The Shark-Infested Custard (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)

Having discovered Willeford from Miami Blues, I hurried to the Shark-Infested Custard which is more of the same. This time four guys have adjoining apartments, share a louche social life, drift apart, come together again. Their tales are told from individual viewpoints, a tricky technique brought off with some flair.Theres is dark humour, there are murders and beatings, the protagonists emerge as bad men with good instincts or good men with bad habits - the interpretation may vary from reader to reader. Occasionally, Willeford indulges in a showy set-piece that might have been irritating had it not been done so well: the boss trying to move on an underling who doesn't want to go is a splendid example.Willeford is not for all tastes but will entertain those who can sublimate their scruples for a couple of hundred pages.

Pleased with purchase.

Pulp fiction, was never criticised as being before its time, all though Shark infested custard, surely would've been, the intercrossing style of narrative bears unusaul simmilarities with a certain palme d'or winner, The storys brief and poignant entertain and assist the musketeers all for one style premise, painting an entertaining picture of male america

As described and on time

This guy writes such wonderful stuff. I'll never understand why I hadn't found him years ago. The prose and innuendo in this and all of his work is absolutely marvelous. I recommend anything written by Charles Willeford.This is kind of four stories in one, all loosely related and all something way different from what you're (I'm??) used to reading. So enjoyable and so entertaining.....Read this guy!!!!!r

I love noir type fiction and enjoyed this BUT the ending was odd and the book seemed a little disconnected and missed several obvious ways it could have been tied together a little better.

Fabulous Willeford story. Low key. Noir. Realistic but odd. Classic Willeford.

The Shark-Infested Custard is a mediocre and oddly-structured thriller (although the middle of the book feels more like filler). I bought into the "Tarantino" hype surrounding the novel and wished I hadn't. It was an okay read because I like the author, but I would never suggest anyone new to Charles Willeford begin here (see my list of recommended titles below). The book got off to a good start, but I didn't like how it jumped around in time, switching character POV as it went (and normally I like multiple POV books). Willeford didn't even give proper, full-length POV chapters to a couple of the characters, so I felt short-changed. Parts of it were kind of boring and I have to admit, I struggled to finish it. There were too many "who cares?" subplots that took the book off on weird tangents. The whole thing felt like a few random "slice of life" short stories the author pasted together by making the characters all know each other rather than working as a unified whole. The weird ending reminded me of a sitcom coming full circle, just in time to hit the "reset" button for next week's episode (well, almost!). Did I mention the book's stupid title that has nothing to do with anything in the story? I bought it used and it had some good parts, but was ultimately nothing special.I've read a lot of Willeford's books. He is a great author with a wonderfully likable style. Unfortunately, this is one of his weakest books, right up there with his last Hoke Mosely novel. You want good Willeford? Try reading his best: The Woman Chaser,Miami Blues,Sideswipe: A Hoke Moseley Detective Thriller, and The Black Mass of Brother Springer. The Woman ChaserMiami BluesSideswipe: A Hoke Moseley Detective ThrillerThe Black Mass of Brother Springer

A story about four self-absorbed, completely unlikable guys. Lots of descriptive filler as if the writer was just working to hit his word count. It was a decent set-up, but the story never delivered on what the back cover blurb promised. I'll stick with James Ellroy when I need my noir fix.

Not a unified novel, but interrelated stories. Willeford, like the latter filmmaker Tarrantino, revels in pushing the limit to often comedic effect. Dated details detract a little bit from the story... which weren't intended one thinks thirty some years ago.Excellent reseller.

I think my title sums it up pretty good. Four bachelors living the Miami singles scene get involved in awkward situations that need creative solutions. The dialogue is masterful.

This crap wasn't even realistic in the '70s.