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A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco #2
Plaster City
Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves are back at it, two years after the events of Dove Season—they’re not exactly the luckiest guys in the Imperial Valley, but, hey, they win more fights than they lose.
Settled on his own farmland and living like a true family man after years of irresponsible fun, Jimmy’s got a straight life cut out for him. But he’s knocking years off that life thanks to fun-yet-dangerous Bobby’s booze-addled antics—especially now that Bobby is single, volatile, profane as ever, and bored as hell.
When Bobby’s teenage daughter goes missing, he and Jimmy take off on a misadventure that starts out as merely unfortunate and escalates to downright calamitous. Bobby won’t hesitate to kick a hornets’ nest to get the girl to safety, but when the rescue mission goes riotously sideways, the duo’s grit—and loyalty to each other—is put to the test.
352 pages, ebook
First published April 15, 2014
186 people are currently reading
1578 people want to read
About the author
Johnny Shaw
28 books283 followersJohnny Shaw was born and raised on the Calexico/Mexicali border, the setting for his award-winning Jimmy Veeder Fiasco series, which includes the novels DOVE SEASON and PLASTER CITY. He is also the author of the Anthony Award-winning adventure novel, BIG MARIA.
His shorter work has appeared in Thuglit, Crime Factory, Shotgun Honey, Plots with Guns, and numerous anthologies. He is the creator and editor of the fiction magazine, BLOOD & TACOS, which recently added a phone app, a Podcast, and a book imprint to its empire.
Johnny received his MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA and over the course of his writing career has seen his screenplays optioned, sold, and produced. For the last dozen years, Johnny has taught writing, both online and in person. He has taught at Santa Barbara City College, UC Santa Barbara, LitReactor, and numerous writing conferences.
Johnny lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife, artist Roxanne Patruznick.
His shorter work has appeared in Thuglit, Crime Factory, Shotgun Honey, Plots with Guns, and numerous anthologies. He is the creator and editor of the fiction magazine, BLOOD & TACOS, which recently added a phone app, a Podcast, and a book imprint to its empire.
Johnny received his MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA and over the course of his writing career has seen his screenplays optioned, sold, and produced. For the last dozen years, Johnny has taught writing, both online and in person. He has taught at Santa Barbara City College, UC Santa Barbara, LitReactor, and numerous writing conferences.
Johnny lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife, artist Roxanne Patruznick.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 202 reviews
February 3, 2015
Jimmy Veeder is a farmer. You would think that makes him harmless. He also has a best friend named Bobby Maves. Bobby is newly single and bored. Not a good situation. He drags Jimmy out of bed and into his "Mavescapades." Mavescapades are those things where you just get drunk and fuck shit up. That's a theme in this book. Imagine Batman and Robin..drunk, stupid and with no fear. That's these two guys.
Bobby's teenage daughter Julie goes missing and Jimmy can't let Bobby go into trouble by himself. Jimmy always has his back. That's his code. Bobby's idea of finding his daughter is just to fuck everyone up that knows/knew her..then ask the questions later. Jimmy tries to be the voice of reason.
There is some screwing up of shit though..the story does have Bobby in it after all.
Johnny Shaw's writing is just some of the best I've seen. I kept having to put the book down because I had laughed so hard that bathroom visits are needed. The first chapter involving a police car, lots of frogs and these two idiots drunk had me rolling.
Animal abuse? The animals in this book are usually abusing the two main characters. Dogs, cats, and goats. They just don't seem to make friends as they go.
Five star books are the hardest to me to review. I don't ever want to give the book away (I had to refrain myself from posting updates every five minutes) but you still want people to experience the awesome that is this book. GO READ IT!
(You need to read it just for the A-Team van)
I haven't read the first book in this series Dove Season yet..because I have obviously no concept of reading books in the correct order, but I will.
Bobby's teenage daughter Julie goes missing and Jimmy can't let Bobby go into trouble by himself. Jimmy always has his back. That's his code. Bobby's idea of finding his daughter is just to fuck everyone up that knows/knew her..then ask the questions later. Jimmy tries to be the voice of reason.
There is some screwing up of shit though..the story does have Bobby in it after all.
Johnny Shaw's writing is just some of the best I've seen. I kept having to put the book down because I had laughed so hard that bathroom visits are needed. The first chapter involving a police car, lots of frogs and these two idiots drunk had me rolling.
Animal abuse? The animals in this book are usually abusing the two main characters. Dogs, cats, and goats. They just don't seem to make friends as they go.
Five star books are the hardest to me to review. I don't ever want to give the book away (I had to refrain myself from posting updates every five minutes) but you still want people to experience the awesome that is this book. GO READ IT!
(You need to read it just for the A-Team van)
I haven't read the first book in this series Dove Season yet..because I have obviously no concept of reading books in the correct order, but I will.
April 15, 2014
Jimmy Veeder is living the straight life with Angie and Juan, apart from the occasional Mavescapade, when Bobby's sixteen year old daughter goes missing. Together, Jimmy and Bobby navigate a cesspool of gang members and underground girl fights. But is Julie still alive? Or does she even want saving?
Plaster City was part of the Kindle First program in April. And it is spectacular! There aren't many sequels that don't diminish the original but I'd say Plaster City is even better than Dove Season, the first Jimmy Veeder fiasco.
Plaster City sees Jimmy and Bobby go on another of their alcohol and testosterone fueld adventures, this time looking for Bobby's sixteen year old daughter, a girl he barely knows. There's plenty of action, humor, and general mayhem, much like the first book. Buck Buck and Snout come back, as do Gris, Angie, and both the elder Morales and his criminal grandson Tomas. In addition to that, we get to meet Bobby's ex Becky and his father. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree there.
Even more than in Dove Season, I can't help but notice the resemblance of Shaw's tales to those of Joe Lansdale, both in humor and violence. The interplay between Jimmy and Bobby had me chuckling out loud quite a few times. I can't emphasize enough how funny these Jimmy Veeder books are. Hilarious but never degenerating into outright nonsense.
As in the first book, the dynamic duo took a world class ass kicking, especially Bobby. The ending surprised me a bit since there was a character I suspected was introduced to do some kind of heroic sacrifice but I'm glad Shaw went his way with it.
If you're looking for action, laughs, and outright enjoyment, you'll be hard pressed to find another book this awesome. Five out of five stars. It's a contender for the best book I've read in 2014 so far.
Plaster City was part of the Kindle First program in April. And it is spectacular! There aren't many sequels that don't diminish the original but I'd say Plaster City is even better than Dove Season, the first Jimmy Veeder fiasco.
Plaster City sees Jimmy and Bobby go on another of their alcohol and testosterone fueld adventures, this time looking for Bobby's sixteen year old daughter, a girl he barely knows. There's plenty of action, humor, and general mayhem, much like the first book. Buck Buck and Snout come back, as do Gris, Angie, and both the elder Morales and his criminal grandson Tomas. In addition to that, we get to meet Bobby's ex Becky and his father. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree there.
Even more than in Dove Season, I can't help but notice the resemblance of Shaw's tales to those of Joe Lansdale, both in humor and violence. The interplay between Jimmy and Bobby had me chuckling out loud quite a few times. I can't emphasize enough how funny these Jimmy Veeder books are. Hilarious but never degenerating into outright nonsense.
As in the first book, the dynamic duo took a world class ass kicking, especially Bobby. The ending surprised me a bit since there was a character I suspected was introduced to do some kind of heroic sacrifice but I'm glad Shaw went his way with it.
If you're looking for action, laughs, and outright enjoyment, you'll be hard pressed to find another book this awesome. Five out of five stars. It's a contender for the best book I've read in 2014 so far.
March 24, 2017
“Ceja Carneros hit me so hard he broke his watch on my head.”
