I'm an ardent fan of Hammett and Chandler. They set the bar high; so far only Loren D Estleman has met it to my satisfaction. Other authors have attempted tributes to the noir genre, including Norman Mailer and Ray Bradbury, but they disappointed me. Luckily I sneaked a peek at Christopher Moore's afterword and read where he cheerfully admits his effort went astray, and explains just how, so I could read this book in the spirit of a Guys and Dolls type of lark (plus a space alien) and enjoy it as such. Not my favorite Moore novel but he's always fun.
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Noir