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John Black is a sensible sort of guy – after all, he thinks all politicians are lying toerags (well, scum-sucking bottom-feeders if you want to quote him accurately!) And he should know . . . it's a family profession. He's managed to escape the world of politics, though, and build a successful career as a PI and now specialising in child protection services with his friend Harley. But he might have known it was too good to be true, as he gets roped in when his sister Eleanor (supposedly one of the few honest politicians) is running for Governor of California. Snag is, someone is bumping off the candidates, and it looks like Eleanor is next on the hit list. So John and Harley – your average every day psycho pensioner – must try to protect her and her daughter. Along the way they tangle with two useless assassins, the Russian mafia and a journalist who has her eye on John. Troy Cook's debut novel 47 RULES OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE BANK ROBBERS was a cracking read. The new book isn't as laugh out-loud funny, and at times the action seems a bit forced. Cook's background in films is rather a mixed blessing in some ways. He writes slickly, paces nicely and plots very tightly, but some of the characters are verging on the caricature. That's particularly true of the election candidates. John says it all when he comments: "I've got candidates that are pimps, circus midgets, used car dealers, and a loser from a reality TV show." Even those of us from outside the US will get the reference when we're introduced to Arnold 'The Mountain' Schwarzkov, the Hungarian-born wrestler and B movie star-turned politician! But then there's Harley, the Aussie army veteran who's John's best friend, and Barry and Nails, the hapless and hopeless assassins who spend the book with the Russians and our two heroes on their tails. The best scenes tend to involve this little crew. THE ONE MINUTE ASSASSIN has action leaping off almost every page and some slap-round-the-head messages about politicians and drugs companies. If you liked 47 RULES OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE BANK ROBBERS as much as I did, this one may be a touch disappointing by comparison. But it's certainly not a bad book – Cook's a good writer and it's worth a look.
Reviewed by Sharon Wheeler, November 2007
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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