And with that opening line the second Jimmy Veeder Fiasco begins. In Dove Season Jimmy returned to his childhood home in the desert country of Imperial Valley in California after years of doing his best avoid any and all responsibility. Now he’s a farmer living with his girlfriend and raising a small boy, but Jimmy can’t entirely give up his old ways. Whenever his best friend Bobby Maves decides it time for drunken adventure Jimmy is his first call to join him on Mavescapades that usually involve physical injuries as well as hangovers. Since Bobby recently broke up with his girlfriend the late nights have been a lot more frequent lately.
Then Bobby gets word that his estranged sixteen year daughter has disappeared from her home in a neighboring city, and Jimmy feels obligated to help his friend track the girl down. Since Bobby fully believes that anything less than kicking in doors, knocking heads, and demanding answers is a completely unacceptable they soon find themselves embroiled in a series of confrontations that are both extremely violent and pretty funny.
Johnny Shaw hit my radar in a big way a couple years back with Dove Season, Big Maria and the quarterly e-magazine Blood & Tacos*, and Plaster City continues to show what makes him such a fun read. It's fast, violent, funny, and entertaining, and Jimmy’s second adventure is as good as the first. The emotional weight this time comes from Jimmy’s conflict between wanting to be a responsible person that his girlfriend and son can depend on, and his desire to be a loyal friend to the reckless Bobby.
A big part of the appeal is that Jimmy isn’t your typical crime novel protagonist. He’s not a bad ass and is well aware that he’s in way over his head. Jimmy’s also a genuinely nice guy who doesn’t want to hurt anyone. Yet he feels duty bound to stick by Bobby even as his macho redneck insistence on doing things with fists and guns repeatedly puts both of them in danger. As they cross paths with a Mexican biker gang and another childhood friend who has become a dangerous criminal kingpin the tension between Jimmy’s family life and his friend increases to the breaking point.
Anyone who likes a fast paced story populated by colorful characters in which the violence is doled out with both humor and an appreciation of the consequences should be reading Johnny Shaw.
*(Full disclosure. I contributed an unpaid review to an issue of Blood & Tacos.)
Also posted at Kemper's Book Blog.
And with that opening line the second Jimmy Veeder Fiasco begins. In Dove Season Jimmy returned to his childhood home in the desert country of Imperial Valley in California after years of doing his best avoid any and all responsibility. Now he’s a farmer living with his girlfriend and raising a small boy, but Jimmy can’t entirely give up his old ways. Whenever his best friend Bobby Maves decides it time for drunken adventure Jimmy is his first call to join him on Mavescapades that usually involve physical injuries as well as hangovers. Since Bobby recently broke up with his girlfriend the late nights have been a lot more frequent lately.
Then Bobby gets word that his estranged sixteen year daughter has disappeared from her home in a neighboring city, and Jimmy feels obligated to help his friend track the girl down. Since Bobby fully believes that anything less than kicking in doors, knocking heads, and demanding answers is a completely unacceptable they soon find themselves embroiled in a series of confrontations that are both extremely violent and pretty funny.
Johnny Shaw hit my radar in a big way a couple years back with Dove Season, Big Maria and the quarterly e-magazine Blood & Tacos*, and Plaster City continues to show what makes him such a fun read. It's fast, violent, funny, and entertaining, and Jimmy’s second adventure is as good as the first. The emotional weight this time comes from Jimmy’s conflict between wanting to be a responsible person that his girlfriend and son can depend on, and his desire to be a loyal friend to the reckless Bobby.
A big part of the appeal is that Jimmy isn’t your typical crime novel protagonist. He’s not a bad ass and is well aware that he’s in way over his head. Jimmy’s also a genuinely nice guy who doesn’t want to hurt anyone. Yet he feels duty bound to stick by Bobby even as his macho redneck insistence on doing things with fists and guns repeatedly puts both of them in danger. As they cross paths with a Mexican biker gang and another childhood friend who has become a dangerous criminal kingpin the tension between Jimmy’s family life and his friend increases to the breaking point.
Anyone who likes a fast paced story populated by colorful characters in which the violence is doled out with both humor and an appreciation of the consequences should be reading Johnny Shaw.
*(Full disclosure. I contributed an unpaid review to an issue of Blood & Tacos.)
Also posted at Kemper's Book Blog.
April 5, 2014
Anthony Award winner Johnny Shaw returns to the Imperial Valley (“as far south and as far east as you could go in California”), for another Jimmy Veeder Fiasco. Shaw introduced Jimmy in 2010's Dove Season, and it's great to have him back.
The Imperial Valley is hard desert country full of tough, resilient people. It's a difficult place in which to try to eke out a living, but having returned home and taken over the family farm, Jimmy is determined to make a go of it, to provide for his family and to be as good a father as he can for his young son.
The biggest stumbling block in the path of Jimmy's road to solid citizenship is his long-time best friend, Bobby Maves. Bobby is recently single again, partying harder then ever, and all too often calling Jimmy in the middle of the night, luring him out of his home and away from his responsibilities, to go on another "Mavescapade." These adventures always involve a great deal of drinking, more than the occasional bar fight, and assorted general mischief such as "borrowing" a police car for a joyride. The hilarious opening chapter, which details the development of one such evening, is worth the price of the book all by itself.
As the story opens, Jimmy and Bobby are roused from a night of debauchery by the news that Bobby's sixteen-year-old daughter, Julie, has gone missing. Bobby barely knows the girl; he and Julie's mother, Becky, had a brief fling, and Bobby didn't know until a good deal later that he even had a daughter. Now that Julie is missing, though, Becky reaches out to Bobby for help and Bobby, in turn, reaches out to his best friend.
Bobby's idea of looking for his daughter seems to consist of creating the maximum amount of mayhem and seeing what shakes out. Julie has fallen in with a very bad crowd, and Bobby's basic plan is to beat the crap out of everyone she hung with until he finds out where she is. Jimmy tries to moderate Bobby's violent streak and take a more sensible approach to the search, but that ain't gonna happen.
Throughout the book, Jimmy is torn between his responsibilities to his own family and those he owes to Bobby, who has been his best friend since grade school, and a major theme of the novel involves the ties and the sometimes competing obligations that a person has to his family and to his friends. Being the best friend of a man like Bobby Maves is no picnic at times, and Jimmy is forced to make some impossibly hard choices.
As the search for Julie continues, both the violence and the hilarity escalate. There are some pretty serious villains in this book and some truly disturbing developments. But Shaw has a gift for walking a very fine line between humor and the genuinely darker side of life, and the result is a story that is often hilariously funny while at the same time extremely scary and often very touching.
In addition to being the author of three great novels, Shaw is also the editor of Blood & Tacos and the creator of another fantastic character, Chingon, "The World's Deadliest Mexican." It's clear that he knows the Imperial Valley and its people very well and that he has a deep affection for both. He's also a very talented writer who has created here a violent, bloody, drunken, rollicking adventure. Jimmy Veeder is a great character, and while I don't think I'd like to have Bobby Maves for a best friend myself, I'm eagerly looking forward to Jimmy's next fiasco.
The Imperial Valley is hard desert country full of tough, resilient people. It's a difficult place in which to try to eke out a living, but having returned home and taken over the family farm, Jimmy is determined to make a go of it, to provide for his family and to be as good a father as he can for his young son.
The biggest stumbling block in the path of Jimmy's road to solid citizenship is his long-time best friend, Bobby Maves. Bobby is recently single again, partying harder then ever, and all too often calling Jimmy in the middle of the night, luring him out of his home and away from his responsibilities, to go on another "Mavescapade." These adventures always involve a great deal of drinking, more than the occasional bar fight, and assorted general mischief such as "borrowing" a police car for a joyride. The hilarious opening chapter, which details the development of one such evening, is worth the price of the book all by itself.
