Joe Ide - Smoke

 

Rating: 5/5

 

Review:

Terrific stuff from Joe Ide

 

Joe Ide is back on top form in Smoke. I thought Hi Five showed a slight dip in quality but this has all of Ide’s wit, thoughtfulness and insight wrapped in a very good story. It would work as a stand-alone novel, but it would be far better to read the series from the beginning as there is a lot of history which continues to develop here.

Traumatised by the events of Hi Five, Isaiah is heading for the hills, determined to leave his old life behind and get away from the violence and criminality of East Long Beach – and to escape the various murderous gangs and individuals who are seeking him for revenge. Needless to say, he very reluctantly becomes involved in a scary (and very exciting) hunt for two deranged killers. Meanwhile, back in East Long Beach an unemployed Dodson is given an ultimatum by his wife and embarks on an internship in a swanky advertising agency while also acting as neighbourhood fixer in Isaiah’s absence. This leads to some genuinely hilarious stuff (the scenes where he is being tutored in manners by his mother-in-law made me laugh out loud several times) and also some genuinely thoughtful and incisive content.

These two independent stories work very well alongside each other. For me it is Dodson who is the real centre of this book as his character becomes much more developed and unlooked-for skills and inner decency emerge. Joe Ide brilliantly balances some excellent comedy with psychological insight, a thrilling story and some horrifying violence, which is somehow the more chilling for being inexplicit. His ear for language remains excellent and his characters become richer and more convincing with each book in the series.

In short, I thought Smoke was terrific and I can recommend it very warmly.

(My thanks to Orion for an ARC via NetGalley.)