“Virtually every character is memorable, and the chemistry between Shake and Gina is brilliant. The plot turns are constant, and the dialogue is sharp. The bad guys are wonderfully scary, and the locales are vividly drawn. Elmore Leonard might be very pleased to call GUTSHOT STRAIGHT his own.”
-Booklist
There’s certainly not one type of book that absolutely every father would like to read, but today’s Free Fridays selection was chosen with Father’s Day in mind. Gutshot Straight by Lou Berney is the perfect read for fans of Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasen.
With its irresistible cast of characters—a two-bit criminal in over his head, crime bosses with hair-trigger tempers, a wholesome damsel in distress— Lou Berney’s crime caper is reminiscent of Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction. The action begins as Charles "Shake" Bouchon leaves prison, without much of a plan for life on the outside. Soon he’s made the classic mistake of taking ‘one last job,’ delivering a prized package for a notorious crime boss.
Imagine Shakes’ surprise when that package is a living, breathing, irresistibly charming housewife whose husband is in trouble with a notorious Vegas kingpin. Now he’s having second thoughts about making good on his offer, since it’s pretty clear that she’ll meet an unsavory fate if she’s delivered as promised.
Full of blindsided double-crosses and hard shots to the head, Gutshot Straight is a tale of love, luck, and larceny against the odds. And another Shakes adventure is just around the corner—this special edition of Gutshot Straight features an excerpt of Whiplash River, available for preorder now.
As a special Father’s Day bonus, PGA fans and weekend duffers will want to download Arnold Palmer’s poignant essay Reflections on the Game now. This free essay is included in the fascinating and intimate biography Arnold Palmer: A Personal History by Thomas Hauser.Free Fridays Recommends
Each week, we ask our featured author to recommend a book or author that you may want to check out. Since authors are such passionate readers themselves, we thought you might like to find out what they love to read, too! Here’s what Lou recommends:
I re-read Case Histories by Kate Atkinson about once a year. She's so good that she makes me feel bad about myself as a writer -- but in a good way. Her Jackson Brodie novels are funny, harrowing, moving, evocative, and always, always deeply human.
NOOK owners: go to shop and search for “Lou Berney” to download this crime caper now.
