The Prone Gunman (City Lights Noir) - Softcover

"This is lean, mean noir fiction that cleverly sends up the tough guy genre while incarnating it perfectly."--Detroit Free Press "Jean-Patrick Manchette's terse prose moves like the swift, almost automatic methods and mannerisms of his protagonist."--The Wall Street Journal "Terse behaviorist prose . . . drives the narrative relentlessly and even gleefully forward. . . . For the first time, readers can experience in English translation the masterful thriller considered Manchette's finest, proof positive that the French knew what they were talking about when they labeled this sort of novel 'noir'."--Publishers Weekly "Manchette is a master of both economy and irony. Brutal and bracing: Terrier's tale fascinates even as it chills."--Kirkus Reviews "This is lean, mean noir fiction that cleverly sends up the tough guy genre while incarnating it perfectly."--Detroit Free Press "Jean-Patrick Manchette's terse prose moves like the swift, almost automatic methods and mannerisms of his protagonist."--The Wall Street Journal "Terse behaviorist prose . . . drives the narrative relentlessly and even gleefully forward. . . . For the first time, readers can experience in English translation the masterful thriller considered Manchette's finest, proof positive that the French knew what they were talking about when they labeled this sort of novel 'noir'."--Publishers Weekly "Manchette is a master of both economy and irony. Brutal and bracing: Terrier's tale fascinates even as it chills."--Kirkus Reviews

-Widely considered Manchette's masterpiece. -Explodes the mystery genre--a crossover author like Sebastien Jasprisot and Jean Echenoz (who was much influenced by Manchette). -Elegantly crafted hardboiled fiction that appeals to readers of mysteries and the reader of non-genre literature. Imagine Dashiell Hammett's Red Harvest imbued with a deep critique of contemporary capitalism. Or Raymond Chandler's self-parody taken to a higher, more corrosive level. -Previous title: Three To Kill (City LIghts) January 2002 ISBN 0872863956