October Group Read - L.A Confidential by James Ellroy

[Bill]

This is the thread for discussing L.A. Confidential by James Ellroy. Aditya will be your discussion moderator.

A separate thread has been set up for spoiler comments. Enjoy your reading and discussions.

[Aditya]

I will start it soon, just dropping by to say it is better if you have read The Big Nowhere before L.A. Confidential. You can see how Ellroy's staccato gets more pronounced and while this is not a direct sequel, some background characters and events from The Big Nowhere add to the reading experience. And if you like L.A. Confidential, be sure to read White Jazz, that one is pretty much a direct sequel.

And don't get overawed by so many titles, LA Quartet (practically a trilogy because the first one is a standalone) is easily one of the best crime series of all time. So it should be an enjoyable experience, well it is Ellroy so maybe not : ))

[Nancy, Co-Moderator]

The three books after Black Dahlia are often considered as "The Dudley Smith Trio." Soneone even packaged the three together:

https://www.fantasticfiction.com/e/ja...

[Aditya]

The thread looks empty, no takers yet? I think the bug where Goodreads stopped sending notification has kept posters away, I too decided to start once GR has fixed its issues. Anyway the bug is sorted now and I started reading today. Ed Exley became one of my favorite characters in crime fiction when I read it the first time, his first chapter already gave me glimpses why.

[Terry]

Aditya ... I believe I will have to pass on reading this book right now until Ive read book 1 and 2. I always prefer to start at the beginning of a series, but that may not always be the best?

[Aditya]

Terry wrote: "Aditya ... I believe I will have to pass on reading this book right now until Ive read book 1 and 2. I always prefer to start at the beginning of a series, but that may not always be the best?"

Terry sure you can expect some great reading. It is utterly dark but it is pretty great crime fiction. The first one is a standalone with completely different characters, the next three forms a loose trilogy.

[Terry]

Aditya .. thanks for the info about the series

[aPriL does feral sometimes]

I read the first two. Starting this one today.

[Linda]

I really don't care for this one. I must have a bad copy of the ebook because there is a lot of repeat material in the first half of the book.

[Aditya]

Hope you like it April, you should if you cared about the first two. Unfortunate Linda.

I actually just watched The Iceman Cometh after reading LA Confidential. Both are brilliant but twice as long as the average play or crime novel and so utterly bleak, that I almost need some time away to start feeling normal again. :(

[Aditya]

This saw a lot less participation than I expected, I was holding off on sharing my thoughts before more people finish it. Anyway most of the month is over, so here it is.

I loved it though the ending did not land for me. There is a bit too much focus on a subplot rather the main narrative of the book, but other than that it is brilliant. Crime noirs usually don't have this much ambition, it is so sprawling and epic. All three characters evolve a lot throughout the book, forget intricate even labyrinthine does not justify the plotting. The sheer scope, the staccato prose, the soul sapping darkness (still not as dark as The Big Nowhere or White Jazz) I loved it all.

Feel free to drop by and say who was your favorite among the characters. Exley for me or maybe Dudley, he is a force of personality, is not he?

My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...