Helpful Score: 1
It's time to go to the mattresses.
"City of Fire" stays true to its crime family roots and delivers what it advertises. With a nod to the Illiad's Helen of Troy, a gang war is sparked when a beautiful "goddess" walks out of the sea and all hell breaks loose between the Irish and Italians controlling Providence, Rhode Island⦠Dogtown. Danny Ryan first appears as a forgotten member of the Irish mob, an afterthought pretty much in place because his old man used to run things. As things get hotter and the casualties mount, he reluctantly finds himself asserting more control and leadership. While the outline seems like pretty standard gangster fare, the story never stops taking interesting twists and turns. Just when you think one side has quashed the other, everything flips. Don Winslow is a master and knows how to keep the action going.
While an exciting ride, this is not for everyone. There is some racist and homophobic content-- this is the criminal underworld, after all. Also, once Pam walks out of the sea there is not much more any female really contributes, other than playing spouses or victims. "City of Fire '' is apparently the first part of a trilogy and hopefully we will see the women play more integral roles.
Overall, this is great storytelling and I will be looking forward to where things go from here. I mean, you had to see Godfather II as well, right? I received an advance review copy for free (an offer I could not refuse), and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
"City of Fire" stays true to its crime family roots and delivers what it advertises. With a nod to the Illiad's Helen of Troy, a gang war is sparked when a beautiful "goddess" walks out of the sea and all hell breaks loose between the Irish and Italians controlling Providence, Rhode Island⦠Dogtown. Danny Ryan first appears as a forgotten member of the Irish mob, an afterthought pretty much in place because his old man used to run things. As things get hotter and the casualties mount, he reluctantly finds himself asserting more control and leadership. While the outline seems like pretty standard gangster fare, the story never stops taking interesting twists and turns. Just when you think one side has quashed the other, everything flips. Don Winslow is a master and knows how to keep the action going.
While an exciting ride, this is not for everyone. There is some racist and homophobic content-- this is the criminal underworld, after all. Also, once Pam walks out of the sea there is not much more any female really contributes, other than playing spouses or victims. "City of Fire '' is apparently the first part of a trilogy and hopefully we will see the women play more integral roles.
Overall, this is great storytelling and I will be looking forward to where things go from here. I mean, you had to see Godfather II as well, right? I received an advance review copy for free (an offer I could not refuse), and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Winslow's books always read as if they're describing real events. I lived about 25 miles north of Providence in the same time period as the events in the book and I have no recollection of a crime war. Of course, I was more interested in Boston news than events in Rhode Island. So, maybe the books are complete fiction or maybe they reflect real happenings. In any case, a totally readable book. I enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the next installment in the "Danny Ryan" series.
