- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Orion; paperback / softback edition (22 Feb 2001)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0575071702
- ISBN-13: 978-0575071704
- Product Dimensions: 22.8 x 15.2 x 2.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,868,240 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
It was late at night and everyone was shouting, when off-duty black cop Chris Wilson was shot dead by his colleague Terry Quinn; middle-aged black private eye and ex-cop Strange is hired by Wilson's mother to find out exactly what happened--Wilson ended up being blamed for his own death and she wants her son's name cleared. Strange finds himself taking to Quinn, a bright young man with anger-management issues; Quinn himself is anxious to find out what caused the misunderstanding and shooting that ended Wilson's life and Quinn's career. Right as Rain is an intelligent thriller because it offers no especially easy answers--Quinn is so little a racist that he falls easily into a friendship with Strange, enough of a friendship that he will from time to time make crass assumptions. And meanwhile Pelecanos lets us see enough of the drug-dealing underground of Washington DC and the near-terminal decline of Wilson's junkie sister Sondra that we know there are revelations to come. Pelecanos is good on male friendship and the things that keep people sane--Strange is a richly imagined smart cautious man who puts himself in serious danger for what is right. --Roz Kaveney
Book Description
'The coolest writer in America' (GQ) begins a new crime series in his most accessible and commercial novel yet.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've lived in DC for 20 years, my family is from here, and Pelecanos is only the second author I've come across who writes about the DC that I know and recognize (the other Edward Jones, check out his story collection "Lost in the City" if you can find it). In this new book, he steps away from his established characters Nick Stefanos and Dmitri Karras, and launches a new duo, black, middle-aged PI Derek Strange, and younger, white ex-cop Terry Quinn. Through them, and the story of Chris Wilson, an off-duty black cop shot by Quinn, Pelecanos displays the racial awkwardness and tension that pervades Washington, D.C. The central message of the book is that everyone, regardless of race, carries preconceptions with them about other groups. That doesn't make them racist-that term is reserved for those who carry hatred in their hearts.
Strange is hired to investigate the shooting of her son, Chris Wilson, leading him to Quinn, who works in a little used bookstore in Silver Spring (Like all the locations in the book, the store really exists, it's a few blocks from my office and I sometimes swing by on my lunch break). The two men fall into an uneasy partnership as this discover more about he events that led to Quinn's killing of Wilson. They make an engagingly effective odd couple as they verbally spar with one another about race, underneath their respective flaws, they're good men. At the same time, both men are struggling to make relationships work, Strange with his divorcee secretary, and Quinn with a Latina student/waitress. As with most of Pelecanos's men, they often make selfish or simply clumsy moves in looking for love. And like most of those same guys, they have well-defined tastes in music, cars, movies, and books.
Following the tone of Pelecanos's previous work, what is gradually revealed is a sordid tale of drugs and corruption, with some powerful drug pushers, and a few violent rednecks. All this unfolds in a world instantly recognizable to Washington natives, where drug dealers work in the open, neighborhoods revolve around local restaurants, and corruption has spread to even the upscale oases (the well-known high-end restaurant Red Sage being one example). As we have come to expect from Pelecanos, everything comes together in a cinematic violent climax offering some attempt at justice. If you've read and enjoyed previous books of his, you're likely to enjoy this one as well. It's got two great new characters, and is a bit more explicit in examining racism, but is otherwise very much in keeping with his previous work.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This was my first venture into George P. and I must confess to being somewhat underwhelmed as he is undoubtedly hugely popular. I enjoyed the book but wouldn't classify it as any sort of classic as it is extremely cliched. The "good guys" are a black guy - white guy couple with lots of author asides about race which didn't impress. The "bad guys" are fairly obvious "redneck" types who listen to country music and sell drugs and kill people in that order.Pelecanos spends too much time describing Strange's (the P.I.)choice in music. This adds nothing to the story and is an annoying mannerism.The plot is well worked and the ending is solid but there are fairly obvious nods to the "screenplay" hopes with the obligatory lovemaking scenes and the conclusion paving the way for the follow-up. I will read more of his books but he won't replace my favourite crime authors - Rankin, Connolly and Ellroy. Not essential reading.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
My introduction to Pelecanos was The Big Blowdown a brilliant noir novel that reads like a lost classic from the '40's, and from his work on The Wire. I picked this up in a charity shop and couldn't wait to start reading it, but what a disappointment it turned out to be.A very straightforward private detective mystery thriller sub Dennis Lehane's Kenzie/Genaro novels.The twist this time is that the twosome are middle aged black hipster Derek Strange and cool white dude Terry Quinn. Did I say twist?Well only if you don't remember the '60's and Bill Cosby and Robert Culp in I Spy and Hickey & Boggs, tv show and movie respectively and both infinitely superior to this in exploring the dynamic between black and white. And bringing things more up to date it's very hard to believe from reading this that Pelecanos has anything to do with the superlative The Wire.
The plot is very obvious and I didn't find any of the characters interesting or colourful enough to forget how humdrum much of the dialogue was.The constant music, book and film references seemed less about giving the characters added depth and more about showing how hip Pelecanos thinks he is.Thirty pages from the end I found myself struggling to finish the damn thing.I won't be reading any more of this series, but The Big Blowdown was so good I'll certainly be checking out his other work.
The plot is very obvious and I didn't find any of the characters interesting or colourful enough to forget how humdrum much of the dialogue was.The constant music, book and film references seemed less about giving the characters added depth and more about showing how hip Pelecanos thinks he is.Thirty pages from the end I found myself struggling to finish the damn thing.I won't be reading any more of this series, but The Big Blowdown was so good I'll certainly be checking out his other work.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
So so
This book would probably be quite a good holiday read, but it is not exactly a page-turner. Some of the characters interesting enough, but the plot itself simply wasn't that... Read more
Published 11 months ago by A reader
Great start to a great series
Right as Rain is the first in a series of private investigator books by George Pelecanos. The series focuses on Derek Strange a lifetime resident of Washington DC (on the other... Read more
Published on 22 Sep 2007 by O. Parker
An okay Pelecanos
I have been reading pretty much everything that Pelecanos has written but this is my first foray into reading his Quinn and Strange books and I think it is an okay book with all... Read more
Published on 2 Aug 2007 by MrShev
Slow to get going
This is my first Pelecanos novel. I normally read a book this size in a week, this one took me 5. Not that its a bad book, its just not that rivetting and moves quite slowly all... Read more
Published on 7 Sep 2006 by Scully Bloke
Competent writing and a pleasant diversion
I'm not sure I understand where the 5 star ratings are coming from - possibly Pelecanos' formula crime story is just better than most of the dross being published in this genre. Read more
Published on 29 May 2002 by Huck Flynn
Another very good Pelecanos novel
"Right as rain" is another very good Pelecanos thriller. The author is recognizable and is still faithful to the space where his novels take place: Washignton DC; and he... Read more
Published on 11 Dec 2001 by Marina Heck
As good as it gets
A most exceptional book about masculinity, race and modern America. Pelecanos paints some deeply disturbing pictures, which stayed with me all day. Read more
Published on 3 May 2001
simply fantastic
a wonderful crime story, a moving tale of the growing friendship between two very different men and a fantastic ending. Read more
Published on 5 April 2001
A must read from a less well known author
I found this story of a veteran P.I who's hired to find the truth behind the killing of a black off-duty cop by a fellow white officer almost impossible to put down. Read more
Published on 5 Mar 2001
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