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The Deep Blue Good-By by John D. MacDonald

Mournful, mid-1960s-era mystery with an even more mournful ending. This is the first "Travis McGee" novel (of twenty-one!), and it's diverting enough to make me read maybe a few more.

I think of Travis McGee as a sort of proto-Jack Reacher (see Lee Child's novels and short stories), although McGee is less perfect, less imposing and more believable. 

The author also has a knack for dropping a cute noirish quote here and there ("Never sit in the first row at the ballet" and "Let's just start by assuming it's hopeless and go on from there"), and he occasionally sings out in passages showing how life really grinds people down, especially the young and unlucky:


This novel is competently done with good pacing, accelerating right to a surprise ending.

To Read:
Mark Harris: The Southpaw; Bang the Drum Slowly; A Ticket for a Seamstitch; It Looked Like For Ever  (four part "Henry Wiggin" novel series)

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