The MillionDollar Wound Nathan Heller Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition) Max Allan Collins Dan John Miller Brilliance Audio Books
Download As PDF : The MillionDollar Wound Nathan Heller Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition) Max Allan Collins Dan John Miller Brilliance Audio Books
In 1942, Chicago P.I. Nate Heller and his childhood pal, boxer Barney Ross, join the Marines and see bloody action together at Guadalcanal. Upon his return to gangland Chicago, the shell-shocked Heller - more dangerous than ever - is thrust into the midst of an inter-gang war to depose Capone's successor, Frank Nitti, whose minions are infiltrating Hollywood movie unions.
In this crushing finale to rough-and-tumble Nate Heller's Frank Nitti trilogy, Max Allan Collins delves into the damaged psyche of war veterans as a full-on gangland war threatens to explode. As tempers in Hollywood flare-up, Heller attempts to solve a murder committed behind enemy lines, and deal with the drug addiction of his friend Barney. But not even the company of fan dancer Sally Rand can ease Heller's conscience as he is haunted by the events at Guadalcanal even as he's surrounded by the murder and mayhem of Nitti's final, violent days.
The MillionDollar Wound Nathan Heller Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition) Max Allan Collins Dan John Miller Brilliance Audio Books
This is a composite review of True Detective,True Crime, and The Million-Dollar Wound, the first three books of the Nathan Heller series, also known collectively as the “Frank Nitti Trilogy.”It’s fair to say that Film Noir and hardboiled detective stories are my favorite movie genres, Double Indemnity is my favorite film of all time, and I was intrigued to read the blurb on the first book in the Heller series, “True Detective” when it turned-up on a BookBub email.
During the early 70’s Max Allan Collins was fascinated by the noir/hardboiled detective genre, but to his mind they were a product of their time, the Roaring 20’s, 30’s and 40’s, and he couldn’t figure out how to write a contemporary version of the archetype. So he had the genius idea of taking his fictional character, PI and ex-cop with-a-conscience Nathan “Nate” Heller, and placing him in 1930’s and 40’s Chicago, where he would become involved with real historical events and people, starting with the attempted hit on Frank Nitti by corrupt Mayor Anton “10% Tony” Cermak.
The complete Trilogy covers the years from 1932 - 43, is an absolute joy to read, and is structured as Heller’s memoires, told in the first person. As well as Nitti and Mayor Cermak, we get to enjoy Heller interacting with such historical figures as Elliot Ness, Al Capone, boxer Barney Ross, George Raft, Louis Campagna, Paul Ricca, Melvin Purvis, John Dillinger, Ma Baker and her boys, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, Alvin Karpis, burlesque dancer Sally Rand, Robert Montgomery, journalist **Walter Winchell, J Edgar Hoover, and even FDR… phew!!!
The amount of research that has gone into creating this series of historical detective stories is, quite frankly, astonishing. The era, as well as the extensive cast of characters, both real and fictional, come alive on the page; the city of Chicago, and the 1933 World’s Fair, dubbed “The Century of Progress,” are evocatively drawn, and even the sun, wind, rain and snow, are characters in and of themselves! In addition the book contains photos of some of the main characters, both well known and otherwise, plus locales, which only adds to the sense of veracity.
A quick internet search shows that Nitti’s story did not end well; the Feds were closing in with RICO charges, his health was failing, and he was being squarely blamed by his associates for the coming legal storm that would see most of them pulling 10yr stretches.
The official story is that with the pressure building on him, and seeing no way out from under either the Feds or the mob, Nitti dressed himself smartly, sent his wife off to church, then went for a walk along a railway embankment near his home where he drunkenly fired his gun at the crew of a train moving through the area, before stumbling to the ground and putting two bullets into his own head. An ignominious end to be sure, and one the authorities pushed; Nitti was, after all, just a Hoodlum, a thug, who took the coward’s way out instead of facing his punishment like a man.
*Minor Spoiler Ahead.*
But in the story Heller, called to the scene and looking at the same evidence and series of events as the police, and taking into account his own inside knowledge regarding the last meeting between Nitti and his lieutenants, comes up with an alternative explanation that gives the mobster a slightly, shall we say, less ignoble, ending, something the authorities refuse to consider.
