CRIMINAL PARADISE - A NOVEL

The literature of larceny welcomes a newcomer with some serious chops, as Steven M. Thomas muscles his way to a place at the tableelbow-to-elbow with Elmore Leonard and Carl Hiaasencourtesy of a harrowing, hilarious, two-fisted, hard-boiled thrillerthat’s pure heaven for anyone who loves a hell of a crime novel.
Robert Rivers is a crook. No excuses, no apologies. Breaking the law is his calling, crime is his rush, capers his reason for getting up in the morning and staying up late at night. But he’s a thief with honor, plotting and pulling off carefully choreographed heists where no shots are fired, no blood is spilled, and nobody gets hurt . . . except in the wallet. After a brief stint behind bars back in the day, he’s managed to carveout a comfortable existence, cheerfully plundering the sunny Southern California community whose streets he tools in the tweaked-out Cadillac DeVille that’s his pride and joy.
But now Rob (whose name has become ironic) is pushing forty, and like histrusty partner, Switch, who’s got a pregnant girlfriend and a hefty stash of loothe’s thinking about quitting the game. But then he and Switch, pulling their latest Butch and Sundance, score a payday that could end up costing them plenty. Inside astrongbox packed with greenbacks rests a disturbing black-and-white photo of a beautiful young girl, eyes full of fear as naked as she is. It’s an image that Rob can’t shake, and a wake-up call: There are rules even he won’t break. It’s also his one-way ticket into the underbelly of the underworlda lethal landscape of sex slaves, sadistic psychopaths, andsawed-off shotguns, where honor is for fools, and trust is for suckers, where very bad people do even worse things and nice guys don’t finish at all. They just get finished off.
With its alluring setting, quirky characters, and restrained and subtle prose, Criminal Paradise has something for every thriller fan.