to the last page.
This is a crime novel without the detective. The antihero Luke Cage is consistently alcohol-lubricated, and is a person who tries to stay out of trouble but somehow gravitates to the darker side of life. When faced with a situation that has him backed into a corner, Luke will respond, no matter which side of the law it might place him.
The book contains five short stories, although the stories are more like chapters that serve to reveal related bits of Luke’s life. Mr. Brazill writes a form of pulp fiction, though it is laden with talent and does what it should do: makes you laugh, makes you cringe, makes you squirm…and definitely makes you want to reach for the next book in the series. Five stars.
I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started reading Paul D. Brazill’s “A Case of Noir (Near to the Knuckle),” but it more than exceeded my desire to find an entertaining read. The term noir definitely describes this book, and the author delivers a polished set of stories guaranteed to keep you riveted all the way to the last page.
This is a crime novel without the detective. The antihero Luke Cage is consistently alcohol-lubricated, and is a person who tries to stay out of trouble but somehow gravitates to the darker side of life. When faced with a situation that has him backed into a corner, Luke will respond, no matter which side of the law it might place him.
The book contains five short stories, although the stories are more like chapters that serve to reveal related bits of Luke’s life. Mr. Brazill writes a form of pulp fiction, though it is laden with talent and does what it should do: makes you laugh, makes you cringe, makes you squirm…and definitely makes you want to reach for the next book in the series. Five stars.
May 15, 2014
I’m a sucker for Brazill’s singularly laconic style and his hapless heroes — or is it too grand to call them heroes? Main characters? Saps? No, they’re seldom suckers — just not particularly well prepared, thoughtful or lucky. You can move Luke Case around to a new city, but the seedy world seems to follow him there, whether it’s a Peruvian pan pipe band playing ‘Ring of Fire’ or any of a variety of other off-hand pop culture references (Arthur, Mr B? Priceless). If Luke Case manages to survive, it’s not down to his own skills or perspicacity — but surely there are enough gods to watch over drunks and fools. The fun is watching it all unfold.
I love the lazy chaos that fills these stories as Case allows events to take him whither they will, yet he always seems to float to the top with the wreckage. The twists are even better and the narrative strands even tighter. Brazill manages to move back and forth in time without ever losing the reader, which is quite a feat. Great fun and a quick read. I had been looking forward to the collection that brings all the Luke Case stories together. Blood, guts and menace cheek-by-jowl with laughs: what could be better?
Brazill brings the stories together with a sense of circular logic that both ties things up neatly yet leaves room for more. And you'll want more. How can you not love Case? Despite inevitably, chaotically putting his foot wrong, he just manages to sidle out of real trouble long enough to quit town and elude being the fall guy. It'll catch up with him sooner or later -- just not yet.
I love the lazy chaos that fills these stories as Case allows events to take him whither they will, yet he always seems to float to the top with the wreckage. The twists are even better and the narrative strands even tighter. Brazill manages to move back and forth in time without ever losing the reader, which is quite a feat. Great fun and a quick read. I had been looking forward to the collection that brings all the Luke Case stories together. Blood, guts and menace cheek-by-jowl with laughs: what could be better?
Brazill brings the stories together with a sense of circular logic that both ties things up neatly yet leaves room for more. And you'll want more. How can you not love Case? Despite inevitably, chaotically putting his foot wrong, he just manages to sidle out of real trouble long enough to quit town and elude being the fall guy. It'll catch up with him sooner or later -- just not yet.
June 8, 2014
I admit to being an admirer of Paul Brazill's work. His style is breezy, yet hard hitting. The former because the words flow so easily off the page, the latter because the subject matter is is top drawer crime thriller.
A Case of Noir follows hack reporter Luke Case across a series of interlinked short stories. He's a drinker and a womaniser, always in trouble because of one, the other or both of his vices. He stumbles from one screw up to the next. You can't help but like the guy. There's plenty of humour among the grit too. Another great read.
