Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Once again, it took me a few years to get around to reading a great book, but, at long last, I read this book and it was great.  This was one of those books that held my interest throughout, to the point that I was thinking of the book and about what might happen next when I wasn't reading it.  Gillian Flynn wove a tail of suspense that always had me guessing: who's the "good guy"?  Who's the "bad guy"?  What really happened?  Who's telling the truth?  Of course, it was hard to tell what the truth is because the author kept the truth from the reader over the course of book.  And that truth-withholding was an ingenious plot device here.  From chapter to chapter, she fills the reader in on what's really happening, then, she changes point-of-view and, at the same time, changes what's "really" happening.  This built suspense as the book went on and constantly changed which character(s) you liked and which one(s) you hated.  There was nothing boring in this book, that's for sure!

My one gripe is that I didn't like the very end of the book.  Maybe this is because of whom I liked and disliked by the end, but, if I had written this book (and boy, do I!), I would've ended it differently.  Nonetheless, I'm not going to change my overall impression of this book.  It was excellent from start til (almost) finish and I would recommend that you check it out!

Quarry's Choice by Max Allan Collins

Max Allan Collins is probably best known for writing the Road to Perdition series, especially since that was made into a major motion picture.  His Quarry series, even though less widely known, should qualify him as writing superstar.  If you like hitmen and the criminal underworld, this is the series for you.  More importantly, this book typifies Quarry's life as a hitman in the criminal underworld.

For the uninitiated, Quarry is a somewhat mysterious hitman who works for a broker who is referred to as the Broker.  Quarry narrates the stories, but reveals little about his real identity (Quarry is the name the Broker knows him by) or his past (except having served in Vietnam).  He seems to have no qualms or second thoughts about killing the people he is paid to kill.  He is a no-nonsense assassin (though he would probably hate being called an assassin).

This story takes us back to Quarry's early career.  He is meeting with the Broker when another hitman tries to kill the Broker.  The Broker soon sends Quarry to kill the man responsible for the shooting.  This requires Quarry to go to Biloxi, Mississippi to deal with the "Dixie Mafia," and that's where the real fun begins.

In Biloxi, Quarry begins working for Mr. Woody, a small-time gangster who is a frequent customer of the Broker.  Mr. Woody wants Quarry to kill Jack Killian, his business partner and supposedly the person who tried to knock off the Broker.  Mr. Woody gets Quarry a job with Killian and gives Quarry an escort - both in the literal and biblical sense - to show him around town and to keep him company.  The escort, a 19-year-old stripper/prostitute named Luann, becomes a helpful piece for Quarry, though she also complicates the story by getting in the way of his "work."

Lest I spoil the story, suffice it to say that the rest of the story involves a lot of killing (done mostly by Quarry), a lot of sex (again, done mostly by Quarry), and a lot of action (all of it involving Quarry).  This book was fun from beginning to end.  I didn't want it to stop.  Of course, it had to stop when Quarry killed everybody he needed to kill to complete the job and wait for the Broker to call with the next one.

Collins' Quarry series is one of the best in crime fiction.  Quarry's Choice is no exception.  I highly recommend it.