Duane Swierczynski - The Wheelman (2005)
Reviewed by J.D. Rhoades
Duane Swierczynski’s second book, The Wheelman, mixes the darkness, grit and ultra-violence of Ken Bruen’s Irish noir with the bad-ass cool of Richard Stark’s Parker books.
Patrick Lennon is a wheelman, a getaway driver. The young Irishman is a consummate professional, valued not only for his driving skills and his coolness under stress, but for his ability to keep his mouth shut if he’s caught. (Not that that last part is hard for Lennon, since he’s a mute).
When a heist goes wrong (and I mean really, really wrong), Lennon sets out across the mean and unfamiliar streets of Philadelphia to find both the stolen money and the people who are out to screw him.
Duane Swierczynski is the editor in chief of the Philadelphia City Paper and a lifelong resident of the City of Brotherly Love. He’s also written a book about bank robbers. His encyclopedic knowledge and apparent love of both subjects gives the book flavor without slowing the blisteringly fast story.
Take one fascinating and unique protagonist who’s harder to kill than the Terminator. Add Russian mobsters, Italian mobsters, dangerous dames, and dirty cops. Stir in a mixture of surprises, sudden reversals of fortune, double- and triple-crosses. Mix and shake vigorously. Garnish with a generous portion of dark humor, and you’ve got a noir cocktail that’ll knock you on your butt and keep you up all night at the same time. This book rocks.
Posted by JD Rhoades in Book Reviews | Permalink
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