Manhattan Strip Clubs: ‘Faces Of The Gone:’ a look at Newark’s seamy side
Parks’ writing is witty and entertaining. This is not your average doom and gloom mystery. While Ross spends some time at the beginning of the novel bemoaning the fate of printed newspapers, this is just the calm before the storm.
Ross’s main assistant is Tommy Hernandez, a young Cuban-American gay guy, who constantly bemoans Ross’s pleated pants and generally Ivy League appearance. Not a look to advertise in Newark’s seamy streets, Hernandez thinks. But Ross talks like an Ivy Leaguer and he will continue to dress like one. Gang members think this is funny.
Ross comes up with an amazing bunch of contacts, some of which he has known for a long time, others he connects with for the case. How about a stripper/hooker that he ends up taking to the Outback Steakhouse as the price for her knowledge? And what’s the Director’s retribution for her contact with Ross?