Wednesday, August 14, 2013

The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters


The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters
Copyright 2012 
Quirk Books - Fiction/Mystery/Pre-apocalyptic
316 pp.

First sentence:

I'm staring at the insurance man and he's staring at me, two cold gray eyes behind old-fashioned tortoiseshell frames, and I'm having this awful and inspiring feeling, like holy moly this is real, and I don't know if I'm ready, I really don't.

In The Last Policeman, Hank Palace is a young detective who thinks a death by hanging is actually a murder.  He is, however, the only officer who gives a flip about solving the case (if it really is a murder) because the world is going to be hit by an asteroid in approximately 6 months and everyone's going to die, anyway. 

The Last Policeman is pre-apocalyptic in the manner of On the Beach by Nevil Shute (although, the apocalyptic event has already occurred in On the Beach) in that everyone's going to die and they know it. So, The Last Policeman not only explores a possible murder but the reaction of the characters to their impending doom.  But, what makes The Last Policeman really special is the fact that the author has a terrific sense of humor.

I can picture him, the thug resplendent: loops of chain drooping from black jeans, skull-and-crossbones pinky ring, scrawny wrists and forearms crawling with several species of tattoo snakes.  The rat-eyed face twisted with melodramatic outrage, having to answer the phone, take orders from a stuck-up egghead policeman like myself.  But look, I mean, that's what you get for being a drug dealer, and moreover for getting caught, at this juncture in American history. Victor may not know by heart the full text of the Impact Preparation Security and Stabilization Act, but he's got the gist.

~p. 50

No one is really sure--even those of us who have read the eight-hundred-page law from beginning to end, scored it and underlined it, done our best to keep current with the various amendments and codicils--not a hundred percent sure what the "Preparation" parts of IPSS are supposed to be, exactly.  McGully likes to say that sometime around late September they'll start handing out umbrellas.

~p. 53

"You know what I'm doing right now?" I say, watching the muddy liquid rush toward the edge of the table. "I'm thinking: Oh no! The coffee's going to spill onto the floor! I'm so worried! Let's keep talking about it!"

And then the coffee waterfalls over the side of the desk, splashing on Andreas's shoes and pooling on the ground beneath the desk.

"Oh, look at that," I say. "It happened anyway."

~p. 174


Highly recommended - This is such great writing: sharp, hilarious, an instant favorite, the kind of rare book that is so quotable I found myself reading excerpts to my husband (with whom I will only share a passage if I think he'll laugh or a quote will generate a decent discussion -- he laughed, every time).  I particularly love the fact that Hank Palace's attitude to the question, "What do you do when you're going to die in 6 months?" is, "Might as well just keep on working." Whenever someone says something particularly positive about just getting on with life, he always says something to the effect of, "I like that person. Him, I like." Cool.  It's been a few weeks since I read The Last Policeman and I still have that "bounce, bounce, bounce, can't-wait -for-the-next-in-the-series" feeling.

The Last Policeman is a book that was added to my personal collection recently, thanks to the generosity of my friend Sandie. Thanks, Sandie!

©2013 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery  or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

11 comments:

  1. So great, isn't it? I don't read too much crime fiction, but I was sucked right into The Last Policeman. I feel like it's not often you find such quotable, well written passages in the genre, but Ben Winters is fantastic. I just finished the second book in the series, Countdown City, and it's just as good!

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    1. It is darn near perfect. So entertaining and quotable, yes. I'm not a crime fiction reader, either. It takes a nice unique spin to suck me into a book that has mystery at its core. Wll done, Mr. Winters.

      So envious of you getting to read Countdown City, already!!!! I've got it on my wish list but I'm guessing it'll take quite a while before I acquire a copy.

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    2. WELL done. *sigh* That is so typical of my day. LOL

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  2. I'm looking forwards even more to reading this now - it sounds really quirky too.

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    1. Oh, how did I leave out the word "quirky"? It is definitely that.

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  3. I'm surprised. I would have thought a book in which the world has only 6 months before destruction would have been terribly downbeat!
    And there is a second book in the series! OK--I passed this one up and now wish I hadn't.

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    1. You will love it when you get to it, Jenclair. I wish someone had offered it to me. I would have jumped at it because the description sounded fun, even though I avoid mysteries. Yes, the second in the series was just released last month, so there are two to look forward to reading!

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  4. I have this book on my shelf! Waiting to be read, after excellent reviews in Locus magazine last year (for books of the year). I am anxious to get to it, just haven't been quite in the mood for and end of the world book this summer. Your review is great, it's the first one to pick up on the humour in the book, so I'm much more likely to pick it up very soon now. I need some dark humour right now. Thanks, Bookfool!

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    1. His sense of humor is really what made the book stellar, in my humble opinion. I'm sooo not a mystery fan but unique and funny will get me, every time. I hope you love it as much as I did, Susan!

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  5. I loved this book, it was one of my favorites last year. But I think I'm in love with the author, regardless of the book. Bedbugs has to be one of the best horror novels that I have ever read.

    I have an ARC of the second book in this trilogy, I just need to get around to reading it.

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    1. It's definitely going on my favorites list for the year, Ryan. I'm a little afraid of Bedbugs because I tend to have nightmares and bugs are nightmare material, but I love his writing so much that I may just have to give it a go.

      So envious that you have an ARC of the second book! If I was not on a tight budget because of Kiddo's college and the bills for the house we have not yet put on the market, I'd buy it *right now*.

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