Dammit, dammit, dammit

[yendi]

Elmore Leonard has passed away.

I have a long-backlogged post updating my summer reading. Almost everything I've read this summer has been from the mystery/crime genres, and while none of it has been by Leonard, his influence is visible throughout. If you haven't read his books, you've missed some brilliant writing. I'm not a huge fan of the oft-forwarded "rules" of his, but instead of that, go find some of his books. Rum Punch is somehow out of print, but it's worth grabbing used just to see the source material for the lesser (if brilliantly-acted) Jackie Brown. Out of Sight and Get Shorty are just as fun as the films they became. The Hot Kid is a damned fine crime book (not so much the sequel, Up in Honey's Room, which I reviewed six years ago; like many prolific authors, Leonard had his lesser moments), and if you're watching Justified and haven't read Raylan, for shame.

Comments

[theloriest.livejournal.com]

I was also sad when I saw the news. I was also on a crime fiction kick this summer and read my entire collection of his books (rereads for a couple of them) and his characters are just so vivid and wonderful. I haven't seen Justified yet, but I've read the Raylan books.