Rating: 
Summary: Amusing first novel.
Review: "The Ice Harvest" by Scott Phillips is an interesting first novel.It is light entertainment...a noirish dark mystery/comedy. Filled with irony, it is set on Christmas eve in Wichita in 1979. The major character is Charlie Arglist, a ill-fated lawyer for the owner of some local strip clubs. He has a big scam going, skimming off the top. But then, everyone is scamming everyone...and the need to eliminate some participants along the way seems only natural. Charlie gets in and out of many jams that night as he attempts to make his getaway. How he is rewarded at the conclusion is the ultimate irony. It is short, to the point and a snap to read. A pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.
Rating: 
Summary: How Low Can You Go?
Review: "The Ice Harvest" is a slim little novel that knows precisely what it wants to do and does a fine job of doing it. The narrative takes place over the course of a long Christmas Eve (and the first part of Christmas Day) in Wichita in 1979, and during that time the main character, Charlie Arglist, prepares to leave town forever and to take with him a huge bundle of money he has helped to swindle. Before he goes, Charlie has a bunch of errands to run and some loose ends to tie up. In the twisted moral universe of this novel, Charlie, despite his bad deeds and near complete neglect of his children, is kind of a stand-up citizen, only blackmailing, for example, for the cause of good. His world is a gauntlet of cheap bars, strip joints, massage parlors, and it is inhabited by only the most base, corrupt and clueless specimens of the human race. This novel, in other words, is steeped in the noir tradition, and it both takes from that tradition and adds to it in interesting ways. It is frequently disturbing, but often quite funny. I found most the characters implausible (maybe I am naïve, but I just found it hard to believe that so many immoral people could lead seemingly ordinary lives), but they were believable in the context of the story, so that isn't too much of a problem. In fact, I found their amorality entertaining. My only real problem with this book has to do with its narrative structure. The idea of the story taking place over the course of a single night is fine, but it needed more flashbacks or other sorts of distractions. Even though the book was very, very short (perfect for an airplane ride, for example) it started to drag for me after a while because of its sameness, with Charlie shuttling back and forth across town, visiting the same spots over and over again, often, it seems, just to have something to do. Charlie goes to point A to see some shady character. Speaks to him and then goes to point B where he does the same. He drinks/deals with a stripper/observes someone far worse than himself break the law and then goes to point C, or perhaps back to point A or B. And so on. Things pick up near the end as the double crosses and plot twists come fast and furiously, but I would have liked a little more variety before getting there. On the other hand, the beauty of a novel printed on just over 200 large-type pages is that you are willing to give it lots and lots of latitude since the end is always in sight.
Rating:
Summary: The adventures of a Mob lawyer
Review: A journey around town via strip clubs, topless bars, and masseuse parlors is what this short novel offers. Charlie is a mob lawyer who is about to leave town, granting last minute favors, and just wasting time until he meets with Vic. Vic and Charlie have ripped off their boss and plan to split town with the money. This has a simple plot. As the reader, you end up wanting him to get away, even though he's a immoral, drunken swindler.
Rating: 
Summary: A Noirish Harvest
Review: As a mystery author with my first novel in current release, I was quite pleased when THE ICE HARVEST earned its recent Edgar nomination as Best First Novel. In THE ICE HARVEST, Scott Phillips tells the tale of Charlie Arglist as he bops from strip club to strip club in his Kansas hometown. He is a lawyer turned bagman who is killing time on Christmas Eve awaiting his partner in crime. They have embezzled enough cash from their employer to fund a new life. THE ICE HARVEST captures the noirish tone of Jim Thompson, and it is most deserving of the recognition it has received.
