History Literature / WorldGoneBy

''World Gone By'' is the third novel in Creator/DennisLehane 's Coughlin trilogy. In 1943, ten years after the events of Literature/LiveByNight, Joe Coughlin splits his energies between running the mob's legitimate businesses in Tampa, raising his son Tomas, and conducting an affair with the mayor's wife. His best friend Dion is the boss of Ybor City but seems to be losing his grip on power, and there's trouble stirring between his subordinates and Black Ybor. And someone wants to kill Joe, and he wants to find out who.

* AwesomeMcCoolname: Montooth Dix, King Lucius.
* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler: both Joe and Dion die at the end]].

* AxCrazy- King Lucias and Freddy for certain. According to some, Dion is a little to quick to want people dead.

* CassandraTruth: Zigzagged. Most of the novel is Joe flip flopping between fearing for his life and thinking it's a ruse. [[spoiler: Played straight in the end]].

* ChekhovsGunman: Billy Kovich is mentioned in the prologue but doesn't show up much later. [[spoiler: Doesn't live long either]].

* [[spoiler: DyingDream: Joe sees himself walking to the beach after being shot]].

* [[spoiler: TheHeroDies: Joe Coughlin]] on the penultimate page of the book.

* MixedAncestry: Tomas is half Irish, Half Cuban (and the Cuban half is very mixed).
---> '''Joe:''' Something I loved about your mother's face was that the whole world was in it.

* NotSoDifferent: Joe Coughlin and [[spoiler: Rico DiGiacomo]], in the end. [[spoiler: Rico's]] climb up the ladder echoes Joe's in LiveByNight, they are more cunning than they are violent, both about to become fathers, both willing to kill [[spoiler: Dion, either for advancement/revenge (Rico) or to protect his son (Joe)]], and both end up [[spoiler: offed by the Commission]].
** Also Joe and Billy Kovich, who keeps his career as a hitman hidden from his young son [[spoiler: and who also ends up being shot dead]].

* ParentalIncest: Doctor Lenox killed his wife and her child when he found that the child was a product of his wife and her father's incestuous relationship. [[spoiler: {{OurGhostsAreDifferent Except maybe he was wrong.}}]]

''World Gone By'' The third part of Creator/DennisLehane 's Coughlin trilogy. The novel follows Joe Coughlin in 1943 after the events of Literature/LiveByNight were now he raises his son Tomas [[spoiler: alone after his wife was shot]] and runs a legitimate business. His best friend Dion is running Yabor City. Now someone wants to kill Joe and he wants to find out who.

* LighterAndSofter: Compared to Literature/LiveByNight, World Gone By has a lower body count and is overall the less violent story. However, this novel has a much darker tone and the violence, which is usually related through Joe's mental reviews of different characters' backstories, is arguably more disturbing (cf. Doctor Lenox, Billy Kovich).

** ---> '''Joe:''' Something I loved about your mother's face was that the whole world was in it.

* MobWar: Montooth Dix's gang and the Bartolo Family seem to head this way, subverted since it never escalates further than one gunfight.

** --> '''Joe:''' Something I loved about your mother's face was that the whole world was in it.

** Also Joe and Billy Kovich, who keeps his career as a hitman hidden from his young son [[spoiler: and who also ends up shot dead]].

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: The Bartolo Crime Family is ruined, Tomas is traumatized by watching his father kill his uncle and is orphaned, and Joe appears to be in a very lonely version of Hell.]]
* DrugsAreBad: While not an anti-drug book, drugs is the reason [[spoiler:Dion became an informant.]]
* [[spoiler: DyingDream Joe sees himself walking to the beach after being shot]]

—> '''Joe:''' Something I loved about your mother's face was that the whole world was in it.

* OurGhostsAreDifferent: The child-ghost Joe sees throughout the story.It pretty much goes unanswered. Is it Joe's imagination? Is it his innocent past self? Is it his unborn child? Is it the son of a gangster he killed? There is no clear answer.

* TheReveal: A few, the most notable ones are: that Graciela was pregnant when she died, Dion was an [[spoiler: informant for the police]], and that Rico wanted to take over.

* ShellShockedVeteran: Billy Kovich had a brief flashback about the four day battle of Soissons.

