Gutshot Straight
A Novel
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3.4 • 5 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“Lou Berney’s novel is so energetic, so droll, and so wheezingly funny that it accomplished what no book ever has before: it made me forget to eat lunch.”
—Stephen Harrigan, New York Times bestselling author of Challenger Park
A fast and funny crime comedy in the tradition of Elmore Leonard, Carl Hiaasen, and the Coen Brothers, Gutshot Straight brings a fresh new talent into the crime fiction fold: Louis Berney. He’s already won raves for his short fiction collection The Road to Bobby Joe and Other Stories (“Rivals the work of contemporary hotshots T.C. Boyle and Ralph Lombreglia” —Chicago Tribune). With Gutshot Straight, Berney is “all in”—sure to win a fervent following with the story of “Shake” Bouchon, a skilled getaway driver fresh out of prison and on the straight and narrow path…after maybe just one last job.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Berney, author of the collection The Road to Bobby Joe and Other Stories, proves just as adept at longer fiction in this fast-moving caper novel, which smoothly blends humor, action and romantic frisson. Charles "Shake" Bouchon steps out of a California prison resolved to stay "free and clear"; 48 hours later he's effectively double-crossed powerful Armenian L.A. mob boss Alexandra Ilandryan, ripped off dangerous Las Vegas powerhouse Dick "the Whale" Moby and impulsively rescued exotic con woman Gina Clement, who may be the most dangerous of the three. Extremely rare, highly unusual religious artifacts play a key role as the 42-year-old Shake attempts to extricate himself from a situation that gets more complex and deadly by the hour. Shake is a quick-thinking fellow with dreams of owning a restaurant, but if fate is kind, he'll return for the same kinds of adventures as those Berney recounts in this engaging debut.
