“Three may keep a
secret, if two of them are dead.”
Never
has this quote seem more prophetic than in Chris Rhatigan’s The Kind of FriendsWho Murder Each Other. Three people share their secrets and all three are
willing to kill to keep them secrets.
When
Simon, Mackey, and Slade set to drinking one night at the local bowling alley,
their conversation follows the typical bar banter; taxes, the high cost of
cigarettes, etc. This typical bar banter takes a dark turn when the friends
each share a dark secret about themselves. The secrets range in depravity, from
breaking into homes to watch people sleep, to being the driver in a hit and run
accident and finally to admitting being guilty of murder, the friends each
share a piece of their soul without thinking of the consequences.
The
problem with their indiscretions become apparent when they each become paranoid
that the others now have a bargaining chip over them. They realize that
the only way to rectify their mistake is through the elimination of the other
two. Each friend sets out to put their own plan of self-preservation into
action, while also watching their own backs.
One
of the highlights of this book is the manner in which Rhatigan portrays the
decomposition of the narrator’s mind and soul. At the beginning of the book, Simon
seems like a stable, hard working man, but as the story progresses we start to
see all the cracks that exist within him and we know this story won’t end well
for him.
This
is noir just the way I like it … a quick hit that leaves a mark. I'm very glad
to see this book getting re-released and it's apparent All Due Respect
has another winner on their hands. Friends is a noir lovers dream and is best
consumed in one sitting so you can truly appreciate Rhatigan’s genius.
Highly
Recommended
Review by Derrick Horodyski