** Joe: Something I loved about your mother's face was that the whole world was in it.

* AwesomeMcCoolname: Montooth Dix
* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler: both Joe and Dion die at the end]]
* AssholeVictim: No one will miss Freddy, his brother even thinks his an asshole.

* CannibalClan: King Lucias' Androphagi apparently are this. Androphagi is cannibal in Greek.
* CarBomb: [[spoiler: how Montooth Dix goes out.]]
* CassandraTruth: Zigzagged. Most of the novel is Joe flip flopping between fearing for his life and thinking it's a ruse. [[spoiler: Played straight in the end]]

* TheConsigliere: Joe is this to Dion, some however see Joe as the true Boss.
* CreepyChild: Joe has a ghost kid following him throughout the novel. (This was also one of the novel's biggest criticisms).

* DarkAndTroubledPast: Joe Coughlin hasn't fully recovered from LiveByNight.

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: The Bartolo Crime Family is ruined, Tomas is traumatized by watching his father kill his uncle and is orphaned at the end]]

* ExoticExtendedMarriage: Montooth Dix has a few wives.

* [[spoiler: TheHeroDies: Joe Coughlin at the end]]
* JerkassHasAPoint: Rico may be a double crossing bastard, however he does have point when he says Dion is slipping as boss. Even the commission agrees.
* KarmicDeath: Rico wanted Dion died because he was a bad boss and wanted to take over. He even got the hit sanctioned by the commission. When the commission finds [[spoiler: a ledger with added numbers to make it seem like Rico is stealing, thanks to Joe]] they kill him right then and there. Bonus points for that fact they strangle Rico versus just shooting him.
* KarmaHoudini: Subverted with most of the criminals except for Vivian Brennan [[spoiler: seemingly will get no known comeuppance for killing Joe]]
* LighterAndSofter: Compared to Literature/LiveByNight, World Gone By has a lower body count and is overall the less violent story. However, this novel has a much darker tone.
* MistakenForGay: King Lucius and Ogden Semple are rumored to be lovers but Ogden has a prostitute named Matilda and King Lucius is seen with one later.
* MistakenForPedophile: While Freddy is a pedophile, Joe kills him when it seems he is trying to help Tomas. Wither or not he was mistaken or not is up for debate.
* MixedAncestry: Tomas is half Irish, Half Cuban.

* ParentalIncest: Doctor Lenox killed his wife and her child when he found it that the child was a product of his wife and her father's incestual relationship.
* OurGhostsAreDifferent: Joe claims to be seeing a ghost for most of the story. It pretty much goes unanswered. Is it Joe's imagination? Is it his innocent past self? [[spoiler: This is what Joe thinks]] Is it his unborn child? Is it the son of a gangster he killed? There is no clear answer.
* RedHerring: The hit on Joe seems like this at first. [[spoiler: Subverted in the last pages were Joe is killed.]]

* TheReveal: A few, the most notable ones are: that Graciela was pregnant when she died, Dion was an [[spoiler: informant for the police]] and that Rico wanted to take over.

* ShootHimHeHasAWallet: Joe shoots Billy Kovich in the throat as he gets a shiny cigarette case.
* Squick: A few moments like Lenox's backstory and the fact that [[spoiler: after a CarBomb Montooth Dix's nutsack is melted to a fire hydrant]]
* TheStarScream: Rico starts out as a good earner and a trusted member but he thinks he can take over Dion. Going as far as to get permission from the commission to stage on hit on Dion. Making it worse that JOE IS ON THE COMMISSION.
* TheUnseen: Lucky Luciano. Danny Coughlin isn't mentioned either.

* YouRemindMeOfX: Joe tells Tomas that he reminds Joe of his mother, Graciela a lot

* TheConsigliere: Joe is this to Dion, some however see Joe as the true Boston.

''World Gone By'' The third part of creator/DennisLehane 's Coughlin trilogy. The novel follows Joe Coughlin in 1943 after the events of Literature/LiveByNight were now he raises his son Tomas [[spoiler: alone after his wife was shot]] and runs a legitimate business. His best friend Dion is running Yabor City. Now someone wants to kill Joe and he wants to find out who.

* VillainProtagonist: Joe may have gone legitimate but he is still very much a criminal and a killer.