Lawrence Block’s Killing Castro is a reprint of the original 1960s novel published as Fidel Castro Assassinated under the penname Duncan Lee. As a collector’s item, it’s pricey and hard to find, so for completists looking for a bargain and not stuck on first editions, here’s a bargain - with a fantastic cover.
I’m a big fan of Block’s books and have been reading them for over 30 years. I found his Evan Tanner books in my favorite used book shop back in the 1970s, along with the Other Gold Medal novels I discovered. The Tanner books often revolved around political agendas as well, but were spy novels of a very different sort.
One of the best things Block brings to any book is characterization. Matt Scudder, Bernie Rhodenbarr, and Keller are all fully realized, equipped with understandable goals and motivations and fears. Every time I open one of those books, I feel like I’m sitting down with an old friend and catching up on the latest news. It’s a good feeling.
Since I’ve gone on to become a professional writer myself, I find it interesting to pick up an early book by someone that I deem is a master. Some writers never change in their craft and you don’t get a chance to see the growth. The world may change around these writers, but their heroes and how they deal with problems as well of their viewpoints never seem to grow or expand. Block constantly incorporates the new and changing world with each of his characters. All of them are affected by politics, economics, and age. As Block himself must be.
In Killing Castro, reading it as a writer myself, I got to watch Block bring five disparate characters to life and throw them against the unexpected as well as a threat that was larger than each of them. A regular reader may just see the five characters Block presents, but a close reader — a reader wanting to learn the writing craft — can see a master in his early years figuring out ways to put characters together.
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