The Gutter and the Grave Audiobook

" Classic mystery with dames and a down and out detective. A fun read. "

" As a three-hour read, this book (an early Ed McBain, before he went by that pseudonym) feels like the sketch of a famous painter hanging nearby completed masterpieces, clearly offering up hints of brilliant writing within the detective genre, but not particularly satiating or gripping on its own. Fun and quick, perfect for a bus trip or flight. "

" A solid noir from the Hard Case series. McBain was a master of hard dialogue, and you'll get plenty of that with this early effort from him. You'll also get a great sense of late 1950s New York, with its jazz clubs, language and atmosphere. (I was reminded a bit of the wonderful early 1960s AMC series, "Mad Men.") In other words, the book is dated in all the right ways. On the downside, the murder "mystery" is a bit by the numbers, and I doubt anyone will be surprised at the ending. "

" Enjoyable mystery. Unusual that the hero is such a down-and-out character, but interesting to watch him pull himself up and slip back into detective mode to solve the mystery. I appreciated how the author was able to evoke the heat, the sounds, and the intensity of summer in New York City. And if I was a step or two ahead of the detective at the end, I was willing to overlook it for the street-level view of late 1950s-New York. "

" starts off as a hardboil'd crime novel, quickly reveals it self a slightly better than average novel of plot twists. once the chandler formula of 'females as antagonist' becomes clear, the plot twists just become a bit annoying. an easy sunday read though. not bad, all considered. "

" Great, straightforward midcentury detective story by genius McBain. Great example of the genre, fast-moving and readable. "

" This was a pretty lame hard boiled crime novel. I had the mystery figured out with more than half the book left to go. There just wasn't enough misdirection to fool me. "

" A little racy, nothing amazing, but lots of fun. Pretty much exactly what you'd expect from the cover. Really short, good for a plane ride. "

" Fun little Hard Boiled Crime Story. "

" Classic gritty hard boiled crime novel. Not fabulous but not bad. "

" Terribly bleak and direct, with a suitably intricate plot. I'm discovering that I love certain hard-boiled 50s crime stories. "

" Everything you want in a noir mystery. Fast pace, a plot that is intriguing and (almost) plausible, dripping with atmosphere. The only reason it did not get 5 stars was the perfunctory and formulaic ending. Even so, highly recommended. "

" Definitely 3 stars. I might have given it higher marks if I didn't have it all figured out so early. It was just a little to simple & obvious. Well done, though. Likable characters, believable motives & setting. Very well setup & played out. "

" This one is pretty decent, but there are a ton of better Ed McBain books out there. I absolutely love the scenes that take place in the jazz hole, very cool. "

" Typical early McBain, taut and terse. A drunk private eye saves the day and solves the crime. Originally published as I'm Cannon - For Hire under the psuedonym Curt Cannon. This is the second Hard Case Crime books I've read and they both were great fun. "

" Not the best introduction to an author considered one for the greats of crime fiction. It's a minor pulp title from the late '50's. A drunken ex-P.I. takes a case from an old friend. Lies, sex, and murder ensue. Meh? "

" Great stuff. Quick read with great dialogue and sharp action. Lots of fun. "

" A joyous, guilty, pulp read. Lots of back stabs, mis-direction, and nihilistic angry men. Fun and quick to read. "

" Interesting to read an old-style detective yarn. "

" Early McBain doing a fair imitation of Mickey Spillane. "

" I had never read McBain. This was so much better than I had anticipated. Crackling good dialog. "

" "She poured three inches of straight bourbon over the ice in her glass. 'Here's to murderers,' she said, 'the goddam world is full of them.'" Brief, entertaining noir from 1958. I guessed whodunnit, but that's OK. "

" This was a pretty lame hard boiled crime novel. I had the mystery figured out with more than half the book left to go. There just wasn't enough misdirection to fool me. "

" Typical early McBain, taut and terse. A drunk private eye saves the day and solves the crime. Originally published as I'm Cannon - For Hire under the psuedonym Curt Cannon. This is the second Hard Case Crime books I've read and they both were great fun. "

" Definitely 3 stars. I might have given it higher marks if I didn't have it all figured out so early. It was just a little to simple & obvious. Well done, though. Likable characters, believable motives & setting. Very well setup & played out. "

" Interesting to read an old-style detective yarn. "

" A little racy, nothing amazing, but lots of fun. Pretty much exactly what you'd expect from the cover. Really short, good for a plane ride. "

" starts off as a hardboil'd crime novel, quickly reveals it self a slightly better than average novel of plot twists. once the chandler formula of 'females as antagonist' becomes clear, the plot twists just become a bit annoying. an easy sunday read though. not bad, all considered. "

" Great, straightforward midcentury detective story by genius McBain. Great example of the genre, fast-moving and readable. "

" Fun pulp book. I am a HUGE fan of the Hard Case Crime series! "

" This one is pretty decent, but there are a ton of better Ed McBain books out there. I absolutely love the scenes that take place in the jazz hole, very cool. "