If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be? He actually is better than the material he is narrating, IMHO. He gives both Patrick and Angie very memorable voices. I have listened to him before, although I can't remember specific books. Have you listened to any of Jonathan Davis’s other performances before? How does this one compare? Spenser, though, is terse where Lehane overwrites for no apparent reason other than to have as many pages as he can crank out, I am sorry to say. The same neighborhoods that Spenser hangs out in. This is the kind of book that Elmore Leonard would cut down to about 100 pages although, in truth, he would never write it. There's way too much of Patrick's macho swagger with the other tough guys. Witty, plenty of sexual tension (which you know will never be resolved), but the other characters tend to be one-dimensional and kind of cartoonish within this genre. Mystic River was an amazing start, the movie truly one of the best I saw in the last century. I'm not sure why it took me so long to get to Dennis Lehane, but now I think I know. The book has many things to recommend it but it's not all that suspenseful. Where does A Drink Before the War rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?ĭid the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I agree that we still have a long way to go, but we do have a black president, is that not progress? I believe the host should read books like this, to remind him how it used to be. The host made the statement that we have made no advances in race relations. Recently I listened to an interview on NPR in which the host was interviewing a black leader over the shooting in Florida. Bonus: Since this is a political book, I want to make a political statement. My favorite DL books are The Given Day, Sacred and Shutter Island. I have listened to the third book in the series (Sacred) and it is even better. This being the first in a series you should get it. Some may be a little appalled by some of there solutions to problems. His characters are also similar to the girl with the dragon tattoo, in that they do not always do what is politically correct. His characters are cliche, but I love them anyway. I am normally not a mystery or detective fan, but I do like the writings of Lehane and Gerritsen. This is my sixth book of his and they have all been good to excellent. Some authors know how to get my attention and hold it and Lehane is one of them.

The book is also fairly political and like all Lehane novels it takes place in Boston. The war in the title refers to a gang war. It is also filled with lots of macho talk from cops, private eye's and gang members. They are here along with cops riding in Crown Victoria's. Remember the Cordovia, Grenada and Chevette. Published in 1994, this is mostly about race relations and the politics of the 70's and 80's.

A drink before the war by dennis lehane