Publisher's Weekly Review
The last novel by this still underappreciated author, published here nine years after Highsmith's death, is a sour, mostly inert comedy of manners. In Zurich, Rickie Markwalder mourns his younger lover, Peter Ritter, stabbed to death late one night six months earlier. Accompanied by his small dog, Lulu, Rickie haunts a local bar called Jakob's, identified in guidebooks with a "small g" (for gay), hanging out with acquaintances. The bar draws a mixed crowd, most of whom are in love with people they shouldn't be (a familiar Highsmith theme). Renate, a club-footed, middle-aged atelier owner and her young employee Luisa are other regulars. Homophobic to the point of caricature, Renate despised Peter (upon whom Luisa had a crush) and despises Rickie. When a handsome young man, Teddie, comes to the bar, she and an associate set out to wreck any relationship he might develop with either Rickie or Luisa, both of whom are attracted to him. When Rickie and Luisa realize what Renate is trying to do, they make their own plans to punish her in return. While the narrative never flags, at no point does it take off. There are flashes of the author's wit, but much of the writing captures surfaces and nothing more, and Highsmith's remarkable observational powers are muffled. Although most of the characters are well drawn, Renate is simply too much of an ogre to serve as either a realistic threat or a foil, and the story suffers accordingly. Overall, this is a disappointing final note by one of our more interesting writers. Agent, Diogenes Verlag. (June) Forecast: After a flurry of reissues in the last few years, Highsmith fatigue may be setting in. This novel isn't likely to reverse the trend, though as a new release it's something of a novelty. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
A meandering story of gay and straight life in modern Zurich, the last fiction by Highsmith (Nothing That Meets the Eye, 2002, etc.) before her death in 1995. It is a pity that the author of Strangers on a Train and the Ripley novels should have left this paltry story as the final contribution to a long and distinguished body of work. Set deep within the stolid back alleys of the hardworking Swiss metropolis, it lingers particularly within the confines of two gay bars: Jakob's and the Small g. Both (Jakob's especially) are patronized by a highly mixed crowd, with straights and homophobes thrown into the usual mix of gays, lesbians, and the happily unaffiliated. The hero is one Rickie Markwalder, a commercial artist who runs his own business and is HIV-positive. Rickie's most recent boyfriend, Petey Ritter, was murdered on the street not long ago during a mugging that got out of hand, and Rickie bears his grief quietly as he goes about his daily routines and looks after his pet dog, Lulu. Luisa Zimmermann, an apprentice dress designer, had been in love with Petey also, a fact that engenders a kind of paternal feeling in Rickie for the young woman. But Luisa works for Renate Hagnauer, a vicious homophobe who has spread rumors that Petey was killed in bed by someone he picked up at Jakob's, and Renate's gossip is magnified by the odious Willi Biber, a gay-bashing thug who hangs out at Jakob's in search of new prey. When the handsome young Swiss-American Teddie Stevenson begins frequenting Jakob's, he becomes the object of attention by Rickie and Luisa alike, and, naturally, Willi and Renate take a perverse interest in the young man as well. Fights, broken hearts, an unexpected death ensue. Aimless and uninteresting tale that would have been best left to the archives. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
This final book from esteemed crime writer Highsmith, who died in 1995, is more a complement to her pseudonymous lesbian novel Price of Salt than to her better known Ripley thrillers. The action centers on Jakob's, a pub in Zurich known as Small g for its partially gay clientele. A colorful clash of characters meet and mingle at Small g, including Rickie, a self-consciously aging gay man; Luisa, a young seamstress with a troubled past; Renate, Luisa's controlling and viciously homophobic employer and landlady; and Renate's neohenchman, Willi, a sinister and brooding halfwit. Following the stabbing death of Petey, Rickie's young lover, Rickie befriends Luisa, who had once been his rival for Petey's affections. They similarly both fall for and lust after the fetching Teddie, whose arrival at Small g triggers an escalating series of disastrous events. While Highsmith's last book--only now published in the U.S.-- does not live up to its potential as a suspense thriller, it does offer an intriguing exploration of gay culture and the complexities of love, jealousy, possessiveness, and friendship. --Misha Stone Copyright 2004 Booklist
Library Journal Review
Completed shortly before Highsmith's death in 1995, her final novel opens with the assault and murder of Rickie Markwalder's boyfriend, Pete, near Zurich on a January night. No one is apprehended, and Rickie is heartbroken and angry amid a swirl of nasty rumors started by local dressmaker Renate, a homophobe with a club foot. Jump ahead to the summer: Rickie has begun to move on with his life, throwing himself into his advertising and design work and resuming his daily visits to Jakob's, a pub/restaurant that is the village hub (travel guides mark it with a small G for "gay friendly;" thus the title). There, he runs into Renate, her apprentice, Luisa; and Renate's cohort, Willi, among other regulars. He has little success with romance until Teddie enters Jakob's one evening and shakes up his routine forever. While Teddie is grateful for Rickie's attention and kindness, he falls as hard for Luisa as Rickie falls for him. The characters in this triangle go after what each desires, following a convoluted path of attraction, romance, and jealousy that reveals the power of friendship when attraction isn't reciprocated or romance wanes. As Highsmith did in her Ripley series, she exposes the pettiness, greed, and selfishness as well as the kindness, compassion, and selflessness of her characters. A powerful and mesmerizing read; highly recommended for public and academic libraries. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/04.]-Lisa Nussbaum, Dauphin Cty. Lib. Syst., Harrisburg, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
