Synopsis/blurb….
Hired by mobster
Marie Andretti to ransack the office of morbidly obese local nightclub owner
'Swollen' Roland Smart, Paignton private investigator Joe Rey quickly finds
himself plunged into a dangerous cat and mouse game - which leaves him fighting
for his life. His quest for answers - and vengeance - sees him plunge headfirst
into the queasy underbelly of the grubby little seaside town he calls home. Rey
is a man with a dark past, and, it seems, very little future. Welcome to
Paignton Noir.
Years ago I spent a week on holiday in Paignton with the
wife and kids. After reading this one I doubt we’ll be returning.
When you see the sun rise in
Paignton it looks like a collapsed lung filling up with blood.
Low life characters, grimy watering holes, seedy nightclubs
and dingy brothels, a private investigator or two, a midget and a pornographer,
teenage strippers and prostitutes, a beating, a stabbing and lots more. Joe Rey
is on a case and plenty of blood is going to get spilled.
Wet-Look, a disgraced ex-cop and the other PI in town offers
Joe some sage advice……….
“Paignton’s a selfish, dirty town……The
only way to survive in this town is to corrupt yourself.”
Fantastic writing, brutal imagery, tremendous turns of
phrase with an interesting story – Joe doing some dirty work and travelling
from A to B to C, with casualties every step of the way. I did get a tad confused
at the plethora of low lives we encountered in such a short book – is there
no-one decent in Paignton? But overall an enjoyable journey. 44 gritty pages of
prose – my kind of book, even if I did need to shower afterwards to try and rid
some of the Paignton grime from my pores.
I’m looking forward to reading more from Tom Leins in the
future.
4.5 from 5
Read in July 2017
Published – 2017
Page count – 44
Source – review copy received from author
Format - kindle
Many thanks for the review Col - glad you enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteTom, lots to like here, cheers.
DeleteCol, with that cover and title I can't imagine this to be anything other than grittier than the grittiest. The page count is added incentive.
ReplyDeletePrahsnat, I would be curious to see what you think of it. There's a lot packed into its pages.
DeleteThis does sound awfully brutal and gritty, Col. Just on that count, I'm not sure it's for me. Still, the plot itself sounds interesting, and it's nice that it's not overlong.
ReplyDeleteMragot, definitely more me than you I reckon. It was interesting seeing the darker side to a place where I spent a week holidaying - albeit many years ago. Length was a plus point.
DeleteFingers ahead of brain, Margot - apologies!
DeleteBlimey, we holidayed near Paignton for several years running, and it always seemed so respectable. I admire his noir attitude but I don't think I could ever read something called Skull Meat...
ReplyDeleteThat is a top title. When we holidayed there, we stayed in a flat for a week self-catering and the previous occupant had made off with all the kitchen crockery and dishes and pots and pans. The landlady wouldn't believe us when we said there was nothing to cook with, and came flying into the flat throwing open cupboards, as if we could mistake an empty unit for one over-flowing with Pyrex and such. She was FUMING! Paignton has always had that crime-y feel to it!
DeleteCol – You got my attention with that “collapsed lung” quote. Thanks posting this.
ReplyDeleteElgin, I did enjoy it. That phrase certainly caught my eye.
DeleteI love the cover, but even at the small number of pages, I will have to let you read this one for me. I loved your story about your trip to Paignton.
ReplyDeleteI thought you might like the cover, but be less enamoured with the content. Our Paignton holiday gave us some great memories.
Delete