But it’s when Kayla Jones reappears in Harry’s life that things get really complicated and the plot’s testosterone level jets into the stratosphere. Kayla has gone on to become a police officer, following in her father’s footsteps. Her father may not have been a good men, but he was her daddy and she loved him and doesn’t want people to continue to think he committed suicide.
She asks Harry to use his gift to investigate her father’s death. She was the one who found him hanging from a garage rafter and dressed in women’s underwear. (Lansdale loves going for the bizarre and twisted.) Harry is reluctant at first, but knows he can’t refuse Kayla. After a failed romantic interlude, Harry discovers that his feelings for Kayla have never gone away, and hers for him haven’t either.
Lansdale’s writing excels during these very human parts. The dialogue moves the story smoothly along. It’s easy to imagine the scenes playing out in a television show or movie. Not only that, but the twisted sense of humor Lansdale brings to his characters makes them charming and sometimes offensive at the same time. The dinner conversation between Tad and Harry’s leech of a friend, Joey, is absolutely hilarious. Yet, once you meet Lansdale you realize that this is exactly how he would handle a similar situation.
The cat-and-mouse chase that propels the last third of the novel is great. The suspense builds with each passing scene, and there are enough twists and turns to keep seasoned readers with the story way past bedtime.
If you haven’t read Lansdale before, I’d recommend any of the Hap and Leonard novels, preferably starting at the beginning with Savage Season, or the stand-alones, Cold In July, The Bottoms, or A Fine Dark Line to get a taste of his take on mystery/suspense. One of my favorite novels he ever wrote is The Magic Wagon, which is something of a weird western/horror pulp with some real irony and soul-searching.
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