A review by writer_matt
The Crook Factory by Dan Simmons
4.0
I'm a huge Hemingway fan, have been since my my senior year in High School when I had to read one of his short stories for my Advanced English class - I immediately couldn't get enough. The summer after high school I binge read almost all of his novels. In university, I took every class that had him on the syllabus, including a single author class - which was like heaven.
I know a lot of people criticize his treatment of women, his vague and obtuse writing style, his hyper-masculine characterization - and I will admit, there is a lot to criticize. But in the end, he'd just a damn good writer.
And so, when I stumbled across this book in a tiny bookstore in Guelph, I was blown away by the whole conceit of the book. Hemingway as an amatuer spy. Fighting Nazis in Cuba. And being persecuted by the FBI and other secret spy agencies.
It combined so many things I love. Hemingway. World War II stories. Spy thrillers.
I was so excited.
And for the most part, the book lived up to that excitement. The characterization of Hemingway is perfect - the moody, obsessive writer with a pretty obvious drinking problem. However, while the image of Hemingway the novel casts is perfect in almost every way, there are a few obvious issues: Hemingway still comes across as a joke - his mission in Cuba to sink German U-Boats seems ridiculous. There is no rhyme or reason for it. The books casts it as something that he came up with one day while lying next to his pool in a drunken stupor. There was never any actual discussion as to why he wanted to do this thing. What was the real push for him. I had a hard time connecting to that aspect of the novel - I wanted to understand why he wanted to do this.
My other main issue with the novel was the narrator. I had just a hard time understanding why he was doing the things he was doing. Why did he suddenly fall under the spell of Hemingway - and it really is written as though the writer casts a spell over those that come close to him. Why did Lucas suddenly decide to become a disciple of Hemingway when he spends the majority of the early parts of the novel whining about having to be in Cuba babysitting Hemingway. The sudden shift in characterization was so strange and odd. Even after the death of the boy, which was meant as a turning point for Lucas, he continued wishing he had nothing to do with Hemingway. And yet, 100 pages later, Lucas is suddenly pro- Hemingway. It was just too sudden and odd for me.
But enough of what I didn't like, for now. What did I like? Everything else! The pacing of the spy thriller was perfect - it was just fast enough that I wanted to keep up, and slow enough that I could go back and figure things out before the next big dramatic moment happens. In some ways, it reminded me of an Alan Furst novel or a Len Deighton - but in Cuba.
The incredible detail of the novel blew me away - clearly Simmons spent a long time researching the novel. There were tidbits of Hemingway in there that I had never heard of before. I loved that aspect of the book.
It was especially nice to see Hemingway through a new set of eyes - Lucas, a man who had never read a fictional novel in his life, was the perfect subjective observer to give us a fresh look at Hemingway and his struggles with alcohol, mental health, and what was clearly a unique form of obsessive compulsive.
But, I have to wonder, was Lucas believable? I am not entirely sure I really connected with his character. He seemed to know his profession - but that profession was oddly placed here. The rationale for many of his actions left me puzzled or cold. Why did he torture the Nazi spy in the way he did? It was needless and disturbing (and slightly homophobic).
Finally, I need to say something about the epilogue. It troubled me. It struck me as superfluous. I didn't need it. I didn't need to see how each character made out after the events in Cuba played out. If Simmons had left it at the last moment Lucas and Hemingway see each other, it would have been perfect. A neat little story all wrapped up - and in fact the book felt finished at that point, but suddenly I had 30 pages to go of material I was not really sure why I was reading. It felt clumsy and awkward. But, then again, Lucas as narrator admits his shortcoming as a writer and narrator, because he doesn't really know when to end the story.
But Simmons should. He should know that the book didn't need that extra material. It took away from the story - it took away from the adventure in Cuba and left the reader with a feeling of distance from what had happened in the last 500 pages.
