An ancient brotherhood meets annually in the back room of a swank Manhattan restaurant, a fraternity created in secret to celebrate life by celebrating its dead. But the past three decades have not been kind to the Club of 31. Matthew Scudder--ex-cop and ex-boozer--has known death in all its guises, which is why he has been asked to investigate a baffling thirty-year run of suicides and suspiciously random accidents that has thinned the ranks of this very select group of gentlemen.
But Scudder has mortality problems of his own, for his is a city that feeds mercilessly on the unsuspecting--even the powerful and those who serve them are easy prey. There are too many secrets here, too many places for a maddeningly patient serial killer to hide ... and wait ... and strike.
About the Author :
Lawrence Block is one of the most widely recognized names in the mystery genre. He has been named a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America and is a four-time winner of the prestigious Edgar and Shamus Awards, as well as a recipient of prizes in France, Germany, and Japan. He received the Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writers' Association--only the third American to be given this award. He is a prolific author, having written more than fifty books and numerous short stories, and is a devoted New Yorker and an enthusiastic global traveler.
Joe Barrett, an actor and Audie Award and Earphones Award-winning narrator, has appeared both on and off Broadway as well as in hundreds of radio and television commercials.
Review :
A superior storyteller...Block has an awareness of the pain and pleasure of living. It is a gift that not all authors have.
-- "San Antonio Express-News"
An intelligent detective story that plays fair with the reader and yet will keep you guessing until the very end.
-- "Rochester Post-Bulletin"
Block takes this absolutely wonderful premise and makes the most of it. Like all the best hard-boiled writers in the post-Chandler era, Block knows that character and ambience are the heart and soul of crime fiction, but unlike so many of his brethren, he also maintains a healthy respect for plot. When you read a lot of mysteries, you come to feel a numbing inevitability about literary murder: there are only so many motives and so many ways to kill somebody, and we've seen them all. Hence the pleasure of encountering a new Block novel and realizing again the joys of a fresh premise.
-- "Booklist (starred review) "
Ingenious...Consistently strong.
-- "Baltimore Sun"
Masterful fiction...Skillful and imaginative.
-- "Atlanta Journal-Constitution"
Matthew Scudder has evolved into the perfect noir hero.
-- "Entertainment Weekly"
One of the best writers now working the beat, Lawrence Block has done something new and remarkable with the private eye novel.
-- "Wall Street Journal"
Superb...Block writes better than all of them...He gets better and better all the time.
-- "Village Voice"
The newest Matt Scudder novel by the blessedly prolific Block is right up to his usual standards...His ex-call girl companion, Elaine, is her usual comforting self, and there's a brilliant portrait of an offbeat New York lawyer, obviously modeled on William Kunstler, who specializes in representing the underdog. The scene where the lawyer and suspicious ex-cop Scudder get to know and like each other is alone worth the price of the book.
-- "Publishers Weekly"
