Member Review
Review by
Aravind R, Reviewer
Ever since I blazed through Don Winslow’s City on Fire, the first volume of his crime trilogy based in Providence, Rhode Island, I had been eagerly awaiting its sequel – City of Dreams – and I must say it is well worth the wait!
Narrowly surviving the war against the Italian mob that decimated his Irish gang, Danny Ryan is on the run towards California with the remnants of his family – an ailing father and an eighteen-month-old motherless son – and what is left of his gang. He has the Italians and the law enforcement pursuing him desperately, the former for the cocaine worth millions that they believe to be in Danny’s possession, and the latter for the murder of an FBI agent. But Danny had thrown away the drug, which could have helped him and his crew with a fresh start on the straight path, before running, leaving the fugitives practically penniless. Danny’s father is on his last days and needs medical care that costs way more than Danny could earn, and bringing up a son on his own is no cakewalk. Forced by his circumstances, Danny makes peace with his mother – an influential woman with enough power to make his troubles vanish – who had abandoned him when he was an infant but had come back a couple of years ago.
Soon, an opportunity to get the law off his back arises when a government agency tracks down Danny and offers a deal – sweetened by his mother’s involvement – that would grant him immunity in exchange for executing a deadly mission, which Danny grabs with both hands. His success in the mission means one less enemy for him and his gang to fear, and finally, Danny can put his past behind him and live his life anew. But the trouble with the past is that it always catches up, and Danny suddenly finds himself in Hollywood and – contrary to his plans of keeping a low profile – in glaring limelight. While the move brings about a few moments of bliss and hope for Danny, it also makes him vulnerable to attacks by his enemies, and his life is once again blown to smithereens.
Don Winslow pulls out all the stops with what he has – to the heartbreak of fans worldwide – declared to be the penultimate book of his writing career, and his form never slackens as he puts Danny and the people he cares for through the wringer. The plot of City of Dreams moves swiftly for the most part, with seemingly trivial events impacting the lives of its characters dramatically. The glitz and glamour of the eighties’ Hollywood and the moviemaking business, along with the underlying viciousness, get a vivid rendering in Winslow’s sharp, spare prose. Each character, irrespective of its size, is unique and realistic, and would be remembered for a long time. I particularly enjoyed the antics of Kevin Coombs and Sean South – a.k.a. the Altar Boys – who have grown from being minor players in the first book. The narrative and the dialogues, especially the interactions of the Altar Boys, are tremendously enjoyable.
While the focus is predominantly on Danny, City of Dreams also has other plotlines involving the Morettis of the Italian mob and a couple of smaller characters from the previous volume. The detours, particularly the one following former Italian gangster Chris Palumbo, make the plot seem meandering at times, and their contribution to the story remains to be seen. Evoking a wide range of genuine emotions in the reader and resisting any attempt to put it down even for a few moments, City of Dreams is a worthy follow-up to the excellent City on Fire, and a perfect launchpad for City in Ruins – the concluding part of the trilogy. While it works well enough as a standalone, with Winslow providing the necessary background about his characters and their situations, I would highly recommend beginning with its predecessor for the complete experience.
A tonne of thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the opportunity to read and review City of Dreams!
Narrowly surviving the war against the Italian mob that decimated his Irish gang, Danny Ryan is on the run towards California with the remnants of his family – an ailing father and an eighteen-month-old motherless son – and what is left of his gang. He has the Italians and the law enforcement pursuing him desperately, the former for the cocaine worth millions that they believe to be in Danny’s possession, and the latter for the murder of an FBI agent. But Danny had thrown away the drug, which could have helped him and his crew with a fresh start on the straight path, before running, leaving the fugitives practically penniless. Danny’s father is on his last days and needs medical care that costs way more than Danny could earn, and bringing up a son on his own is no cakewalk. Forced by his circumstances, Danny makes peace with his mother – an influential woman with enough power to make his troubles vanish – who had abandoned him when he was an infant but had come back a couple of years ago.
Soon, an opportunity to get the law off his back arises when a government agency tracks down Danny and offers a deal – sweetened by his mother’s involvement – that would grant him immunity in exchange for executing a deadly mission, which Danny grabs with both hands. His success in the mission means one less enemy for him and his gang to fear, and finally, Danny can put his past behind him and live his life anew. But the trouble with the past is that it always catches up, and Danny suddenly finds himself in Hollywood and – contrary to his plans of keeping a low profile – in glaring limelight. While the move brings about a few moments of bliss and hope for Danny, it also makes him vulnerable to attacks by his enemies, and his life is once again blown to smithereens.
Don Winslow pulls out all the stops with what he has – to the heartbreak of fans worldwide – declared to be the penultimate book of his writing career, and his form never slackens as he puts Danny and the people he cares for through the wringer. The plot of City of Dreams moves swiftly for the most part, with seemingly trivial events impacting the lives of its characters dramatically. The glitz and glamour of the eighties’ Hollywood and the moviemaking business, along with the underlying viciousness, get a vivid rendering in Winslow’s sharp, spare prose. Each character, irrespective of its size, is unique and realistic, and would be remembered for a long time. I particularly enjoyed the antics of Kevin Coombs and Sean South – a.k.a. the Altar Boys – who have grown from being minor players in the first book. The narrative and the dialogues, especially the interactions of the Altar Boys, are tremendously enjoyable.
While the focus is predominantly on Danny, City of Dreams also has other plotlines involving the Morettis of the Italian mob and a couple of smaller characters from the previous volume. The detours, particularly the one following former Italian gangster Chris Palumbo, make the plot seem meandering at times, and their contribution to the story remains to be seen. Evoking a wide range of genuine emotions in the reader and resisting any attempt to put it down even for a few moments, City of Dreams is a worthy follow-up to the excellent City on Fire, and a perfect launchpad for City in Ruins – the concluding part of the trilogy. While it works well enough as a standalone, with Winslow providing the necessary background about his characters and their situations, I would highly recommend beginning with its predecessor for the complete experience.
A tonne of thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins UK for the opportunity to read and review City of Dreams!
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