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Mean streets, malevolent motives, and man-sized adventure are all in play in this contemporary tale set in Monarto, Australia. From the first chapter to the last, the action rolls along as one man sets his sights on helping a damsel in distress, getting a good dollop of revenge, and eventually putting a stop to a heinous plan no one could have initially imagined.
Alex is a former special ops soldier whose occupation has recently changed to absconding with loot that doesn’t belong to him. When his stash is necessarily left behind amid a hail of gunfire, he sets his sights on finding the responsible party. Along the way, he picks up Janie, an attractive drug addict who’s still salvageable, and Took, a cuddly bear of a bloke—lovable, loyal, and up for whatever hell-raising is necessary. The three of them come up against a pair of gangsters intent upon one-upping each other while secretly cooperating with clandestine officials to turn tawdry Monarto into an experiment in mass manipulation.
Taylor is an author with a firm hand on this tale’s tiller. He paces his chronicle swiftly but not too fast to slow comprehension. His characters are well-drawn and quickly create the personas they are meant to engender. The plot seems initially routine but soon begins to take on dimensions readers won’t see coming. Using Alex’s first-person narrative to unspool his yarn keeps one right in the middle of all the mayhem and suspense, and there’s plenty of both to keep the reader turning the pages of this novel.