Among Thieves

Starred review from December 8, 2014
Tough guy James Beck, the star of this outstanding thriller from Clarkson (One Way Out), runs a barely above-the-boards operation in Red Hook, Brooklyn, to give employment and a second chance to his fellow ex-cons. Beck tries to protect prison acquaintance Manny Guzman from avenging Olivia Sanchez, Guzman’s beautiful cousin, who was once a compliance officer at a high-powered Wall Street hedge fund. Sanchez claims to have been physically harmed, fired, and blackballed from the financial industry after attempting to rein in a rogue trader at her firm. Beck pulls together his quasi gang—which includes a bevy of appealing ruffians, mobsters, and burglars—to correct the wrong. But in doing so, he uncovers a plot to launder tens of millions from illegal arms sales, and he riles psychotic Russian arms dealer Leonid Markov, who now wants Beck dead. Clarkson’s relentless storytelling drives Beck and his foes toward a satisfying apocalyptic climax. Fans of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher will find a lot to like. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, Janklow & Nesbit.

This whizbang of an audiobook would ring all the bells, but for one oddity. John Clarkson writes fight scenes fast, enthusiastically, and often, and Peter Berkrot delivers them like a one-man moviola machine--you see them, you hear them, you practically need an ambulance yourself when they subside, and you better rest fast because there will be another one along in just a minute. The complex plot (a group of ex-cons get swept into a high-finance scam) is wonderfully well made and always ahead of you. The problem? Berkrot invents a tough-guy voice for the narrator, who isn't a character in the story, and it's all over the place, inconsistent and distracting. Regrettable since the rest of his performance is great fun, as is the book. B.G. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine