Rat City

by Curt Colbert

Book Overview

A hard-boiled historical detective novel set in Seattle in 1947, featuring WWII vet, Jake Rossiter, who wants to clean up the corruption in his home town, and his girl Friday, Miss Jenkins, who wants... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0966347358
• ISBN13: 9780966347357
• Release Date: October 2001
• Publisher: Ugly Town
• Length: 361 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.0" x 7.5"

Customer Reviews

Jake takes on the cops

Rat City, with a Seattle setting, is a marvelous read. We rarely read a mystery although we've been big fans of Morse, the British detective of TV. We read Rat City because a fellow poet wrote it. Holy Socrates! What suspense, dialogue and movement. On page one Jake Rossiter takes out (kills) a guy who came into his office to plug him. He didn't even know why the guy was coming after him. "You won't make it," I told him. "You're checking out. Who are you, and why did you try to kill me?" He focused on my ceiling fan and whispered, "Gloria." It was the last thing he ever said. Jake Rossiter undertakes a search to find out why a well-known gangster wanted his head, but he is led into many blind alleys before he comes up with the answers. The story, somewhat reminiscent of Dashiell Hammett's Sam Spade series, captures the dialogue and mood of the time of Seattle's corrupt underbelly. You love Rossiter's girl Friday, Miss Jenkins. With this first novel Curt Colbert, a Vietnam veteran, has created a many-faceted character that warrants many more stories. Colbert's writing style and voice keep you turning the pages of this well-written book, which is a real page-turner. (Barb read the book in two days. Couldn't put it down.) We recommend Rat City as a must-read book, even if, like us, you don't usually read mysteries.

Pulp Fiction Seattle Style

Rat City author. Curt Colbert, must have been a voracious reader of late 40's and 50's pulp detective fiction. The hard-boiled slightly tawdry Spillane style of book is given an expert make-over-- improved too. Set in Seattle circa late 1940's, Rat City is part Spillane,and part transplanted Chandler (yeah, at times Colbert writes that good). This isn't yet another attempted tribute to hard boiled pulps of yester-year however, it's got a unique setting, interesting characters, a leave you breathless pacing and an all out make no appology style. Private dick Jake Rossiter is part Hammer, part Marlow with a bit of Jim Rockford thrown in. The parts gel together well and create an original character you'll have some empathy and respect for.There's also some excellent well researched historical detail in Rat City, but don't worry, it doesn't slow things down a bit. Oh and you can forget about this one being politically correct or indulging in a big helping of revisionism--not going to happen. What does happen is that Curt Colbert creates some dimension to his female and minority characters which makes the novel feel fresh and vibrantly alive. Rossiter's gal Friday Miss Jenkins is full of surprises as well. Colbert's not going to soft soap how things could have been back in the late 40's, but he can give his characters the kind of dimension in one novel, it took some pulp detective fiction authors many books to partially accomplish.If you're looking for the kind of tough and tawdry pulpy detective novel no one writes anymore..well this one's for you.You'll be hooked within 5 pages. Some of the tough as a three day growth of stubble rat-a-tat tough guy lines are memorable and few fall flat. I wouldn't have thought it possible to write a novel like this without having the whole thing crash and burn avoiding a jay-walking copy-cat at the intersection of Cliche Avenue and Self Parody Boulevard.I enjoy being pleasantly surprised. This is a splendid genre book and I'm grateful that Curt Colbert created it. I look forward to the next adventures of Jake Rossiter and Miss Jenkins. I hope there are several more to come. Oh yeah I should mention that this isn't a book to start right before your bed-time... you'll find yourself staying up much too late with the thing as it's truly difficult to put it down once you start reading it.-- Writer, Poet, Critic, Christopher J. Jarmick is the author of the critically acclaimed mystery suspense thriller, The Glass Cocoon (with Serena F. Holder).

Huge Fun !

If somebody gave a writer an assignment "write me a hardboiled private-eye novel set in Seattle in the late 40's. Use all the cliches of the genre", what would come out would be something like "Rat City". it's all here: tough, wisecracking guys who talk about "good joes" and "roscoes" and strengthen their morning coffee with a shot of rotgut whiskey. A devoted secretary. Pneumatic blonde bimbos. Crooked cops. Italian gangsters. At first it's a little off-putting; the game of "spot the cliche" is fun for a while, but hard to sustain over an entire book. But Colbert's obvious affection for the genre and the energy of his plotting make it all work. I paticularly like the way the characters provide insight into changes in postwar America when they suddenly and unexpectedly break out of the skin of their cliches. You will laugh out loud with delight while reading this book.

Smoke, streets and old Buicks

I'll never look at Georgetown in the same way again. These are Jake Rossiter's mean streets, dark, dingy, dirty. Big Ed, cops that beat you up---what's going on in '40's Seattle? Not even Rossiter knows for sure! And Oh, that Miss Jenkins--I can see her now. This is a one-sit-read. Bet you can't put it down once you get it going.

Gumshoe resurrection

With the mere stroke of a his pen Curt Colbert has resurrected the late Sam Spade in the form of one Jake Rossiter. Back is the hardboiled gumshoe. Back is the gum snappin' dame. Back is the big Buick Roadmaster. Someone wants Jake dead. To learn why the tough talkin' hard smokin' Private Dick, along with his blonde bombshell assistant, Miss Jenkins, take to the mean streets of the town they call 'the big sleazy', post World War II Seattle.Colbert has done a masterful job at bringing his late 1940's tale of mystery and suspense to life. With rich and accurate descriptions of post war Seattle and truly memorable characters Colbert's story slinks its way through the back rooms and the back alleys of Seattle's creepiest neighborhood known simply as, Rat City. As a Seattle native I had the pleasure of growing up in the part of Seattle that was known as "Rat City". Curt had described the setting perfectly. For me, Rat City, was a trip back in time and an enjoyable read. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good gumshoe/detective story. Two gumshoes up to Curt Colbert.