As the story opens, Jimmy and Bobby are roused from a night of debauchery by the news that Bobby's sixteen-year-old daughter, Julie, has gone missing. Bobby barely knows the girl; he and Julie's mother, Becky, had a brief fling, and Bobby didn't know until a good deal later that he even had a daughter. Now that Julie is missing, though, Becky reaches out to Bobby for help and Bobby, in turn, reaches out to his best friend.
Bobby's idea of looking for his daughter seems to consist of creating the maximum amount of mayhem and seeing what shakes out. Julie has fallen in with a very bad crowd, and Bobby's basic plan is to beat the crap out of everyone she hung with until he finds out where she is. Jimmy tries to moderate Bobby's violent streak and take a more sensible approach to the search, but that ain't gonna happen.
Throughout the book, Jimmy is torn between his responsibilities to his own family and those he owes to Bobby, who has been his best friend since grade school, and a major theme of the novel involves the ties and the sometimes competing obligations that a person has to his family and to his friends. Being the best friend of a man like Bobby Maves is no picnic at times, and Jimmy is forced to make some impossibly hard choices.
As the search for Julie continues, both the violence and the hilarity escalate. There are some pretty serious villains in this book and some truly disturbing developments. But Shaw has a gift for walking a very fine line between humor and the genuinely darker side of life, and the result is a story that is often hilariously funny while at the same time extremely scary and often very touching.
In addition to being the author of three great novels, Shaw is also the editor of Blood & Tacos and the creator of another fantastic character, Chingon, "The World's Deadliest Mexican." It's clear that he knows the Imperial Valley and its people very well and that he has a deep affection for both. He's also a very talented writer who has created here a violent, bloody, drunken, rollicking adventure. Jimmy Veeder is a great character, and while I don't think I'd like to have Bobby Maves for a best friend myself, I'm eagerly looking forward to Jimmy's next fiasco.
May 5, 2014
...one at a time, Bobby pulled out four pistols, a rifle and two shotguns. He spread them out on the bed like he was displaying them for sale. It was an impressive arsenal.
"Seven guns," I said. "For two people."
"Actually, I didn't know you were coming. These were for my personal use."
"Were you going to tie them together and make a super-gun?"
So, you see how they are...
Jimmy and Bobby are back, together again, slinging barbs and dodging bullets as they search for Bobby's missing teenager.
"What kind of trouble can we get in? We're looking for a car."
Bobby shook his head. "It's like you've never hung out with us before. Trouble finds us, bro. We're shit magnets."
Once again, Shaw offers up an irresistible combination of humor and crime-thriller suspense. His two main characters delight the heck out of me, trading one-liners and put-downs.
In other words, there is more than one argument over who is the hero and who is the sidekick.
"If this is True Grit, you're Glen Campbell." claims Bobby.
I was happy as a clam to see the return of Buck Buck and Snout.
"We're going to shoot rockets. How cool is that?" Snout said, doing a little dance in his seat and giving Buck Buck a punch in the arm.
"Snout really likes explosions and explosion-related paraphernalia," Buck Buck said.
If you haven't run into Shaw yet in your reading travels, start with Dove Season. You'll probably end up joining the horde of fans who wants to lock the author in a shed and make him crank out more books. Heck, we can keep in him in my youngest son's room. I'll put the boy in the shed. He hasn't written anything good lately.
"Seven guns," I said. "For two people."
"Actually, I didn't know you were coming. These were for my personal use."
"Were you going to tie them together and make a super-gun?"
So, you see how they are...
Jimmy and Bobby are back, together again, slinging barbs and dodging bullets as they search for Bobby's missing teenager.
"What kind of trouble can we get in? We're looking for a car."
Bobby shook his head. "It's like you've never hung out with us before. Trouble finds us, bro. We're shit magnets."
Once again, Shaw offers up an irresistible combination of humor and crime-thriller suspense. His two main characters delight the heck out of me, trading one-liners and put-downs.
In other words, there is more than one argument over who is the hero and who is the sidekick.
"If this is True Grit, you're Glen Campbell." claims Bobby.
I was happy as a clam to see the return of Buck Buck and Snout.
"We're going to shoot rockets. How cool is that?" Snout said, doing a little dance in his seat and giving Buck Buck a punch in the arm.
"Snout really likes explosions and explosion-related paraphernalia," Buck Buck said.
If you haven't run into Shaw yet in your reading travels, start with Dove Season. You'll probably end up joining the horde of fans who wants to lock the author in a shed and make him crank out more books. Heck, we can keep in him in my youngest son's room. I'll put the boy in the shed. He hasn't written anything good lately.
March 5, 2015
"An alcohol-free wedding reception is like masturbating for an hour without reaching orgasm. It’s fun at the beginning, but after a while it’s just exhausting and depressing and you want it to be over. Like that, but with dancing".
This is the single best Buddy mash-up gung-ho, shit follows them round like a dog with two dicks after a leg, riotous, violent laugh out loud book I've ever fucking read.
It's time for another Mavescapade bought to you by Bobby Maves and Jimmy Veeder, this time Bobby and Jimmy head of to look for Bobby's missing 16 year old daughter and find a shit load of tumultuous trouble, vehemently violenticle, rambunctious rollickings and slapdash hilarity. And yes this does just call for a making my own words up session.
The first chapter brings the laughs in abundance and I've got to share this with you, seriously creased me up, so here’s the shortened version. Starting with Jimmy getting slapped.
"I just got hit in the face. Twice. Lost a fucking tooth. What did you say to Ceja? Why’d he attack me?”
“I might’ve kinda had something to do with that. I got pissed you were ducking my calls. When Ceja showed up, we got to drinking and bullshitting and reminiscing".
“I don’t know how we got on the subject— but I told Ceja that his little sister blew you in the backseat of your car after Junior Prom.” (Bobby)
“You what?” “Yeah.” “That didn’t happen.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“I was with Darlene What’s-her-face, not getting any. Spent all night boner-stabbing the inside of my tux zipper. I still have a scar.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“I drove Pop’s Chevy LUV then. It’s a pickup. Doesn’t have a backseat.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“Quit saying, ‘Wait’— Oh, hell no. Ceja doesn’t have a sister, does he?”
“There it is.” Bobby howled. “That’s the best part. At first he didn’t believe me, but after all them drinks".
Absolutely fucking fantastic, this had me in stitches but that's what this series is about and Johnny Shaw's only written 3 books. So do I read the last one or hold it back, Fuck it, I'll be in it soon.
Highly recommended in a more quote than review type way.
This is the single best Buddy mash-up gung-ho, shit follows them round like a dog with two dicks after a leg, riotous, violent laugh out loud book I've ever fucking read.
It's time for another Mavescapade bought to you by Bobby Maves and Jimmy Veeder, this time Bobby and Jimmy head of to look for Bobby's missing 16 year old daughter and find a shit load of tumultuous trouble, vehemently violenticle, rambunctious rollickings and slapdash hilarity. And yes this does just call for a making my own words up session.
The first chapter brings the laughs in abundance and I've got to share this with you, seriously creased me up, so here’s the shortened version. Starting with Jimmy getting slapped.
"I just got hit in the face. Twice. Lost a fucking tooth. What did you say to Ceja? Why’d he attack me?”
“I might’ve kinda had something to do with that. I got pissed you were ducking my calls. When Ceja showed up, we got to drinking and bullshitting and reminiscing".
“I don’t know how we got on the subject— but I told Ceja that his little sister blew you in the backseat of your car after Junior Prom.” (Bobby)
“You what?” “Yeah.” “That didn’t happen.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“I was with Darlene What’s-her-face, not getting any. Spent all night boner-stabbing the inside of my tux zipper. I still have a scar.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“I drove Pop’s Chevy LUV then. It’s a pickup. Doesn’t have a backseat.”
“Wait for it.” (Bobby)
“Quit saying, ‘Wait’— Oh, hell no. Ceja doesn’t have a sister, does he?”
“There it is.” Bobby howled. “That’s the best part. At first he didn’t believe me, but after all them drinks".