A Case of Noir follows hack reporter Luke Case across a series of interlinked short stories. He's a drinker and a womaniser, always in trouble because of one, the other or both of his vices. He stumbles from one screw up to the next. You can't help but like the guy. There's plenty of humour among the grit too. Another great read.
July 2, 2017
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Reading Brazill gave me the same sort of enjoyment I get when reading Jim Thompson, characters filling their desperation with alcohol, fornication, and crime. As with Thompson, Brazill knows that the human condition weak and is punctuated with violence and/or death.
With A Case of Noir, Brazill has written book that is steeped in the cigarette smoke, dirty whiskey glasses, and cheap sex of dive bars. If you like your books with melancholy masked in the false joy of booze, sex, and beatings then Brazill's A Case of Noir is exactly what you are looking for.
Reading Brazill gave me the same sort of enjoyment I get when reading Jim Thompson, characters filling their desperation with alcohol, fornication, and crime. As with Thompson, Brazill knows that the human condition weak and is punctuated with violence and/or death.
I jolted awake, coated in cold, dank sweat. Daylight sliced through the gaps between the broken blinds. A tight band gripped my forehead and my pounding heartbeat seemed to echo through the sparse, familiar looking room.
A beat.
I adjusted to the wan light. I was on my bed. Naked. Back in the flat that I shared with Nathan. I tried to piece together what had happened.
At some point during the night I’d woken up, confused, with no recollection of getting there. Irena, naked, was smoking and gazing out of the bedroom window. The tip of her cigarette glowed bright red and then faded to black.
Lena, also naked, walked up to her, whispered something in her ear and then I dissolved back into sleep.
I stumbled out of the bed and into the bathroom. My wiry arms gripped the washbasin for support. I sighed deeply as I splashed cold water on my face.
When I walked back into the living room, Irena was standing naked in the doorway to Nathan’s bedroom. Bowie’s Station To Station played at a low volume.
She lazily nodded into the bedroom and said, “He’s dead.”
With A Case of Noir, Brazill has written book that is steeped in the cigarette smoke, dirty whiskey glasses, and cheap sex of dive bars. If you like your books with melancholy masked in the false joy of booze, sex, and beatings then Brazill's A Case of Noir is exactly what you are looking for.
June 11, 2014
“What would you say to a bottle of Tinto de Verano?”
“I’d say: I love you. Will you marry me?”
If you like your fiction hard-boiled then A Case Of Noir is a book for you. The above example of sharp dialogue is just one a thousand examples of crackling, punchy prose that weave through this book like a spider on speed. The quips are so very well handled and serve many purposes – they colour the characters, add zing, focus images and bring humour by the Sam Spade-load.
The atmosphere is hot and pregnant with lust (‘Lena was a heat-seeking missile and I was the target.') and disaffection, with lowlife and alcohol, with apathy and action and has a soundtrack that would make a nice little compilation.
Follow Luke Case (the eponymous anti-hero) as he trawls from one sordid experience to another. While you there, you can also discover how killing really is and how it’s nothing like it is on the TV. You’ll get to know parts of Europe that you may never have visited and, if you’ve been there, you’re unlikely to have seen them in this light:
Red Esperanto (Warsaw)
Death On A Hot Afternoon (Madrid)
The Kelly Affair (Granada)
The Big Rain (Toulouse)
One Of Those Days In England (Cambridge)
Refreshingly straight and unpretentious stuff that brings a new zing to an old favourite.
Really, what's not to like?
“I’d say: I love you. Will you marry me?”
If you like your fiction hard-boiled then A Case Of Noir is a book for you. The above example of sharp dialogue is just one a thousand examples of crackling, punchy prose that weave through this book like a spider on speed. The quips are so very well handled and serve many purposes – they colour the characters, add zing, focus images and bring humour by the Sam Spade-load.
The atmosphere is hot and pregnant with lust (‘Lena was a heat-seeking missile and I was the target.') and disaffection, with lowlife and alcohol, with apathy and action and has a soundtrack that would make a nice little compilation.
