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12 |
Stephen Dobyns Saratoga Strongbox: A Charlie Bradshaw Mystery Starring Victor Plotz (Racetrack Mystery Series)
Penguin (Non-Classics) 1999 014028012X / 9780140280128 Paperback Very Good
014028012X Amazon.com Stephen Dobyns is nothing if not prolific: Saratoga Strongbox is his 13th novel in 12 years, and the 10th in his acclaimed Charlie Bradshaw series. His new novel sets Charlie and his sidekick, Victor Plotz, on the trail of dirty money when Victor agrees to collect a suspicious suitcase in Montreal for old man Weber. Unfortunately, when Victor decides to farm the job out to Eddie Gillespie, a bumbling black belt with an overactive conscience, he's quickly embroiled in a fiasco involving kneecapping thugs, an Amazonian snake-wielding stripper, and an overly greedy heir to a money-laundering fortune. Even more anxiety-provoking are Victor's fears that his girlfriend Rosemary, "the Queen of Softness," has been stepping out with a mysterious Dodge-driving Lothario. Make no mistake, Victor and his reactions are the stars of this novel; plot comes a distant--but still enjoyable--second. Victor might best be thought of as Thoreau meets Groucho Marx meets just about any character you can think of from a Samuel Beckett play. An inveterate student of the human condition with a penchant for observing and participating in the myriad absurdities of life, Victor feels his wallet throb whenever anyone mentions a quick buck. The New York Times Book Review has noted that "Dobyns is every bit as good a writer as Dick Francis." Wrong. When it comes to dialogue and characterization, Dobyns is by far Francis's superior. Dobyns's sardonic humor is ever-present, percolating just under the surface or erupting into dead-on descriptions of the motley characters who populate his novels. Saratoga Strongbox gives the reader a thoroughly rousing ride to the wire. --Kelly Flynn --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. From Publishers Weekly The versatile and prolific Dobyns's solidly entertaining Charlie Bradshaw mystery series reaches its 10th volume (Saratoga Fleshpot, 1995, etc.) in this amusing and farcical caper. As usual, Vic Plotz, friend of the Saratoga PI and always on the lookout for an easy buck, assumes the burden of narrating this tale, in which he gets himself and Charlie into a fine mess involving an ambitious mobster, an old-time money man and his bumbling, love-struck son, a couple of deliciously evil muscle men and a stripper who wears nothing but a snake. When Felix Weber approaches Vic with an opportunity to earn an easy $2000 (all he has to do is pick up a package in Montreal), Vic can't resist, even though he knows he can't do it. But he does know someone who can and willAfor only $1000, leaving Vic with $1000 for doing nothing. Instead, this little scam sets off a ludicrous and hilarious chain of events that ensnarls Vic and Charlie in desperate troubles. The answer to their problems lies in a locked strongbox that seemingly holds the key to everyone else's problems as well. A climactic game of "hot potato" engineered by Charlie provides a wonderful capstone to this slapstick tale. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Price:
5.21 USD
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