Crumleys breathtakingly violent books swept the hardboiled. Although praised by his fellow authors, up until about 1990, his books sold more in japan and france than they did stateside. Last good kiss december 1, 1980 edition open library. Last good kiss has 4 available editions to buy at half price books marketplace.
Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published. Sughrue and trahearne are both veterans, of vietnam. His novel the last good kiss was referred to as the most influential crime novel of the last 50 years. You called when you lost your father last year, this year your mother. One of the most influential crime novels ever written, by a legend of the genre. This thriller comes complete with femme fatales, corrupt politicians, a shootout, a chase scene, and an extremely high stakes scandal. Hes been described as a cross between raymond chandler and hunter s. Introduced in the last good kiss random house, 1978, he also starred. Full of drama, attitude, and glamour, the last good kiss follows tamara jones, a sexy, savvy businesswoman who is blessed and cursed by six sometimesselfish, yet always supportive girlfriends who all take on the. I broke down and read it after i got tired of hearing fawning references to its immortal opening sentence when i finally caught up with abraham trahearne, he was drinking beer with an alcoholic bulldog named fireball roberts in a. Brainy and lean, the kind who watched me sleep, you said i was too good for mascara. In 2007, the magazine mens journal named the last good kiss as number 12 on its list of top 15 thrillers of all time, and in newsweek, george pelecanos, crime author and coproducer of the hbo series the wire, rated crumleys the last good kiss as number 3.
Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. Seeing it brought back into print is probably the most exciting sight of my bookselling career to date. Heard about this book in an otto penzler compilation, in an intro where he called it the single greatest private eye novel written. His book the last good kiss has been described as the most influential crime novel of the last 50 years.
Sughrue, a montana private eye, is hired to track down abraham trahearne, a failing author, and winds up searching for betty sue flowers, a woman who has been missing for ten years. The last good kiss c w sughrue, book 1 by james crumley book cover, description, publication history. The last good kiss c w sughrue, book 1 by james crumley. Top american libraries canadian libraries universal library community texts project gutenberg biodiversity heritage library childrens library. James crumley 19392008 was an american author of hardboiled crime fiction. James crumley, crime novelist, is dead at 68 the new york times. The last good kiss, book by james crumley paperback. Pdf the last good kiss download full pdf book download. Originally published in 1978, the last good kiss is the book that made me fall in love with crime fiction and fall further in love with reading. The last good kiss pdf download full pdf read book page. In 2007, the magazine mens journal named the last good kiss as number 12 on its list of top 15 thrillers of all time, and in newsweek, george pelecanos, crime author and coproducer of the hbo series the wire, rated crumleys the last good kiss as number 3 in his list of the five most important crime novels. Sughrue and trahearne are both veterans, of vietnam and wwii respectively. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the last good kiss. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
James crumley books list of books by author james crumley. Full of drama, attitude, and glamour, the last good kiss follows tamara jones, a sexy, savvy businesswoman who is blessed and cursed by six sometimesselfish, yet always supportive girlfriends who all take on the tribulations of friends, family, and of course, love. Hired to track down a derelict author, he ends up on the trail of a. Sughrue, a montana investigator who kills time by working at a topless bar. Sex and the city meets soul in this tale of tamara jones, a beautiful, ambitious, successful woman who is about to have her life turned upside down. Another was james crumleys crime novel, the last good kiss. Hired to track down a derelict author, he ends up on the trail of a girl missing in haight. Trahearne forced himself to kill a wounded enemy to transform into a warrior and was never able to turn himself back. This novel, written in the style and literary traditions of the socalled hard boiled crime novel, tells the story of private investigator cw sughrues search for a runaway young woman, missing for ten years.
The last good kiss by james crumley, signed abebooks. The last good kiss starts off with cw sughrue being paid to search for an alcoholic, larger than life, norman mailertype writer called abraham. Tough, hardboiled, and brilliantly suspenseful, the last good kiss is an unforgettable detective story starring c. Normal delivery times can be slightly delayed but we are working closely with our supply partners to get books to you efficiently and safely. Last good kiss by james crumley, december 1, 1980, pocket edition, paperback in english last good kiss december 1, 1980 edition open library. The 1978 publication of the last good kiss was a turning point not only in the career of its author james crumley but also in the crime genre itself.
The last good kiss by james crumley, 9781784161583, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. The last good kiss, a novel by crumley, james and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The last good kiss by james crumley signed first edition. One of the most influential crime novels ever written. The last good kiss is one of those novels that makes the latent writer in you provided youre male and have a proclivity for characters that drink hard, live hard and enact pretty egregious violence upon others and themselves want to get out the old remington and. I first read about the exploits of crumleys endearingly amoral private detective c.
The last good kiss still blows me away, the complexity of the story, the flawed and damaged nature of the characters, the way it wove counter cultural themes and crime fiction together. Buy the last good kiss by james crumley online at alibris. Not only did i love this private eye mystery for its inclusion of fireball, the beer slurping bulldog, but it also included a volkswagon bug, my own beloved first car. And in the last good kiss, crumley uses it to explore the battered bars and small towns of seventies postvietnam war american. The last good kiss by james crumley, first edition abebooks. The last good kiss by james crumley great pick for 2020. The last good kiss book king county library system. Crumleys first published novel, 1969s one to count.