Do I recommend the book? Yes. Absolutely! But maybe, if you just want a really good spy thriller, skip the last 30 pages. But if you want a pseudo Hemingway biography that felt awkward at times, be sure to read those 30 pages, with reservation.
I know a lot of people criticize his treatment of women, his vague and obtuse writing style, his hyper-masculine characterization - and I will admit, there is a lot to criticize. But in the end, he'd just a damn good writer.
And so, when I stumbled across this book in a tiny bookstore in Guelph, I was blown away by the whole conceit of the book. Hemingway as an amatuer spy. Fighting Nazis in Cuba. And being persecuted by the FBI and other secret spy agencies.
It combined so many things I love. Hemingway. World War II stories. Spy thrillers.
I was so excited.
And for the most part, the book lived up to that excitement. The characterization of Hemingway is perfect - the moody, obsessive writer with a pretty obvious drinking problem. However, while the image of Hemingway the novel casts is perfect in almost every way, there are a few obvious issues: Hemingway still comes across as a joke - his mission in Cuba to sink German U-Boats seems ridiculous. There is no rhyme or reason for it. The books casts it as something that he came up with one day while lying next to his pool in a drunken stupor. There was never any actual discussion as to why he wanted to do this thing. What was the real push for him. I had a hard time connecting to that aspect of the novel - I wanted to understand why he wanted to do this.
My other main issue with the novel was the narrator. I had just a hard time understanding why he was doing the things he was doing. Why did he suddenly fall under the spell of Hemingway - and it really is written as though the writer casts a spell over those that come close to him. Why did Lucas suddenly decide to become a disciple of Hemingway when he spends the majority of the early parts of the novel whining about having to be in Cuba babysitting Hemingway. The sudden shift in characterization was so strange and odd. Even after the death of the boy, which was meant as a turning point for Lucas, he continued wishing he had nothing to do with Hemingway. And yet, 100 pages later, Lucas is suddenly pro- Hemingway. It was just too sudden and odd for me.
But enough of what I didn't like, for now. What did I like? Everything else! The pacing of the spy thriller was perfect - it was just fast enough that I wanted to keep up, and slow enough that I could go back and figure things out before the next big dramatic moment happens. In some ways, it reminded me of an Alan Furst novel or a Len Deighton - but in Cuba.
The incredible detail of the novel blew me away - clearly Simmons spent a long time researching the novel. There were tidbits of Hemingway in there that I had never heard of before. I loved that aspect of the book.
It was especially nice to see Hemingway through a new set of eyes - Lucas, a man who had never read a fictional novel in his life, was the perfect subjective observer to give us a fresh look at Hemingway and his struggles with alcohol, mental health, and what was clearly a unique form of obsessive compulsive.
But, I have to wonder, was Lucas believable? I am not entirely sure I really connected with his character. He seemed to know his profession - but that profession was oddly placed here. The rationale for many of his actions left me puzzled or cold. Why did he torture the Nazi spy in the way he did? It was needless and disturbing (and slightly homophobic).
Finally, I need to say something about the epilogue. It troubled me. It struck me as superfluous. I didn't need it. I didn't need to see how each character made out after the events in Cuba played out. If Simmons had left it at the last moment Lucas and Hemingway see each other, it would have been perfect. A neat little story all wrapped up - and in fact the book felt finished at that point, but suddenly I had 30 pages to go of material I was not really sure why I was reading. It felt clumsy and awkward. But, then again, Lucas as narrator admits his shortcoming as a writer and narrator, because he doesn't really know when to end the story.
But Simmons should. He should know that the book didn't need that extra material. It took away from the story - it took away from the adventure in Cuba and left the reader with a feeling of distance from what had happened in the last 500 pages.
Do I recommend the book? Yes. Absolutely! But maybe, if you just want a really good spy thriller, skip the last 30 pages. But if you want a pseudo Hemingway biography that felt awkward at times, be sure to read those 30 pages, with reservation.