Kenzie, Phone Home

Clayton Moore, who pens the “Mystery Strumpet” column for Bookslut, had the chance recently to meet Dennis Lehane, when the author was visiting Denver, Colorado, to promote his new historical novel, The Given Day. Naturally, the future of Lehane’s Boston private eye series was a ripe source of questioning. As Moore writes in his blog, Bang!:

Here’s a bit of bad news, though, for all of you waiting on another chapter in Lehane’s crime series about Dorchester private eyes Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro. It ain’t happening. Lehane gets this question every single night on tour but had a bit of a different answer for the questioner last night. The standard answer is usually that the series was written by a younger man, and he touched on that aspect last night. And a little more.”

I’ve tried but they just won’t come. And you know, I just got married this year, and she asked if Patrick was going to come back. I miss him, because I miss writing jokes and Patrick was really funny. And I really wanted to get this woman into bed, so you know I tried but he just won't come. I’m sorry, but if Patrick won’t come back for sex, I don’t think he’s coming back.”

Well, even if Lehane can’t get in touch with his inner Kenzie, he’s at least left readers with five truly wonderful Kenzie and Gennaro novels, beginning with A Drink Before the War (1994) and concluding with Prayers for Rain (1999). All worth rereading.