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BANG BANG
by Theo Gangi
Kensington, November 2007
256 pages
$15.00
ISBN: 0758220545


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Izzy is a stick-up kid. OK, so he's 30-whatever, but whoever heard of a stick-up man? He and his partner in crime Mal have been robbing those who deserve it in New York's underworld since forever . . .

Except it's all set to go bottom-end up when Izzy meets the gorgeous Eva, a social worker with a troublesome sister, and a job goes badly wrong. Now Izzy's got Albanian gang members who could audition for the Incredible Hulk, and Mal, who wants revenge, on his tail.

BANG BANG is a dark debut novel from Theo Gangi which pulls off that notoriously tricky thing in crime fiction – making the reader root for a baddie. You know you shouldn’t, you keep telling yourself that you should remain at a distance, but in the end you're secretly hoping that Izzy makes it through.

This isn't exactly a caper novel for those of you who like Donald Westlake. But it's a gritty urban noir book that will appeal to fans of Duane Swierczynski and Lono Waiwaiole. And even though the flashes of humour are very dry and very dark, it reminded me at times of Northern Irish writer Colin Bateman, with the larger than life characters who secretly hanker for a quiet time.

BANG BANG isn't slick and fast-moving in the way that Swierczynski and Waiwaiole are, though. It's got a more pensive feel to it as Gangi gives his cast room to move. And it's one damaged bunch of characters he's got there, incidentally, with Izzy fixating on baseball to try to forget the rest of his crazy existence, and Eva, sick and tired of needy clients, attempting to find solace in the bottle.

If you don’t like a pile of bodies to rival a Jacobean revenge tragedy (and come to think of it, BANG BANG has a faint feel of one of those as well), steer clear. But if you like classy writing and an unusual bunch of characters, then this book is well worth a look. And it bodes well for Gangi's writing career.

Reviewed by Sharon Wheeler, January 2008

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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