Duane Swierczynski’s THE WHEELMAN is a fast-moving, darkly humorous cross between PULP FICTION and 24 , a non-stop blur of turnabouts, double-crosses, coincidences, cliff-hangers and switch-backs. At first the dizzying, relentless pace of the plot is exhilirating, funny and addictive…full of quirky characters and sudden violence… but about 3/4s of the way through, it becomes tiresome and repetitive (it doesn’t help that the characters themselves are going around in circles). While there’s much to admire in Swierczynski’s tight prose, sharp dialogue and colorful characters, he gets too caught up in his own cleverness, letting his plot spin into nothing. Ultimately, the book is a ride that doesn’t take you anywhere… a race without a finish line. But there’s no doubt Swierczynski has got the talent, and the voice, to write a great crime novel. And I wouldn’t be surprised if his next one is it.
Do you think this book would appeal to someone who really liked “The Transporter”? I have a friend with a birthday coming up and this sounds right up his alley.
It’s a damn good book, so I’d recommend it to anyone who likes crime stories.
My reaction was pretty much the same. Lots of twists and turns, but no emotional investment in the story or the characters.
That being said, the book was undeniably well written. I’m interested in reading the next book from this author.
Although the book is called THE WHEELMAN, there isn’t that much driving in it…so I’m not sure why you think it would appeal to a fan of the movie THE TRANSPORTER (a movie that I enjoyed a lot, too). I haven’t read James Sallis’ much-acclaimed novel DRIVE yet…maybe that has more auto-action in it.
I would recommend Dan J. Marlowe’s original version of THE NAME OF THE GAME IS DEATH or any of Harry Whittington’s novels (A MOMENT TO PREY is a good one to start with)…which seems to be the kind of thing that Duane was striving for but didn’t quite hit. That said, he’s a terrific writer and I count myself one of his new fans. Victor Gischler’s GUN MONKEYS is also terrific… it has a similar tone and pace as WHEELMAN but holds together much better.
Although the book is called THE WHEELMAN, there isn’t that much driving in it…so I’m not sure why you think it would appeal to a fan of the movie THE TRANSPORTER (a movie that I enjoyed a lot, too).
Mostly from Amazon’s review. I know, I know, those things are usually full of misleading information. I think it was this clip from the editor review:
Lennon, the untalkative Irish hero, doesn’t technically rob banks, but he does drive the getaway car for guys who do. Though he is a consummate pro, the job is unpredictable by nature, and when we meet him–waiting outside a Wachovia bank in Philadelphia–he is about to find out exactly how unpredictable.
I’m pretty sure the fight scenes and laconic hero were the main draws of the movie for my friend. I’ve been trying to lure him into pulp, since I know he’d love it, but I wasn’t really sure where to start.
So I’ll definitely check your recommendations out — we live a hour away from a huge mystery bookstore. And I wanted an excuse to go ‘fill up’ for myself too.
You might recommend Ken Bruen and Jason Starr’s Bust to your friend. It’s a dark, funny and extremely well done piece of noir.