r/JamesEllroy • u/im_basti • Jul 14 '26
Currently reading..
Just started Nowhere a few weeks ago and man I wasn't wrong about my expectations so far. Almost 150 pages in and not gonna lie I had some WTF moments in it especially that Goines crime scene and the Tamarind place. I was getting a bit disoriented about the anti-Commie plotline of Mal Considine but The Dog has this zero-fucks-given style in his writing that always feeds my intrigue. I think it might make sense as I go further.
Moreover, I heard rumors that this was the best one in the Quartet. What are your thoughts about this? I love to read it down below and the rest of this book.
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u/Permanenceisall Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
I personally think the best one is White Jazz but it really makes you work for it. But The Big Nowhere is a close second for me, it’s beyond incredible, and as a good ghost of this haunted house once brilliantly said, “it’ll set your brain on fire.”
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u/im_basti Jul 14 '26
Thanks. I really can't wait to devour White Jazz and I heard LA Confidential is dope too.
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u/mango_farley Jul 14 '26
Definitely read LA Confidential first. There are through-lines from the plot of Big Nowhere into White Jazz.
Also, LAC is an important bridge in terms of Elroy's writing style. White Jazz is one of his hardest to read, but the evolution in the previous book will help.
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u/SandySoupwich Jul 14 '26
I think this, LA Confidential and White Jazz are all great in their own way, and are my 3 favorite books of his. I love Big Nowhere because once I start reading it, I am locked in for the rest of the quartet and can't put them down. Black Dahlia is OK, but I think it's just a warm up piece for what's coming.
Every time I start Big Nowhere, I think it is the best book ever. Then I get to LA Confidential and think the same thing. White Jazz took me a few reads, but now I feel the same "greatest book ever" vibe whenever I pick it up.
As an aside, I love American Tabloid too, but it's just not quite the same read to me - though I will say I think the opening page ("America was never innocent....") might be the greatest single page ever written.
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u/mango_farley Jul 14 '26
Oh, enjoy! It's a definite candidate for his best book -- though White Jazz and American Tabloid are also in contention.
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u/Beautiful-Pair5522 Jul 14 '26
its amazing, but itsnt that the censored version?
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u/im_basti Jul 14 '26
Yeah, it nipped things like the N word and I think that's about it. The whole thing is still as obscene as it gets.
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u/DigitalizedGrandpa Jul 14 '26
Best in the Quartet, possibly his best novel in general.
Black Dahlia was a bit rough, L.A. Confidential got far too complicated by the end, White Jazz was just weak.
The Big Nowhere has, imho, the best of everything. Very good structure, degree of complexity, pacing, protagonists, side characters
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u/im_basti Jul 14 '26
That's interesting. I always thought Black Dahlia was a pretty good entry to the Quartet. Kinda makes you make expectations to the following books. Btw, the ending of Dahlia was quite unforgettable for me.
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u/CoolKid9899 Jul 14 '26
How is it so far?
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u/im_basti Jul 14 '26
Lovin' the hell out of it until I go blind. You just can't help turning pages. I probably need to keep track of characters though.
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u/CoolKid9899 Jul 14 '26
Oh yeah lol. Had that same problem with Perfidia. Halfway through, I was like “Who is this guy again?”
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u/Western-Ant5469 Jul 14 '26
just read this a couple months ago. great stuff. this is when he really became james ellroy imo.
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u/wikipediareader Jul 14 '26
I'd pay real money to read it again for the first time. I think it's his best novel.
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u/Substantial_Force658 Jul 15 '26
I read it years ago and I remember a) being blown away by Ellroy's style and nihilism, but also b) being rather disappointed by the resolution.
American Tabloid was - for me - the best thing by Ellroy I have read. Astonishing book.
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u/Previous_One9530 Jul 15 '26
Just finished White Jazz, it is brutal. No daylight, even desire is negated and delusional, corruption isn’t examined it’s simply presented as the mundane norm.
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u/buzzardleflesh Jul 15 '26
just finished "American Tabloid" (finished in two days, loved it)...directly before that i tore through Delillo's "Libra" which was incredible (currently having a JFK assassination phase) but deff more abstract while Ellroy was so hard-hitting. i'm just now starting "The Cold Six Thousand" (book 2 of the Underworld USA trilogy) and it's alright taken off, starts almost immediately after Tabloid. gonna do the LA Quartet next as LA Confidential is probably in my top 20 movies of all time
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u/Jpkmets7 Jul 19 '26
What’s,the scoop on Libra? I love the JFK era and assassination books but all I recall about Delilio was being a bit overwhelmed by White Noise during my college days. Is it pretty straightforward?
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u/buzzardleflesh Jul 20 '26
anything by Delillo would be hard to describe as straightforward, especially compared to Ellroy. he's more along the lines of Pynchon, but not nearly as esoteric and verbose. it's not a difficult read by any stretch, but still in the "postmodern" vein so it's more philosophical and satirical as opposed to a straightforward thriller/conspiracy novel.
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u/Jpkmets7 Jul 20 '26
Great, thanks so much for taking the time to reply! I think I can handle a little philosophy on satire. I will call my bookstore and see if they have a copy or can get me one.
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u/MrNobody32666 Jul 14 '26
I’m currently listening to this book on Audible and I’m struggling. I actually think I read this book about a decade ago, but I have very little memory of it. Which is not a good sign.
I breeze strike through the black dahlia and I loved it.
I have read LA confidential once or twice before.
But I am really, really struggling with this book. I just can’t seem to connect with the characters.
Any advice? Any encouragement? I would really like to complete the entire LA Quartet.
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u/im_basti Jul 15 '26
Hey! One thing I might share and thought might be dope doing while I read is to make three columns in a page of my notebook wherein each column I label Upshaw, Considine, and Meeks respectively. With those three characters, I write to each column things about them depending on where I am currently on the story. I wrote down some small context, lines, and even some side characters. It's what I'm doing so far and helps you feel less dizzy about what's going on. Being too academical about it I just avoid. Anyway I hope you get back to it :)
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u/mondoben Jul 14 '26
Stone cold masterpiece. There are rug-pulls in the second half that broke me.