Wyatt has been away for 10 years. Now he’s back––but that is all Garry Disher wants us to know. He is older, edgier, even more taciturn, but just as focused and just as lethal. For those who don’t know, Wyatt is not a cop––he’s a masterful career criminal. In this new caper, he is contracted to rip off a skilled, ruthless, amoral international courier of stolen jewellery and other goods. Double-crossed by his associates (not a smart move) Wyatt sets out to get even. The plot of this new Wyatt is clever, the twists and turns entertaining and gripping and the denouement riveting, though too abrupt for me. There had better be a sequel, Garry! What sets a Disher novel above its peers is his use of language––gripping, witty and sexy, with quick quips and asides that put him on the same level as Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasen. Understatement is one of his tools, describing, for example, an extremely rare stamp (stolen, of course) as ‘the charmless little scrap of paper’. He is a joy to read. This novel should appeal to all his fans, to crime fiction aficionados, and to anyone who relishes a fast-moving, well-written romp.
Max Oliver has been an avid reader and bookseller for over 50 years. This review first appeared in the Summer issue of Bookseller+Publisher magazine.
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Tags: book review, fiction, textpublishing, wyatt
