Darkness, Take My Hand

This is probably a 2.5 book, but does lean more toward the 2 end than the 3 end.I don't mind a “dark”, “gritty” or even a “violent” novel. This novel is all of those. I like [a:Robert B. Parker 397 Robert B. Parker http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1354149354p2/397.jpg], whose stories I find to be quite gritty and violent. I like [a:Elizabeth George 1402383 Elizabeth George http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1235518043p2/1402383.jpg], whose plots I find to be very dark and the crimes often violent. But these first 2 books in the Kenzie and Gennaro series are just too much of the gritty, dark, and violent for me. It's almost as if the desire to disturb is Lehane's focus. The book is significantly longer than Parker's (generally coming in at about 200 pages), and it really doesn't need to be. But describing pages and pages of creeps and creepiness takes up lots of space. I get the sense, though, that Lehane is attempting to do deep and complicated character studies more like those of George, which accounts for the length. Unfortunately, the characters are just unbelievable for me.I don't particular care for Angela Gennaro, and I really don't care for Patrick Kenzie. From my perspective, Kenzie is pretty much a self-absorbed jackass. In the end that's really why the book is a 2. I did feel compelled to read it (it is a suspense novel afterall). It certainly is violent, but it just isn't deep, not in the sense that it deserves more than 200 pages. If you like just good PI suspense, read some Parker. If you like mysteries that develop along with their characters, try some George.

I've read this 4 or 5 times now, still got tense at all the right spots (thankfully, it was the middle of the day this time so I wasn't quite as jumpy as usual). Pretty sure that's a sign of an author who knows what he's doing. Not the best of the series, which isn't taking away anything from this one, just saying how good some of the others (like Gone Baby Gone) are.