Speed Queen - Softcover

O'Nan, Stewart

3.84

1,274 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0345422449 ISBN 13: 9780345422446

Publisher: Ballantine Books, 1998

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"Hours away from execution by the state of Oklahoma, Marjorie Standiford is dictating her memoirs. . . . Marjorie, whose robbery spree with her husband, Lamont, and her lover, Natalie, splattered a trail of blood across the Southwest, steadfastly maintains that she didn't kill anybody. Now, to assure her young son's future, the woman called the Speed Queen--for both her drug and driving style--is fulfilling her deal with the big-time writer who has paid handsomely for her story. It's worth every penny. Liberally jazzed with humor, both gallows and otherwise, Majorie's account combines the manic rush of Natural Born Killers with the dreamy lyricism of Badlands. . . . An unflinching take on the land of fast food and fast cars, where everyone is juiced to the max--and no one is really going anywhere."
--People

A PEOPLE PAGE-TURNER OF THE WEEK

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Review:

Stewart O'Nan's The Speed Queen opens on Oklahoma's death row. Marjorie Standiford, scheduled to die that night for the murder of 12 people, dictates the story of her life into a tape recorder. Before she goes, she wants to set the record straight. It seems that one of her accomplices, Natalie, has already produced a bestselling book on the subject, and Marjorie doesn't want to be outdone. Her tape will be sent to an unnamed writer known as the King of Horror with a list of titles identical to those of Stephen King.

It's evident why a horror writer might be interested in Marjorie's story--the details of her life are pretty darned horrifying. A deep love of cars is what attracts Marjorie to her husband, Lamont, in the first place; an unplanned pregnancy is what pushes them into marriage. In the early days of their love affair, driving around in Lamont's convertible with the baby in the back and doing a little speed on the side is enough, but possession leads to prison time for Marjorie. There she meets Natalie, who will complete their deadly triangle. Once on the outside, Natalie, Marjorie, and Lamont start mainlining speed, then dealing it, and before long, a landscape of drive-thru restaurants and convenience stores becomes the backdrop for a series of gruesome murders. Marjorie may not be the most reliable narrator, but she is an original one, and The Speed Queen provides one heck of a joy ride.

From the Publisher:

Here's a little insight into publishing. There are tons of people that work on each book in different ways - publicity, promotion, sales reps, production, managing editorial, and a bunch of other people you've never even imagined. One of things editorial has to do is write up a little description that everyone can access to in order to have some clue as to what the book is about. After all, everyone can't read every single book. There are just too many. This book was purchased by my boss during my first few months. It was one of the first books that I worked with that I truly enjoyed. Here's a small part of what I wrote for The Speed Queen: "In her manipulative, ignorant, calculating but vulnerable voice we hear a character that one reviewer called 'straight out of David Lynch'. She is funny, lovable, terrifying and crazy in a way that feels like home. Stewart O'Nan creates a character that could easily be the confused girl you knew from high school. Set against the backdrop of milkshakes, french fries, low-paying jobs, drugs and highways, Marjorie is someone that we understand because she is a part of America." I actually meant that.

-- S. Gutierrez, Assistant editor

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