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I met Shawn Cosby at Boucher con, where he mentioned that he was worried that All Sinners Bleed wouldn't be as good as Razorblade Tears, and a friend encouraged him by saying that it didn't have to be as good as Razorblade Tears, it just had to be good.
In fact, All Sinners Bleed is very good but not as good Razorblade Tears. It's about the first Black sheriff in a small southern town investigating what turns out to be the work of a serial killer. Titus, the sheriff, is a great character, and so is his father. The characterization and themes are classic Cosby, and the writing is propulsive. I finished the book in one day. It has a very very satisfying final page.
The basic problem with the book, which made me like it less than his last two, is that plot itself is pretty standard. It's about a cop investigating a serial killer in a town where that isn't something that's happened before. The serial killer's motivations are pretty predictable. The writing is very good but it doesn't have the lushness of Cosby's earlier work. He seems to be going for a more stripped-down style, which, again, is very good on its own terms, but I don't like it quite as much. The dialogue, however is pure Cosby and the end is terrific.
Recommended if you like Cosby, but if you haven't read anything by him before, read Razorblade Tears or Blacktop Wasteland.
In fact, All Sinners Bleed is very good but not as good Razorblade Tears. It's about the first Black sheriff in a small southern town investigating what turns out to be the work of a serial killer. Titus, the sheriff, is a great character, and so is his father. The characterization and themes are classic Cosby, and the writing is propulsive. I finished the book in one day. It has a very very satisfying final page.
The basic problem with the book, which made me like it less than his last two, is that plot itself is pretty standard. It's about a cop investigating a serial killer in a town where that isn't something that's happened before. The serial killer's motivations are pretty predictable. The writing is very good but it doesn't have the lushness of Cosby's earlier work. He seems to be going for a more stripped-down style, which, again, is very good on its own terms, but I don't like it quite as much. The dialogue, however is pure Cosby and the end is terrific.
Recommended if you like Cosby, but if you haven't read anything by him before, read Razorblade Tears or Blacktop Wasteland.
