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Sayulita Sucker
Luke Fischer just wants to watch the sun go down over the Pacific, eat some fish tacos, and swig a few cervezas. Well, more than a few. When Luke is called to a hotel to meet a man whose daughter is missing, he’s reluctant to help. But as a favour to the benefactor who pays his bills, Luke says he’ll look into it. What begins as a short segunda ride out of Puerto Vallarta to the surfing mecca of Sayulita takes Luke into a maelstrom of shady cigar salesman, goons of every size, and a ring of violence darker than an ocean swell.
As Luke dives deeper into a world he knew existed but had never seen, he awakens something in himself he thought was dormant. Now, not only does he have to find the young woman, he has keep away from those who’d rather he was dead, and live long enough to order one more Pacifico and watch the pelicans fish.
Includes the all-new short THUNDERBOWL
A pair of goons on an errand for their boss end up at a dive bowling alley in Colorado Springs. As the pressure rises more than pins get knocked over, and things go bad… mostly.
"Fischer is carved from a slab of exquisite Mexican marble with a dark vein through its center."
- K.M. Gray
“A Colt 1911, a Glock, a guitar, a sharp knife and a Brazilian street fighter’s dainty toes. Dusty alleys with sleeping dogs.”
- Linda Robinson
“A cranky Luke Fischer returns in a thriller where Pacificos are hard to come by, bad guys abound, and shots ring out. Often. Nuanced writing, superb pacing, and interesting characters. And a memorable dog.”
- Carlotta Dale
As Luke dives deeper into a world he knew existed but had never seen, he awakens something in himself he thought was dormant. Now, not only does he have to find the young woman, he has keep away from those who’d rather he was dead, and live long enough to order one more Pacifico and watch the pelicans fish.
Includes the all-new short THUNDERBOWL
A pair of goons on an errand for their boss end up at a dive bowling alley in Colorado Springs. As the pressure rises more than pins get knocked over, and things go bad… mostly.
"Fischer is carved from a slab of exquisite Mexican marble with a dark vein through its center."
- K.M. Gray
“A Colt 1911, a Glock, a guitar, a sharp knife and a Brazilian street fighter’s dainty toes. Dusty alleys with sleeping dogs.”
- Linda Robinson
“A cranky Luke Fischer returns in a thriller where Pacificos are hard to come by, bad guys abound, and shots ring out. Often. Nuanced writing, superb pacing, and interesting characters. And a memorable dog.”
- Carlotta Dale
141 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 15, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 29, 2025
Luke Fischer is not the traditional hero, he really is satisfied with some beer, food and the quiet life in Mexico. On the other hand he needs a way to finance it all and that entails helping people out when there is a problem. Sayulita Sucker by Craig Terlson is the fourth adventure with this Pacifico loving not detective who finds people and sometimes lands himself in trouble. Most people think he is just a lost gringo and easy to handle but nothing can be further from the truth, he is well adversed in the art of throwing a punch and he sure can handle a firearm or two. I stumbled upon this author by chance on the interwebs and having read all the Luke Fischer stories as well as Samurai Bluegrass I believe I can safely recommend him for others to read and enjoy. Oh and in this book there is a bonus short story with the legend Mostly Harold as well.
May 22, 2025
You don’t always know where Luke Fischer is going, but you will always want to get on board and follow him wherever he takes you. It’s a journey you won’t forget. Craig Terlson puts paint to the canvas seamlessly and sticks the audience directly in front of the action through this beautifully layered and adventure laden of a book.
May 27, 2025
This novella is a great piece of short literature that I'd best describe as "cozy noir," if such a genre exists. Much like the protagonist, this novella has a chill pace that leisurely strolls through gorgeously rendered scenes of Mexican beach bars and run-down tourist traps. But just because it’s slow doesn’t mean it’s unexciting: It’s still a breezy read with nice doses of punchy and satisfying action, and since it’s a short novella, it’s easily finishable in a single afternoon. Things really pick up in second half when Luke Fischer closes in on the bad guys, a bunch of human traffickers who kidnapped the wrong girl. But in a refreshing breath of fresh air for this subject matter, this isn’t an author who delights in the gushy, goopy details of traffickers being burned alive, beaten with bats, or chopped with axes. Fischer avoids murder where possible, and when totally necessary, prefers to deliver a quick and merciful end.
If you need your fiction to have a plot that's sleek, efficient, and ultra-engineered like a German handgun, look elsewhere. But to criticize the plot of a Fischer novel is to miss the point. Fischer’s charm is that he’s a shaggy dog with a strong nose and a hell of an uppercut… or paw. (This analogy is falling apart.) Between the delicious voice, prose, and kinetic action sequences that leave you reeling along with Fischer’s knuckled-up adversaries, you'll be in for a treat with this cozy-yet-hard-edged crime fiction. The finale firefight is an excellent action setpiece taking us from the winding streets of a beach town to a close-quarters gunfight against traffickers in a
Terlson has an exceptional talent for describing landscapes, skies, and weather with details and turns of phrases you've never read in a thousand other travel novels. In this work, he brings this skill to the forefront by structuring this story largely as a travel/hangout novel with a hard-boiled throughline involving bad guy traffickers. As expected in a Fischer novel, the characters are charming and memorable, blending right in to the “beach noir” setting of bums, surfers, stoners, and bad guys.
