Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pelecanos is a great writer, 18 Feb 2008
Pelecanos' reputation has been made writing tough action thrillers, with authentic dialogue, all notable for their equally authentic detail. Along the way he has created some memorable characters, and in "Hard Revolution" he chooses to take one of these, Derek Strange, and explore his motivations and the events that shaped him.
This story is told through those who would be most affected by, but least able to influence the momentous events of 1968. The major themes here are, unsurprisingly, racism and drugs, and their effects on the Strange family and a range of others from different backgrounds. What sets Pelecanos apart is a rare ability to write convincingly about different ethnic communities while avoiding stereotyping either the characters or their behaviour, and without slipping into sentimentality. As always, you will come to care deeply about the characters and, as always, period detail is superb, from the cars and clothes to the movies and TV programmes, but as usual with GP it is the music which is memorable - you can almost hear the Soul soundtrack of the book.
There must have been many novels written about America in the 60's, but few can have captured so accurately the feel of the times. This is not strictly an action thriller, although there is enough here to keep fans of the genre happy. Rather, it is a superb commentary on life in America in the late 60's, with much to say on the nature of Family and loyalty, justice and prejudice. Pelecanos has never been better and I cannot recommend this book highly enough
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent thriller with a solid background, 21 Mar 2005
Amazon has been recommending me Pelecanos novels for some time so I thought I was long overdue to actually try one. And I now wonder why I waited so long."Hard Revolution", like the rest of Pelecanos' novels, is firmly rooted in the underside of Washington DC; more specifically in the Greek and African-American communities. The time is Spring 1968; the city a powder-keg about to explode into riot after the assassination of Martin Luther King. Against this background Pelecanos weaves the stories of the Strange family, rookie policeman Derek and his Vietnam-vet brother Dennis, their father Darius, and their mother Alethea; and of veteran homicide cop Frank Vaughn. Strange and Vaughn are both trying to keep the peace in their own ways; to Vaughn, it's just a job, and an opportunity to make a few bucks on the side through - well, not exactly corruption, but irregular practices; to Strange, as a young black policeman in a city on the edge of chaos, it's a matter of identity, pride, and honour. A splendidly detailed and richly characterised novel, with an excellent sense of time and place - a pacy noir-ish thriller which acts as an excellent introduction to the author's work.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Hard Revolution - Fantastic Reading, 7 May 2004
Hard Revolution may be set in the sixties but don't let that put you off. The problems of race dealt with here are as common today as they were back then and Pelicanos' style of writing keeps the story moving along at a great pace. Derek Strange, a young black man, is a moving and heroic character whose decisions in life take us on a gripping journey which is totally believable - so much so that you can imagine yourself there by his side as he struggles to do the right thing. This is a book that you will in all probability finish in one or two sittings - but you will be thinking about it for a long time after. A great read and a great buy. Cannot recommend it enough. If you are looking for an author to follow then Pelicanos is one of the best.
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