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This Week’s Audio Book:
Criminal Paradise
by Steven M. Thomas
Featured the week of June 29, 2009
The
literature
of
larceny
welcomes
a
newcomer
with
some
serious
chops,
as
Steven
M.
Thomas
muscles
his
way
to
a
place
at
the
table–elbow-to-elbow
with
Elmore
Leonard
and
Carl
Hiaasen–courtesy
of
a
harrowing,
hilarious,
two-fisted,
hard-boiled
thriller
that’s
pure
heaven
for
anyone
who
loves
a
hell
of
a
crime
novel.
Robert
Rivers
is
a
crook.
No
excuses,
no
apologies.
Breaking
the
law
is
his
calling,
crime
is
his
rush,
capers
his
reason
for
getting
up
in
the
morning
and
staying
up
late
at
night.
But
he’s
a
thief
with
honor,
plotting
and
pulling
off
carefully
choreographed
heists
where
no
shots
are
fired,
no
blood
is
spilled,
and
nobody
gets
hurt
.
.
.
except
in
the
wallet.
After
a
brief
stint
behind
bars
back
in
the
day,
he’s
managed
to
carve
out
a
comfortable
existence,
cheerfully
plundering
the
sunny
Southern
California
community
whose
streets
he
tools
in
the
tweaked-out
Cadillac
DeVille
that’s
his
pride
and
joy.
But
now
Rob
(whose
name
has
become
ironic)
is
pushing
forty,
and–like
his
trusty
partner,
Switch,
who’s
got
a
pregnant
girlfriend
and
a
hefty
stash
of
loot–he’s
thinking
about
quitting
the
game.
But
then
he
and
Switch,
pulling
their
latest
Butch
and
Sundance,
score
a
payday
that
could
end
up
costing
them
plenty.
Inside
a
strongbox
packed
with
greenbacks
rests
a
disturbing
black-and-white
photo
of
a
beautiful
young
girl,
eyes
full
of
fear
as
naked
as
she
is.
It’s
an
image
that
Rob
can’t
shake,
and
a
wake-up
call:
There
are
rules
even
he
won’t
break.
It’s
also
his
one-way
ticket
into
the
underbelly
of
the
underworld–a
lethal
landscape
of
sex
slaves,
sadistic
psychopaths,
andsawed-off
shotguns,
where
honor
is
for
fools,
and
trust
is
for
suckers,
where
very
bad
people
do
even
worse
things
and
nice
guys
don’t
finish
at
all.
They
just
get
finished
off.
With
its
alluring
setting,
quirky
characters,
and
restrained
and
subtle
prose,
Criminal
Paradise
has
something
for
every
thriller
fan.
And
with
sharp
natural
instincts
and
writing
skills
as
serious
as
his
humor
is
sly,
Steven
M.
Thomas
shows
as
much
promise
as
any
author
on
the
suspense
scene.
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