From the Bookshelf of Point Blank…

Miami Purity

Vicki Hendricks,

Megan Abbott (Afterword),

Ken Bruen (Foreword)

Start date: October 11, 2018

Finish date: November 26, 2018

Discussion: Currently Reading

Why we're reading this: Justin's recommendation from episode 14 pt 2…more
[close] Justin's recommendation from episode 14 pt 2

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What Members Thought

Aug 13, 2016 Richard rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery-thriller, heroines, noir-contemporary, kinky-skanky-sleaze

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Vicki Hendricks' acclaimed erotic debut novel takes it's cue from noir godfather James M. Cain and is a clear homage to his The Postman Always Rings Twice . In this one, after exotic dancer Sherri Parlay "accidentally" kills her abusive husband, she decides to start over fresh. One way to do it is to get a legit job working at the indie dry cleaners Miami Purity. Here she quickly falls for the owner's son and his "Jagger-lips," but his controlling mom stands in the way.

Hendricks' noi ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Vicki Hendricks' acclaimed erotic debut novel takes it's cue from noir godfather James M. Cain and is a clear homage to his The Postman Always Rings Twice . In this one, after exotic dancer Sherri Parlay "accidentally" kills her abusive husband, she decides to start over fresh. One way to do it is to get a legit job working at the indie dry cleaners Miami Purity. Here she quickly falls for the owner's son and his "Jagger-lips," but his controlling mom stands in the way.

Hendricks' noir voice is smooth and assured, totally spot on. Her writing is one of the best examples I've seen of truly evoking the pulp paperback era but never feeling forced. There are not many things in the story that really date it, so it has a timeless feel and there are many times that I forgot that it was published in 1995. Along with the Miami humidity, the dry cleaners is a perfect setting for this steamy book and all of the illicit going-ons, a place where people take all their dirty things to get them cleaned and "purified." And Sherri is a great protagonist, unapologetic about her sexuality, strong in going after what she wants at the same time she's weak in her self-control.

Now while there are lots of great things in Miami Purity, especially the final act, much of it's beginning and middle is bogged down by monotony, where it falls into a soap opera slump, with not much going on except for Sherri pining over Payne, and the two of them having hot sex and trying to hide it from his mom. In this way, it's also similar to another Cain book, Mildred Pierce, which I had similar feelings about: well-written but weakened by it's eye-rolling soapy elements. So if you imagine James M. Cain, but with a lot more vagina and penis, you'll get an idea of what to expect from this book. And it's cool seeing how many awesome authors have blurbed lovingly about Vicki Hendricks and her work, from Dennis Lehane, to George Pelecanos, to Joe R. Lansdale, and this edition even sports a thoughtful Afterword by Megan Abbott. ...more

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Nov 01, 2018 Geoff Smith rated it really liked it

Shelves: novels, crime

I read this as it was recommended this month by the guys on the Point Blank podcast. It's the story of Sherri, a reforming stripper who falls for the son of a dry cleaning impresario. Sounds good, right?

And it is good, but, well there's no way around this - it's very, very sexy. I knew there would be, but there was even more than I thought, it's kind of a twist on the billionaire romance thing (except Payne isn't quite a billionaire), with a bit of hard-boiled crime thrown in.

I liked the writing ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Aug 21, 2018 Justin rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2018, point-blank, read-in-aug-2018

Five Round Burst Review (pointblankpodcast.com)

Miami Purity by Vicki Hendricks

All right, so the second book I'm reviewing this episode is Miami Purity, which was written by Vicki Hendricks and published in 1995. Hendricks got her MFA from Florida International University in 1992.

This is taut neo-noir loosely modeled on James M. Cain's The Postman Always Rings Twice.

The main character is Sherry -- a down on her luck working class gal who makes poor decisions and finds her self in trouble on a r ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 10, 2017 Dave rated it it was amazing

Shelves: read-have, crime-fiction-all, crime-fiction-modern-noir

At the heart of the novel is more than just a tragic woman caught in a downhill spiral of booze and uncontrollable lustful desires. Sherri is a broken person who is set to find a new life beyond the stripclubs and the abusive husband she got away with killing (that's all on page one). She is out to literally cleanse and purify her life with a job in a dry cleaners called Miami Purity where she falls head over heels for the boss's son, a pure Catholic boy, but also a twisted little mama's boy who ...more

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May 02, 2020 Jake rated it really liked it

Shelves: noir

Again, don’t buy into narratives that the female-driven noir thriller is somehow a recent novelty. It’s not a comeback. Vicki Hendricks carries on a proud tradition with this James-Cain-by-90s-Miami sizzler. Kept me hooked til the very end and hit all the right noir notes.

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Apr 24, 2016 Robin rated it really liked it

After a slow first quarter of the book, where I wondered where it was going, the interest and the pace picked up and I started to really enjoy it. This is very much a character-driven story and the characters were all very well portrayed, from Sherry, former stripper, good-time girl and accidental husband killer trying to shake off her past and live a straight, respectable life, to her lover Payne, a good-looker with a religious and Mummy fixation who turns out to be a cheating liar and control ...more

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Aug 12, 2024 Lawrence rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: noir-pulp-fiction

If you want as much sex as poor life choices, then this is the book for you. Sherry, former stripper wants to go legit, finds a job at a Miami dry cleaners and just can't help herself. She seduces the son of the owner and that is the spiral into darkness. A darkness full of secrets and murder.

This is a fast paced, action packed book. The bodice ripping along with psychological drama add tension throughout.

This was recommended a few years ago by Justin of the Point Blank podcast. A recommendati ...more

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