Book Description from Amazon
The Carrion Birds from Urban Waite, author of the
highly acclaimed The Terror of Living, is a remarkable work of literary
noir.
Hired gun Ray Lamar is ready to put his past behind him. He wants to see his twelve-year-old son and start a new life—away from the violence of the last ten years. One last heist will take him there. All he has to do is steal a rival’s stash. Simple, easy, clean.
But when things start to go very wrong, Ray realizes the path to redemption isn’t always easy.
A soulful tale of violence, vengeance, and contrition, The Carrion Birds is an elegant depiction of one man’s last chance to make things right.
Hired gun Ray Lamar is ready to put his past behind him. He wants to see his twelve-year-old son and start a new life—away from the violence of the last ten years. One last heist will take him there. All he has to do is steal a rival’s stash. Simple, easy, clean.
But when things start to go very wrong, Ray realizes the path to redemption isn’t always easy.
A soulful tale of violence, vengeance, and contrition, The Carrion Birds is an elegant depiction of one man’s last chance to make things right.
From the Back Cover
Set in a small town in the Southwest, a soulful work of literary noir rife
with vengeance and contrition from a fresh voice in fiction—the author of the
highly acclaimed The Terror of Living
Life hasn't worked out the way Ray Lamar planned. A widower who's made some tragic mistakes, he's got one good thing going for him: he's calm and efficient under pressure, usually with a gun in his hand. A useful skill to have when you're paid to hurt people who stand in your boss's way.
But Ray isn't sure he wants to be that man anymore. He wants to go home and see the son he hopes will recognize him. He wants to make a new life far from the violence of the last ten years, and he believes that one last job will take him there. A job that should be simple, easy, clean.
Ray knows there's no such thing as easy, and sure enough, the first day ends in a catastrophic mess. Now the runners who have always moved quietly through this desert town on the Mexican border want answers. And revenge. Short on time, with no one to trust but himself, Ray must come up with a plan, or else Coronado, New Mexico's lady sheriff will have a vicious bloodbath on her hands.
Set in a town once rich with oil, now forgotten and struggling, The Carrion Birds is filled with refreshingly realistic and vulnerable characters. With its masterfully orchestrated suspense and unexpected bursts of lyricism, this is a remarkably unsettling and indelible work in the tradition of Cormac McCarthy, Elmore Leonard, and Dennis Lehane.
Life hasn't worked out the way Ray Lamar planned. A widower who's made some tragic mistakes, he's got one good thing going for him: he's calm and efficient under pressure, usually with a gun in his hand. A useful skill to have when you're paid to hurt people who stand in your boss's way.
But Ray isn't sure he wants to be that man anymore. He wants to go home and see the son he hopes will recognize him. He wants to make a new life far from the violence of the last ten years, and he believes that one last job will take him there. A job that should be simple, easy, clean.
Ray knows there's no such thing as easy, and sure enough, the first day ends in a catastrophic mess. Now the runners who have always moved quietly through this desert town on the Mexican border want answers. And revenge. Short on time, with no one to trust but himself, Ray must come up with a plan, or else Coronado, New Mexico's lady sheriff will have a vicious bloodbath on her hands.
Set in a town once rich with oil, now forgotten and struggling, The Carrion Birds is filled with refreshingly realistic and vulnerable characters. With its masterfully orchestrated suspense and unexpected bursts of lyricism, this is a remarkably unsettling and indelible work in the tradition of Cormac McCarthy, Elmore Leonard, and Dennis Lehane.
My review:
I received a complimentary advance reading copy of The Carrion Birds to read and review. I will say at the beginning this is not my kind of book but the author did a good job of the story and so I will give it a 4 star. There is a lot of violence which would be expected in a book written about drugs and murder. The opinions are my own.
Dedicated: For My Mother who showed me at a young age how to pick from the ashes.
The main character, Ray Lamar, leaves the reader with "do I like him or do I wish him the worst?"
Some characters are Tom (Tomas) Herrera, a cousin of Ray. Tom lost his job as the sheriff and the new sheriff is Edna Kelly. Memo, a drug dealer and his nephew, Jim Sanchez. Dario Campo owns a bar in town.
There is a lot of emotion, death, blood, drugs, violence and graphic descriptions.
Ray wants to reconnect with his son, who was left injured after the accident, was it an accident ?, of his mother.
For those who like a real life type of book this is one for them. It is fast moving with the book taking place over a four day period for Ray.
The Carrion Birds are describing the death of an oil town where the oil is no longer there to be pumped.
carrion (kar-ee-uh n) rottenness, vile, dead Urban Waite may be reached at http://urbanwaite.com/
Leona Olson
www.mnleona.blogspot.com
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