The Gutter And the Grave

“My assailants were two sons-of-bitches whose only names were Blackjack and Leadpipe.”

That's my kinda writing! And this is a pretty good tale! It all revolves around Cordell, a disgraced private eye who now nurses a big time drinking problem in N.Y.'s Bowery. A friend asks for his help on a case, and he stumbles right into it - big time! Who murdered whom, and why, and Cordell's all stuck up in it. A quick, tight read, perfect for a beach setting on the shores of South Lake Tahoe, which is where I devoured it!

“The Gutter and the Grave” by Ed McBain is book 15 in the excellent “Hard Case Crime” series and tells the story of down-and-out, alcoholic ex-private investigator Matt Cordell, who has been seriously hitting the booze since he caught his beautiful wife Toni in bed with one of his operatives. When Johnny Bridges, a former friend from his old neighbourhood who he hasn’t seen in ten years, turns up begging for help, Matt decides to lend a helping hand just to get rid of the guy. Unfortunately what starts of as a quick scan of Bridges’ shop to figure out who’s stealing from the till suddenly turns into a multiple murder mystery with Cordell at its centre. Matt finds himself fighting for his life and caught between a couple of show more deadly femmes fatales, a set of mobsters and a violent police force. “The Gutter and the Grave” is actually a reprint of “I’m Cannon – For Hire”, published in 1958 by Gold Medal, with McBain writing under the by-line of "Curt Cannon". “The Gutter and the Grace” is McBain’s preferred version and it’s a prime slab of dark, dirty, violent noir fiction. The mystery is well handled and the writing is raw and razor sharp, with brilliantly descriptive passages and powerful, punchy dialogue, as well as a heady smattering of cool-daddy-o hipster speak. Cordell makes for an interesting anti-hero, a drunken bum and a two-fisted battler, full of caught-in-the-past self-loathing, but one who maintains his own strict code of ethics. Despite his bum status he’s still (a highly improbable) hit with the ladies, with a sexy blonde singer, a full figured brunette model, a fiery redheaded nurse and a frumpy mature widow all falling under his dishevelled spell. Although this probably isn’t amongst Ed McBain's very best, it is still a rattling good read and a vintage slice of lean, no nonsense hard-boiled noir fiction. show less

Matt Cordell is a Bowery drunk sitting in the park when an old friend finds him and begs for help. Until a few years ago, Cordell had been a good private detective, but then he lost his wife and his license and is spending his life in a stupor until the old friend drags him to his tailoring shop and they discover the business partner dead. All the evidence is pointing to the man Cordell was trying to shake off. Because Cordell is involved in a murder now, he has to prove that the evidence is a red herring.
First published in 1958, this is a pulpy gumshoe detective story, and a good one. There's jazz music, snarling police and every woman Cordell meets throws herself at him.

Wow, this book reminds me why I like Hard Case crime so much. I don't read nearly enough, but I didn't usually enjoy them as much as I did this one. Bleak and cruel ending but intriguing story with twists, talented writing that makes it easy to stay invested, a pace that makes the pages fly. A down on his luck former detective whose only ambition is to be buried further in the bottle gets caught up in a complicated mess. Full review soon.

Babes, booze, brawls, banter and bitterness. Classic ingredients for this early McBain. There is a terrific scene, where, the P.I., Cordell, visits a late night/early morning jam session and you can really sense McBain's love for improvised jazz. That passage alone makes the book a worthwhile read.

Hard Case Crime is to be congratulated fro bring back some of these early fifties pulp noir.

Definitely 3 stars. I might have given it higher marks if I didn't have it all figured out so early. It was just a little to simple & obvious. Well done, though. Likable characters, believable motives & setting. Very well setup & played out.

Mystery Noir. It's the 1950s and our hero is a down on his luck drunken bum who panhandles for drinks in NYC after being a successful private eye. An old neighborhood friend seeks his help since money is missing from the cash register in his tailoring/drycleaning business. Reluctantly he agrees to look over the securtiy at the business and there's a dead body who happens to be the person believed to be robbing the till. Of course there's a couple of "babes", lots of deceit, hardboiled cops and it's long before dna, forenensics and cellphones. Entertaining fast read.