Praise for Stella’s work has long centered on his wit and raw realism. Ken Bruen, the Irish crime writer, called Stella “a winner, a true artist.” In Raskin’s World, he delivers a bleak, piercing portrait of lives unmoored by desire, pride, and the corrosive aftermath of betrayal. There are no clean escapes here, only the lingering aftermath of choices that cannot be undone.
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The heavily populated saga, involving a shady FBI operation, lies, deceit, misplaced trust, and numerous vendettas, requires intricate plotting and careful attention to character. Many have said it before, but there’s a blunt realism to Stella’s dialogue and a compelling rationale for his underworld characters’ pitiless behavior. Richard Lipez writes in an article in The Washington Post: “It’s too bad that virtually none of Stella’s best dialogue is repeatable in this newspaper. Like “The Sopranos” writers, Stella is a kind of obscene Ring Lardner, finding a lean, rancid poetry in his characters’ vernacular, and rendering it with flawless precision and humor.” With Joey Piss Pot, the prose is spare, the conversation sharp and colorful and thick with profanity, and when the action kicks in, the slick, graphic violence leaves a mark. Fans of underworld fiction will drink this up and hungrily hold out their bowl for more.
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