Road Dogs
Once again Elmore Leonard revs the plot, dials up the banter, and produces a novel you鈥檝e got to stay up all night to finish.
Elmore Leonard made George Clooney a movie star. And he鈥檚 written a few good books along the way, too. Clooney, of course, flopped as Batman and seemed to be striking out in his bid to transform himself from a famous TV E.R. doc into a box-office attraction.
What set him on the path to becoming Danny Ocean and countless other lovable rogues was his star turn as Jack Foley in 1998鈥檚 鈥�Out of Sight,鈥� an adaptation of one of Leonard鈥檚 numerous breezy, brilliant page turners.
Clooney鈥檚 iconic grinning grifter returns in Leonard鈥檚 latest book, Road Dogs, paired with two other revived characters: Cundo Rey (from 鈥淟aBrava鈥�) and Dawn Navarro (鈥淩iding the Rap鈥�). And you can see the movie playing out even as you turn the pages. In this case, that鈥檚 a good thing.
We last saw Foley聽 being shot in the leg by a beautiful federal marshal (and romantic interest), Karen Sisco. As 鈥淩oad Dogs鈥� begins, Foley is on his way back to Glades Correctional in a police van, riding with Rey. They鈥檙e both thinking about women: Karen Sisco in Foley鈥檚 case, Dawn Navarro in Rey鈥檚.
It鈥檚 a clich茅 for reviewers to cite Leonard鈥檚 crisp dialogue, but impossible to avoid. 鈥淩oad Dogs鈥� offers an abundance of snappy verbal exchanges, such as the brief introduction between Foley and a bodyguard named Zorro. 鈥淲here鈥檚 your sword?鈥� Foley聽 asks.
鈥淚鈥檓 a different Zorro,鈥� comes the reply, followed by a Foley聽 deadpan: 鈥淚s that right?鈥�
As Leonard once put it, he goes easy on what Steinbeck referred to as the 鈥渉ooptedoodle.鈥� Weather, long-winded descriptions, scene-setting are all superfluous. Instead, the story glides along and, before you know it, it鈥檚 way past your bedtime but Jack Foley is too charming to shut off the lights just now.
In lieu of filler, Leonard revs the plot, dials up the banter, and gets out of the way. It looks effortless, much like Kobe Bryant ignoring the hands in his face while swishing an infinite series of turnaround jumpers.
Pardon me, I may have just engaged in a bit of hooptedoodle myself. After all, what you want to know is, what鈥檚 the story and should I buy this book? As for the latter, yes. Wait no longer (beyond finishing this review, of course).
As for the story, Cundo and Jack become pals, the 鈥渞oad dogs鈥� of the title. So much so that Cundo, who has a financial empire awaiting him in southern California, offers to pay $30,000 so Jack can use Cundo鈥檚 hotshot attorney.
That leads to a 30-year sentence being shortened to three months 鈥� and sets Foley on a path to Cundo鈥檚 empty So Cal mansion, where he meets psychic and scammer Navarro. For Dawn, awaiting Cundo鈥檚 imminent release, the payoff is getting at Cundo鈥檚 portfolio.
You can see the mischief ready to ensue here: Foley , a sweetheart bank robber of some renown, tries to change his ways by throwing in with a scheming psychic (Dawn), a just-released fellow con (Cundo) and a slew of hangers-on (Zorro, et. al.). Rounding out the cast: Lou Adams, an obsessed South Florida FBI agent determined to cap his career by busting Foley.
This being a Leonard novel, even that setup fails to show how quirky and deceiving all involved are (and become). From fatal games of rooftop kickball to the inconvenience of storing corpses, the hits (literal and otherwise) keep on coming.
Let鈥檚 just hope Clooney and director Steven Soderbergh 鈥� the men behind 鈥淥ut of Sight鈥� 鈥� are ready to take on 鈥淩oad Dogs鈥� for an encore.
In the meantime, take a spin (or two) through the novel, just the latest evidence that when it comes to popular fiction, Elmore Leonard remains out of sight.
Erik Spanberg is a freelance writer in Charlotte, N.C.