The Comedy is Finished

By: Donald E. Westlake

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The year is 1977, and America is finally getting over the nightmares of Watergate and Vietnam and the national hangover…

US/Canada $25.99

UK/Rest of World £18.99

Description

The year is 1977, and America is finally getting over the nightmares of Watergate and Vietnam and the national hangover that was the 1960s. But not everyone is ready to let it go. Not aging comedian Koo Davis, friend to generals and presidents and veteran of countless USO tours to buck up American troops in the field. And not the five remaining members of the self-proclaimed People’s Revolutionary Army, who’ve decided that kidnapping Koo Davis would be the perfect way to bring their cause back to life…

“One of the best Westlake novels I’ve read.”
– Washington Post

“A terrifying sprint for redemption and rescue with the reader kept in agonizing suspense until the literal last page. Not to be missed.”
– Mystery Scene

“This is a major novel by Westlake at the top of his craft…It is an astonishment and it is also deeply, profoundly relevant.”
– Barry Malzberg

“The Comedy is Finished is possibly the best kidnapping novel ever written.”
– Bibliodiscoteque

“That didn’t take long. Halfway into January and we already have the first great book of 2012…some of the finest work of the author’s career. And that is truly saying something.”
– Vince Keenan

“We’re all in the presence of the master one last time.”
– Open Letters Review

“A tense, compelling story…painfully insightful…[readers will] be hard-pressed to put the book down.”
– Booklist

“Unexpectedly moving.”
– Detectives Beyond Borders

“Sharply written and insightful…a worthy addition to Westlake’s lengthy catalogue.”
– Publishers Weekly

“Expertly paced and very well written…a fine, compelling novel, as well as a poignant conclusion to Westlake’s career. Highly recommended.”
– James Reasoner, Rough Edges

“The absolute brutal honesty… is rather breathtaking.”
– The Fandom Post

“Donald E. Westlake was a master craftsman….A smart, sobering view of the post-Watergate era.”
– Mystery People

“A bravura character study, a deep dark look at what demons drive us when things go wrong…a master at the top of his game.”
– Slacker Heroes

“Surprisingly emotionally potent…God bless Charles Ardai and Hard Case Crime.”
– Barnes & Noble Ransom Notes

“A real page turner…Westlake’s book is hot with fear, remorse, lust and violence…The tight structure…embellishes the suspense and heightens the twists…A fine novel in all respects.”
– Ed Gorman

“A taut, thought-provoking tale…the most entertaining history you’ll have read in a good long while.”
– Grift

“One helluva read…The Comedy Is Finished will keep you at the edge of your seat.”
– Killer Aphrodite

“A fascinating time capsule and a strong character-driven crime novel.”
– Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“A hell of a book, wholly convincing and a reminder of just how smart and perceptive Westlake was: he saw what was happening around him and put it down clearly and carefully enough that reading it collapses time and takes us right back to that moment when America stood at a crossroads, failing flashlight in hand, and chose between painful, possibly pathological introspection, and blithe confidence.”
– Levi Stahl, I’ve Been Reading Lately

“Westlake is a master of ratcheting up the tension…the book is highly recommended.”
– Bill Crider

“The pace of the story never lets up…definitely a fun read.”
– The Daily Rotation

“A masterful little gem.”
– In Reference to Murder

“Vintage Westlake.”
– Dangerous Dan’s Book Blog

“Rife with unexpected scenes of great emotional power and poignancy…You just don’t expect a razor-wire read like this to be so full of feeling…The Comedy Is Finished is a perfect capper to a brilliant career.”
– Tom Piccirilli, The Cold Spot