Thieves' Paradise: A Novel - Hardcover

Eric Jerome Dickey

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0525946632 ISBN 13: 9780525946632

Publisher: Dutton Adult, 2002

Synopsis

Twenty-five-year-old Dante Brown is down and out in L.A. After doing a stretch of hard time in juvenile jail, he cleaned up his act as a computer techie-only to be laid off when the economy went south. Now he's facing a mountain of unpaid bills, a car on its last legs, imminent eviction, and a snowball's chance in hell with Pam, a sexy waitress/actress on the hunt for a man with means.

Enter Scamz, a slick brother from Dante's checkered past whose successful, illegal business associations keep him in custom-tailored suits, a Benz CL600, and a lavish Hollywood mansion with his pick of gorgeous women. Dante is determined to stay straight...after one last con that could put him back on top. But he gets pulled in deeper when his old friend Jackson, who's $16,000 behind in child support, becomes part of the sting. The icing on the cake is Pam who, seduced by the easy money, suddenly finds Dante irresistible...until everything goes wrong.

A provocative and seductive story of contemporary men and women on the move and on the make, living large-and small-in L.A., Thieves' Paradise is this phenomenally gifted author "at the top of his game" (Chicago Defender).

About this title

Review

In Thieves' Paradise, bestselling author Eric Jerome Dickey weaves an engaging tale of betrayal, desperation, love, and loss seen through the eyes of Dante Black. Unemployed and down on his luck, Dante spends most of his time frequenting an L.A. diner where he hopes to win over Pam, an attractive waitress and actress wannabe. The rest of his time is spent reluctantly working for Scamz, a colorful character from Dante's past with a taste for illegal operations, beautiful women, and flashy cars. Rounding out this cast of clichéd yet well-developed characters is Dante's best friend, Jackson, who's deep in debt and eager for a quick solution. Throughout the novel, Dante drifts through seedy pool halls and lavish mansions as his friends quickly become enemies, lovers, and unbearable burdens.

My life had been mean and violent, so all of that colored my perception... Hard to find peace in a storm. I'd been waiting for the storm to leave me. Sometimes you had to leave the storm.

Always fresh, often perceptive, occasionally funny, and undeniably sincere, Thieves' Paradise proves yet again why Dickey continues to top the charts with each artful novel he crafts. --Gisele Toueg

About the Author

ERIC JEROME DICKEY is the New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty novels, as well as a six-issue miniseries of graphic novels featuring Storm (X-Men) and the Black Panther. Originally from Memphis, Dickey now lives on the road and rests in whatever hotel will have him.

Edition details

• Publisher: Dutton Adult
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0525946632
• ISBN 13: 9780525946632
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 310