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Type of bind: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN num: 9780843953503
ISBN number: 0843953500
Label: Hard Case Crime
Manufacturer: Hard Case Crime
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 220
Printing Date: September 07, 2004
Publishing house: Hard Case Crime
Sale Popularity Level: 234581
Studio: Hard Case Crime
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Rated by buyers 
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An ethical, surprisingly literary ex-boxer with a sense of humour who fought in Korea finds himself caught up with the Mob. Oh, wait, that's Parker's Spenser... Max Phillips' Ray Corson fought in WWII. Fortunately, Max is able to break away from the Spenser look-alike to write an engaging story with memorable characters. Max manages to cast these characters as clear stereotypes, generating a sense of satire or perhaps more likely homage to a lost genre, without breaking the suspension of disbelief which allows the reader to truly care about them. Although I had some difficulty immersing myself in the story, by the end I was wishing for more, contemplating the nature of life a half century ago, wondering if the improvements we've since experienced are really improvements at all. While I wouldn't rank "Fade to Blond" as an all-time classic, it's a recommended read, and I'll check out more of Phillips again soon.
Recommendation: don't worry about the cover (it gives away nothing), but avoid the temptation to read the back.
Rated by buyers 
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I liked the writing, however, the characters are not believable. None of them are. The plot is slow to take off. In fact, the book never really takes off.
Rated by buyers -
The book would have gotten a higher rating but I didn't like the ending. It didn't make sense to me. The author does skillfully recreates the private eye stories of the late 50's and early 60's. A little more risque than that era would have allowed, but not by much. I like the central figure and thought the secondary characters were interesting. Yes they're stereotypes but in this setting that works fine. I usually like detective stories set in the present but it was fun to read about the golden Los Angeles of the '50's. The author is able to write fluidly using the vocabulary and style of the era. The book presents a look at the fringes of the Hollywood scene which is always fun when well done. I would want the "hero" to be a little more like the Shell Scott character, a little lighter and more ironic but that wasn't the book the author was going for. I recomend the book. To my mind 3 stars means worth reading.
Rated by buyers -
A nice read in the hard-boiled detective genre. One problem, which may not mean much to most readers, was with gun details. Corson tells us he carries a .44 caliber Colt Python. There is no such thing. I understand this is a fictional story, but when an author tries hard to recreate a period, by talking about locales, movie stars and automobiles in the story as if the characters were actually there, why not check that the gun described actually existed as well? Otherwise, I enjoyed it, would recommend it and would read another by Phillips.
Rated by buyers -
We have Ray Corson, ex-boxer, a collection of women and thugs, and reliable friends. After being hired to make someone `go away' preferably using a permanent solution, Ray plugs along learning more about the woman who hired him and the men who want to hurt him.
The built up-moving through the very first 70 to 80 pages--is slow, but the writing is good. The chapters are short and clean. We learn more about Ray, but once or twice Phillips's protagonist is a `little' on the spontaneously, brutal side, not that that hurts the book, but the motivation is not fully explained. We don't see enough of his disgust, if not hate.
Ray is still likeable. I'd want him on my side. The writing is good and I'll read more by Phillips.
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