Member Review
Review by
Aravind R, Reviewer
The fifth instalment of Joe Ide’s acclaimed IQ series finds the eponymous hero Isaiah Quantabe—Holmes of the 'Hood—at his lowest. He is on the run, leaving even the love of his life behind, from multiple people and gangs desperate to kill him. He just wants to find a little peace, far away from the chaos brought on by his profession that he no longer plans to continue. He has severe panic attacks due to the PTSD he contracted thanks to the traumatic events of his past adventures. But, the trouble with trouble is that it never goes away, and Isaiah promptly finds himself amidst a plot involving deadly, deranged serial killers, and some serious misunderstanding that pits him against the law enforcement itself.
Back home, those who want his life are trying to get to him through Grace, his girl who may no longer be his girl. Isaiah’s associate and friend Dodson—the hustler’s hustler—gets an ultimatum from his wife to mend his ways and start earning a decent living or move out of her house and her life. Another of Isaiah's friends, Deronda, a prominent entrepreneur with an unflattering past has a trouble that may destroy her reputation in addition to eating away her hard earned wealth.
Smoke is the heady concoction of all these stories, some very connected and some loosely so to the main plot concerning Isaiah. All the tracks are entertainingly narrated in the characteristic language of the street, or the ‘hood, that this series is renowned for. With minimum of words, Ide brings his eccentric, messed up characters and their actions and motivations to life. The dialogues are crisp and amusing. In addition to being a thriller with plenty of action and suspense, it also is a window into the life of the underprivileged who, amidst poverty, drug addiction and violence, try to lead a dignified life.
This was my first taste of the IQ series and I am impressed enough to read more. I don’t know how the other books are structured but the different tracks of this episode felt disjointed to me. In fact, Dodson’s exploits form a sizeable chunk of this novel and, though hugely enjoyable, they do not add much to IQ’s story. Maybe this is due to my starting this series late and I think I need to start from the start to become better oriented. Ide ends Smoke with a cliff-hanger which makes reading the next episode mandatory, so bring it out already!
My gratitude to the author, publishers and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Back home, those who want his life are trying to get to him through Grace, his girl who may no longer be his girl. Isaiah’s associate and friend Dodson—the hustler’s hustler—gets an ultimatum from his wife to mend his ways and start earning a decent living or move out of her house and her life. Another of Isaiah's friends, Deronda, a prominent entrepreneur with an unflattering past has a trouble that may destroy her reputation in addition to eating away her hard earned wealth.
Smoke is the heady concoction of all these stories, some very connected and some loosely so to the main plot concerning Isaiah. All the tracks are entertainingly narrated in the characteristic language of the street, or the ‘hood, that this series is renowned for. With minimum of words, Ide brings his eccentric, messed up characters and their actions and motivations to life. The dialogues are crisp and amusing. In addition to being a thriller with plenty of action and suspense, it also is a window into the life of the underprivileged who, amidst poverty, drug addiction and violence, try to lead a dignified life.
This was my first taste of the IQ series and I am impressed enough to read more. I don’t know how the other books are structured but the different tracks of this episode felt disjointed to me. In fact, Dodson’s exploits form a sizeable chunk of this novel and, though hugely enjoyable, they do not add much to IQ’s story. Maybe this is due to my starting this series late and I think I need to start from the start to become better oriented. Ide ends Smoke with a cliff-hanger which makes reading the next episode mandatory, so bring it out already!
My gratitude to the author, publishers and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.
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