Rating:
Summary: A Noirish Harvest
Review: As a mystery author with my first novel in current release, I was quite pleased when THE ICE HARVEST earned its recent Edgar nomination as Best First Novel. In THE ICE HARVEST, Scott Phillips tells the tale of Charlie Arglist as he bops from strip club to strip club in his Kansas hometown. He is a lawyer turned bagman who is killing time on Christmas Eve awaiting his partner in crime. They have embezzled enough cash from their employer to fund a new life. THE ICE HARVEST captures the noirish tone of Jim Thompson, and it is most deserving of the recognition it has received.
Rating:
Summary: A New King of Crime Fiction
Review: As an avid reader of crime/hardboiled/noir fiction, I can say so little attention is paid to the actual craft of writing in these genres. Hence, certain schlockmeisters prevail, while real writers, artists, are marginalized. ICE HARVEST is a classic. The writing is sharp, brutal and taut. It allows the plot to build. It gives depth to the character so you can see the world he exists in, dissolve, and implode. What has been described in one review as a slow first half to this novel is what is usually missing in most crime novels, i.e.. character development and the creation of a believable fictional world. There are very few greats out there writing today. Elmore Leonard is NOT one of them. Crumley, George V. Higgans, Ruth Rendell, John Flood and K.C. Constantine, these writers make the grade because unlike the schlockmeisters who focus only on a labyrinthine plot, these writers understand the importance of good writing and character development. Too ofter lazy readers wish to be whisked along by a "page-turner" on a beach and become indoctrinated into the lazy reader mindset, such as clichés are okay and a stint of 10 pages without a 9mm going off is bad. The only author who can truly get away with Byzantine plot structure subjugating realistically rendered heroes with depth is James Ellroy, and only because he plots like Tolstoy and has such twisted, deranged cops for heroes that the reader would be chilled to the bone to know more.
I highly recommend ICE HARVEST. With so many mediocre talents like Patterson, Ludlum, etc. who appear on the bestsellers lists, it would be nice to see ICE HARVEST get its just do.
Rating:
Summary: Not just another Crime novel.
Review: Categorizing this book as another Simple Plan or Fargo does not do it justice. Many of those elements are in this book, but treating The Ice Harvest like a second cousin to those works undermines its excellence. This book is a gem that stands out as a tragic look at what happens to a good man, turned bad, who tries to get started again. Don't miss this one, it is in a league of its own.
Rating:
Summary: Classic Noir with modern sensibility
Review: Charlie Arglist, lawyer, schemer, fixer, thief, is at the core of this short, intense, mood novel. He swirls around the action, characters swirls around him, and snow, alcohol, and drugs swirl around everyone. Every person and every encounter is befogged. Car headlights, spotlights in strip clubs, dim lights in parking lots and bars, even Christmas tree lights -- all shadow Charlie and the array of brilliantly sketched persons he visits as he tries to come to terms with his past and create a future.
Rating:
Summary: SHUFFLES ALONG WITH ATTITUDE
Review: Charlie is so relaxed, taking time to stop off to look for a drink. He seems to sleep walk through his life with caual ease, whilst carrying out such dark deeds. The irony is that he has a sentimental heart which ultimately leads to his own disaster. I enjoyed this book very much; it draws you into its sleazy heart with consumate skill: introducing a world of cheapness in every turn. People get killed but no one cares... least of all the reader, it's as if we have quickly learned that some lives are not worth anything. It's a lie of course but we believe it without realising that we too have been numbed by what we see. I recommend this as tale, full of irony and extremely well written.
Rating:
Summary: SHUFFLES ALONG WITH ATTITUDE
Review: Charlie is so relaxed, taking time to stop off to look for a drink. He seems to sleep walk through his life with caual ease, whilst carrying out such dark deeds. The irony is that he has a sentimental heart which ultimately leads to his own disaster. I enjoyed this book very much; it draws you into its sleazy heart with consumate skill: introducing a world of cheapness in every turn. People get killed but no one cares... least of all the reader, it's as if we have quickly learned that some lives are not worth anything. It's a lie of course but we believe it without realising that we too have been numbed by what we see. I recommend this as tale, full of irony and extremely well written.
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