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Title: Winter and Night by S. J. Rozan ISBN: 0-312-98668-8 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 01 March, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.41 (17 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The Perfect Title
Comment: Winter and Night by S. J. Rozan is her best book so far, and that's saying a lot. The title, with its sense of darkness, underscores the sense of evil in the book. Bill Smith and Lydia Chin work together to find Smith's 15-year-old nephew Gary, who has run away from home. While trying to find him, Smith confronts his own family demons as well as a crime that took place more than 20 years before.
Rozan probes deeply into our sports-crazed culture, probing the concept of winning-at-all-costs and its price to the citizens of the New Jersey town where Bill's estranged sister and her family live. Secrets have been buried deep there for years, and the cover-up has affected every aspect of life.
Despite the incidents of anger and brutality in the book, a sense of compassion runs through it, almost demanding that we take a look at what our priorities are or should be in this post-Columbine, post-9-11 age.
Rozan writes with great skill, examining life in a suburb that on the surface, with its tree-shaded trees and curving lanes, seems too good to be true. But the cracks and flaws are there, and Smith's persistence in uncovering what lies beneath the surface will change some of the contours of the town forever.
Rating: 5
Summary: Oh boy! Bill is back!
Comment: Without doubt, the Bill Smith books are considerably stronger, moodier and more powerful than the Lydia Chin half of the series. Interestingly, even Lydia is more viable a character (and less of a ditz) when viewed through Bill's haunted eyes.
This time out, author Rozan tackles the hot-potato issues both of school sports and of school violence. And as always, via Bill, she brings a clear-eyed view of the absurdity of parents' expectations of their children (football, in this case, and new-age nonsense). The characters are all fully fleshed, particularly Bill's estranged sister, her odious husband Scott, and their lovable, do-right son, Gary.
The search for Gary, the tour of fictional Warrenstown NJ (and a viewing of its citizens) leads to the search for a second boy. Along the way, dark facts are revealed about Bill's past that account for his solitary, soul-searching existence and his quest for meaning via music.
This is Rozan at her best, giving us authentic views of Manhattan, of people, of headline issues, and of the vagaries of the human heart, while never succumbing to false sentimentality.
Most highly recommended.
Rating: 5
Summary: I Can't Get Enough of Them!
Comment: Ok. This woman is my favorite author. Ever. And I can say that in absolute truth. Her distinctive, yet extremely hard to describe writing style, is in a word, incredible. And that's a pretty ambiguous word, but somehow works with every aspect of her novels. Each one reveals more and more the depth and complexeties of Bill and Lydia, and they become real people to us. Especially in "Winter and Night," we are shown that the connection between Bill and Lydia goes way beyond the physical (it's like a Mulder/Scully relationship, as weird as that sounds), and also just how much Bill's experiences are going to change their relationship (ultimately strengthens it, in my opinion).
On a lighter note, I think, another reason these novels are great is the extremely witty/clever dialogue. Bill and Lydia have the best lines, and when they play, they play with words, and it's just VERY amusing to read. I'm always thinking to myself, "How does Rozan DO it?"
"Winter and Night," like most Bill books, are very psychological (not science-psycho, but more like emotional-psycho), and the fluid, intricate writing style reinforces the depth of Smith's character. There's also a big theme in this story about young adulthood and the pressures of society - and their consequences, good along with bad. Very important and thought-provoking theme, I think, and Rozan manages to bring that out in this book with deft skill.
I would recommend reading "China Trade" first, just so you'll get to know the characters and a little about where they're coming from. Otherwise "Winter and Night" will seem too personal (as opposed to VERY personal for those who've read her other novels). "Winter and Night" is my favorite out of her, what is it, eight novels? Second fave is "Reflecting the Sky," written from Lydia's point of view. Third is "Stone Quarry," another one from Bill's POV.
Oh by the way, Rozan captures the life and times of FOBs and Chinese-New York Americans perfectly, from their interactions with each other to their interactions with whites. And the fact that Bill is the epitome of Caucasion, and Lydia is a Chinese-American woman, makes for quite a few interesting conversations. But they're perfect for each other, and you can tell. When serious is serious, one's always there for the other, and that's all they need. Loyalty, trust, respect...love? Yeah, was there even a doubt? Love is there, and then some, and that's what holds these books together.
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Title: The Blue Edge of Midnight (Max Freeman Novels (Paperback)) by Jonathon King ISBN: 0451410785 Publisher: Onyx Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: Reflecting the Sky by S. J. Rozan ISBN: 0312981341 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 01 January, 2002 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
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Title: Stone Quarry by S. J. Rozan ISBN: 0312977034 Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur Pub. Date: 01 January, 2001 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
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Title: Concourse (Lydia Chin, Bill Smith Mystery) by S. J. Rozan ISBN: 0312959443 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 1996 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: No Colder Place (No Colder Place) by S. J. Rozan ISBN: 0312966644 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 01 October, 1998 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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