CRY HARD, CRY FAST by John D. MacDonald

My first read by the famous pulp writer and Gold Medal star John D. Macdonald follows a large cast of disparate characters who's lives are not only altered but brought together after a horrific

multiple car crash on a highway. The book looks at the characters before, during, and after the crash, and how the accident affects them all.

"His frequent use of her weary body was as quick and impatient and selfish as his anger. He had lost all the words of love."

In a novel this length and with this number of characters, this type of story hinges on those characters being really engaging. And although it's a great concept with some well-written passages, almost none of the character were all that interesting. I found myself skimming a lot. The backstory sections turn out to be the only interesting parts as all of the post-crash material falls flat and contrived. I got a sense here that MacDonald is a talented writer, and hopefully my next novel from him is more engaging. Maybe I can get some recommendations for his best non-McGee work?

"His childhood had been served, as a sentence is served, in that emotional wasteland of a home which should have been broken and was not—a home where hate is a voice beyond a closed door, where contempt is a long intercepted look, where violence is a palpable thing in silent rooms."

GRADE: C-