Follow Luke Case (the eponymous anti-hero) as he trawls from one sordid experience to another. While you there, you can also discover how killing really is and how it’s nothing like it is on the TV. You’ll get to know parts of Europe that you may never have visited and, if you’ve been there, you’re unlikely to have seen them in this light:
Red Esperanto (Warsaw)
Death On A Hot Afternoon (Madrid)
The Kelly Affair (Granada)
The Big Rain (Toulouse)
One Of Those Days In England (Cambridge)
Refreshingly straight and unpretentious stuff that brings a new zing to an old favourite.
Really, what's not to like?
May 28, 2014
Loved this. Paul Brazill's masterful control of the noir short is displayed in full boozy glory in this collection cum novella. The hack writer Luke Case opens the tale in Warsaw, where, between drinking himself into blackouts, he's somewhat saucily dragged into a ménage a trois with hookers and molls who have very naughty connections. The affair leads to a brutal beating by the very same connections, and he flees across Europe in a series of interconnected shorts, encountering torch singers, Irish criminals, and bulky legionnaires, and leading right back to the very past he's running from.
So yeah, the usual Brazill suspects are all here in their very colourful glory. The pop culture references by the bucket load (the man either has the biggest record collection on the planet, or his Guinness book of music needs replacing. Loved the Manu Chao reference), the boozy and flawed protagonist, the sordid and lazy (in a good way) dialogue, and of course, the descriptive prose that licks your eyeballs before it jabs a manicured nail into them.
When he's done conquering our world with his masterful noir, Paul D Brazill is going to get right back into his time machine and go back where he came from. Lovely stuff. Five stars.
So yeah, the usual Brazill suspects are all here in their very colourful glory. The pop culture references by the bucket load (the man either has the biggest record collection on the planet, or his Guinness book of music needs replacing. Loved the Manu Chao reference), the boozy and flawed protagonist, the sordid and lazy (in a good way) dialogue, and of course, the descriptive prose that licks your eyeballs before it jabs a manicured nail into them.
When he's done conquering our world with his masterful noir, Paul D Brazill is going to get right back into his time machine and go back where he came from. Lovely stuff. Five stars.
July 22, 2018
All Killer No Filler is the title of one of my favourite albums. It's also a fitting description for Paul Brazill's book A Case of Noir.
Mr Brazill doesn't write at length. As he says: "I slice off the gristle." (Interview with Toe Six Press).
This guarantees there isn't so much as one wasted word. The result: his books are eminently readable, and you finish them wanting more (which is rather better than wishing there had been less, as is the case with many authors).
He's above all a prose stylist. He works within a tradition which was probably started by Raymond Chandler.
Chandler himself once said: "The most durable thing in writing is style, and style is the single most valuable investment a writer can make with his time."
Paul Brazill seems to have taken this advice to heart, irrespective of whether or not he's familiar with the quote. His style is as beguiling as it is instantly recognisable. Like Chandler, he's a lover of unusual similes and outrageous wisecracks. But he is far from being yet another Chandler imitator. His voice is distinctly his own, as is the world he's created.
His world, by the way, isn't the world of the rich or of the master criminal, it's a world of low-lifes, drunks and ne'er do wells. They're all memorable, even those with walk-on parts. Sometimes you feel his secondary characters are so good they're wasted on the minor roles he gives them, and they should have books of their own.
A Case of Noir follows this pattern, and is similar to a Chandler novel in that it's told in the first person by the wisecracking protagonist Luke Case. But unlike Chandler's lead character Phillip Marlowe, Case is not a Private Eye. He's a journalist with a shady past which, over the course of the novella, gradually but inexorably catches up with him. And where Marlowe follows a moral compass, Case follows only the principle of doing whatever hedonistic deed suits him at the time - with hilarious results.
