Can you guess the author/title of this vintage paperback just from the back cover copy? Leave your guesses in the comments section.As a bonus hint, here are the first two sentences of the novel... which are just fucking fantastic:
It was almost noon when the guard came in with his jangle of keys. I was sitting on the dirt floor of a vermin-haunted cell telling off-color stories to an Arab arsonist and a Copt dragoman who had attempted to rape an American schoolteacher inside Cheops' pyramid.
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12 comments:
Looks like the back cover of a Pyramid Book. No pun intended.
Hmmm...could be THIEVES LIKE US, by Robert Edmund Alter.
That's it, all right. (An Avon Book.)
You guys are way too good at this. Nice job.
Duane
Just finished The Blonde and saw that Kowaski decided to let Lennon live at the end of The Wheelman. Thank God! Excellent, fast-paced novel with an ending that didn't make me scream in frustration. LOL
I enjoyed the opening sentence to Thieves Like Us so much that I just tried to find it on Amazon, but it's unavailable. Once you get past the Argosy magazines,there are several used copies of other novels by Alter in the five-to-seven dollar range and higher. Any titles you would recommend for reading?
Wow, that's great.
Try abebooks.com, Wayne. There's a copy in Austin for 5 bucks.
Bill,
Thanks for the information. I went to Abebooks and ordered the copy from Texas. It has been several years since I last visited Abe's book site. I was really impressed with it. I suspect I'm going to be doing a lot of business there from now on. Thanks again. It was greatly appreciated. I can see the size of my wallet depleting right before my eyes. LOL
Wayne ... You might check out Swamp Sister. It's a well-written atmospheric tale. Vintage Crime/Black Lizard published an edition in 1993 that has quite a nice cover, evoking elements from the story --- alligators, females, and money. Guess how many of those spell danger?
Frank,
Thanks for the Robert Alter recommendation. I saw some good prices on Amazon for Swamp Sister. That's something to look forward to next payday.
Somewhat Off-Topic, Duane--and I know this is, oh, 4 years late in coming but I finally cracked the near-a-fir-tree catalog...
http://marginalminds.blogspot.com/2009/03/duane-swierczynski.html
merry christmas, I have no integrity.
-Ryan P. Carey, D.D.S.
Can you please bring this "feature" back? I liked the two that you did a LOT!
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