The Quick Red Fox: Introduction by Lee Child: Travis McGee, No. 4

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I think I missed the fox in this. I really thought Travis McGee would either be helping out or partnering with an actual fox. Or maybe just hanging out on his houseboat with one. You know sort of a Disney-esque entry into the series. There is very little Disney-esque in this book. Something can reach out of the black and grab you at any moment. Everybody wears a different set of compulsions. You can be maimed without warning, in body or in spirit, by a very nice guy. It is the luck of your draw. I did not feel like a nice guy. All the cynical, hard John D. MacDonald prose I could ask for.

Part of what I love about MacDon "The world is shiny and the surface is a little too frangible. Reading MacDonald is to constantly come across sentences and paragraphs that fill you with unbounded joy. Here he is describing San Francisco: The come-latelys might not think so. They may be enchanted by the sea of mystery of the Nob and Russian and Telegraph, by the sea mystery of the Bridge over to redwood country on a foggy night, by the urban compartmentalization of Chinese, Spanish, Greek, Japanese, by the smartness of the women and the city's iron clutch on the culture.

It might look just fine to the new ones. But there are too many of us who used to love her. She was like a wild classy kook of a gal, one of those rain-walkers, laughing gray eyes, tousle of dark hair -- sea misty, a lithe and lovely lady, who could laugh at you or with you, and at herself when needs be.

A sayer of strange and lovely things.

A girl to be in love with, with love like a heady magic. But she had lost it, boy. She used to give it away, and now she sells it to the tourists. Her figure has thickened. The things she says now are mechanical and memorized. She overcharges for cynical services. Every once in a while I get it.

I get the feeling that this is the last time in history when the offbeats like me will have a chance to live free in the nooks and crannies of the huge and rigid structure of an increasingly codified society. Fifty years from now [this book was originally published in , so ] I would be hunted down in the street. They would drill little holes in my skull and make me sensible and reliable and adjusted.

The Quick Red Fox

Different genre, different prophet writing in the wilderness, but same damn brain-dead apocalypse. View all 7 comments. Sep 08, Tony rated it liked it Shelves: This started off as if it would be an exemplary Travis McGee novel, but started to fizzle out about two-thirds of the way through.

The basic plot is that McGee is engaged by a film star to find out who was blackmailing her by threatening to expose her participation in a free-for-all orgy at a California hideaway. There was a catch. She was to both help and to report back to her boss on progress. She was a sharp cookie, and McGee, in spite of his knowing better, worked his way into a brief affair with her. As they get closer to learning more about the orgy and its participants, bodies begin to drop.

Pretty soon — almost as by a process of elimination — the field of suspects narrows until the perp appears. The perp comes out of left field, although he is in cahoots with one of the members of the party. It turned out that the whole thing got washed down the drain when she came to her senses, in a way that made no sense to this reader. I almost got the feeling that MacDonald was going to add her to his lineup of regulars, but changed his mind at the last minute.

The first two-thirds, however, were pretty good.

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Unfortunately, the last third left a bad taste in my mouth. Desperation to finish the story? Feb 04, Jean rated it liked it Shelves: A friend loaned me a paperback he had found at the library annual sale. It was published in I have not read a MacDonald book in years, so I sat down and devoured it. MacDonald was a prolific writer of novels and short stories. He wrote crime and suspense novels many set in Florida. This book is a Travis McGee novel one of his more popular series characters.

MacDonald was named a grandmaster of the Mystery Writers of America A friend loaned me a paperback he had found at the library annual sale. MacDonald was named a grandmaster of the Mystery Writers of America in He won many awards including the National Book Award. His writing career started in while still in the Army when he had an article published in Story Magazine.

In this book, Travis McGee is recruited to help a Hollywood star find a blackmailer who threatens her career with some photographs of her. McGee ends up traveling around in this story such as New York, California, Nevada and Arizona on the hunt for the blackmailer. MacDonald describes McGee as tall, broad shouldered with a rugged face and a perfect gentleman who women are constantly attracted to. MacDonald is a master storyteller. His plot twists and turns keeping the reader in suspense.

JDM has a style of writing that keeps the reader fascinated by the story. MacDonald was a popular author during the s, 60s, and 70s. After reading this book today I can see he still holds his storytelling touch in our times of I am going to keep my eyes open for more of his books. The book was pages, published in by Fawcett Publishing. View all 9 comments. Nov 10, Cathy DuPont rated it really liked it.

My "go-to" place for everything Travis McGee is D. Martin's blog Me and Travis McGee. When I discovered D. But going through some of D. There were some comments about Travis being a misogynist and had no respect for women. In fact, some even said he treated them my words as throw-a-ways, simply using them for his own gratification and pleasure With that said, I decided that I would take note of just how Travis felt about women and boy did I hit on a gold mine in The Quick Red Fox for insight, in Travis' own words, his feelings about women.

Taking a look, here are some direct quotes: You can be sarcastic about that too, if you want. Bed is the simplest thing two people can do. Not when you do. You are implausibility…astoundingly, unforgettably great. It isn't me, and it isn't you. You and your sybarite boat and your damned beach girls. But we add up to beautiful in some crazy way.

Obviously a woman's body is just that, hers to love and admire without categorization into the "perfectly sized" woman. A woman to him would be something owned, to use as he wished. Also, I noted a few comments and words of introspection by Travis which I particularly enjoyed and I've included them: A foible of the knight, even the comic one, is the cherishing of women, and perhaps even my brand of cherishing is quaint in this time and place.