Absolutely fucking fantastic, this had me in stitches but that's what this series is about and Johnny Shaw's only written 3 books. So do I read the last one or hold it back, Fuck it, I'll be in it soon.
Highly recommended in a more quote than review type way.
February 20, 2015
It's like an insane package filled with awesome wrapped in crazy paper.
Jimmy Veeder and best friend Bobby Maves are on a mission. No one ever accused them of having good sense. They are in way over their heads here. The staring contest with a goat named Butthead is not to be missed. And did you know that you can open a bottle of wine with a shoe? Chock full of wisecrackery, fights, and drop-your-drawers mayhem, it will take you on a wild ride with plenty of high hilarium and low comedy. It's a good story with an abundance of colorful characters.
This was a Kindle-First offering from several months ago. It has been languishing on my e-reader far too long. Most entertaining!
Jimmy Veeder and best friend Bobby Maves are on a mission. No one ever accused them of having good sense. They are in way over their heads here. The staring contest with a goat named Butthead is not to be missed. And did you know that you can open a bottle of wine with a shoe? Chock full of wisecrackery, fights, and drop-your-drawers mayhem, it will take you on a wild ride with plenty of high hilarium and low comedy. It's a good story with an abundance of colorful characters.
This was a Kindle-First offering from several months ago. It has been languishing on my e-reader far too long. Most entertaining!
May 10, 2014
Dan and Kemper just might be reading geniuses. George Pelecanos notwithstanding. After all, even Albert Einstein didn’t get it right all the time. But Johnny Shaw is one beautiful bastard. He even has a great one liner when he was asked to describe PLASTER CITY: “Two dumb guys with a really bad plan.” I mean, shit, how much better could it possibly get. I’d buy that book. And when I was threatened within an inch of my life for previous sins committed against Saint George, I decided that it might be time to trickle out of the darkness and poke my head at the sun. So instead of a live grenade strapped to my waist and a bullwhip wrapped around my neck…well, I chose to live. Being strangled and blown to dust in the middle of California just doesn’t provide me with enough excitement in my world.
If you could take all the bad luck in the universe and hand it off to two ignorant bastards, you’d probably choose Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves, and these two fools would probably be stupid enough to thank you. But that’s what made them so cute and cuddly. Pure ignorance was coupled with a wave of bliss, and I was left tearing through pages like a gun was pointed at my head with the hammer cocked.
Seeing the fiery inferno headed my way, I chose to stand on the sidelines and watch the blaze roll on by. It tore through trees and tumbleweed and California sand before it passed out just short of the San Bernardino Mountains, and I found it hard not to look away. No, I stared directly into the flames, and I might have even had the slightest uptick of a smile.
The dialogue punched me in the gut and knocked me on my ass, and some man with steel cables for arms nearly took out my nose. I might have lost two lead pipes in the fight, but I was damn sure going to walk away with my pride. And maybe a stupid grin. In the end, I’d say it was all worth it, and I have no doubt Johnny Shaw and I are going to get along just fine.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
If you could take all the bad luck in the universe and hand it off to two ignorant bastards, you’d probably choose Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves, and these two fools would probably be stupid enough to thank you. But that’s what made them so cute and cuddly. Pure ignorance was coupled with a wave of bliss, and I was left tearing through pages like a gun was pointed at my head with the hammer cocked.
Seeing the fiery inferno headed my way, I chose to stand on the sidelines and watch the blaze roll on by. It tore through trees and tumbleweed and California sand before it passed out just short of the San Bernardino Mountains, and I found it hard not to look away. No, I stared directly into the flames, and I might have even had the slightest uptick of a smile.
The dialogue punched me in the gut and knocked me on my ass, and some man with steel cables for arms nearly took out my nose. I might have lost two lead pipes in the fight, but I was damn sure going to walk away with my pride. And maybe a stupid grin. In the end, I’d say it was all worth it, and I have no doubt Johnny Shaw and I are going to get along just fine.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
November 2, 2019
There's just something about the Jimmy Veeder books which ticks all the right boxes for me:
Dialogue reminiscent of Elmore Leonard at the top of his game? Check
Characters straight out of the Joe R Lansdale Hap and Leonard playbook? Check
Criminally good storytelling spattered with a dose of Carl Hiaasen-like humor? Check
Plaster City is a heap of fun by one of my favorite authors. If you've not read Johnny Shaw, you're missing out. 5/5 stars.
Dialogue reminiscent of Elmore Leonard at the top of his game? Check
Characters straight out of the Joe R Lansdale Hap and Leonard playbook? Check
Criminally good storytelling spattered with a dose of Carl Hiaasen-like humor? Check
Plaster City is a heap of fun by one of my favorite authors. If you've not read Johnny Shaw, you're missing out. 5/5 stars.
July 10, 2015
Jimmy has settled into his life back in Imperial Valley and together with his girlfriend Angie, he is happily raising his son Juan and farming the land left to him by his father. It's been two years since the events of Dove Season and things have been going well for Jimmy and his little family.
The situation is a bit different for his best buddy, the irrepressible Bobby Maves. Bobby has broken up with his girl and is on a downward slide, sometimes dragging Jimmy with him. His "Mavescapdes" have Jimmy losing sleep and in the last case, a losing a tooth! Jimmy has about had it with Bobby's foolishness but the ties that bind them get drawn even tighter when Bobby learns that his estranged daughter, Julie, is missing. Bobby hasn't been a good father to either of the two daughters he has fathered. In Julie's case, he's only ever seen her a few times and exchanged some cards and letters but that's about the extent of his involvement. When the opportunity to "save" her presents itself, Bobby is all in and Jimmy feels obligated to help after all Bobby had done to help him.
Okay, this was as hilarious as the first book although I feel that Jimmy has been dumbed down a bit in this one, or maybe that's what two years of being back in Imperial Valley does to someone... The conversations between Bobby and Jimmy had me busting out laughing more than once and, as I said in my review of Dove Season, I kept imagining my beloved husband and his buddy as Bobby and Jimmy, and recalling their own version of "Mavescapdes" back in the day. I won't tell you if my hubby is Bobby or Jimmy, doesn't really matter, they're both idiots, but lovable idiots all the same.
Some people have commented about the level of violence and foul language in this one. I think that without this level of violence, this book wouldn't be half as good. And the language, well, if you knew these guys, that's just how they talk. Not to their mamas, but that's how they talk to each other. Oh, and I was overjoyed to have Buck Buck and Snout show up with their van and their bag of tricks to help Jimmy pull off the end-game to finding Julie. And Tomas Morales is back, and bad as ever. Big Piwi and Little Piwi are there too, as silent and scary as can be.
Love these guys, and I hope there is another Jimmy Veeder Fiasco is the future.
The situation is a bit different for his best buddy, the irrepressible Bobby Maves. Bobby has broken up with his girl and is on a downward slide, sometimes dragging Jimmy with him. His "Mavescapdes" have Jimmy losing sleep and in the last case, a losing a tooth! Jimmy has about had it with Bobby's foolishness but the ties that bind them get drawn even tighter when Bobby learns that his estranged daughter, Julie, is missing. Bobby hasn't been a good father to either of the two daughters he has fathered. In Julie's case, he's only ever seen her a few times and exchanged some cards and letters but that's about the extent of his involvement. When the opportunity to "save" her presents itself, Bobby is all in and Jimmy feels obligated to help after all Bobby had done to help him.
Okay, this was as hilarious as the first book although I feel that Jimmy has been dumbed down a bit in this one, or maybe that's what two years of being back in Imperial Valley does to someone... The conversations between Bobby and Jimmy had me busting out laughing more than once and, as I said in my review of Dove Season, I kept imagining my beloved husband and his buddy as Bobby and Jimmy, and recalling their own version of "Mavescapdes" back in the day. I won't tell you if my hubby is Bobby or Jimmy, doesn't really matter, they're both idiots, but lovable idiots all the same.
