I just finished one of the most amazing books I’ve ever read. It’s called The Force. All I can say is WOW.
The Force is written by Don Winslow. His name may not ring a bell to you like say John Grisham or James Patterson, but it should.
Don Winslow is that good.
He has has twenty books out. One of them is Savages which was turned into a movie directed by Oliver Stone.
Another is The Cartel. It’s being directed by Ridley Scott.
I haven’t read either of those books The Force is my first from Winslow. Man am I glad I found him.
The Force is a police novel like no other I’ve yet to read. And I’ve read a few police novels.
It’s set in present day New York City. The main character is NYPD Detective Denny Malone.
Malone heads up a special team in the NYPD’s Manhattan North Task Force.
The Task Force’s job is to take guns and drugs (specifically heroin) off the streets.
That alone should make for an interesting read, but that story’s way too simple.
This isn’t a simple story for one good reason: Denny Malone is a dirty cop.
Yet that’s not a fair assessment of Maline. He may be a dirty cop, but he’s also a damn good cop.
Malone genuinelly cares for the people he’s sworn to protect, a good many of them black and living in Harlem.
He also cares for his partners. They are literally family to him.
Malone’s problem is that he crossed the line and fell into a hole.
The hole was seemingly shallow at first, but the further he went the deeper and deeper the hole became.
By the time we meet Malone he’s in way too deep. In fact he’s hit bottom and is in a holding cell.
That after all is when good stories all start. When the main character’s life is about to fall apart.
And that’s definitely the case for NYPD Detective Denny Malone in The Force.
I’d be a jerk if I said much more. The Force is definitely a book worth both your time and money.
It’s incredibly well researched. All the characters are authentic – the cops, the criminals, and those who are a little of each.
Winslow doesn’t pull any punches. Issues of race, police brutality, and all types of corruption are delved into realistically.
As a writer I came away from with two distinct thoughts.
- Damn, I wish I could write as good as Don Winslow.
- Damn, I’ll never be able to write as good as Don Winslow.
Im not sure if either of those thoughts will ever become reality, but there’s only one way to find out.
I’ve got the keep writing.
And I am. Cloning Elvis is being revised at this very time.
As much as I enjoy writing that book, I know it won’t be up to the stature of Don Winslow.
However, I had the privilege of seeing Winslow speak at a signing for The Force at my local Vroman’s bookstore this summer.
According to him even he didn’t start out writing at the level where he is now.
But he kept on writing and that’s when great things happened.
So if I’ve picked up two things from Winslow and his current book The Force, here they are:
First, I need to read more of Winslow’s books.
The Power of the Dog and The Cartel are definitely on my list.
Second, I need to keep writing.
That’s the only way anyone’s ever going to write about one of my books, “All I can say is wow.”