Synopsis/blurb….
Having left his life
of crime behind, former getaway driver Charles "Shake" Bouchon has
finally realized the dream of owning his own restaurant in Belize.
Unfortunately, to do so he's had to go deep in debt to a murderous local drug
lord named Baby Jesus. And when Shake thwarts an attempted hit on an elderly
customer named Quinn, things go from bad to worse.
Next thing Shake
knows, his restaurant's gone up in flames and he's on the run from Baby Jesus,
two freelance assassins, and a beautiful but ferocious FBI agent. Out of
options, Shake has to turn to the mysterious Quinn for help. Suddenly Shake's
up to his neck in a dangerous score that he'll never pull off unless he can
convince an even more dangerous ex-girlfriend to join him.
Another mid-2016 read and my second time with author Lou
Berney and his retired Armenian wheelman Shake Bouchon. Gutshot Straight
introduced me to the character and was one of my favourite reads of 2012.
In Whiplash River, Shake returns and is trying to go
straight. Needless to say things quickly get complicated. He owns a restaurant
and he owes money. He saves the life of a customer in the restaurant, an old
guy named Quinn, who was regaling him with tales of dark deeds in South
America.
Shake’s restaurant subsequently gets burned down and this
time he is the target. Before long Shake is involved in a caper in Egypt,
dreamed up by the mysterious Quinn and involving his ex-lover Gina.
The book had the right combination of ingredients that I
enjoy in my reading…..an interesting but somewhat unlucky protagonist - one
with a chequered past and in a tight pinch; a bit of a love interest, but as it’s
a former rather than a current beau there’s plenty of scope for tension and
humour; a couple of hitmen; a drug-boss money lender; a mysterious figure with
a shady past, one who you aren’t quite sure if he’s a serial fantasist or if he
has lived the life and the seemingly tall tales of derring-do are genuine; the FBI
in pursuit and a proposal for a crime which if it can be pulled off might offer
a get out of jail free card.
Plot – great, characters – interesting and funny, action –
plenty, dialogue – entertaining, setting – Belize and Egypt – ok.
Enjoyable but not as memorable as the first. 12 months down
the line, I can’t actually recall what they went to Egypt to do, but that’s
fine. Not every book I read has to remain seared in my memory banks for ever.
Enjoyable, entertaining, nothing else I wanted to be reading
once I got stuck into this one.
4 from 5
A few thoughts on Gutshot Straight here.
I have another Berney book on the pile – The Long and Faraway Gone, a novel which doesn’t feature Shake Bouchon and apparently won a few awards - an Edgar, an Anthony, a Barry, a Macavity.
Read in June, 2016
Published – 2012
Page count – 312
Source – purchased copy
Format - paperback
I like the setting for this one, Col. And Shake sounds like an interesting character, too. I'm glad you found a lot to like about this.
ReplyDeleteMargot, I do enjoy this particular character. I think there is a third one out soon.
DeleteI absolutely loved The Long and Faraway Gone, it was one of my best books of last year. I read Gutshot Straight, and didn't like it quite so much - I guess you and I are coming to this author from a different direction, so I'll probably quite like this one (I will definitely read it some time) but will be very much looking forward to newer work from him.
ReplyDeleteI just saw another 5 star review for TLAFG this morning. I believe he has a 3rd Shake Bouchon book out later this year.
DeleteWell, I have The Long and Faraway Gone, so I will read that first, then decide whether to try anything else by this author.
ReplyDeleteI should get to that one as well, seeing as everyone's raved over it. I hope you enjoy it.
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