Some people have commented about the level of violence and foul language in this one. I think that without this level of violence, this book wouldn't be half as good. And the language, well, if you knew these guys, that's just how they talk. Not to their mamas, but that's how they talk to each other. Oh, and I was overjoyed to have Buck Buck and Snout show up with their van and their bag of tricks to help Jimmy pull off the end-game to finding Julie. And Tomas Morales is back, and bad as ever. Big Piwi and Little Piwi are there too, as silent and scary as can be.
Love these guys, and I hope there is another Jimmy Veeder Fiasco is the future.
October 27, 2014
I loved Dove Season, the first 'Jimmy Veeder Fiasco.' Plaster City is the second book. In between Shaw wrote Big Maria, an unrelated novel which I didn't like quite as much. I was hoping for a little rebound here and Shaw delivered. The story is set in the impoverished, tough-as-nails Imperial Valley in southern California. At the heart is Jimmy and his best buddy Bobby Maves, who try unsuccessfully to stay out of trouble. When Bobby's estranged daughter goes missing and appears to have fallen in with a dangerous crowd, Bobby and Jimmy go on a search and destroy rescue mission. Soon they're tangling with outlaw bikers, exploitation, and their old school friend Tomas, who is now a powerful Mexican crime lord.
Other readers have pointed out that the pages are overloaded with profanity and violence, to the detriment of the story. It's borderline excessive, but Shaw keeps it under control, and I felt a ring of authenticity throughout. It also helps that Shaw is from this area originally, and writes about the locales (and no doubt some of the characters) with intimacy. The important thing is the relationships of the characters. It's more than just mayhem and gratuitous vulgarity. At the core of the book the characters have a strong sense of family and the bonds of friendship.
I burned through this book, which is always a good sign since I often don't read until the end of the day when I'm exhausted. The other good sign is that I really what to see what happens next; I care about these characters. Definitely recommended, but you should read Dove Season first.
Other readers have pointed out that the pages are overloaded with profanity and violence, to the detriment of the story. It's borderline excessive, but Shaw keeps it under control, and I felt a ring of authenticity throughout. It also helps that Shaw is from this area originally, and writes about the locales (and no doubt some of the characters) with intimacy. The important thing is the relationships of the characters. It's more than just mayhem and gratuitous vulgarity. At the core of the book the characters have a strong sense of family and the bonds of friendship.
I burned through this book, which is always a good sign since I often don't read until the end of the day when I'm exhausted. The other good sign is that I really what to see what happens next; I care about these characters. Definitely recommended, but you should read Dove Season first.
January 26, 2015
I'm a Johnny Shaw fan.
Shaw's writing scratches an itch in my brain that isn't accomplished by most other writers. His humor is slick, but never "too cute by half". And just when you are getting into the flow of the indigenous dialogue, Shaw uses a word like "stolid", proving that he doesn't have to write in Rednexican Perfect. He chooses to do so.
I could add how well his characters are developed. Or how the scenes create technicolor visuals as I read. Or how well the plot is developed. But, don't you expect all that with a 5-star rating?
If you haven't read Dove Season, go buy it. It might help to read it before Plaster City, but it certainly isn't mandatory. Both novels stand on their own.
Shaw's writing scratches an itch in my brain that isn't accomplished by most other writers. His humor is slick, but never "too cute by half". And just when you are getting into the flow of the indigenous dialogue, Shaw uses a word like "stolid", proving that he doesn't have to write in Rednexican Perfect. He chooses to do so.
I could add how well his characters are developed. Or how the scenes create technicolor visuals as I read. Or how well the plot is developed. But, don't you expect all that with a 5-star rating?
If you haven't read Dove Season, go buy it. It might help to read it before Plaster City, but it certainly isn't mandatory. Both novels stand on their own.
May 29, 2014
Ok, so Mr. Shaw is another new to me author. I thought this book sounded good. Even though I have never read Dove Season. I took a chance on this book. Ok, so starting off I did not have a problem reading this book or attempting to read this book even though I have never read Dove Season. This is a good thing. It means this book can be read as a stand alone novel.
While there is language, I did not mind it. What did it for me is the characters and the story. It seemed to drag and I felt no such connection with either Jimmy or Bobby. I tried to read more of the book hoping that I would feel something for Jimmy and Bobby but I never could. Not even a glimmer. So I finally had to put this book down. It just was not for me.
While there is language, I did not mind it. What did it for me is the characters and the story. It seemed to drag and I felt no such connection with either Jimmy or Bobby. I tried to read more of the book hoping that I would feel something for Jimmy and Bobby but I never could. Not even a glimmer. So I finally had to put this book down. It just was not for me.
March 11, 2015
Loved it. Review to come.
June 19, 2014
Yikes! What a great book. Johnny Shaw is a writer who keeps getting better, and if he gets any better than this it’ll be downright scary.
Johnny Shaw’s debut novel DOVE SEASON (the first Jimmy Veeder Fiasco), was great fun, and garnered a Spotted Owl Award. His second novel, BIG MARIA (without Veeder), was even better, snagging an Anthony Award. Now comes PLASTER CITY, his best yet, and deserving of even greater laurels.
Jimmy Veeder and his pal Bobby Maves are back, still wild and crazy, two years after the events of DOVE SEASON. But they’ve grown as characters, and Shaw has grown as a writer. This is a fine novel—witty, wacky and sometimes hilarious, but with a heart, a soul and a brain. As a result, PLASTER CITY is extremely satisfying on several levels. The characters are alive, the plot is compelling, the action is exciting and inventive, and there are real-life serious issues lurking just beneath the surface.
There’s plenty of conflict here, as Jimmy and Bobby battle with guns, lead pipes and fists against a biker gang, Mexican mobsters, and even each other. But the most important conflict pits our two heroes—poster boys for irresponsibility—against the pressures of fatherhood.
When Bobby’s teenage daughter (a girl he barely knows) goes missing, the two set out on a mad quest to find her and return her to her mother. At the same time, Jimmy’s adopted son Juan is struggling with the traumatic events that brought he and Jimmy together. As Jimmy and Bobby deal with fatherhood in their own ways, Bobby is forced to examine his relationship with his own estranged father, a man every bit as wild an crazy as Bobby himself.
Yeah, there are serious issues here, but they never get in the way of the fun. And fun is a big, big factor, beginning with Jimmy’s wise guy narration and intensified by the wacky repartee between the two heroes. And it just keeps on coming, in the choices they make, the company they keep and the messes they get into. The book is subtitled “A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco,” and that’s an understatement. These guys have a knack for turning the simplest tasks into fiascoes, and do so on a regular basis. The result is a non-stop romp through the Southwestern desert.
PLASTER CITY is everything a novel should be—engaging, enlightening, and always entertaining. And as I said, Johnny Shaw is still getting better. I can’t wait to see what he does next.
Johnny Shaw’s debut novel DOVE SEASON (the first Jimmy Veeder Fiasco), was great fun, and garnered a Spotted Owl Award. His second novel, BIG MARIA (without Veeder), was even better, snagging an Anthony Award. Now comes PLASTER CITY, his best yet, and deserving of even greater laurels.
Jimmy Veeder and his pal Bobby Maves are back, still wild and crazy, two years after the events of DOVE SEASON. But they’ve grown as characters, and Shaw has grown as a writer. This is a fine novel—witty, wacky and sometimes hilarious, but with a heart, a soul and a brain. As a result, PLASTER CITY is extremely satisfying on several levels. The characters are alive, the plot is compelling, the action is exciting and inventive, and there are real-life serious issues lurking just beneath the surface.
There’s plenty of conflict here, as Jimmy and Bobby battle with guns, lead pipes and fists against a biker gang, Mexican mobsters, and even each other. But the most important conflict pits our two heroes—poster boys for irresponsibility—against the pressures of fatherhood.
