Synopsis:
"Defined by a brilliant economy of style, a no-nonsense world view, and a lack of cliché....This bleak, funny...tale of used-car corruption, murder, and sex in a seamy, unremitting L.A. combines unlikely, grittily real characters with tough, clean prose," raved The Boston Book Review of the author's debut thriller, Bird Dog. Now, Reed brings back hardluck L.A. hero Harold Dodge in the eagerly awaited sequel to his "savage but jovial black comedy...[and] formidable set of wheels" (Literary Review). Life continues to throw Harold Dodge some wicked curves. But sometimes, the more wicked the curve the better. Take Vikki Covo, widow of Harold's former boss at the Joe Covo car dealership. She's a blonde, she's beautiful, and she's angling for a million-dollar settlement on her husband's life insurance policy. Vikki's a curve in the shape of a dollar sign, a woman Harold could learn to love almost as much as he loves his '64 Chevy Impala. If only she handled as well.... The deal: if Harold negotiates the insurance settlement, he'll get ten percent, plus Vikki's everlasting gratitude and affection. The problem: the police are treating Joe Covo's death as a suicide, meaning no payout on the insurance. And when Harold suggests the cops rule it a homicide instead, they're all too willing to oblige, figuring him as their number-one suspect. Staring a murder rap in the face, Harold must descend into a rogue's gallery of low-riding gangbangers, car thieves, chop-shop operators, and collection agents. Mixing business with pleasure is always a risky affair, and in this case Harold's in so deep he's getting the bends. From cowboy cops to jealous lovers, just about everybody wants a piece of him. Worst of all, the bad guys have sunk to a new low: they've stolen his Impala and stripped it for parts. Harold's going to find his Chevy and put it back together...even if it means going to hell and back in Vikki's four-cylinder rice-burner. From the moment the key is turned in its ignition, Low Rider takes off on a supercharged, high-speed adventure you'll wish would never end. "Reed does for low-life L.A. what Hiaasen does for Florida -- turns it into a seriocomic carnival of suspense" (Publishers Weekly).
Review:
Philip Reed doesn't waste any time getting down to business in his second book about a slightly bent but basically good-hearted Los Angeles car dealer named Harold Dodge. On page one, right after a bunch of gangbangers on the 405 freeway give thumbs-up approval to his lime green '64 Chevy Impala SS with 300-horsepower engine, Harold begins to muse: "He had lived here his whole life until he was forced to leave the country last year because of a couple of murders he didn't commit. Now, he was back to straighten things out. Repair the damage he had done to Vikki's life, and his own, and--who knows?--make some nice money in the process." As readers of Reed's Edgar-nominated debut novel, Bird Dog, know, Vikki is the widow of Dodge's former employer, a man killed because of a crooked car deal by the woman who became Harold's lover. Reed's second outing is as complicated, colorful, and full of great cars as his first--and judging by the tire tracks left at the end, there's a good chance that Mark III will soon be in your showrooms. --Dick Adler
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
