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Leather Maiden (2008)

by Joe R. Lansdale(Favorite Author)

3.78 of 5 Votes: 1

ISBN

0375414525 (ISBN13: 9780375414527)

languge

English

genre

Horror

publisher

Knopf

review 1: This is Lansdale at his very best: gritty, barbaric, funny, shocking and compulsive. Lansdale is head and shoulders above his peers and in this novel he has created another dark slice of pure Texas mayhem. The characters are believable and the dialogue crackles along like a bush-fire with some of the funniest lines ever to be printed.This is the perfect example of what Lansdale does best and is the perfect example of why, in my opinion, he's currently the best crime writer in the States.Highly recommended.
review 2: What a shame! After many good reviews, I was looking forward to try this author and picked "Leather Maiden" first. Such a disappointment! After only a few pages it gets clear quickly how the author intends to score: By talking big and rude. Don’t ... moremisunderstand me – I have nothing against coarse language in a crime novel and I am a big fan of classic pulp crime novels, where the protagonists don’t use words in a highly sensitive way. However, Lansdale is not able to hold a candle to authors such as Donald E. Westlake or Lawrence Block. Lansdale’s words are too put-on and usually come directly from right below the waist. In nearly every paragraph someone is figuratively shoving something up somebody’s ass, burning his balls or commenting something with a fart. Now and then a dirty joke can really make a smile, but if almost every character in the book uses cheap fecal slang, I am yawning by boredom after two dozens of pages.The author seemed to have noticed that rude language alone doesn’t make a good novel, and so the mystery comes to an end quite suddenly after two thirds of the book. An end which is not characterized by plain humor but rampant violence. Skulls are removed, women are skinned alive and disemboweled to satisfy every voyeur’s needs. Why the killers do all this mess, the author barely explains – they are simply evil, that has to be enough. And naturally, the hero, who is traumatized by the Gulf War, is a really good guy and loves children. Ok, just sometimes he has to turn a blind eye to his soldier-buddy who tortures an opponent to death. Sorry Mr. Lansdale, but that's not enough for a good thriller. The orgy of violence and the tedious genital just seem mannered to me. Too bad, not least because the author is quite skilled in writing. I am not sure if I will try another Lansdale. less

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