The story opens with Clyde "Viper" Morton having killed his third person, and waiting to be picked up by police. He reflects on his violent life from eager young man arriving in Harlem to the current moment, and all the choices, good and bad, that brought him here.

Clyde Morton arrives in New York City from Alabama with the dream of making it as the next Louis Armstrong. That dream goes down in flames almost immediately, and Clyde's life takes a left turn into something more nefarious when he's convinced to work for a small time drug dealer.

The dealer's boss, Mister O, a wealthy Jewish man with multiple business interests, quickly takes notice of Clyde, and makes him his henchman. Along the way, Clyde secures his name, "Viper", for his increasingly dangerous reputation, and for his first kill: a rival businessman bringing heroine into Harlem. Mister O, and consequently Viper, are strongly opposed to dealing or using heroine, despite its growing popularity amongst the various genius jazz musicians making names for themselves in Harlem.

Viper also falls for Mister O's maid Yolanda, a woman eager to make her name as a singer. Their lives become inextricably tied together and keep intersecting over the years as Viper becomes obsessed with Yolanda, to his detriment.

Author Jake Lamar charts the changing times in Harlem from the 1930s to the 1960s, and while different from Colson Whitehead's "Harlem Shuffle", I can almost imagine Viper's life happening in parallel to Ray Carney's dad's. We see the way various influences on Harlem, from its jazz scene, its real estate, fashion, and to its crime, shape that part of New York City, as well as Viper's, whose life in Harlem is transformed from one of hope (at his arrival) to a trajectory of crime, wealth, violence and disillusionment.

The novel is fast-paced, full of atmosphere, and great dialogue. I was a little less happy with the twist that is revealed most of the way through the book, but I could appreciate it was an attempt to show how Viper needed to confront his much younger self's past. That said, I liked this book, and particularly liked that open ending, where one is left to wonder what choice will Viper make next in his life.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Crooked Lane Books for this ARC in exchange for my review.

Gritty, and atmospheric, the author takes us behind the scenes of the Jazz Age. Enthralling read and authentic.
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

A dark gritty novel that spans 25 years in the life of Viper, who wanted to be a jazz musician but instead became a drug dealer and enforcer, And murderer. This is centered around three murders he commits (no spoilers) but there's surprisingly little emotion on anyone's part about the people who were killed (or for having killed them). There are good atmospherics and intriguing characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. An old school crime novel.

I don’t typically go for books like this but the historical Harlem setting intrigued me. That part didn’t disappoint me but I really didn’t like the main character and the story itself was just ok. Maybe not for me but others will totally dig it.

It’s 1936, and Clyde, a jazz lover, travels from Alabama to Harlem to chase his dreams of becoming a musician. But lacking talent, he soon finds himself caught up in the growing drug trade and becoming well-known with the local authorities.

Filled with suspense and old-world crime, this novel is heartbreaking and beautifully written, and its characters are truly unforgettable.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the author Jake Lamar, publishers Crooked Lane Books, and as always NetGalley, for an advance digital copy of VIPER'S DREAM.

Viper is an aspiring musician in 1940s Harlem, still needing to pay the rent while he waits for his big break. He starts selling marijuana to his friends, eventually making connections in the underworld and establishing himself. He even falls in love again. When a new drug everyone calls "smack" shows up on the jazz scene, Viper takes notice. He refuses to sell the deadly heroin. But that doesn't stop it from threatening everything he holds close.

I love the grittiness of this book. It's so dark and moody, so much texture. I couldn't place the genre for a while but it's these elements, the character names, club heavy setting, and unfortunately the misogyny, that make me realize it's noir. I don't read much nor, but this example gets me interested in the genre.

VIPER'S DREAM calls a great deal of attention to a very important issue, the proliferation of heroin and other intravenous drugs in Black USian communities in the 40s through 60s. This seems to be the central theme of VIPER'S DREAM, and Lamar handles the sensitive topic with palpable delicacy.

Rating: 🎷🎷🎷🎷 / 5 blues players
Recommend: Yes
Finished: March 19 2023
Read this if you like:
👠 film noir
🕴🏾 gangster stories
🔪 revenge stories
🕰 historical fiction
🎙 jazz and blues music

5 stars!!! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is a fairly quick read but action packed. I loved the references to famous Jazz artists and Harlem. The writing was so vivid and effortless I felt like I was in the club:) Viper’s journey was interesting. The mystery kept me guessing until the end. I look forward to reading more from this author. I will look into the audiobook because I think it will be awesome too!

****Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review****

If you like old school noir fiction you need to read Viper's Dream. This book spans a few decades and is centered around three murders Viper commits. The author does a great job transporting the reader to the jazz world of Harlem. There is mystery, hardship, love and an a great atmosphere, what more can you ask?

Starred review:

Wow! The Viper is the king of Harlem. Growing up in the South he dreams of moving to Harlem and play the jazz clubs in Harlem. Well things do not turn out thy well d he turns to being a locaweed distributor. He becomes very good at it. Nicknamed Viper he becomes a feared enforcer. Th story spans a few decades and covers lots of history.

Maybe an early runner for best book of 2023. Highly recommended.

3.5 stars

I’m going to have a love/hate with this novel. While so many things worked and were beautiful, there were other parts that wish were explored more. I really enjoyed the time period, setting, the characters and the mystery. However, I do wish some of the characters were more developed. Overall this is a very good read, and I’m sure I will revisit it in the future.

Loved the use of Jazz and the mystery going on, it worked well in the mystery genre. I enjoyed trying to solve what was going on and was hooked on the way it was written. The characters worked well in the time-period and I enjoyed what I read. It does use language that was used back then but it works with the story. I enjoyed reading this overall and can't wait to read more from Jake Lamar.

"While Pork Chop did his job, Viper directed Peewee, Matilda and the maids in the cleanup operation. They cut
up the bloody rugs and all the splattered pieces of paper into thousands of little strips and dumped the fragments in burlap sacks, along with Mr. O’s silk bathrobe and Yolanda’s maid uniform. They rearranged other Persian rugs, clean ones. They uprighted the chair and antique desk. They scrubbed all the bloodstains from the furniture. They scoured and polished the deadly letter opener."

This story has really good bones, unfortunately I felt that I never got enough of Viper's inner life to get invested in him as a character or oh his love for Harlem after he initially fell in love with it to get invested in the setting. I saw the things he did but it all felt clinical and it only rarely felt engaging even though a lot of tragic events happed to him. I assume the intent was to convey Viper's own sense of disconnect from his own actions but the result wasn't convincing for me.

I ended up being more invested in Yolanda whom I found to be a tragic but sweet character and Pork Chop who seemed to have a richer inner life but sadly we don't get their side of the story .