Ex-cons DeWayne and Leonard thought it was a simple plan: Swipe the payroll from a local construction company and make off with easy cash. Pity they left the owner dead. Bigger pity is that the owner's son is a violent drug-dealer who's crazier than the low-caliber ex-cons he's vowed to nail--along with anyone else who gets in his way.
Bounty hunter and war vet Jack Keller is the perfect man for his job. With a brain full of combat nightmares, he's primed for every hunt, keen for the heady scent of gunfire, and high on the release each takedown brings. His new quarry is bail-jumper DeWayne, but even Keller isn't prepared for where this chase is going to take him.
Caught in a violent vendetta between two trigger-happy rednecks and a psycho blinded by rage, Keller's soon spiraling into a revenge plot set to explode in the North Carolina backwoods. Add to this murderous mix a local cop with his own agenda and his beautiful partner who's hot for men on the edge, and someone's bound to see hell before the night is over.
### From Publishers Weekly
Loaded with testosterone and high-caliber weapons, Rhoades's hard-boiled debut lurches from one bloody gun battle to another in the streets and back alleys of Fayetteville, N.C., as a bounty hunter finds himself drawing highly unwelcome attention. When dim-witted cousins DeWayne and Leonard kill an old Lumbee Indian during their first armed robbery, they get a load of trouble along with the cash. Raymond, one of the victim's sons and a vicious local crime boss, vows to kill everyone involved with his father's death. Caught in between is Jack Keller, a bail bondsman's enforcer; he's after DeWayne for skipping out on his breaking and entering bail. A Gulf War veteran tormented by guilt over the deaths of his squad members in a friendly fire incident, Jack must now deal with the two armed robbers, crazed Raymond and his gang of assorted Colombian gunmen, and sadistic cops who mistakenly think he's the cause of all the mayhem. Resourceful and determined, Jack happily lays out a few bad guys himself, but he's annoyed that everybody wants to kill him, too. He is arrested, beaten up, shot at and pursued, making miraculous escapes each time in the best pulp fiction tradition. Add spectacular car chases, kidnapping, torture, carjacking, a dozen killings and lukewarm sex scenes, and this gritty novel has everything it needs except for suspense, mystery and likable characters. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
### From Booklist
*Starred Review* Rhoades slaps this supercharged crime-fiction debut into overdrive in the first paragraph and never lets up through nearly 300 pages of nonstop action. It starts with a simple armed robbery in which two dumb and dumber ex-cons, Leonard and DeWayne, set out to steal the weekly payroll from an elderly Native American who owns a construction company. It quickly goes wrong, however, and the owner is killed. Meanwhile, bounty hunter Jack Keller, a Gulf War vet with a head full of nightmares, is already tracking bail-jumper DeWayne. He'll have to hurry, though, if he hopes to find his quarry before the dead man's son, a drug dealer who is every bit as violent and considerably crazier than the killers he tracks. Throw in a couple of psycho cops with a thing about bounty hunters, and you have the narrative equivalent of a string of homemade bombs timed to explode at random along the Arkansas back roads. Like Stephen Hunter's *Dirty White Boys,* however, this is not simply a car-chase-with-fireworks novel; Rhoades builds his rampaging white boys from the ground up, complete with believable backstory and humanizing shots of *Pulp Fiction-*like humor. Keller is a definite keeper, the kind of flawed noir hero that women want to nurse, cops want to bust, and bad guys want to hurt. There's a formula at work here, of course, but Rhoades never gives us time to feel manipulated. More Keller, please, and soon. *Bill Ott* *Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved* Views: 67
"I WANTED TO SERVE, TO BE PART OF THIS THING MY FATHER HAD GIVEN HIS LIFE FOR. I DIDN'T WANT THE WAR TO END, AND ALL I'D BE ABLE TO SAY WAS, NO I DIDN'T SERVE, I WAS RIGHT HERE THE WHOLE WAR, SAFE IN BAKERSFIELD." Adam Pelko witnessed the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor that killed his father, a lieutenant on the USS Arizona. Even though Adam is underage, he defies his mother's wishes and enlists in the Marines. Sent first to boot camp, then to Okinawa, he experiences the stark reality of war firsthand -- the camaraderie and the glory as well as the grueling regimen, the paralyzing fear, and death. And at every turn, Adam must confront memories of his father. In the concluding volume of his World War II trilogy, Harry Mazer masterfully illustrates Adam's journey as he navigates brutal circumstances that no boy should know. Views: 67
This is the third and final book of the Chanters of Tremaris series, a dramatic fantasy saga of adventure and magic, for readers 12+. A dark secret is tearing Tremaris apart. From the frozen Bay of Sardi to the endless winter of Antaris, sickness is spreading and even the seasons are slipping into chaos. Calwyn has lost her powers of chantment and flees back to Antaris. But instead of sanctuary she finds the community ravaged by a mysterious snow-sickness and torn apart by tyranny. When she learns that Darrow, too, has been infected, Calwyn begins a desperate race through the frozen forests. But will she find the answers in time to heal him? And will she have the courage to embrace the dark magic and save Tremaris? The Tenth Power brings the Chanters of Tremaris series to an enthralling conclusion. I'm such a huge gigantic big fan of the Tremaris series. I read The Singer of All Songs and The Waterless Sea about 10 times each.!' Jinny Views: 67
At first it seemed the baby whale was dead. There was no sign of movement. But then its eye opened for a moment. It was alive, but only just ... Jake and his father live in a female-free zone in a remote part of the Wairarapa, where he can surf and watch the whales feeding as they pass up and down the coast. It′s paradise - and that′s why international rock celebrity Milton Summer has built a private retreat next door. Milton treasures his privacy as much as Jake loves being free to do what he pleases. So when Jake′s dad begins a relationship with a new partner, who moves in with her daughter, Stephanie, at the same time as a local photographer starts stalking Milton, Jake′s peaceful life erupts in violence and deceit. And when a whale and her calf get into trouble on the treacherous coast, the history of Whale Pot Bay seems tragically doomed to repeat itself, unless Jake, Milton and Stephanie can survive the... Views: 67
It has been more than twenty years since Vicky Maitland last set foot on
English soil. Two decades ago she left the city of Liverpool with her
three children-;leaving behind the husband she dearly loved, who had
cruelly and inexplicably turned against them all-;to begin a new life in
America. Now nervous and apprehensive, with a fateful letter burning a
hole in her pocket, Vicky has finally come home in search of the truth
and the shattering secrets behind Barney's shocking betrayal-;secrets
only Vicky's old friend, Lucy Baker, knows but swore never to reveal . .
