Galley Talk

Paul Tremblay's The Little Sleep (Holt, Mar. 3) is both whimsical and razor sharp. This quirky jazz riff on Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep is also a fun read that stands on its own. South Boston PI Mark Genevich is both hard-boiled and scrambled—a narcoleptic detective prone to hallucinations and major blackouts. When a TV talent show contestant hires him to find her missing fingers (yes, missing fingers), Genevich isn't sure if it's a real case or a delusion. The somnambulistic gumshoe enters a dreamscape featuring a duplicitous DA, hired thugs, cryptic phone calls, double-dealings and murder. The pace is breakneck and while the humor is pointed, Tremblay never makes fun of Genevich's infirmities; he's a highly sympathetic character dealing with unreliable brainstorms. The Little Sleep is a funny and fresh recasting of the neo-noir hero, and it kick-starts what promises to be an addictive, oddball series.