Summary: One broken man battles a brutal gang of pickpockets on board the Amtrak Crescent with some help from a girl who’s no angel–not yet. Hitchcock meets Tarantino in a tale that fuses high drama, suspense and romance. The novel was inspired by an old James Coburn film called Harry In Your Pocket. And Reb’s additional research into the light-fingered art will leave readers wondering what’s still in their wallets. Or where their wallets are.
A merciless gang of pickpockets boards a train on Christmas Eve, planning to filch a haul of valuables from their unsuspecting fellow passengers. All seemingly runs like clockwork until a tall, enigmatic traveller catches onto them. This is the keen-eyed Ray, a guy with a plan of his own for that evening and, for him too, timing is vital.
Ray’s plans are somewhat thwarted as he becomes entranced by the beautiful Misty, who he assumes to be another member of the gang. He decides he’ll let her strip him of riches but Misty’s assignment has nothing to do with thieving.
This is an excellent, fast-paced tale with a heady mix of action, romance and magic. Although the yarn is short, the complicated threads of the plot are cleverly woven, and it is adorned with some truly colourful characters.
MacRath’s style is unique and captivating. You’ll hear the clattering of the train, feel the steam off the radiator, the breath of the passenger that squeezes past you in the corridor. You’ll be kept hanging on by the action and intrigue, enthralled by the dash of supernatural, and enchanted by the author’s clever word craft. Like the train’s passengers, this is a trip you’ll not forget in a hurry!
Admittedly, I did have trouble keeping up with the many characters to start with – the thieves use Roman Gods as pseudonyms, so we have Janus, Mercury, Mars, Cupid, Venus, Vulcan and Jove (Jupiter), and at times I couldn’t keep track of who was who, especially since Ray gives them names of his own!
My only other “complaint” is that I found Ray so intriguing as a character that I’d have loved the story to have been longer, to have known much more about him and his history. That said, the story as it stands is so darn effective, this doesn’t really matter, and I was totally won over by the end!
I was going to say that it’s not your typical Christmas tale – the narrative is pretty dark at times – but it truly delivers in terms of mystery, magic and even miracles, and surely that’s what Christmas is all about after all!
Books&Livres 