I suspect that Brazill didn't set out to write a novella. A Case of Noir seems to be stitched together from a number of short stories (a working method similar to that adopted by Chander when he wrote The Big Sleep).
The whole is greater than the sum of the parts - although the parts are so good you’ll savour them individually, as you work your way through them.
I forgot to mention: this book is a whole lot of fun!
Mr Brazill doesn't write at length. As he says: "I slice off the gristle." (Interview with Toe Six Press).
This guarantees there isn't so much as one wasted word. The result: his books are eminently readable, and you finish them wanting more (which is rather better than wishing there had been less, as is the case with many authors).
He's above all a prose stylist. He works within a tradition which was probably started by Raymond Chandler.
Chandler himself once said: "The most durable thing in writing is style, and style is the single most valuable investment a writer can make with his time."
Paul Brazill seems to have taken this advice to heart, irrespective of whether or not he's familiar with the quote. His style is as beguiling as it is instantly recognisable. Like Chandler, he's a lover of unusual similes and outrageous wisecracks. But he is far from being yet another Chandler imitator. His voice is distinctly his own, as is the world he's created.
His world, by the way, isn't the world of the rich or of the master criminal, it's a world of low-lifes, drunks and ne'er do wells. They're all memorable, even those with walk-on parts. Sometimes you feel his secondary characters are so good they're wasted on the minor roles he gives them, and they should have books of their own.
A Case of Noir follows this pattern, and is similar to a Chandler novel in that it's told in the first person by the wisecracking protagonist Luke Case. But unlike Chandler's lead character Phillip Marlowe, Case is not a Private Eye. He's a journalist with a shady past which, over the course of the novella, gradually but inexorably catches up with him. And where Marlowe follows a moral compass, Case follows only the principle of doing whatever hedonistic deed suits him at the time - with hilarious results.
I suspect that Brazill didn't set out to write a novella. A Case of Noir seems to be stitched together from a number of short stories (a working method similar to that adopted by Chander when he wrote The Big Sleep).
The whole is greater than the sum of the parts - although the parts are so good you’ll savour them individually, as you work your way through them.
I forgot to mention: this book is a whole lot of fun!
May 28, 2019
Read this in an afternoon. The chapters are like short stories linking together superbly as Luke Case stumbles from one drink fuelled crisis to another. I particularly enjoyed the trans-euro ride from Warsaw to Madrid to Toulouse to Cambridge, featuring bars, women and shady characters, plus a dash of glamour here and there.
Paul's style is nice and laid back, and laconic. Each episode easing into the next. Humour is rife, as are countless musical references. Which I like.
Nice job. 5 stars easily.
Paul's style is nice and laid back, and laconic. Each episode easing into the next. Humour is rife, as are countless musical references. Which I like.
Nice job. 5 stars easily.
January 2, 2018
Anyone who has read my books knows that I'm a sucker for the anti-hero. While Luke Cage isn't the prototypical variety, he meets enough of the criteria: a flawed character with an addiction and penchant for self-deprecation, but seeking redemption. It's hard not to like this boozing skirt chaser who acts first with the little Luke in his pants and asks questions later, which often gets him in trouble. Brazill is a master of noir fiction and I totally enjoyed this collection of shorts featuring the same protagonist that weaves into a collective whole with a satisfactory conclusion. There is a great bunch of supporting characters who add a great deal as well.
April 9, 2018
I may have made a mistake here in reading my first Luke Case Story, and its number 8 in the series. Reading other reviews now I have completed it, it does seem it builds on some of his earlier stuff from the series. It may explain why I couldn’t get into it. It’s heavily dialogue based and quite readable, but the plot was confusing. There are some good one-liners and dry humour though.
September 28, 2014
A Case of Noir by Paul D. Brazil takes readers on a dark and twisted road through five chapters. Even though each one is a fairly contained short story, the five chapters link together to form a complex tale featuring Luke Case.