But Collins’ version of Nitti is so convincingly drawn, and the relationship between him and Heller so well developed, that I certainly found myself thinking that if this was not the way it was, then perhaps, it was the way it should have been.
*Spoiler Ends.*
In closing all I can say is that I read all three books in quick succession and enjoyed them immensely; I would highly recommend them to lovers of Noir, hardboiled detective fiction, as well as historical fiction… and I can safely say that these certainly won’t be the last Heller novels I’ll be reading!
**Burt Lancaster’s vicious and spiteful “JJ Hunsecker,” from the superlative Sweet Smell of Success, which also features a magnificently craven performance by a young Tony Curtis, is said to be based on Walter Winchell.
Product details
|
Tags : Amazon.com: The Million-Dollar Wound: Nathan Heller, Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition): Max Allan Collins, Dan John Miller, Brilliance Audio : Books, ,Max Allan Collins, Dan John Miller, Brilliance Audio ,The Million-Dollar Wound: Nathan Heller, Book 3,Brilliance Audio ,B005Y0Y9US
People also read other books :
- The Tale of Mr Jeremy Fisher Beatrix Potter 9781290273060 Books
- Luther and the Reformation The LifeSprings of Our Liberties Joseph Augustus Seiss 9781141212415 Books
- W is for Waitress My Erotic Alphabet Series Careers Book 23 edition by Katie L Thompson Literature Fiction eBooks
- Timeless Whisper Timeless Hearts Book 1 edition by Sandra E Sinclair Timeless Hearts Meg Amor Romance eBooks
- Fields of Iron A steampunk adventure novel Magnificent Devices Book 11 edition by Shelley Adina Literature Fiction eBooks
The MillionDollar Wound Nathan Heller Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition) Max Allan Collins Dan John Miller Brilliance Audio Books Reviews
Another great Nate Heller mystery. After Pearl Harbor Nate Heller and his buddy Barney Ross get drunk, lie about their ages and join the Marines. They end up on Guadalcanal. Suffering from malaria Heller is pinned down while on patrol. Ross is wounded as are several others. Heller suffers battle fatigue and is honorably discharged after he recovers. After he is discharged he has to reacquaint himself with a case that he had worked on years before.
This one is a little more raw than the prior two. The novel has a lot of threads, Heller fighting on Guadalcanal. Heller investigating mob connections to unions in the late 30s. Heller dealing with both of those issues as he recovers from malaria he contracted on Guadalcanal. The threads interweave themselves throughout the book. Like all of the books it is well written, lots of fun, plenty of historical figures, and at least two conspiracy theories.
I have mixed feelings about the Heller books. (I've read four the Lindbergh one and the Nitti trilogy.) The characters, setting and dialog are truly outstanding. The historical figures come to life, and Heller's complex relationships with Nitti and Elliot Ness (and Lindbergh) are deep and believable. The writing is excellent.
But, honestly, I find the plots themselves pretty boring. Tons of talking about who's double-crossing whom, complicated motives and conspiracies. It just all wafts past without really meaning much. So if you're drawn to books with lots of intrigue expressed primarily through shadowy conversation, this could be right up your alley. But action/thriller books these aren't.
3.5 stars
This is the fifth Nathan Heller novel I've read and all have been excellent. Collins ability to weave so many historical facts and such well-known figures into these works of fiction make them highly readable and page turning. In this one, actor Robert Montgomery, Sally Rand, ex-boxer Barney Ross, Eliot Ness and mobsters Frank Nitti, Paul Ricca take center stage as does Nate's WW II experience at Guadalcanal. What more could you ask for?
It's been a year since I read Collins' depiction of late World War II events through the eyes of Nathan Heller as the soon-to-be head of the A-1 Detective Agency. From the horrors of the Pacific Front against the Japanese forces when he was discharged for psychiatric reasons. The story led to the later hospitalization of Secretary of State Forrestal and his untimely death after falling from the 12th floor of the Navel Hospital. The implication was clear that due to reasons of national security his death was not accidental. It occurred at the time of a change in national leadership and the fear of Forrestal's knowledge of security information plus his diagnosed mental "condition". In addition to this were the interesting capers of his wide-ranging wife in society.
