I really like Pronzini’s style. The plot’s simmering with undercurrents and I haven’t a clue what’s going to happen with them all.

This book’s made it onto my ‘best books of 2001’ list. I was worried that I’d feel the same about it as I did about Blue Lonesome. With that book I thought it was really good until everything was wrapped up and then I felt disappointed. But the ending of this book was the best bit and considering how good the rest of the book was that’s doing pretty well.

The story begins with chapters alternating glimpses into the lives of the two main characters and continues to switch viewpoints every few pages even after the story has linked the two together. It would be easy for this to make the narrative very disjointed but it actually flows very well and you get so used to it that Pronzini can just use ‘he’ and you know which character he’s referring to.

There’s a real sense of place too. I often find setting to be the most anonymous thing in a book but here I could feel the damp in the house by the Russian River and feel for the characters as the rains came down.

And to top the book off the title is taken from an AE Housman poem (LX from A Shropshire Lad):

Now hollow fires burn out to black,
And lights are guttering low:
Square your shoulders, lift your pack,
And leave your friends and go.

Oh never fear, man, nought’s to dread,
Look not to left nor right:
In all the endless road you tread
There’s nothing but the night.
What more could you want?