Except his name isn’t really Luke Case. Not that readers know that as the first installment, “Red Esperanto” opens. Instead, readers know it is Warsaw in winter and our narrator prefers Jack Daniels with Coke only after he is so drunk already that he shouldn’t be drinking at all, a Ukrainian hooker by the name of Tatiana, and hanging out with a fellow ex-pat by the name of Sean Bradley. Sean has his reasons why he drinks heavily as does Luke and their lives are going to be intertwined as the months and pages pass.
It is while with Sean in their favorite watering hole, “Rory’s Irish Pub” that the stunning C. J. walked in very late one night. Known as Crazy Jola, she is the wife of Robert Mohawk who is a mid-level a gangster of some repute. Despite being warned off about his reputation as well as hers, Luke manages to talk her into a drink and eventually quite a lot more.
Considering his past, he should have stopped while he was ahead. A Case of Noir is a complicated stylistic read full of visual imagery that moves across Europe adding and dropping people and clues as it goes. While Luke Case has a fake name and a fake cover he has his vices no matter what and that means he leaves a trail in his wake. A complicated dark trail as strikingly depicted on the cover with the maze and one that isn’t at all easy to figure out from start to finish.
A Case of Noir
Paul D. Brazill
http://www.pauldbrazill.com
Lite Editions
http://www.lite-editions.com/
ISBN# 978-8866655053
May 2014
Paperback (also available e-book)
134 Pages
$8.99
E-book version supplied by the author some time ago in exchange for my objective review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2014
Except his name isn’t really Luke Case. Not that readers know that as the first installment, “Red Esperanto” opens. Instead, readers know it is Warsaw in winter and our narrator prefers Jack Daniels with Coke only after he is so drunk already that he shouldn’t be drinking at all, a Ukrainian hooker by the name of Tatiana, and hanging out with a fellow ex-pat by the name of Sean Bradley. Sean has his reasons why he drinks heavily as does Luke and their lives are going to be intertwined as the months and pages pass.
It is while with Sean in their favorite watering hole, “Rory’s Irish Pub” that the stunning C. J. walked in very late one night. Known as Crazy Jola, she is the wife of Robert Mohawk who is a mid-level a gangster of some repute. Despite being warned off about his reputation as well as hers, Luke manages to talk her into a drink and eventually quite a lot more.
Considering his past, he should have stopped while he was ahead. A Case of Noir is a complicated stylistic read full of visual imagery that moves across Europe adding and dropping people and clues as it goes. While Luke Case has a fake name and a fake cover he has his vices no matter what and that means he leaves a trail in his wake. A complicated dark trail as strikingly depicted on the cover with the maze and one that isn’t at all easy to figure out from start to finish.
A Case of Noir
Paul D. Brazill
http://www.pauldbrazill.com
Lite Editions
http://www.lite-editions.com/
ISBN# 978-8866655053
May 2014
Paperback (also available e-book)
134 Pages
$8.99
E-book version supplied by the author some time ago in exchange for my objective review.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2014
March 27, 2017
Well I am sat here still tittering away thinking about this book. I loved how it was sometimes a whole sentence further on before my brain caught up with what I had read, as Paul Brazill just slipped in another subtle one liner and perfect dose of dry humour, that hit the spot better than any single malt. Meet Luke Case who seems to achieve being in the wrong place at the right time with precision and impeccable timing, as he makes a journey to five very different stops starting in a freezing Warsaw but things always heat up with the company he keeps, in more ways than one. Hence really the five stops, or should I say the places to get out of pretty quick. It all has that sort of Boggart feel, the laid back having a drink in a bar moment that attract women without even making an effort, albeit the wrong sort.
Each of the five stops are just pure magic to read about, from the ventures he swears to himself he is going to stay away from to the perfect song playing in the background on the jukebox. Add to all of this the way Paul Brazil imprints the images he describes into your mind and you become more a witness to the goings on rather than a reader. The whole thing just encases you and brings it to life. I really grew to have a soft spot for Luke Case that just seemed to fall on his feet most of the time, even if it did mean one or two visits to the A & E and moments of complete loss of consciousness.