There is much thought brought to light in the imagination of Max Allan Collins' about alternate "explanations" of numerous "official" events which are well worth consideration. I have read all of his 20-plus related novels and have never been disappointed in the read.
This is a composite review of True Detective,True Crime, and The Million-Dollar Wound, the first three books of the Nathan Heller series, also known collectively as the “Frank Nitti Trilogy.”
It’s fair to say that Film Noir and hardboiled detective stories are my favorite movie genres, Double Indemnity is my favorite film of all time, and I was intrigued to read the blurb on the first book in the Heller series, “True Detective” when it turned-up on a BookBub email.
During the early 70’s Max Allan Collins was fascinated by the noir/hardboiled detective genre, but to his mind they were a product of their time, the Roaring 20’s, 30’s and 40’s, and he couldn’t figure out how to write a contemporary version of the archetype. So he had the genius idea of taking his fictional character, PI and ex-cop with-a-conscience Nathan “Nate” Heller, and placing him in 1930’s and 40’s Chicago, where he would become involved with real historical events and people, starting with the attempted hit on Frank Nitti by corrupt Mayor Anton “10% Tony” Cermak.
The complete Trilogy covers the years from 1932 - 43, is an absolute joy to read, and is structured as Heller’s memoires, told in the first person. As well as Nitti and Mayor Cermak, we get to enjoy Heller interacting with such historical figures as Elliot Ness, Al Capone, boxer Barney Ross, George Raft, Louis Campagna, Paul Ricca, Melvin Purvis, John Dillinger, Ma Baker and her boys, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, Alvin Karpis, burlesque dancer Sally Rand, Robert Montgomery, journalist **Walter Winchell, J Edgar Hoover, and even FDR… phew!!!
The amount of research that has gone into creating this series of historical detective stories is, quite frankly, astonishing. The era, as well as the extensive cast of characters, both real and fictional, come alive on the page; the city of Chicago, and the 1933 World’s Fair, dubbed “The Century of Progress,” are evocatively drawn, and even the sun, wind, rain and snow, are characters in and of themselves! In addition the book contains photos of some of the main characters, both well known and otherwise, plus locales, which only adds to the sense of veracity.
A quick internet search shows that Nitti’s story did not end well; the Feds were closing in with RICO charges, his health was failing, and he was being squarely blamed by his associates for the coming legal storm that would see most of them pulling 10yr stretches.
The official story is that with the pressure building on him, and seeing no way out from under either the Feds or the mob, Nitti dressed himself smartly, sent his wife off to church, then went for a walk along a railway embankment near his home where he drunkenly fired his gun at the crew of a train moving through the area, before stumbling to the ground and putting two bullets into his own head. An ignominious end to be sure, and one the authorities pushed; Nitti was, after all, just a Hoodlum, a thug, who took the coward’s way out instead of facing his punishment like a man.
*Minor Spoiler Ahead.*
But in the story Heller, called to the scene and looking at the same evidence and series of events as the police, and taking into account his own inside knowledge regarding the last meeting between Nitti and his lieutenants, comes up with an alternative explanation that gives the mobster a slightly, shall we say, less ignoble, ending, something the authorities refuse to consider.
But Collins’ version of Nitti is so convincingly drawn, and the relationship between him and Heller so well developed, that I certainly found myself thinking that if this was not the way it was, then perhaps, it was the way it should have been.
*Spoiler Ends.*
In closing all I can say is that I read all three books in quick succession and enjoyed them immensely; I would highly recommend them to lovers of Noir, hardboiled detective fiction, as well as historical fiction… and I can safely say that these certainly won’t be the last Heller novels I’ll be reading!
**Burt Lancaster’s vicious and spiteful “JJ Hunsecker,” from the superlative Sweet Smell of Success, which also features a magnificently craven performance by a young Tony Curtis, is said to be based on Walter Winchell.
0 Response to "≫ PDF Free The MillionDollar Wound Nathan Heller Book 3 (Audible Audio Edition) Max Allan Collins Dan John Miller Brilliance Audio Books"
Post a Comment