Out of Sight

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0440214424 ISBN 13: 9780440214427

Publisher: Dell, 1997

In his latest work, the unrivaled master of the crime novel once again breaks all the rules as he redefines the standards of the art. Out of Sight crackles with originality and wicked brilliance, displaying all the razor-sharp dialogue, inimitable wit, and memorable characters who have become the signature of "our greatest crime novelist...the best in the business" (The Washington Post).

Deputy U.S. Marshal Karen Sisco is just stopping off to serve a summons and complaint on Florida's Glades Prison. She's all decked out in her black Chanel suit and heels, but ready with her pump-action shotgun when the breakout begins, minutes after she pulls into the prison parking lot. But she's not ready for Jack Foley, the celebrity con who disarms her, invites her to climb into the trunk of her own car, and then joins her as his pal Buddy guns the blue Caprice onto the highway, heading for freedom. Squeezed into a trunk littered with handcuffs and tactical gear, the escapee bank robber is a perfect gentleman who shares her passion for movies and wonders if it would be different if they'd met in a bar.

Karen escapes and they do meet again. Only this time she's part of the federal task force hunting the escapees. This time she's sitting in the bar of the Detroit Westin, nursing a sour mash and watching a blizzard outside. This time Foley finds her. First some cocktails and conversation. Then Time Out. In Karen's suite. "You like taking risks," she says. "So do I."

Next morning Foley's gone and Karen's out to get him. She cruises Detroit's mean street and boxing hangouts looking for Foley, Buddy, and a hardcase named Maurice, one step behind them as they plot the biggest heist of their careers--and a double cross that will leave only one man holding the goods. This time Karen means business as she races toward a hair-raising climax that careens pell-mell into suspense-writing history.

Review:

When Jack Foley, a career bank robber, surfaces after tunneling out of a medium-security penitentiary in Florida, he comes face to face with Karen Sisco, a beautiful federal marshal. Though the barrel of her shotgun is pointed right at his face, she doesn't shoot, and Foley's accomplice, Buddy, overpowers her and puts her in the trunk of a car. Foley gets in with her and the car takes off, the escapee seemingly home free. In the cramped darkness of the trunk, the criminal and marshal find they have much in common and by the time the car reaches its destination, the two have become infatuated with each other. After Karen manages to escape, she and Foley try to reconnect outside the confining roles of kidnapper and victim.

From the Publisher:

"Taut Suspense" -- Los Angeles Times

"Out of Sight is Out of Sight" -- The Orlando Sentinel

"Breathtaking...Elmore Leonard may be the last hope for the written word." -- New York Observer