This is just the second Paul Brazill book that I have read but I have already gone on to buy another two. Absolutely brilliant writing. I really am loving these books. So very highly recommended and addictive.
Each of the five stops are just pure magic to read about, from the ventures he swears to himself he is going to stay away from to the perfect song playing in the background on the jukebox. Add to all of this the way Paul Brazil imprints the images he describes into your mind and you become more a witness to the goings on rather than a reader. The whole thing just encases you and brings it to life. I really grew to have a soft spot for Luke Case that just seemed to fall on his feet most of the time, even if it did mean one or two visits to the A & E and moments of complete loss of consciousness.
This is just the second Paul Brazill book that I have read but I have already gone on to buy another two. Absolutely brilliant writing. I really am loving these books. So very highly recommended and addictive.
April 19, 2015
Paul D. Brazill’s world here is one of peroxide Berliner blondes wearing PVC raincoats with blood red lipstick smeared across their lips. Barbarous gangsters and shyster scam artists, drunken literary agents and pop producers shelter in cities ruined by war and Vodka, drenched by decadence, spent of hope, driven by desire. Here we meet protagonist Luke Case who is drifting on a stream of booze and loose women from Poland to Madrid to Granada to London and then Cambridge where he finds himself at a well observed and illustrated literary crime festival - the majority of the guests seem to "be enthusing over something called Nordic Noir – whatever that is."
Witty observations, a shady past, and a name that conjures up images of coffee and nuts. Sly references to Molly Drake and The Last Words of Dutch Schultz keep things interesting plus of course the use of FADE IN FADE OUTS, camera directions... These are welcome touches.
Bleak yet humorous landscapes fertilized with witty dialogue and sewn up with spare descriptions. Brazill doesn’t waste words, instead he plays with the images they provoke and he has more ways to describe a hangover than there are ways to create one - "Shards of sunlight sliced through the slats in the blinds, like a kick in the eye from a stiletto heel."
This is a great slice of Noir from an assured talent. Brazill is to crime fiction what a Guinness and Champagne is to a cocktail party.
I read A Case of Noir twice in one sitting. Recommended dark Euro sleaze for lovers of the black stuff
Witty observations, a shady past, and a name that conjures up images of coffee and nuts. Sly references to Molly Drake and The Last Words of Dutch Schultz keep things interesting plus of course the use of FADE IN FADE OUTS, camera directions... These are welcome touches.
Bleak yet humorous landscapes fertilized with witty dialogue and sewn up with spare descriptions. Brazill doesn’t waste words, instead he plays with the images they provoke and he has more ways to describe a hangover than there are ways to create one - "Shards of sunlight sliced through the slats in the blinds, like a kick in the eye from a stiletto heel."
This is a great slice of Noir from an assured talent. Brazill is to crime fiction what a Guinness and Champagne is to a cocktail party.
I read A Case of Noir twice in one sitting. Recommended dark Euro sleaze for lovers of the black stuff
May 27, 2014
A Case of Noir is a collection of interlinked short crime stories featuring the character Luke Case by author Paul D Brazill. The five stories are Red Esperanto, Death On A Hot Afternoon, The Kelly Affair, The Big Rain and One Of Those Days In England. When we first meet Luke in Red Esperanto he is a free lance journalist and booze hound with an eye for the ladies and a mysterious past. After getting caught up with a femme fatale and her gangster husband in sleazy Warsaw he flees across Europe. Soon he’s mixed up with torch singer Lena K, owner of The Madrid Review Pedro Dominguez, music promoter and criminal Simon Kelly, crime author Julian Stroud and the dangerous Father Joseph Black in a swirling trail of dark events. The main crux of the book is what did Luke Case actually do in his past that caused him to leave England and go on the run and will it now catch up with him? Throughout the book we get glimpses of Luke’s shady past and slowly begin to see his true character. This is a novel full of twists, turns, violence and lust; a delicious cocktail of continental noir from talented author Paul D Brazill who appears to add elements of his own life to give the work a depth of realism. Red Esperanto also appears in The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime Volume 11. Enjoy.
