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Here are comments from our group of Advance Readers about Victor Gischler's SUICIDE SQUEEZE.
chilibeans@cfl.rr.com
What authors do you regularly read?
Joyce Carol Oates, James Lee Burke, Michael Connelly, Thomas H. Cook, Elmore Leonard and John Le Carre, etc.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
In the world of collecting, a baseball card signed by Joe DiMaggio, Marilyn Monroe and Billy Wilder during the filming of The Seven Year Itch, is rare indeed and becomes the engine that drives Victor Gischler's third novel, SUICIDE SQUEEZE. Our hapless hero, Conner Samson, stumbles into the chase for the card by a ruthless, wealthy Japanese collector. Samson, a handsome former college baseball player, is constantly seeking ways to make a quick buck to feed his baseball gambling addiction and pay the rent. Samson, who epitomizes the expression, "If it wasn't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all," moves quickly in and out of dangerous situations, sexual encounters, and near-death experiences, in pursuit of a boat, money, the card, and love.
The book is fast-paced, punctuated with pithy dialogue, humor, and filled with a gaggle of mostly unsavory characters. The book seems well-suited for a movie. The writing style is similar to that of Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasen. Ideal for a summer beach read...sit down, grab hold of your beach blanket and enjoy the ride.
Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
Yes.
lesdixit@softcom.net
What authors do you regularly read?
I read Lawrence Block, Donald Westlake, Peter Lovesey and John Mortimer to name a few.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
Victor Gischler --- yes, he is easy to read, and I really liked his DiMaggio/Monroe happening. (In Some Like it Hot, that was ME on the couch with M. M., Not Tony Curtis!!)
Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
Yes, definitely.
mslindaelaine@yahoo.com
What authors do you regularly read?
I regularly read P.D. James, Patricia Cornwell, Charlotte Bronte and Jane Austen.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
This action-packed mystery novel revolves around one baseball card, albeit a highly valuable one. It's a Joe DiMaggio card from 1954, signed by the Yankee Slugger as well as Marilyn Monroe and Billy Wilder. Teddy Folger was lucky enough to acquire the card as a child. Now he's all grown up and seeking a million dollars for it. Repo man Conner Samson gets involved when he's given the gig of repossessing Folger's boat, the Electric Jenny. As if loser Samson doesn't have enough problems of his own, including a bad gambling habit and lack of luck with his lady love, Tyranny, he's now on a riotous roll that almost leaves him dead. Gischler adds a dry comic touch to his characters, especially, the Japanese gang that's determined to get the card via cutthroat methods of their own. Billionaire Ahira Kurisaka, a sumo wrestler look-alike, is the powerful Tokyo-based mover and shaker who wants the card so desperately he'll kill for it. A fast-paced page-turner, mixing humor and homicide.
Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
I would read a future title by Victor Gischler.
dougsteier@comcast.net
What authors do you regularly read?
At this point, every book I read seems to be by a different author. My last few were by Linda Seger, Philip Jose Farmer, Richard Ben Cramer, Lauren Henderson and Frederick Irving Anderson. In the past I devoured detective and mystery novels, including almost everything by Hammett, Chandler, Thompson and others.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
Generally, I liked it quite a bit. The characters were almost uniformly colorful and multidimensional. The plot was clever and fun. I figured our hero would succeed in the end, but I couldn't guess how he'd do it, or even what success would be. It struck as an updated Travis McGee. However, the constantly shifting point of view kept me at a distance. I never got as involved as I like, to the point where it was a chore at times. It felt kind of long for the amount of character development found. I was disappointed with the epilogue where we find that Conner, despite giving much lip service to learning something, really hasn't changed one bit. I do think it could be a really fun movie, (but, then that's storytelling device I'm most familiar with right now).Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
Yes, I might. There was a great deal of inventiveness I liked in this book.
Beckettgeorgia@aol.com
What authors do you regularly read?
I regularly read James Patterson, Stuart Woods, Jeffery Deaver, Harlan Coben and Ridley Pearson.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
I thought the book was OK --- not great, not terrible. I thought the writing was a bit convoluted and many times it was a slow read
Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
I might try any future books.
Heckhouse4@aol.com
What authors do you regularly read?
James Patterson, Lisa Gardner and Dean Koontz.
What did you think of SUICIDE SQUEEZE?
Okay book. Didn't grab my attention and keep it though!
Would you ever read a future title by Victor Gischler?
Probably only if I win another. Depends.
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