The publishing industry is filled with predictable books. By that I don't mean just formula genre books, such as most romances, action-adventure books, and mysteries, but mainstream books with predictable elements: anti-hero, rising arcs of action over three hundred or so pages, happy ending or not, closure. Such elements have become so ingrained in the industry that books that go against them must be so strongly written that readers (and critics) overlook the lack of familiar elements. In Drive, the powerful prose of James Sallis provides just such a distraction, in a book so off-beat that we never even learn the protagonist's name.

Written in the best noir style, Drive opens, literally, in a pool of blood. The protagonist, whose name is never more than "Driver", spends part of his time as a stunt driver for the movies, and another part driving for criminals. As the book opens, his work for (the non-Hollywood) criminals has taken a terrible turn, and Driver finds his life completely unhinged. The rest of the book explores how Driver has come to be in this situation, and how he might get himself out. As the story unfolds across Arizona and southern California, Sallis's lean and powerful prose draws a stark image of a man on the fringe of society, in a dark world that most of us only see in the corners of our eyes as we drive quickly by.

From a writer's perspective, Drive is an excellent example of handling flashback. Common advice for writers is to begin "in media res"-in the middle of the action. Drive takes this to the extreme, beginning only a few days before the end, but telling a story that sweeps across a span of years. What does that mean for a story? Flashback, and lots of it. Probably two thirds of the book is flashback, and while that can be the kiss of death for a story in the hands of an amateur, Sallis handles it flawlessly. Despite the dramatic jumps backward and forward in time, a reader goes through the pages without feeling lost. Instead, the narrative comes together as a jigsaw puzzle, with the pieces falling into place one by one until the final, inevitable, piece completes the picture.

Cover to cover, Sallis puts on a demonstration of the style and structure of quality writing. Drive easily could be (and surely will be if it isn't already) used as a textbook in a creative writing class. It's that good.

Drive is an excellent book, written by a veteran author who really understands books and writing. Any fan of noir should not miss it, and anyone who enjoys a solid story wrapped in excellent prose should not miss it either. That, in my opinion, should include everyone. ( )

Disappointing. While there were a few excerpts that were of the standard I was expecting overall the book neither contained enough energy to propel it forward based on momentum alone or the character development to draw one into the story. The only saving grace is the brevity at not much more than novella. ( )

Short, punchy, enjoyable and violent tale of a driver who does Hollywood stunts by day and is a robbery driver by night. Engaging and quick. ( )

An absolutely stunning piece of neo-noir. Brutal and beautiful in nearly every sentence. Sallis pares the story of Driver and a heist gone bad down to its very skeleton, and yet, every character is rich with enigmas and mysteries. It's an afternoon read, but it lingers on much longer. ( )

Short as a novella, high-octane and epic, I still didn't quite get this thing. At least, not the way the critics tell it, using words like "perfect". Maybe I should have read more sallis first?

As a pared-down skeleton of noir, I guess it does the trick - events the hero doesn't ask for make him act against his own values and then his own moral axis spins, making him into something new.

All the important characters have the gift of moral complexity, but I just couldn't quite care enough. Not sure why? Maybe because I never had the sense that these people would ever be fully engaged again, or happy or anything. But also not miserable or challenged or firy. It's like they landed at some sort of space a little too close to contentment, a place with a bar and good food and interesting conversation, but places like that don't make good stories.

All the same - great story sketching, great pace, even with all the jumping around, beautifully done violence (NOT an oxymoron)and the description of everything cars was captivating. ( )