OCTOBER 2014 - AudioFile
Narrator Craig Wasson’s approach to Ellroy’s new historical novel reflects the testosterone one would expect of a WWII-era Los Angeles police department or a crowded, sweaty boxing match. Wasson delivers Ellroy’s clipped sentences in varying tones with exacting emphasis. Accents ranging from working-class Irish to upper-class Boston roll off his tongue with ease as he deftly transitions between them. His best skill is his impression of a radio broadcaster. He fully delivers the sound of 1940s radio as the host preaches his message with all the intensity of the extremist he is. A masterful performance all around. J.F. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
Publishers Weekly
06/23/2014
Ellroy launches his second L.A. Quartet with a sprawling, uncompromising epic of crime and depravity, with admirable characters few and far between. The action spans about three weeks during December 1941, opening the day before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor with the deaths of four members of the Watanabe family, who were possibly victims of a ritual murder-suicide. A note left at the scene written in Japanese, disclaiming responsibility for a “looming apocalypse,” suggests foreknowledge of the attack. The investigation and its ramifications are explored from the perspectives of the LAPD’s Japanese crime-scene specialist Hideo Ashida; William Parker, the future LAPD head; and two figures familiar from Ellroy’s earlier books—Dudley Smith, a murderous and bent cop, and the enigmatic Kay Lake, who’s roped into going undercover in L.A.’s communist community. Cynical schemes to profit from the planned internment of the Japanese may have played a part in the killings as well. This is as good a sample of Ellroy as any for newcomers, and old hands will find new perspectives on old characters intriguing. Author tour. Agent: Nat Sobel, Sobel Weber Associates. (Sept.)
From the Publisher
Perfidia is a brilliant, breakneck ride. Nobody except James Ellroy could pull this off. He doesn't merely write—he ignites and demolishes.”
—Carl Hiaasen
“A return to the scene of Ellroy’s greatest success and a triumphant return to form. . . . His character portrayals have never been more nuanced or—dare we say it—sympathetic. . . . A disturbing, unforgettable, and inflammatory vision of how the men in charge respond to the threat of war. It’s an ugly picture, but just try looking away.”
—Booklist, starred review
“A sprawling, uncompromising epic of crime and depravity.”
—Publishers Weekly
OCTOBER 2014 - AudioFile
Narrator Craig Wasson’s approach to Ellroy’s new historical novel reflects the testosterone one would expect of a WWII-era Los Angeles police department or a crowded, sweaty boxing match. Wasson delivers Ellroy’s clipped sentences in varying tones with exacting emphasis. Accents ranging from working-class Irish to upper-class Boston roll off his tongue with ease as he deftly transitions between them. His best skill is his impression of a radio broadcaster. He fully delivers the sound of 1940s radio as the host preaches his message with all the intensity of the extremist he is. A masterful performance all around. J.F. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
