Product Description

It is Christmas Eve in Wichita, Kansas and snowing steadily. The streets are deserted, traffic is light and most people have returned home for the start of the festivities. But family get-togethers are the last thing on Charlie Arglist's mind, and home is the last place he needs to be. For Charlie has to get out of town. For good. In nine and a half hours, to be precise. But first there are just a few things he has to do . . .

The Ice Harvest is a rollercoaster ride of double-cross, black humour and, very possibly, the last twenty-four hours in Charlie Arglist's life . . .

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #476678 in Books
• Published on: 2005-11-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 192 pages

Review
'Quirky and deeply noir, The Ice Harvest is edge-of-the-seat stuff, but the tension's subtle and the humour's black. Like the film Fargo, The Ice Harvest oozes atmosphere' The Mirror 'This venture into white noir is very much in the league of masters like James M. Cain and Jim Thomson. Truly the real thing and a future classic. Stunning' The Guardian

About the Author

Scott Phillips is the national bestselling author of The Walkaway and The Ice Harvest, which was a finalist for the Hammett Prize, the Edgar Award, and the Anthony Award, and has recently been made into a film Starring John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton. In the UK he has been short-listed for the CWA John Creasey Award and the Macallan Dagger Award for best crime debut. His latest novel, Cottonwood, was published by Picador in 2004. He lives in southern California with his wife and young daughter.

Customer Reviews

An Instant Classic
Scott Phillips short, powerful, wickedly funny noir tale more than deserves the acclaim it has been getting. It's got a shrewd mix of Elmore Leonard's realistically gritty characters, Charles Willeford's unsettling black humor, and Cornell Woolrich's dark, fatalistic plotting. If you like any of those authors, or can't get enough of Daniel Woodrell and James Crumley, this is a must-read for you...

Black humour
Nicely understated, this movie eventually gets around to doubling crosses and femme fatalities, but for much of the running time it is more concerned with the businesss of melancholy middle aged men drinking too much in bars, cars and Strip Joints. The Ice Harvest is a worthy investment for its throwaway wit and bruised, rueful cyncicism.

John Cusack plays a lawyer who has sold out to the values of corporate corruption. He foolishly steals two million dollars from the local mob on Christmas Eve, then plans (with Billy Bob Thornton) to make a break for it later on Christmas Day. The mob boss (Randy Quaid) finds out and sends a hit man to get his money back, and the movie plot is about John Cusack trying to avoid getting killed by them and worrying about his partner in crime -Bob Thornton.

The movie has been pretty much panned by almost every critic to review it, although Roger Ebert praised it enough for three stars which is a good sign. I loved it and loved the book before it. I realise that I am in a small minority in this regard. What makes this movie work for me is its noir blend of saltiness and satire, its mixture of comedy and karma. The comedy here is based upon the hypocrisy of Christmas in this era of corruption and greed. All of the liars and killers and thieves in this movie talk about Christmas, about being home opening up presents with their kids. If you don't get that, I guess you won't see the comedy.

Read this book!
If you like atmospheric crime writing you will love this book. You can feel the chill in your bones when the author takes you through this tacky American town during the deep of winter. The story links together well and leads the reader to a rather unexpected ending.