T. Jefferson Parker
Book 1 of Charlie Hood
Amazon ISBN
Publisher: Dutton Adult
Published: Feb 5, 2008
Starred Review. The irresistible antihero of this outstanding thriller from bestseller Parker (_Laguna Heat_) calls herself Allison Murrieta and claims to be a descendant of Joaquin Murrieta, a 19th-century figure who looms large in California folklore (he was either a ruthless robber and killer or an Old West vigilante and Robin Hood). By day, Allison is Suzanne Jones, an eighth-grade history teacher with three sons in Los Angeles; by night, she dons a mask, straps on her derringer and steals from the greedy. Beloved by the media, she never uses the gun; her victims are never sympathetic; and she gives part of her loot to charity. But while stealing diamonds belonging to a master criminal known as the Bull, she witnesses a gangland-style bloodbath at the hands of Lupercio, a ruthless assassin working for the Bull. As she's leaving the scene of the crime, L.A. sheriff's deputy Charles Hood stops her, and that's when the plot gets complicated. The Bull wants his diamonds back. Lupercio knows Murrieta/Jones took them. Hood wants Jones to identify Lupercio. And the public wants to know who Murrieta really is. This tour de force of plotting and characterization may well be Parker's best book. Author tour. (Feb.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
With his 15th novel (after California Girl *1/2 Jan/Feb 2005, and The Fallen *1/2 May/June 2006), critics agree that Edgar winner T. Jefferson Parker has written his best book yet. A noir thriller, L.A. Outlaw delighted critics with its fast-placed, suspenseful plot and compelling charactersâ€"a powerful heroine mirrored after Robin Hood, Zorro, and Joaquin Murrieta; a policeman haunted by his ethics and his Iraq tour of duty; and a killer scarred by his past in El Salvador. The plot is anything but hackneyed; the romance never dull. Not only a great choice for crime fans, L.A. Outlaws, with its deep, intelligent characterization,_ “is popular entertainment at its most delicious†(Washington Post_).Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.
Description:
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. The irresistible antihero of this outstanding thriller from bestseller Parker (_Laguna Heat_) calls herself Allison Murrieta and claims to be a descendant of Joaquin Murrieta, a 19th-century figure who looms large in California folklore (he was either a ruthless robber and killer or an Old West vigilante and Robin Hood). By day, Allison is Suzanne Jones, an eighth-grade history teacher with three sons in Los Angeles; by night, she dons a mask, straps on her derringer and steals from the greedy. Beloved by the media, she never uses the gun; her victims are never sympathetic; and she gives part of her loot to charity. But while stealing diamonds belonging to a master criminal known as the Bull, she witnesses a gangland-style bloodbath at the hands of Lupercio, a ruthless assassin working for the Bull. As she's leaving the scene of the crime, L.A. sheriff's deputy Charles Hood stops her, and that's when the plot gets complicated. The Bull wants his diamonds back. Lupercio knows Murrieta/Jones took them. Hood wants Jones to identify Lupercio. And the public wants to know who Murrieta really is. This tour de force of plotting and characterization may well be Parker's best book. Author tour. (Feb.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Bookmarks Magazine
With his 15th novel (after California Girl *1/2 Jan/Feb 2005, and The Fallen *1/2 May/June 2006), critics agree that Edgar winner T. Jefferson Parker has written his best book yet. A noir thriller, L.A. Outlaw delighted critics with its fast-placed, suspenseful plot and compelling charactersâ€"a powerful heroine mirrored after Robin Hood, Zorro, and Joaquin Murrieta; a policeman haunted by his ethics and his Iraq tour of duty; and a killer scarred by his past in El Salvador. The plot is anything but hackneyed; the romance never dull. Not only a great choice for crime fans, L.A. Outlaws, with its deep, intelligent characterization,_ “is popular entertainment at its most delicious†(Washington Post_).
Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.