Post by Mark Sieber on Jul 7, 2019 19:09:58 GMT
I've gone on at length about my love of Bill Pronzini and the Nameless Detective books. The first one I read, way back in the early 80's, was Undercurrent. That brings back a memory...
I was sitting in the long gone, badly-missed Sherwood Restaurant. Ninety-nine cent breakfast. Plenty of food, and well prepared. I was there one weekend morning, eating my breakfast and reading Undercurrent. An old guy was a the next table, eyeing me. Uh oh, I thought. He spoke up.
"Is that book about a submarine?"
"No." Squirming.
"My son works on a submarine! See..."
God, don't you HATE that? I know he was lonely, and I felt sorry for the old duck, but damn. I like my privacy and I was enjoying my book.
Anyway, Undercurrent was the first. I had read some Pronzini, but this was the first Nameless book. It sure wasn't the last.
Bill ended the series a couple of years ago, and my heart broke along with it. I felt like Nameless was an old friend. I lived and suffered and experienced joy with him for a long time. Everything has to end, I know, but I just wish it didn't hurt so badly.
I'm reading Undercurrent again. It's a good book, but Bill and his character, as well as his writing chops, grew so much as the years went by.
I was sitting in the long gone, badly-missed Sherwood Restaurant. Ninety-nine cent breakfast. Plenty of food, and well prepared. I was there one weekend morning, eating my breakfast and reading Undercurrent. An old guy was a the next table, eyeing me. Uh oh, I thought. He spoke up.
"Is that book about a submarine?"
"No." Squirming.
"My son works on a submarine! See..."
God, don't you HATE that? I know he was lonely, and I felt sorry for the old duck, but damn. I like my privacy and I was enjoying my book.
Anyway, Undercurrent was the first. I had read some Pronzini, but this was the first Nameless book. It sure wasn't the last.
Bill ended the series a couple of years ago, and my heart broke along with it. I felt like Nameless was an old friend. I lived and suffered and experienced joy with him for a long time. Everything has to end, I know, but I just wish it didn't hurt so badly.
I'm reading Undercurrent again. It's a good book, but Bill and his character, as well as his writing chops, grew so much as the years went by.