Booklist Wolf Point

Booklist

Falco, author of the much-praised short-story collection, Sabbath Night in the Church of the Piranha (2005), offers a compelling novel about the darker side of humanity and delves pointedly into the complexities of human sexuality. Falco's sentient approach leaves the reader thoughtfully disturbed rather than pointlessly horrified by these thematic explorations. Tom "T" Walker, Jenny, and Lester are companions in this tale of vicarious adventure, with darkness and pain being the desired experience. T is the voyeur. He is seeking escape from his own suffering and does so by offering Jenny and Lester, two overtly dangerous-looking hitchhikers, a ride. With clean and precise prose, the three lives are written easily into the landscape of contemporary American problems: drug addiction, sexual abuse, and extreme family dysfunction. The climax is filled with unbearable tension, and the temptation is strong to skip ahead to see who lives. Upon reflection, the reader will experience the novel both as thriller and social commentary.