When Bobby’s teenage daughter (a girl he barely knows) goes missing, the two set out on a mad quest to find her and return her to her mother. At the same time, Jimmy’s adopted son Juan is struggling with the traumatic events that brought he and Jimmy together. As Jimmy and Bobby deal with fatherhood in their own ways, Bobby is forced to examine his relationship with his own estranged father, a man every bit as wild an crazy as Bobby himself.
Yeah, there are serious issues here, but they never get in the way of the fun. And fun is a big, big factor, beginning with Jimmy’s wise guy narration and intensified by the wacky repartee between the two heroes. And it just keeps on coming, in the choices they make, the company they keep and the messes they get into. The book is subtitled “A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco,” and that’s an understatement. These guys have a knack for turning the simplest tasks into fiascoes, and do so on a regular basis. The result is a non-stop romp through the Southwestern desert.
PLASTER CITY is everything a novel should be—engaging, enlightening, and always entertaining. And as I said, Johnny Shaw is still getting better. I can’t wait to see what he does next.
August 19, 2015
Well, I've hesitated between giving three or four stars to this book, but I went with four because 1) the second half makes up for a lot of the first half's flaws and 2) I cannot penalize a well-written book because I philosophically disagree with it. I liked PLASTER CITY, Johnny Shaw has his own way of being forcefully charming with people, but I didn't fell in love head over heels with it, like I did with DOVE SEASON. It felt too nice, too neatly wrapped for such a spectacularly messy situation.
The characters are as dynamic and mouthy as they ever were, but they've evolved so much from their past angry, drifting selves, it felt at times like talking to new parents who think they've understood the world because they went trough some drastic changes in their lives. Loved having some more of Tomas Morales involved, he's one of the most morally challenging characters, but his threats felt empty most of the time. I guess that what I mean to say is that PLASTER CITY was a lot of fun, yet kind of predictable.
The characters are as dynamic and mouthy as they ever were, but they've evolved so much from their past angry, drifting selves, it felt at times like talking to new parents who think they've understood the world because they went trough some drastic changes in their lives. Loved having some more of Tomas Morales involved, he's one of the most morally challenging characters, but his threats felt empty most of the time. I guess that what I mean to say is that PLASTER CITY was a lot of fun, yet kind of predictable.
November 19, 2016
I really dig this series. Shaw's themes are anything but new but his focus on family, friendship, and loyalty and the way the three intertwine and tug on one another is always deftly handled. In addition, his stories are sometimes outrageous but always just this side of implausible, and his characters and their relationships are always always compelling. The people in his books and their conversations feel real, even when their behavior or habitual relationships can seem over the top. My only hesitation is the way the female characters are portrayed. They're diverse and reliably three-dimensional, but as long as they're not a big bad, they're uniformly supportive of their men -- frustrated and disappointed at times, sure, but they always, always, always come down on the side of mature, head-shaking understanding. Individually, their concessions are never jarring but, taken, as a whole, they're disappointingly formulaic, something which really stands out in a series that so successfully avoids that trap in every other way.
June 8, 2018
This is the second "Jimmy Veeder Fiasco" entry in Johnny Shaw's very entertaining series featuring said protagonist. However, whereas I was smitten by his first book about Jimmy, Dove Season, this one held less attraction for me. Mind you, I still enjoyed it. if you simply picked this up without having read the earlier book, it might seem like a great book. That's the problem with hitting one out of the park on your first try-- following that up with another 5 star book is exceedingly difficult. Some authors crank out winner after winner (e.g., Michael Connolly, Tana French, Ed McBain, etc.) but even they throw in some mediocrity now and again.
This book is very similar in flavor to Dove Season, but sans a more robust story / mystery and populated by fewer characters. We are mostly entertained by the madcap antics of Jimmy and Bobby Maves, his best friend, back from book #1, as the latter attempts to find his runaway sixteen year old estranged daughter. Bobby is crazy as ever-- even more so since splitting with his girlfriend. Jimmy, however, has now settled into farm life, rearing his step-brother and living with his girlfriend (whom we met in book #1). Apparently the author felt having Jimmy assume the father role (rather than the older brother role) would lend greater weight to the dilemma he soon faces-- to continue sticking by his nutty friend as the search becomes messier and messier, or return home to his adopted son and live-in girlfriend (might as well be his wife).
Much of the plot and action seems rather derivative from the earlier book, and Jimmy's moral dilemma, rather contrived. It all flows and moves along nicely, and so the book stands alone just fine. But what made the first book so special (at least, for me) was Shaw's ability to capture the place and inhabitants, both Mexican and American, living in hard scrabble Indio, CA, adjacent to the border. The heat, the relative poverty, the nobility of those devoted to their farms and friends all mixed together to bring off a wonderful cast of interesting people and palpable locations. In Plaster City (we don't get the explanation for the title until the book is almost at its conclusion), things just feel more superficial. There is less Spanish spoken, less focus on the very scary but interesting Tomás Morales, and just plain more silliness. Still a fun ride, but just a less fulfilling one.
So, 3.5 stars for this one and I still think the author has chops. It's just that he set the bar so high with Dove Season that a regression to the mean was, perhaps, somewhat inevitable. I will still probably read more from him and perhaps, with more realistic expectations.
This book is very similar in flavor to Dove Season, but sans a more robust story / mystery and populated by fewer characters. We are mostly entertained by the madcap antics of Jimmy and Bobby Maves, his best friend, back from book #1, as the latter attempts to find his runaway sixteen year old estranged daughter. Bobby is crazy as ever-- even more so since splitting with his girlfriend. Jimmy, however, has now settled into farm life, rearing his step-brother and living with his girlfriend (whom we met in book #1). Apparently the author felt having Jimmy assume the father role (rather than the older brother role) would lend greater weight to the dilemma he soon faces-- to continue sticking by his nutty friend as the search becomes messier and messier, or return home to his adopted son and live-in girlfriend (might as well be his wife).
Much of the plot and action seems rather derivative from the earlier book, and Jimmy's moral dilemma, rather contrived. It all flows and moves along nicely, and so the book stands alone just fine. But what made the first book so special (at least, for me) was Shaw's ability to capture the place and inhabitants, both Mexican and American, living in hard scrabble Indio, CA, adjacent to the border. The heat, the relative poverty, the nobility of those devoted to their farms and friends all mixed together to bring off a wonderful cast of interesting people and palpable locations. In Plaster City (we don't get the explanation for the title until the book is almost at its conclusion), things just feel more superficial. There is less Spanish spoken, less focus on the very scary but interesting Tomás Morales, and just plain more silliness. Still a fun ride, but just a less fulfilling one.
So, 3.5 stars for this one and I still think the author has chops. It's just that he set the bar so high with Dove Season that a regression to the mean was, perhaps, somewhat inevitable. I will still probably read more from him and perhaps, with more realistic expectations.
November 3, 2014
California’s Imperial Valley, a “stretch of desert between San |Diego and Yuma, as far south and as far east as you could go in California,” is the setting for this new novel from Johnny Shaw, bringing the return of Jimmy Veeder and his best friend, Bobby Maves, described by Jimmy as “an even split between Swiss and Mexican [who] favored Latin in his look, but identified as white. What was called a Rednexican.” Each of the men has become a father, and though one would expect that would have “tamed” them, it does not seem to be the case.
Jimmy and Bobby have, with some regularity, embarked upon ‘adventures’ that Jimmy refers to as “Mavescapades,” frequently involving some less-than-legal activities. Jimmy, who adores his five-year-old son, Juan, is a fairly law-abiding individual when not under Bobby’s influence. And there is always a great deal of alcohol consumed. When Bobby’s 15-year-old daughter, Julie, goes missing, the two embark on yet another mission.
