Rating: 
Summary: dark and disturbing
Review: More than any other writer since Jim Thompson and the early Greats (Chandler, Hammett, Cain), Ellroy is able to create a dark and disturbing world all his own. Much more complex than the movie, the book achieves the fine balancing act of blind-siding you with events without confusing you in the slightest, not an easy task. The writing is so intense at times that the tension is almost unbearable. Required reading for any mystery fan.
Rating:
Summary: Tough as nails and well worth my time
Review: LA Confidential begins as hardboiled as a book has ever begun. It's Los Angeles in the early 1950s with plenty of organized crime and questionable police tactics. The just of the story is in the first page, Mickey Cohen the gangster that runs Los Angeles is going to prison which leaves a vacuum in the city. The rest of the book is figuring out who is trying to take over his rackets. The fun of the book is watching the characters battle to figure it out. As is usually my wont, I read the book because I liked the movie so much. And with many great movies that are books, LA Confidential is just more of a good thing. The same main characters and a couple of interesting tertiary ones roll through Los Angles with a show horse of justice, though ambition and corruption are the real guiding factor. Having seen the movie doesn't ruin the book, because the book is enough different to keep you wondering and Ellroy is such a good writer that you'll enjoy even the familiar dialogue. This is the kind of book that makes guys want to read books.
Rating:
Summary: A Staggering Piece of Crime Fiction
Review: Jame's Ellroy's "LA Confidential" is a remarkable book. Most people know of it only by it's excellent film adaptation. On it's own, it is an incredibly complex, brutal, and utterly facinating look into the LAPD of the 1950's. The book covers three main characters, as most of Ellroy's work does: Officer Wendell "Bud" White", a strongarm cop with a dark past that he uses to fuel his work; Sergent Jack Vincennes, a narc cop who is in love with his Hollywood connections and hides secrets of his own, trying to bury them as the crusading "Big V", and Sergent Edmund J. Exley, a war hero with a celebrated cop family who is driven by his sense of justice and the desire to live up to his father's expectations. These three occupy the larger canvas of LA in the 50's. The story starts with background on the three and the situation in LA, and moves on to the Nite Owl murders, a brutal slaying of innocents who's solution will eventually drive these men to first work against each other, and then together as the story becomes more entagled in the seedy LA underworld. Each man is noble on a basic level, but has past demons that occasionally threaten to drag them down. The story in wrentching, as are all of Ellroy's "LA Quartet" novel, and fits in nicely with the previous novel "The Big Nowhere", and the next bok "White Jazz". In "LA Confidential" Ellroy never lets up for a moment. The action is driven along by his breakneck writing style, and his staccato style shows it's first signs in the head of Jack Vincennes. The book is a marriage of tight plotting, facinating characters, and the dark background of LA. It is a triumph for James Ellroy.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent print noir
Review: James Ellroy's dark, brutal tale of three tortured souls in the LAPD of the 1950's benefits from the staccato, abrasive style in which it is written. At first, I had trouble getting into it. ... Soon, however, I came to appreciate the spare economy of the writing, as unsentimental and hard as the protagonists. The story revolves around three detectives whose lives, both professional and personal, are always teetering on the edge of collapse and the web of lies and concealment surrounding a sensational murder case in which each finds his own opportunity for a sort of redemption. A masterful performance by Ellroy.
Rating:
Summary: Really like it
Review: I read this straight after closing the covers on The Big Nowhere, and liked it just as much. The malevolent presence of Dudley Smith is omnipresent - even when he's not in a scene, he's present. You can imagine his skulking, shadowy presence all the time. There is no clear definition of a 'goodie' or 'baddie' in an Ellroy characterisation. Some of the fringe characters seem to get away with being decent (and one-dimensional), but they are only there to serve other purposes when necessary to tie the plot together. I described The Big Nowhere as a roller coaster ride, and the necessity to get into the language rhythm. I suspect this is a matter of coming to terms with Ellroy's style - once mastered it's not such a big deal. For that reason, this book didn't leave me quite so breathless, but I suspect it may have done if this was my starting point. Once again, don't read it if you are squeamish about the bizarre and often distasteful things humans can do to one another. Not for the sanctimonious who don't want to believe ill of those we entrust with policing human excess either - the keepers are often as perverted as the kept! But a terrific action-packed rise on the sleazy and seamy side of one of the great 20th century cities. LA is one of the stars of this, as with other Ellroy volumes. I can see those tract houses in 'The Valley' as they would have been in the 50s. And I haven't seen the movie!
Rating:
Summary: An excellent crime novel
Review: L.A. CONFIDENTIAL is a great novel in its own right. In it, the reader will find an intriguing tale that is intricately woven. James Ellroy creates vivid characters and writes in such a style that the reader is swept away and feels just like a police officer. This novel is great and should be read. Purchase it...today! After seeing the masterful film, I was determined to find the novel it was based on. Upon finding it, I settled in expecting a book similar to the film. My assumption that the book was like the film was totally inaccurate. In many ways, I wish I hadn't seen the film beforehand. For it let me down on certain points of the book. Aside from these disappointments, it is a fine novel that you should read. This novel has many things going for it. It is well-written, the characters have depth, and Ellroy's writing is superb. No doubt countless readers of this review have seen the film already. However, for those who haven't, I recommend you read the book first, then see the film. For those like myself, read the book. Just don't expect anything like the film. All in all, this excellent crime novel deserves a read for many reasons. Buy it today!
Rating:
Summary: My favorite living author
Review: I believe that this is THE greatest crime fiction book ever written and when I met Ellroy I told him so. The prose is fast paced and exciting and yes, the plots are many but they tie in nicely in the end. The real acheivment here, other than taking us back to 1950's L.A
Is the way we feel about the characters when the book is over. I hated Exley at first but loved him when it was over. The reader can pick which one of the three main characters to identify with and live through their eyes. I put this book down and started yelling and punching the air with my fists. It is that good.
Rating:
Summary: Well done
Review: This is probably Ellroy's most famous book, since it was made into such a great film. Don't think that since you've seen the movie you can skip the book. There were significant changes made for the screenplay. I have no problems with this. The film works better that way. This is a meatier story, with darker overtones and even more twisted scheming. And you can never have too much Bud White, now can you?
Rating: 
Summary: MOVIE BETTER THAN THE BOOK!
Review: I bought this copy for my dad who wanted it in HC. I loved the movie and this book although I can say that Im not overly fond of elroy, I liked the Black Dahlia but all other books sorta fell flat. If you are into crime noir, this is a good book for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Noir Squared
Review: This was my first Ellroy, and it wasn't an easy read. Of the 500 or so pages, it took a good 150 to get into it, mostly due to his extremely clipped language. Once you get into it, though, it's tough to get out -- mind-blowing violence, labyrinthine plotting, some of the nastiest people you'll ever see on paper will all glue you to the book. I saw the movie when it came out. Rest assured, the book is 100% different in so many ways. There's simply not enough time for the movie to get into the backdoor politics that's such a huge part of the novel; the Kevin Spacey character, Jack Vincennes, is so simplified in the film that you'll hardly recognize him. And the ending is completely different. Ellroy has taken noir writing style up another notch (or two). Everything is bare bones...and the book is still over 500 pages. If he'd written it like other "normal" books, it probably would have been over a thousand.
| 
