Wild Town

The unlikely protagonist of Wild Town answers to the name Bugs McKenna. An ex-cop and an ex-con, Bugs cannot stay out of trouble because of his hair trigger temper and his inability to cut the other guy any slack. Another major character is Lou Ford, the sinister lawman introduced by Thompson in his 1952 classic work, The Killer Inside Me. As pointed out by Robert Polito in the definitive Thompson biography entitled Savage Art, Wild Town is neither a sequel nor a prequel to The Killer Inside Me. It's best to think of the two books as presenting the Lou Ford character in alternate universes. Bugs drifts into West Texas' Ragtown and soon meets up with deputy sheriff Ford, who strongly suggests he accept the job of house detective at the Hanlon Hotel. The owner of the hotel is Mike Hanlon, a wealthy oilman who became paraplegic in an industrial accident. Wild Town is a relatively short book, yet there are a number of intriguing subplots. And Thompson wastes no time in introducing them. -All is not well between Mike Hanlon and his wife, giving Bugs and the reader reason to believe murder is in the air. -Bugs find himself attracted to school marm Amy Standish who just happens to be Lou Ford's fiancee. -The Hanlon's auditor is an embezzler and its general manager is a world class alcoholic. -Bugs becomes a recipient of an anonymous blackmail threat. All of this and more plays out under the watchful eye of the omniscient Lou Ford. Perhaps the strongest aspect of Wild Town is the very engaging dialogue. Especially the fake hayseed utterances of Ford as he dominates and intimidates one and all. Another strong feature of Wild Town is its depiction of hotel life. You'd be hard pressed to find an author more capable than Jim Thompson when it comes to describing the inner workings of hotels. What keeps this from being a really great novel, at least for me, is the tendency for many of the characters to do things which are....well, out of character. Of course, that particular criticism is a bit unfair. I suspect it was Thompson's intention to have these characters act in unforseeable ways so as to purposely keep the reader completely off balance. I would rank Wild Town high among Thompson's second tier novels. As you read this entertaining book, remember to expect the unexpected.

Jim Thompson continues to hurt the boundaries of noir fiction. IN this book a man is hired to protect an oil baron in his hotel from somebody. That somebody changes throughout the book leavign you guessing until the final chapter. Of course like any good mystery writer Jim Thompson gives away the person in the first few pages of meeting that person but convinces you that he was only giving you a red herring. The book is normal for Jim THompson since the main character isn't completely psychotic, nor narrating and when the final chapter comes the whole narrative is neatly wrapped up without ambiguity, still it is an enjoyable read and worth recommending