S. A. Cosby

What a phenomenal crime writer. With his own, fast-paced style, African American main characters, a Cosby thriller reads like a Coen brothers crime movie with the same type of quirky, flawed characters.

Central in this case is Bug, a capable car mechanic and speed-racer. The story opens with Bug and his best friend and workmate joining a street race to earn some money. They win the race but then two (fake) policemen pluck them, leaving them with no money at all. Bug, however, sees through show more the ploy and beats up the white guy who tempted them for a race, tracks him down, beats him up and recoups some of his money. This sets the tone – duplicitous characters, blatant southern racism (story is set in Virginia), and fast action combined with sudden bursts of extreme violence. In the end Bug is tempted to go for one final big hit (robbing some diamonds from a jewellery shop), but ends up sticking his nose in a high level crime network (the diamonds are part of the illegal stash of a network of pimps and drug traffickers). Nice twists and turns in the plot, plus a couple of white brothers, who are deeply flawed (duplicitous and dumb-fuck). Betrayal, loss of friends, neglect of family, it is all there. By the way ‘blacktop’ is an American word, meaning tarmac. show less

I often come on here and rant about how crappy a book is. Hell, I think I did that less than three days ago.

So, it's really nice to dive into a book that I expect to be good, and instead, I get something that's damn near perfect. One that ticks all the boxes. One that I actually look forward to picking up again once I've put it down. And one that I put down only because real life intrudes.

Others have talked very well about all the good points of this novel. Go read the other four and show more five-star reviews. They ain't lying.

As for the book's effect on me, well...I'm going to state right up front that a lot of the stuff Bug is dealing with—a mean, spiteful mother, a long-standing marriage, kids that I love and want to grow up better than me, a father that wasn't a good man, and also left his family because other things were more important, and knowing that there's one kind of calling inside me, but the right thing to do is to try and push that down and smother it to be a better man... yeah, I understand every single aspect of that. And it's captured incredibly well here.

But the author is careful and talented enough to ensure it never gets preachy and it never gets dull. The driving scenes are uniformly perfect, and adrenaline-soaked. The family scenes are heartwarming and heartbreaking. The scenes of Beauregard doing everything he can to be a good husband, a good father, and a good man are real and visceral.

And then the author just keeps throwing obstacles up in front of him. He piles them on with glee and when he's done, he finds some more and piles them on top. It never gets stupid, it never gets ridiculous, but it's awful to read, in the best way.

I came in expecting a crime thriller. But this book left a mark on me. Cosby is an author to watch, because he does this stuff well, and he makes it look easy. It ain't easy.

I just noticed that in the book's description, it's described as "operatic". Well, I don't know about that, having never experienced an opera, but I can tell you it's damn near Shakespeare with guns and muscle cars.

Probably one of the best books I've read this year, if not the best. show less

Wow, what a ride!
Ike and Buddy Lee are the avenging angels pair you never knew you needed.
Both with flawed, criminal pasts, these ex-con opposites-but-more-alike-than-you-think strangers come together to track down those responsible for the deaths of their married sons, Isaiah and Derek.
Very violent, but with lots and lots of heart and growth.
Buddy Lee, Derek's father, is also a hoot! His zingers had me laughing out loud.
Razorblade Tears is the second S.A. Cosby book I've read. The first was show more All the Sinners Bleed and I enjoyed that one immensely too.
I waited on Razorblade Tears until I could get the audiobook version as Adam Lazarre-White is the narrator for both. Excellent! show less

Wow, just wow. My review isn't going to do justice to S.A. Cosby's recently released Blacktop Wasteland - but just know it's an absolutely fantastic read.

Cosby opens Blacktop Wasteland with a night race on a road in rural Virginia. Bug's driving a Duster that his father left behind when he walked away. The description of time and place is so vivid - I could smell the gas, the rubber, hear the revving of engines, the squeal of tires and the buzz of the night. The settings are also characters show more in this book.

"Progress had left this part of town behind. A blacktop wasteland haunted by the phantoms of the past."

Beauregard "Bug" Montage is known as the best wheelman on the East Coast. Was. Bug's left the Life - he's gone straight - owns a garage, has a wife and a family. But his debts are mounting, despite his best efforts. He needs money.....and he knows one way to get it. He goes looking for a job - one that needs a wheelman - and he finds one.

There are so many layers to Cosby's story. First off the characters are wonderfully drawn. Bug is an intricate character, one the reader can't help be onside with. The supporting cast - good and bad - are just as well drawn. (I had a soft spot for cousin Kelvin) All of them jump off the page, with detailed lives.

And then there's' the heist. I must say, I can't get enough heist stories. This one is brilliantly imagined and planned. But there's always a snag somewhere. And again, Cosby's plotting is a standout. The danger, action and yes, unforseen twists and turns had me committing a crime. I couldn't help myself....I peeked ahead a few chapters. I know, I know, but the tension was unbearable! I truly couldn't put the book down.

But there's more to this story than just the heist. It's a study of a man whose life has been a struggle and his desire to have a better life for his family. Memories provide a look at Bug's early and formative years.

And that ending? Not what I wanted, but instead what is real. If I had to put a genre label on Blacktop Wasteland, it would be grit lit.

Blacktop Wasteland is one of my favorite reads for 2020. A pedal to the metal, non stop read. show less