The novel is often laugh-out-loud funny, although to be sure there is a great deal of mayhem, often at one and the same time, the initial instance on page one. But the other side of that is, e.g., the description of a jail cell as “the dark rainbow of human experience voiced through the cries of the detained.” (Not sure why he is in jail, Jimmy wonders whether being an “accessory to punching a dog in the face was a crime”) Part Two of the book, about half-way through the tale, takes the reader to the eponymous desert area where the rest of the action takes place, including an encounter with a Mexican biker gang, and where a typical establishment is called Ocotillo Beer and Ammo. The terrific writing makes the desert come to life, or what passes for life: feel the heat, inhale the dust, smell the farm animals.
A thoroughly entertaining novel, and recommended.
Jimmy and Bobby have, with some regularity, embarked upon ‘adventures’ that Jimmy refers to as “Mavescapades,” frequently involving some less-than-legal activities. Jimmy, who adores his five-year-old son, Juan, is a fairly law-abiding individual when not under Bobby’s influence. And there is always a great deal of alcohol consumed. When Bobby’s 15-year-old daughter, Julie, goes missing, the two embark on yet another mission.
The novel is often laugh-out-loud funny, although to be sure there is a great deal of mayhem, often at one and the same time, the initial instance on page one. But the other side of that is, e.g., the description of a jail cell as “the dark rainbow of human experience voiced through the cries of the detained.” (Not sure why he is in jail, Jimmy wonders whether being an “accessory to punching a dog in the face was a crime”) Part Two of the book, about half-way through the tale, takes the reader to the eponymous desert area where the rest of the action takes place, including an encounter with a Mexican biker gang, and where a typical establishment is called Ocotillo Beer and Ammo. The terrific writing makes the desert come to life, or what passes for life: feel the heat, inhale the dust, smell the farm animals.
A thoroughly entertaining novel, and recommended.
May 7, 2014
If you have a problem with stories about people getting so drunk that they can't remember their names, or if foul language bothers you, or motorcycle gangs and drug abuse are not your thing, then this book may not be for you.
But if you want to read a story about two guys who are trying to grow up and take on the responsibilities of fatherhood, and stop all of the above, well, maybe not the language, but certainly all of the rest, then this book is for you.
I have never laughed so hard, or been emotionally ripped apart, by events in a story like this in all of my reading years and I picked up reading, seriously reading, when I was in the Army and found the base collection of Doc Savage books. That was some 45 years ago.
I have never laughed so hard by an unexpected punch in the face (see Jimmy Veeder walking through a bar doorway) or a unexpected punch to the nuts (see Mr More-or-Less), or cheered for a father who is trying to find his estranged daughter, ever.
The character development was great. I honestly felt as if I were in the room with these two men as life spun around them. I once lived in Phoenix, Arizona and I could feel the descriptions of the warm wind blowing or the dust settling onto everything. Even if you haven't lived in the Southwest, you, the reader, will taste the dust and chew on the grit of it as it blows across the desert.
I received this book as my free monthly selection for my Prime Membership, but I highly recommend it to all readers who like a good guy type of story. There are parts that will make you laugh hysterically and other parts that will make you cry uncontrollably, and in the end you will have read a very good book.
This is my first time reading a book by Johnny Shaw and I have since bought Dove Season.
But if you want to read a story about two guys who are trying to grow up and take on the responsibilities of fatherhood, and stop all of the above, well, maybe not the language, but certainly all of the rest, then this book is for you.
I have never laughed so hard, or been emotionally ripped apart, by events in a story like this in all of my reading years and I picked up reading, seriously reading, when I was in the Army and found the base collection of Doc Savage books. That was some 45 years ago.
I have never laughed so hard by an unexpected punch in the face (see Jimmy Veeder walking through a bar doorway) or a unexpected punch to the nuts (see Mr More-or-Less), or cheered for a father who is trying to find his estranged daughter, ever.
The character development was great. I honestly felt as if I were in the room with these two men as life spun around them. I once lived in Phoenix, Arizona and I could feel the descriptions of the warm wind blowing or the dust settling onto everything. Even if you haven't lived in the Southwest, you, the reader, will taste the dust and chew on the grit of it as it blows across the desert.
I received this book as my free monthly selection for my Prime Membership, but I highly recommend it to all readers who like a good guy type of story. There are parts that will make you laugh hysterically and other parts that will make you cry uncontrollably, and in the end you will have read a very good book.
This is my first time reading a book by Johnny Shaw and I have since bought Dove Season.
April 5, 2014
Wild, Desperate, High Voltage Craziness
Wild, Desperate, High Voltage Craziness
This is the first Johnny Shaw novel that I have had the pleasure to read, but it is like a cross between Pulp Fiction and a male bonding version of Thelma and Louise if the whole thing was interpreted by Hunter S. Thompson. What a kick in the head. It was incredible!
The writing style is fresh and funny. I was laughing out loud on the first page, and continued through the book. Bobby and Jimmy, our two desperate heroes, slam their way into doors, people, and all sorts of things as they go on their quest to find Bobby's daughter. It is more than a comedy of errors and a trail of violence - it is a Mavescapade, which is an escapade for Bobby Maves. He does this type of thing quite often.
The characterization in this book is golden. We get backstory that completely defines the characters and their relationships to each other. Shaw is a master of characterization detail, and he wields it so well that you feel that you almost intuitively know the characters. He is that good. This book is told from the POV of Jimmy, part of the crazy man duo. It was funny to realize that both men thought that the other was his sidekick. These are some of the best characters I've seen in an action novel.
The Bottom Line: This book is a crazy, volatile, high speed ride. I loved it. But be warned, there is vulgarity, violence and some sex, so if that bothers you, well now you know. I have no problem with any of that, so if you want to walk on the wild side, read Plaster City. Excellent job Mr. Shaw!
Wild, Desperate, High Voltage Craziness
This is the first Johnny Shaw novel that I have had the pleasure to read, but it is like a cross between Pulp Fiction and a male bonding version of Thelma and Louise if the whole thing was interpreted by Hunter S. Thompson. What a kick in the head. It was incredible!
The writing style is fresh and funny. I was laughing out loud on the first page, and continued through the book. Bobby and Jimmy, our two desperate heroes, slam their way into doors, people, and all sorts of things as they go on their quest to find Bobby's daughter. It is more than a comedy of errors and a trail of violence - it is a Mavescapade, which is an escapade for Bobby Maves. He does this type of thing quite often.
The characterization in this book is golden. We get backstory that completely defines the characters and their relationships to each other. Shaw is a master of characterization detail, and he wields it so well that you feel that you almost intuitively know the characters. He is that good. This book is told from the POV of Jimmy, part of the crazy man duo. It was funny to realize that both men thought that the other was his sidekick. These are some of the best characters I've seen in an action novel.
The Bottom Line: This book is a crazy, volatile, high speed ride. I loved it. But be warned, there is vulgarity, violence and some sex, so if that bothers you, well now you know. I have no problem with any of that, so if you want to walk on the wild side, read Plaster City. Excellent job Mr. Shaw!
January 9, 2015
Fantastic fiasco
So much fun!!! It hit me today as I was describing this gem of a read to a friend, it reminds me Timothy Olyphant's show JUSTIFIED. The humor and action fused with the serious nature of the story is so vivid. This author is boss when it comes to the deliciousness and sexy debauchery of rapscallions. Not corney just awesome. I am a woman and I loved this book about the mayhem of men who's hearts are in the right place. These guys were accidental heroes and gangsta to the nines. This book is off the chain. I realize there is a predecessor that is eluded to so I'm going to get that book and read it too. I'm glad I read them out of order, cuz the original will serve as a backstory for me. Something to do with Jimmy rescuing his kid? From the birth mom who is now deceased. Sounds like Bobby was there and down for the cause and sounds like Tommy "effin" Morales pulled some strings that only Tomas "effin" Morales could to make it all happen. There is an unshakable ride or die bromance that Jimmy and Bobby have that makes a girl like me swoon from all the testosterone especially with the idea that it's all to save a teenaged daughter who is just as bad azz as her old man. A definite MUST READ WILL ENJOY BOOK for the masses.