December 8, 2015
A Case of Noir is actually five Cases; interconnected short stories featuring the hard-boiled, hard-drinking eponymous hack reporter Luke Case; a man with a shadowy past, and a dark secret he’d rather remained so.
Taking us from Warsaw to Madrid to Granada to Toulouse and ending up in Cambridge, A Case of Noir offers a gritty sense of place and atmosphere and, in the best noir tradition, Cases’ snappy dialogue is punctuated with throwaway quips and droll observations.
Brazill gives us all the expected ingredients for the classic noir cocktail of seedy characters: international gangsters and their scheming molls, old flames and femmes fatale, laconic hitmen and scheming intellectuals, assorted hookers and sleazy lowlifes, all with a generous splash of dodgy business deals, steamy affairs and gruesome murders - and a final twist in the tail (or tale, if you’d rather).
Taking us from Warsaw to Madrid to Granada to Toulouse and ending up in Cambridge, A Case of Noir offers a gritty sense of place and atmosphere and, in the best noir tradition, Cases’ snappy dialogue is punctuated with throwaway quips and droll observations.
Brazill gives us all the expected ingredients for the classic noir cocktail of seedy characters: international gangsters and their scheming molls, old flames and femmes fatale, laconic hitmen and scheming intellectuals, assorted hookers and sleazy lowlifes, all with a generous splash of dodgy business deals, steamy affairs and gruesome murders - and a final twist in the tail (or tale, if you’d rather).
May 27, 2014
Lucas Cage is a journalist. Or an English-as-a-Foreign-Language teacher in Warsaw. Maybe he is. Or maybe he's something else. Or someone else.
'A Case of Noir' follows Lucas Cage and his adventures (or misadventures) from one dirty double-cross and turnabout to another, from Warsaw to Madrid and Granada in Spain to Toulouse in France to a turnabout showdown in a place I'll leave you to figure out.
The twists and turns alone will keep you eye-locked here, but again, Paul Brazill's scene-setting abilities sticks with you long after you set it down. Brazill preserves the feels and the atmospheres in alcohol, left in the bottle after Lucas Case hits his haunts. He brings you to Warsaw, to Madrid, to Toulouse and puts your feet on the street.
A worthy read. I recommend it.
'A Case of Noir' follows Lucas Cage and his adventures (or misadventures) from one dirty double-cross and turnabout to another, from Warsaw to Madrid and Granada in Spain to Toulouse in France to a turnabout showdown in a place I'll leave you to figure out.
The twists and turns alone will keep you eye-locked here, but again, Paul Brazill's scene-setting abilities sticks with you long after you set it down. Brazill preserves the feels and the atmospheres in alcohol, left in the bottle after Lucas Case hits his haunts. He brings you to Warsaw, to Madrid, to Toulouse and puts your feet on the street.
A worthy read. I recommend it.
September 17, 2015
Absolutely fantastic stuff!
The dark & gritty nature of the books is thoroughly enjoyable and the tongue in cheek humour and popular references are always fun to stumble upon.
The narrative is tight and the stories thoroughly barrel along in an enjoyable manner and it is truly fascinating watching the layers of Luke Cage be peeled back each grubby skin at a time.
The best moment for me was the ending sentences in "one of those days in England" fantastic ending and I must have looked like a weirdo sitting in the hotel resteraunt by myself laughing at the top of my lungs.
Would recommend this book to anyone. Really great stuff and I just hope you live up to your promise of more "Luke Cage" stories.
Bravo!
The dark & gritty nature of the books is thoroughly enjoyable and the tongue in cheek humour and popular references are always fun to stumble upon.
The narrative is tight and the stories thoroughly barrel along in an enjoyable manner and it is truly fascinating watching the layers of Luke Cage be peeled back each grubby skin at a time.
