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Dennis Lehane's new historical fiction novel - THE GIVEN DAY - anyone read it yet?

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Dennis Lehane's new historical fiction novel - THE GIVEN DAY - anyone read it yet?

Old 10-13-08, 04:37 PM
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Dennis Lehane's new historical fiction novel - THE GIVEN DAY - anyone read it yet?

I was getting set to place an order at Amazon for the latest works from Michael Connelly (out tomorrow) and Stephen Hunter (released last month). While browsing, I was surprised to learn that Dennis Lehane actually has a new novel out - THE GIVEN DAY. It was released three weeks ago.

I was a little disappointed to see it might lean a little more towards the category of historical fiction as opposed to being more deeply-rooted in the crime/thriller genre. Still, at 720 pages, it does appear to be a rather epic work - Lehane includes a two-page "cast of characters" list at the book's beginning. And with the two primary characters being a cop and a man-on-the-run, it seems the tale does encompass a fair amount of crime/thriller material.

Even after reading the reviews I'm still on the fence about it...undecided if I should invest the time and give it a read, or just wait for the inevitable - Clint Eastwood buying the rights and making an Oscar-bait motion picture out of it.

Anyone read it yet?
Old 10-13-08, 06:55 PM
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I have not read it yet -- am in the same position you are. EW recently had an article on Lehane where he said he was done with the crime fiction genre (or maybe it was limited to the McKenzie books). Anyway, this book is tempting and film rights have already been optioned (Sam Raimi set to direct).
Old 10-13-08, 07:05 PM
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I haven't read it (it's too damn long), but several people whose opinions I respect have spoken quite favorably of it.
Old 10-13-08, 09:42 PM
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I was a little turned off by that recent interview in which he essentially put crime fiction behind him, as if he's above it now. I plan to buy The Given Day on bargain tables later because I do have some interest, but I don't feel the usual urgency to go out and buy the latest Lehane novel, unfortunately.
Old 10-14-08, 01:33 PM
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I'm planning on purchasing tomorrow, as its 40% off for Borders rewards members. I read in an interview w/ Lehane that some fictional accounts of Babe Ruth during the 1918 season are used to segue the different sections of the book. Anyways, it sounds interesting; and based on Lehane's track-record, I'll give it a shot.
Old 10-22-08, 02:08 PM
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Originally Posted by FunkDaddy J
I was a little turned off by that recent interview in which he essentially put crime fiction behind him, as if he's above it now.
You know I had pretty much convinced myself to just go ahead and order THE GIVEN DAY, but before doing so, curiosity got the best of me so I decided to check out the EW article you guys have mentioned. As with you, I was more than a little disappointed by his comments in regard to his previous work. I certainly appreciate and respect his candor, but as someone who very much enjoyed the Kenzie/Gennaro books, I can't help but associate the ridicule Lehane expresses for his crime books with a belittling of readers like me who enjoyed them. So I'm back on the fence in regard to THE GIVEN DAY. Not that Lehane cares as I'm sure Oprah will sell a boatload of books for him in the near future.
Old 10-25-08, 08:00 PM
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Buy.com now has THE GIVEN DAY nicely priced at $13.97 (50% discount). Of course if you want free shipping then you'll have to pick up something else too. Also, a quick Google search shows that there is an active 5% off discount code that is good for all customers at buy.com, so that would lower the price on THE GIVEN DAY to $13.27.

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