Instruct: Classify Amazon reviews into positive or negative sentiment
Query: All Block's characters now sound the same

Don't get me wrong: I'm a BIG Lawrence Block fan. I've read every book he's published since Matt Scudder's drinking days. But he's gotten soft and complacent in recent books. Yes, all his characters talk exactly the same: they all go into these silly off-topic tangents and have a wry humor that is just fine for Bernie, but is way off the mark for Matt or Keller. Block has drifted far away from his noir roots. Keller is not a cold blooded hit man, he's a transparent piece of cardboard. A real killer would have speculated about killing the kids playing basketball in the driveway, if that's what it took to carry out his contract. This is the first Block book in twenty years that I have put aside unfinished. A major disappointment.