The best moment for me was the ending sentences in "one of those days in England" fantastic ending and I must have looked like a weirdo sitting in the hotel resteraunt by myself laughing at the top of my lungs.
Would recommend this book to anyone. Really great stuff and I just hope you live up to your promise of more "Luke Cage" stories.
Bravo!
November 24, 2014
Gritty and fast paced. This set of stories will suck you in and won't let go until you're done with them. It's the type of book where you want to know what comes next, what's the next twist, what did I miss that will later blow up in the protagonist's, Luke Case, face, but, at the same time, you don't want it to end. A tight narrative, compelling characters, and descriptions that will put you right there with the main character, Paul D Brazill's A Case of Noir is a read I recommend to anyone interested in reading some fine, perfectly written noir.
December 6, 2015
Paul D. Brazill's A Case Of Noir is a highly entertaining collection of noir stories linked by a common protagonist. The European locations are vividly described and the stories fast moving,full of surprises of the "Why-didn't-I-see-that-coming" variety. Those who buy the paperback are entitled to download the e-book for free, which is a pretty sweet deal.
September 12, 2014
A witty, clever, dark, debauched, intricately woven tale that takes the protagonist all over Europe and through many bizarre and interwoven tales. Exceptionally funny. I did have one complaint - it just wasn't long enough. I wanted more. Fantastic novel.
January 7, 2015
I found it a little confusing to follow. Continuity was a problem . Also needs bit more editing for grammar. Still enjoyable .
February 11, 2018
Luke Case is a "journalist" adrift in an expat's sea of booze, smoke, sex, shady characters and shadier dealings. He hops around Europe running from his past, but you can't run forever. Or maybe you can? Doesn't matter. This is more excellent entertainment from PDB, who makes for a top tour guide.
February 24, 2018
A case of Noir, written by Paul D. Brazil.
This is not the usual genre that I choose to read. However, I began reading with an open mind. From the very first chapter, I realised that this book is most likely written for male readers which would make it difficult for me to give a fair and accurate review. That said; I did read the whole book and was intrigued in parts.
The story follows the alcohol drenched antics of 'Luke Case' who claims to be a journalist working for Pedro, the owner of The Madrid Review. I'm not quite sure if he was ever actually following up a story or just involved with lots of uncouth seedy characters. Every character in the story, was so far removed from my own life that I could not connect to any of them.
The music references throughout the book were unfamiliar to me and a little too frequently mentioned. The locations of Warsaw, Madrid, Granada, Toulouse and others peaked my interest. For me as a writer, I particularly enjoyed reading, ' One of those days in England'. Mainly because it was set in Cambridge and made references to the world of publishing. I suppose you might say, that this was the only part of the book that I felt comfortable reading.
From a writers perspective I have to say that the book is extremely descriptive with a fast pace and content that may appeal to some readers, but unfortunately not me.
This is not the usual genre that I choose to read. However, I began reading with an open mind. From the very first chapter, I realised that this book is most likely written for male readers which would make it difficult for me to give a fair and accurate review. That said; I did read the whole book and was intrigued in parts.
The story follows the alcohol drenched antics of 'Luke Case' who claims to be a journalist working for Pedro, the owner of The Madrid Review. I'm not quite sure if he was ever actually following up a story or just involved with lots of uncouth seedy characters. Every character in the story, was so far removed from my own life that I could not connect to any of them.
The music references throughout the book were unfamiliar to me and a little too frequently mentioned. The locations of Warsaw, Madrid, Granada, Toulouse and others peaked my interest. For me as a writer, I particularly enjoyed reading, ' One of those days in England'. Mainly because it was set in Cambridge and made references to the world of publishing. I suppose you might say, that this was the only part of the book that I felt comfortable reading.
From a writers perspective I have to say that the book is extremely descriptive with a fast pace and content that may appeal to some readers, but unfortunately not me.
January 9, 2023
Great writer, far from his best work.
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