It seems ridiculous to hem in some great writers as only "genre" writers, because they're just so damned good at what they do, but at his heart that is what Harvey is: a crime writer. But what a crime writer! If you want to get a feel for what it was like in England in the 1960s, 1980s (check out the riots in England at the time), and 1990s (all covered in this book), his novels are probably as good a place to go as any "serious" fiction. Harvey has an eye for detail (be it character, dialogue or environment) that reminds me of Balzac or Dickens, but he delivers it with an economy that those two writers would find shocking. Wasted Years, the fifth "Charlie Resnick," novel is more of the same. Since I'm not reading these in sequence, this particular entry brought me up to speed in such a way that it didn't matter. I learned more about Resnick, his previous marriage, his love of music (jazz, blues), an inability to keep his tie clean. It's Resnick's love of music that creates connections for various characters in the novel. The "wasted years" of the title comes from an old blues song, which effectively works as a refrain throughout the novel. Resnick heard the song sung by a great flash-in-the-pan singer at a club back in 1969 (these club moments seem so authentic, and are great if you're into the history of jazz, blues, and rock), the same place where he would meet his future wife. Zoom forward a bit, and the same singer is married to a hard man -- and a robber that Resnick would take part in arresting. The "arrest" is something of a frame-up by a crooked cop. Zoom forward a bit more, and that same hard man is getting ready to be released, and no one knows if he has revenge list in hand.Spiraling out from this are a few other stories that are robbery connected. One involves a couple of young idiot robbers, another involves what seems to be a professional bunch of robbers that are proving hard to catch. But the novel’s theme isn't so much robbery -- but betrayal. Harvey sees plenty of them, but not in any accusatory way. We all commit them, live through them, adjust. It's what we do with such moments that make us more (or less) human. On Harvey's crime and punishment canvas, which involves cops & robbers, fathers and sons, husbands and wives (and lovers), this is as compelling as it gets.
From Kirkus 1993 - pretty well says it.It's 1992, and the scruffy Midlands city where Detective Inspector Charlie Resnick (Off Minor, etc.) lives and works is plagued by a series of well-planned robberies. They remind Charlie of similar happenings ten years back that ended with the jailing of taciturn, icy John Prior--after an encounter that brought Charlie closer to death than he'd ever been. Prior's blues singer wife Ruth became involved with a detective on the case--the sinister Rains. Charlie's marriage also ended about then, and Rains later left the force for greener fields. Now, Prior is about to be released from prison--supposedly a reformed man. Charlie, a passionate lover of jazz and blues, worries about the fate of Ruth, now vanished, if a vengeful Prior catches up with her. But he finds a way to track her, through pathetic small-time crook Keith Nylands, long under the thumb of his vicious onetime prison pal Darren. Keith's alcoholic father Reg, once a talented drummer, knows Ruth's whereabouts. He and Charlie strike a bargain that activates the unflaggingly tense buildup to a surprising climax. A dizzying but never incoherent panorama of broken dreams, brutal street language, bent cops, as well as those struggling to do their jobs and hold their lives together--all of it permeated by Charlie's unsanctimonious probity and clumsy grace. Harvey is truly master of the police procedural for the 90's.
What do You think about Wasted Years (1994)?
Fifth in Charlie Resnick series by John Harvey.The book starts with Charlie remembering ten years ago when a series of armed robberies sweept through the city where he worked as a policeman. He also rues the marriage that ended with Elaine when he caught her cheating on him. He also remembers the urban riots that broke out leaving a pervasive despair. Now, two separate groups of criminals are again threatening the security of the twon: Frank Churchill, former detective Raines and John Prior and two lesser criminals, Darren and Keith who met in prison. Jass permeates the novel and a blues singer Ruth brings the criminals and police together.
—Bonnie
Resnick is on the case to find the people who are holding up businesses while wearing masks-and a dectective that had gone bad-is being sought by the police because they think he has had a hand in these hold ups. A young man named Keith gets involved with a man he once shared a cell with in jail-and under this man's thumb-he aides him in committing crimes-with each crime Darren gets bolder-which could put Keith's life in danger. This was a pretty good read, but at times the flashbacks and such made it a bit confusing to me. So sometimes I had to reread a chapter-and there are references to things that happened in other books-I almost felt as if I should have read them before this. But if you like English dialogue-that alone might keep you reading.
—Peggy