So much fun!!! It hit me today as I was describing this gem of a read to a friend, it reminds me Timothy Olyphant's show JUSTIFIED. The humor and action fused with the serious nature of the story is so vivid. This author is boss when it comes to the deliciousness and sexy debauchery of rapscallions. Not corney just awesome. I am a woman and I loved this book about the mayhem of men who's hearts are in the right place. These guys were accidental heroes and gangsta to the nines. This book is off the chain. I realize there is a predecessor that is eluded to so I'm going to get that book and read it too. I'm glad I read them out of order, cuz the original will serve as a backstory for me. Something to do with Jimmy rescuing his kid? From the birth mom who is now deceased. Sounds like Bobby was there and down for the cause and sounds like Tommy "effin" Morales pulled some strings that only Tomas "effin" Morales could to make it all happen. There is an unshakable ride or die bromance that Jimmy and Bobby have that makes a girl like me swoon from all the testosterone especially with the idea that it's all to save a teenaged daughter who is just as bad azz as her old man. A definite MUST READ WILL ENJOY BOOK for the masses.
December 28, 2016
In retrospect, I may have been too exuberant when I rated this book 2 stars. I rated another book 2 stars this year and that book was much better than this one.
I like mysteries and crime fiction but will freely admit that these genres are very uneven. You have some good writers working in the area but then there are a lot of writers who just aren’t very good. I can’t say that Johnny Shaw is a bad writer, but this novel is thin and without any redeeming value that I noticed.
I suppose his description of the Plaster City area of California that lies somewhere between San Diego and the Arizona border are worth an introduction. I frequently find that the art of setting and regional descriptions are the best parts of book series and this aspect is also the strength here.
Otherwise, this is a rather pedestrian book about a couple of misfits, Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves who drink and fight and stumble their way through what can best be described as a misadventure.
I like mysteries and crime fiction but will freely admit that these genres are very uneven. You have some good writers working in the area but then there are a lot of writers who just aren’t very good. I can’t say that Johnny Shaw is a bad writer, but this novel is thin and without any redeeming value that I noticed.
I suppose his description of the Plaster City area of California that lies somewhere between San Diego and the Arizona border are worth an introduction. I frequently find that the art of setting and regional descriptions are the best parts of book series and this aspect is also the strength here.
Otherwise, this is a rather pedestrian book about a couple of misfits, Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves who drink and fight and stumble their way through what can best be described as a misadventure.
May 6, 2014
This book was a lot of fun. I looked forward to picking it up, every time, right to the last words. The characters are puffed-up caricatures of men, but there is a lot of truth and real feeling behind their actions.
The swear words are rampant, if you can't handle that, you won't like this book. But between the F-bombs, Johnny Shaw's writing will have you laughing out loud, page after page, and highlighting sentences that are full of wicked wit. And there is a human element, too, as these 'losers' take a look at their lives and loves and move (sort of) to make things right.
I'll be reading more Johnny Shaw.
The swear words are rampant, if you can't handle that, you won't like this book. But between the F-bombs, Johnny Shaw's writing will have you laughing out loud, page after page, and highlighting sentences that are full of wicked wit. And there is a human element, too, as these 'losers' take a look at their lives and loves and move (sort of) to make things right.
I'll be reading more Johnny Shaw.
October 22, 2014
Two years after the events of Dove season. Jimmy Veeder is a content farmer with a family, loving his life and working the crops.
Then his lifetime friend Bobby Maves asks him for help.
Bobby's daughter, sixteen year old Julie, one he didn't even know he had until a couple of years ago, was missing. No one had seen her for a week.
So began a trail of violence as the two men traced her down, the pair getting involved in their typical mavescapades.
When they find Julie, things only get worse!
Love this type of fiction: two lifelong friends that will back each other to the hilt no matter the violence, the pain, the blood, whether they really want to or not.
Most excellent.
Then his lifetime friend Bobby Maves asks him for help.
Bobby's daughter, sixteen year old Julie, one he didn't even know he had until a couple of years ago, was missing. No one had seen her for a week.
So began a trail of violence as the two men traced her down, the pair getting involved in their typical mavescapades.
When they find Julie, things only get worse!
Love this type of fiction: two lifelong friends that will back each other to the hilt no matter the violence, the pain, the blood, whether they really want to or not.
Most excellent.
November 20, 2014
While still a good story, it wasn't quite as good as it's series predessor.
This is the (continuing) story of life near the Mexico/California border for Jimmy Veeder. His best friend's daughter has gone missing so the two of them head out to find her. In a flurry of mexican gangs, guns, and alcohol, the story passed pretty quickly. It's an easy read but there isn't anything that makes this one stand out like the original. If you liked the first, I would recommend getting this as a "kill a stormy afternoon" kind of read.
This is the (continuing) story of life near the Mexico/California border for Jimmy Veeder. His best friend's daughter has gone missing so the two of them head out to find her. In a flurry of mexican gangs, guns, and alcohol, the story passed pretty quickly. It's an easy read but there isn't anything that makes this one stand out like the original. If you liked the first, I would recommend getting this as a "kill a stormy afternoon" kind of read.
August 24, 2016
When I read the first of this series, Dove Season, I pointed out the similarity to Joe Lansdale's Hap and Leonard series and suggested Johnny Shaw could stand with Lansdale and his wildly popular East Texas good old boys. Now, after this second book, I am not so sure. Jimmy and Bobby don't seem to be developing into anything other than a basically unlikeable bar brawler and his conflicted "go-along cuz he's my friend" sidekick. Shaw is a good writer and this is a readable book but it could be much better.
March 20, 2020
Starting this book was like getting back with old friends whose whereabouts were unknown for quite some time; I had the same eagerness to know what this bunch of crazies was up to. And, true to character, Jimmy and Bobby go through many hair-raising scenarios with their usual bravado, stupidity, drunkenness, funniness, camaraderie and the noblest of intentions. It was a lot of fun following the troublesome do through their misadventures in the hostile desserts of California, facing far more hostile opponents, ably supported by the cowboys Buck Buck and Snout.
The author has a knack for describing the darkest of situations with the funniest of expressions and I was laughing out loud at many places.
Apart from a few references specific to the place and culture that I could not get, Plaster City was a terrific ride and I'm looking forward to the next one...
The author has a knack for describing the darkest of situations with the funniest of expressions and I was laughing out loud at many places.
Apart from a few references specific to the place and culture that I could not get, Plaster City was a terrific ride and I'm looking forward to the next one...
April 16, 2018
Sometimes you want to read something fun. I like Johnny Shaw. If Harlan Coben, Carl Hiaasen, Joe Lansdale, Tracy Schumer, and Wanda Sikes had an orgy, Shaw would be the illegitimate love child. His books are funny, very violent, and usually pretty original. I had just finished Walter Isaacson's beautiful biography of Leonardo da Vinci and wanted to read something light. "Plaster City" fit the bill. These books are similar to Rick Gavin's "Ranchero" series only set in Southern California. I would have given it more stars except that it dragged towards the end. I look forward to reading more Johnny Shaw.
September 15, 2023
Another Excellent Read
I'm knowing that eventually I'll tire of Jimmy and Bobby but for now they have become my best friends. Its amazing how there is that little bit of a lesson to be learned in this set of books. True friendship never dies nor the bonds that developed through the years no matter how much time has passed. I love how this author writes. There's no candy coating on the extreme situations these characters find themselves in. So off to the final book in this series?
I'm knowing that eventually I'll tire of Jimmy and Bobby but for now they have become my best friends. Its amazing how there is that little bit of a lesson to be learned in this set of books. True friendship never dies nor the bonds that developed through the years no matter how much time has passed. I love how this author writes. There's no candy coating on the extreme situations these characters find themselves in. So off to the final book in this series?
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