Read more: http://adammcallister.com/?p=24Unlike Mosley’s critically acclaimed and worldwide success Devil In A Blue Dress, Cinnamon Kiss is a disaster of a book. Follow the link to read the whole review.Apart from a few spelling mistakes which I noticed in my own copy of the book, the writing was just woeful. The story itself was actually well planned out and was the only thing that kept me reading right until the end. Rawlins is about to take a job with his crazy mate Mouse to make some cash, which he needs to send his daughter Feather (stupid name which bothered me the whole way through, along with her brother Jesus. No joke!) to Switzerland to have a life-saving operation. This problem would have been solved if the US adopted the NHS. Maybe it’s now covered with ObamaCare. In any case, Rawlins finds a more tempting job which initially seems to be a lot safer. He just has to look for a girl nicknamed ‘Cinnamon’ and her partner. Of course, a whole web of deceit and drama unfolds and I genuinely was interested in what happened at the end.However, that really doesn’t excuse the worst part of the book to me, the part that actually made me heave a little bit – the disgusting sex scenes. They weren’t disgusting because they were really dirty, or really kinky, or into some weird stuff, it was just the descriptions were so revolting that I had to tear my eyes away from the page. Mr Mosley’s sex life must be extremely colourful, otherwise I have no idea where he drew these images from:“Her pubic hair was broad and dense. I buried my face in it to get the full scent of that field of tomatoes. If I had any notion of stopping, it evaporated then.”“I stood up, pushed the urgent cock back behind the zipper.”“Urgent cock”? What a dirty bastard. Another problem with the sex was that Rawlins was having tonnes of it, or at least wished he was having tonnes of it, with every girl he meets. Meanwhile his girlfriend is back in his home looking after his on-death’s-door-child. It just doesn’t seem right and Rawlins has too much of a moral compass for it to be believable. One redeeming factor is that his girlfriend’s doing it too, with some Swiss guy.Another problem I had with this book was that it was overly concerned with racial issues. For those that have read Devil In A Blue Dress, you’ll remember that the theme of race was important in that novel. It was what allowed Rawlins to be such a good detective. He was able to go into the dirtiest corners of Watts (The L.A equivalent of the Falls or Shankill) but also into the whitest (literally) areas of L.A thanks to his business connections and attitude. However in Cinnamon Kiss, Mosley just starts chatting about race at every turn. It seems to inform every single thing that happens, even if that isn’t apparent in the text. In fact, if the reader doesn’t think that race has had a bearing on an event, Mosley will make it explicit for you. There’s another problem – Mosley seems to have lost his subtlety. I would notice little nuances and little signs, foreshadowing and mirroring and all of those lovely literary devices that make reading so fun. But then Mosley would batter me across the head with the symbolism by explaining it immediately. It totally took me out of the experience and the book would be much better if he just took those bits out entirely.“Watts riots. Watts riots. Race. That’s because of race. Black man in America. Watts riots. Watts.”Some of Mosley’s old writing style persists, though. I absolutely loved this little description. It doesn’t seem like much now but it really works in this novel. Really simple and effective.“Marcel was a big man with a heavyweight’s physique and an old woman’s face.”In short, I read the novel the whole way through so it can’t be that bad. But it doesn’t hold a candle to Devil in a Blue Dress. Read that if you haven’t already. If you have, read this if you’re looking for something to waste the day away while sitting in Botanic in the glorious summer sun.
Less a crime novel than a character study of a man in conflict with his domestic life, his uneasy friendships, his position as a black man in a white-dominated society and his own sense of worth, all explored while he sets out to commit one crime and ends up investigating another. This is Mosley at his best writing Easy Rawlins at his best, slipping easily between conflicting states, moralising and making judgement of others while not being afraid to expose his own limitations and blind spots, and struggling to demand respect from the world while engaging all around him from a default state that automatically demands he lie and bluff as his opening gambit at all times. Rawlins-- and sidekick Mouse-- is a joy to follow as a character, and it really doesn't matter how convoluted or simple the crime might be. That's not why the reader is on board. And while the mystery and its convoluted path towards conclusion are enjoyable enough to keep the reader's interest in this novel, it really is only secondary to watching this fascinating, multi-layered, all-too human man wrestle with his demons, and decide which ones he will conquer and which ones he will, inevitably, call master. Superbly readable, thoroughly enjoyable, and full of style and humour. A delight.
What do You think about Cinnamon Kiss (2006)?
This is my first novel by Walter Mosley and it is the tenth book in his Easy Rawlins series. This was quite colorful. I liked the writing. He was great at giving detailed snippets of the characters and specific circumstances. I liked the MC. He was easy to like. But I will say, that his persona was a bit of a male fantasy. He always wins, he gets all the girls who are so good looking, he gets what he wants, he finds all the clues, has all the answers, yada, yada, yada. That was a little much, but I still liked this.
—Donna
I read this by mistake. I meant to end my affair with Easy after the book concerning the Watts Riots. However, I wasn't paying attention and downloaded the wrong book from the library, and I got this, the one following the book that was to be my last. To my surprise, I love this! I was not looking forward to Easy going to San Francisco and interacting with hippies, but that was only a brief part of the book, and then he returns to Los Angeles. Easy is definitely on the Establishment side here, known by Sam Yorty and given leave to conduct his investigation as he sees fit. Also, he's squarely middle-aged, and it is really cute reading about him trying to get his bearing with hippies, but then coming to an understanding that what they were about was different than he had been raised with, and that it pointed to perhaps a hopeful future. The quality of the writing was excellent, and I could follow the story with less difficulty than in the past. Now I have to backtrack to "Little Scarlet" even though I picked up a few spoilers in this book. Also glad to finally have some resolution with the whole Bonnie situation.
—Martin
Awesome ride! I’ve been an avid fan of Walter Mosley’s Easy Rawlins series ever since Devil in a Blue Dress. Hands down, Walter Mosley sure knows how to write a crime fiction novel that leaves you wanting more and more. This time, Easy is in dire need of cash and fast. After deciding against robbing an armored car, he gets a job solving a case involving an eccentric, prominent attorney and tracking down the beautiful ‘Cinnamon’ Cargill, who may hold the key to some unanswered questions. The case proves more complicated but after enlisting Mouse, Saul Lynx and others, Easy wonders if robbing the armored car would have been easier. Gotta get Blonde Faith and Little Green in the Easy Rawlins series and Mosley’s other work of fiction, Debbie Doesn’t Do It Anymore. Keep ‘em coming!
—Deliah Lawrence
