Book Review - Gutshot Straight by Lou Berney
Category Book Review Lue Berney Gutshot Straight
With the latest newsletters from Amazon Vine, I decided I needed some diversionary reading entertainment. One of the books I chose was Gutshot Straight by Lou Berney. I was sucked into it by a description that mentioned a similarity to Hiaasen and Dorsey. Now while I don't think it was quite like those two writers from a stylistic standpoint, it *was* entertaining. I'd definitely pick up a Lou Berney novel in the future based on this one.
Charles "Shake" Bouchon has just made it out of jail after serving some time for Grand Theft Auto. He really wants to avoid getting back into that lifestyle, but within a couple hours of getting out, he's confronted with his old life again. A former "employer" wants him to do a simple job... drive a car to a particular location, deliver the contents in the trunk, do NOT look in the trunk, and bring back a briefcase. But curiosity gets the best of him, and he looks... only to discover he's delivering a rather attractive woman, Gina, to someone who will probably not let her stay that way very long. He attempts to make a deal with the recipient to let Gina go and just forget the whole thing. But of course THAT doesn't go over very well. He decides to make a run for it anyway, only to be double-crossed by Gina who he believes to be a housewife, but who is instead a stripper and street rat herself. Thus starts a crazy chase across continents. Shake and Gina have a briefcase with "interesting" contents worth millions to the right person, and two different crimelords who are after them for some stolen money, the contents of the briefcase, AND Gina (who still has a price on her head). And to complicate things even more, Shake isn't too sure he can trust her in the clutch (or any other time).
Gutshot Straight was a lot of fun. Shake is a very likable small-time criminal who has problems being the "bad person" he needs to be to survive. Gina is hard to nail down with her ever-shifting stories and alliances. Together there's a tension that made me keep reading to find out what strange twist would happen next. In terms of a fun read that let me get away from reality for a bit, this worked very well.
Disclosure:
Obtained From: Amazon Vine Review Program
Payment: Free
With the latest newsletters from Amazon Vine, I decided I needed some diversionary reading entertainment. One of the books I chose was Gutshot Straight by Lou Berney. I was sucked into it by a description that mentioned a similarity to Hiaasen and Dorsey. Now while I don't think it was quite like those two writers from a stylistic standpoint, it *was* entertaining. I'd definitely pick up a Lou Berney novel in the future based on this one.
Charles "Shake" Bouchon has just made it out of jail after serving some time for Grand Theft Auto. He really wants to avoid getting back into that lifestyle, but within a couple hours of getting out, he's confronted with his old life again. A former "employer" wants him to do a simple job... drive a car to a particular location, deliver the contents in the trunk, do NOT look in the trunk, and bring back a briefcase. But curiosity gets the best of him, and he looks... only to discover he's delivering a rather attractive woman, Gina, to someone who will probably not let her stay that way very long. He attempts to make a deal with the recipient to let Gina go and just forget the whole thing. But of course THAT doesn't go over very well. He decides to make a run for it anyway, only to be double-crossed by Gina who he believes to be a housewife, but who is instead a stripper and street rat herself. Thus starts a crazy chase across continents. Shake and Gina have a briefcase with "interesting" contents worth millions to the right person, and two different crimelords who are after them for some stolen money, the contents of the briefcase, AND Gina (who still has a price on her head). And to complicate things even more, Shake isn't too sure he can trust her in the clutch (or any other time).
Gutshot Straight was a lot of fun. Shake is a very likable small-time criminal who has problems being the "bad person" he needs to be to survive. Gina is hard to nail down with her ever-shifting stories and alliances. Together there's a tension that made me keep reading to find out what strange twist would happen next. In terms of a fun read that let me get away from reality for a bit, this worked very well.
Disclosure:
Obtained From: Amazon Vine Review Program
Payment: Free
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