Fifty years from now I would be hunted down in the street. He treats women with respect and equality which was, in my mind, was unheard of in the '60's. If you disagree, watch Mad Men on TV, or offer your own support of your position. The book was great, a bit slim on the storyline, but who cares? It's Travis McGee, so says me and Travis is and always will be my guy!

View all 12 comments. Feb 11, Carla Remy rated it liked it. I liked this the least of the Travis McGee books so far it's 4. The mystery started intriguingly but ended convolutedly. But how many books did the man write in ?

A Travis McGee Novel

Ah, the 's--back when a man could fend off a pack of "butch" lesbians with whacks to the ass from a golden putter. Jan 19, Francis rated it really liked it. I have mixed feelings about John D. First, there is his prose. I don't as a habit underline passages in books. I often admire the words but I move on, to absorbed in the story to slow down.

Sometimes with MacDonald though, I reread the passage, maybe even twice, then I think about highlighting the passage and then finally I move on. Later I might regret not having preserved a particular passage or two with a highlighter. I tip my hat. The man could write. The mixed part begins and ends I have mixed feelings about John D.

The mixed part begins and ends with the character Travis McGee.

The man is too confident, too self assured. It's like the outcome is never in doubt and if the outcome is never in doubt then the story loses it's tension; not a good thing. There is also this thing about McGee and his magical curative effect on women. I mean, it's never a permanent relationship, they always move on but in a good way.

The Quick Red Fox: Introduction by Lee Child

Once lost they are now found, and all due to a roll in the hay well several actually with McGee. And, to his credit, he cures a lot of women. OK maybe a bit harsh, a bit too overdone, sort of like McGee. But the words, I love the words. I mean the guy could write Jan 10, Maggie K rated it really liked it Shelves: So far, Ive been quite taken with this series McGee is a man who comes off as simple, but is anything but After the last 2 books, I was starting to see a little bit of a formula, and was concerned that as a series, McGee was going flat. But this installment was actually different and darker.

Sordid is probably the best word. Here, McGee reluctantly takes a job from a beautiful movie star to track down her blackmailer. Except he fe So far, Ive been quite taken with this series Except he feels kind of squeamish about it. And the movie star thinks she has him hooked. When he figures out what's happening, its too late to stop the dominoes that have started falling. He has completed the job, but what about the price of the fallout it has caused? Definitely the smarmy side of life But if all endings were nice and happy, McGee could turn jovial Now that would be a crime.

I finished The Quick Red Fox this morning during a quiet period at work.. I do like McGee's character, he's thoughtful, cynical, old-fashioned, treats women with respect and tough. It's a series I will continue. I'm glad that I was introduced finally to such an excellent series. Feb 13, Col rated it really liked it Shelves: From a beloved master of crime fiction, The Quick Red Fox is one of many classic novels featuring Travis McGee, the hard-boiled detective who lives on a houseboat.

MacDonald is a shining example for all us in the field. Talk about the best. This was the fourth instalment in the twenty-one book series which MacDonald wrote and had published between and Incidentally, the first four were all published in McGee is engaged by Lysa Dean, Hollywood hot property to get her out of a jam.

After identifying most other of the other orgy members, Travis and Dana traverse the country, catching up with and eliminating some of the players along the way. As the journey gathers pace, there appears to be someone else, a step or two ahead of them eliminating some of the participants in the sex-games. This book was more enjoyable for me than the second and third in the series, maybe a notch under the standard of the first — The Deep Blue Goodbye.

McGee; sage, part-time philosopher, granite chin, iron fists and with a tender, caring disposition is an interesting companion to share a few hours with each month. He strikes me as a deeply moral person. He has his own code to follow - a short-haired hippy, minus the predilection for meaningless sex and drug abuse. Not adverse to violence when it is needed, but never as his first resort. I wonder how he would view the world fifty years on from this adventure. View all 5 comments. This book written in the sixties has scattered nuggets of McGee's or MacDonald's philosophy.

Trav says ' I get the feeling that this is the last time in history when the offbeats like me will have a chance to live free in the nooks and crannies of the huge and rigid structure of an increasingly codified society. Diagnostic codes, PIN numbers, passwords and on and on. McGee is also quite a poet. These wonderful novels pack quite a punch. Apr 24, Andy rated it it was ok. Never turn your back on a homicidal nymphomaniacal year-old from Iceland, especially if she's carrying a handbag with a murderously heavy stone rabbit inside.

I wanted to like this one more than I actually did. It's far from bad and John D. MacDonald really nails his characters and Travis McGee's evolving relationship to his loneliness and to women, but the investigation takes forever to pan out and there's not that second gear the first couple books that that shift perception in the second half. A Bullet for Cinderella. The Long Lavender Look: Introduction by Lee Child. A Key to the Suite. The Deep Blue Goodbye: Pale Grey for Guilt: The Girl in the Plain Brown Wrapper: Cancel All Our Vows. Dress Her in Indigo: The Last One Left. A Flash of Green.

Slam the Big Door. A Man of Affairs. The Only Girl in the Game. Where is Janice Gantry? The End of the Night. The Good Old Stuff. Where Is Janice Gantry? Murder in the Wind. One Fearful Yellow Eye: A Deadly Shade of Gold: Murder for the Bride. Cry Hard, Cry Fast. A Nightmare in Pink: Wine of the Dreamers. A Tan and Sandy Silence: A Purple Place for Dying: The Lonely Silver Rain: The Empty Copper Sea: The Dreadful Lemon Sky: Free Fall in Crimson: Bright Orange for the Shroud: Please Write for Details.

The Price of Murder. Ballroom of the Skies. Free Fall in Crimson. Tu nombre de usuario debe tener al menos 2 caracteres. Las publicaremos en nuestro sitio cuando las hayamos revisado.

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