. Views: 67
A verse translation of the first great narrative poem in the English language that captures the feeling and tone of the original. Views: 67
A single secret changes everything.With no college ambition—or desire to care—Luke Hannon’s ready to bail on school before senior year even begins. But when he spots the hot new girl reading an upside down map, he changes his mind.Hailey Saldino desperately wants to start fresh at a school where she's free of the snide remarks and hurtful stares. A place where no one knows her past…or her son, Brady.Luke wants a no strings attached, physical relationship, until Hailey becomes more than a cute girl in a skirt. Usually his bad boy reputation hooks the ladies but it won't be enough to land a girl like Hailey. Needing a lasting approach, Luke decides to be honest. No lies. No BS. As the connection between them deepens, Luke shares all his shameful secrets.Afraid to lose one of the few people who’s ever looked at her as something other than a slut, Hailey buries herself in compounding lies. And when Hailey's purposeful deceit blindsides Luke, he must decide if he'll walk away, or accept Hailey and the little man she already loves. Views: 67
Athera and Grave have to enter the faery realm in search of the weapon that will kill, but Grave is injured and to save his life, Athera does something that will have long-lasting consequences. Views: 67
“Artfully understated. . . . [An] elegant series.”—The New York Times Book Review “The richest mystery here, however, is Florence itself, whose intricate politics and class structure Nabb parses with precision and wit. . . . Nabb is sweetly droll.”—The Washington Post Book World “[Nabb] writes in graceful, calm prose.”—The Associated Press “Lovely measured language. . . . Offers such pleasures as great local atmosphere and rich characterizations.”—Publishers Weekly “Lean, elegant prose that surpasses the best of Simenon.”—Kirkus Reviews “[A] superb series.”—Booklist “Guarnaccia’s Florence is a delightful place to visit.”—Mystery Scene The body of a woman has been found half-submerged in an ornamental fish pond high up in Florence’s Boboli Gardens. At first, the woman cannot be identified; only her skull remains. The marshal must use her clothing and a shoe to trace her. She turns out to be a young Japanese woman apprenticed to one of Florence’s legendary custom shoemakers, crotchety old Peruzzi. Could he have killed his protégé? Or did jealousy drive his other apprentice to murder? The neighbors have seen Akiko with a lover—a brilliant young Carabinieri—who has disappeared. Has he fled to avoid arrest? The marshal must go to Rome to complete his investigation. When he returns to Florence he can identify the killer, but can he bring him to justice? Views: 67
The story of two girls and the wild year that will cost one her life, and define the other's for decadesEverything about fifteen-year-old Cat's new town in rural Michigan is lonely and off-kilter until she meets her neighbor, the manic, beautiful, pill-popping Marlena. Cat is quickly drawn into Marlena's orbit and as she catalogues a litany of firsts—first drink, first cigarette, first kiss, first pill—Marlena's habits harden and calcify. Within the year, Marlena is dead, drowned in six inches of icy water in the woods nearby. Now, decades later, when a ghost from that pivotal year surfaces unexpectedly, Cat must try again to move on, even as the memory of Marlena calls her back. Told in a haunting dialogue between past and present, Marlena is an unforgettable story of the friendships that shape us beyond reason and the ways it might be possible to pull oneself back from the brink. Views: 67
In the New Year of 1936, Gwen Purdy, aged 21, leaves her home to become a schoolteacher in a poor area of Birmingham. Her parents are horrified, but she has the support of her fiance, a recently ordained clergyman. Her early weeks in Birmingham are an eye-opener: at the school she faces a class of 52 children, some of whose homes are among Birmingham's very poorest. One of the teachers, the elderly Miss Drysdale, proves an inspiration, and Gwen begins to understand the appalling hardships endured by the children as she is drawn into their lives. Little Lucy Fernandez is a 'cripple' and an epileptic. Through her, Gwen meets Daniel Fernandez, the elder brother in a fatherless household. The family has roots in a Wales' small Spanish community, and Daniel is a young man as fierce and passionate in his emotions as in his social concerns. Gwen falls in love, and is quickly engaged in his battle to win rights for the working classes. As the Brigades are mobilized to fight the Spanish Civil War, Gwen has to face the fact that Daniel has secrets in his past which she would rather not face up to...About the AuthorAnnie Murray was born in 1961 in Berkshire, and graduated from St John's College, Oxford. In 1991 she won a SHE-Granada short story competetion and was taken on by a literary agent. Her first novel, BIRMINGHAM ROSE was published in 1995. This has been followed by several other bestselling Birmingham sagas including, most recently, THE NARROWBOAT GIRL, CHOCOLATE GIRLS and WATER GYPSIES. Views: 67
