Long Time No See (87th Precinct series #32) I submit this review for Bev’s Vintage Mystery Challenge. Then the next day his wife, who is also blind, is murdered at home in the same way. We begin with a double murder – first a Vietnam vet, blinded in the conflict, has his throat cut in the street.
And I’m glad to say that this proves to be a much more substantial effort. But today we are back with the next volume in Ed McBain’s infinitely varied saga, titled appropriately enough, Long Time No See. Fittingly, McBain has come full circle with the re-release of this revamped early novel at the end of his long and distinguished career.Well, it really has been a while – over a year to be precise! After the disappointment of So Long As You Both Shall Live (which I reviewed here), I decided to bench the 87th Precinct books for a while. Of necessity, the story is dated, but the pleasure of following the exploits of a forefather of such later icons as Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder more than compensates. But the best thing about the novel is the hard-boiled Cordell as the archetypal noir antihero, fated to failure even in success. A strong cast of characters from rival private eye Dennis Knowles to tailor's assistant Dave Ryan creates a tangled web of deceit, with lies piling up faster than tokens in a subway station.
Cordell's decision to help old friend Johnny Bridges, a tailor, investigate petty larceny at his store soon leads to a series of murders and some steamy encounters with the "fair sex," including a femme fatale. Betrayed by a dame, former PI Matt Cordell has fallen hard and become a bum in New York City's Bowery district. First published as by "Curt Cannon" under the title I'm Cannon For Hire (1958), this revised reissue reminds readers that the late McBain had some serious noir chops.
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