Reviewed By: Michael Robison - RAM
The Big Switch
Amazon US PB Amazon Canada PB
Jack Bludis
Class/Genre: Mystery Hard Boiled
Series: Brian Kane # 1
2001
The prose is smooth and the ride is fast and exciting. It's 1951 in Hollywood and private investigator Brian Kane fights a desperate battle to find who is murdering starlets before his girlfriend ends up dead and the police nail him in a frame-up. There is an interesting cast of colorful characters, and it seems everybody is hiding secrets. The name-dropping is wickedly delightful, and the Fifties era comes alive in the book.
There's plenty of sex, sleaze, and violence, but there is also a perceptive and insightful portrayal of a complex relationship between Kane and his girlfriend Kitty. Bludis is the consummate artist, painting Kane's world in shades of gray, instead of fairy tale black and white.
Steeped in the hardboiled tradition, this is a beautifully written book. This is the first book I've read by Jack Bludis. It won't be the last.
I might also mention that the book comes in an absolutely beautiful trade paperback. Typical of trade paperbacks, at $15.95 it's a little expensive, but the cover is beautifully done, the paper is wonderfully white, and the print is high-quality and very easy on the eyes.
Michael Robison - RAM
Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Michael Robison - RAM
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