If you’re not familiar with Fischer novels, expect a lead “detective” (which he kinda is, but insists he isn’t) who’s basically a stoner without the weed: Witty, conversational, and casual/easy-taking to the point of being a bit worrisome. Sometimes you think he’s just a little too chill for a guy in his position, but that’s part of what makes him endearing. If Fischer were a side character or an antagonist, I’d be half in my mind between wondering if he’s an idiot or a secret genius, but as a protagonist, you realize he’s really just a regular dude – which means somewhere in between stupid and smart. He gets himself into a lot of jams – often due to speaking barely a lick of Spanish despite living in Mexico – and he relies on his fists to get out of any jam he can’t talk his way out of. But despite his appearances and reluctance to put on any air of professionalism, he’s a competent finder of missing people, who’s realistic in that he relies on people skills to get the information he needs, rather than some absurd Sam Spadian “six-steps-ahead-of-even-the-author” level of strategic planning and intellect.
Also, it’s funny to say this about crime fiction, but damn are the food and drinks scrumptiously described, to the point that “good food and drink” actually feels like an accurate selling point for the book. I’m glad I live in an area with good Mexican food because just writing this review makes me want tacos.
Some notes I jotted while reading that didn't fit into my overall review:
- I absolutely love Luke Fischer in this one. He's spicier than ever, clearly having woken up on the wrong side of the bed for at least a few weeks straight leading up to the main story thread. My only complaint with Three Minute Hero was that Luke felt a little dry compared to his funny and compelling deuteragonist, Mostly Harold. While Harold doesn't appear in this one, I didn't particularly miss him because Luke's crankiness and sarcasm felt like it had been cranked up to 11.
- Speaking of Fischer’s characterization, the fact that he’s been living in Mexico for (presumably) several years now and still barely knows more Spanish than your average Californian high-school graduate cracks me up (and is perfectly in-line with his “stoner detective without the weed” character). This story also continues the tradition of Fischer having a somewhat odd manner of speaking, often confusing non-native speakers with his frequent idioms and odd, long-in-the-tooth insults like “lughead” and “peckerwood.” It’s a great bit of quirky characterization that really makes Fischer stand out from the usual tough-talking hardboiled gumshoe.
- In addition to good fisticuffs, Terlson writes excellent shootouts. I think this is partly why I liked Mostly Harold so much in Three Minute Hero – he brought a deadly edge to the story since he had no qualms shooting people.
- Not sure if it was meant to be read this way, but I like to think the author made a personal cameo as the "sun-burned gringo in a green straw hat" who's described as furiously scribbling in his little notebook near the beginning. Anyone who follows Terlson on Twitter will know what I'm talking about.
- I feel Fischer’s hatred for Corona deep in my soul. I also really like this setup for the line: “Like bad beer, I couldn’t figure this guy out.”
- On a similar note, I love this description of Fischer trying out a fine Case Azul tequila: “I took a sip of the amber elixir and for a moment believed there was a God.”
If you need your fiction to have a plot that's sleek, efficient, and ultra-engineered like a German handgun, look elsewhere. But to criticize the plot of a Fischer novel is to miss the point. Fischer’s charm is that he’s a shaggy dog with a strong nose and a hell of an uppercut… or paw. (This analogy is falling apart.) Between the delicious voice, prose, and kinetic action sequences that leave you reeling along with Fischer’s knuckled-up adversaries, you'll be in for a treat with this cozy-yet-hard-edged crime fiction. The finale firefight is an excellent action setpiece taking us from the winding streets of a beach town to a close-quarters gunfight against traffickers in a
Terlson has an exceptional talent for describing landscapes, skies, and weather with details and turns of phrases you've never read in a thousand other travel novels. In this work, he brings this skill to the forefront by structuring this story largely as a travel/hangout novel with a hard-boiled throughline involving bad guy traffickers. As expected in a Fischer novel, the characters are charming and memorable, blending right in to the “beach noir” setting of bums, surfers, stoners, and bad guys.
If you’re not familiar with Fischer novels, expect a lead “detective” (which he kinda is, but insists he isn’t) who’s basically a stoner without the weed: Witty, conversational, and casual/easy-taking to the point of being a bit worrisome. Sometimes you think he’s just a little too chill for a guy in his position, but that’s part of what makes him endearing. If Fischer were a side character or an antagonist, I’d be half in my mind between wondering if he’s an idiot or a secret genius, but as a protagonist, you realize he’s really just a regular dude – which means somewhere in between stupid and smart. He gets himself into a lot of jams – often due to speaking barely a lick of Spanish despite living in Mexico – and he relies on his fists to get out of any jam he can’t talk his way out of. But despite his appearances and reluctance to put on any air of professionalism, he’s a competent finder of missing people, who’s realistic in that he relies on people skills to get the information he needs, rather than some absurd Sam Spadian “six-steps-ahead-of-even-the-author” level of strategic planning and intellect.
Also, it’s funny to say this about crime fiction, but damn are the food and drinks scrumptiously described, to the point that “good food and drink” actually feels like an accurate selling point for the book. I’m glad I live in an area with good Mexican food because just writing this review makes me want tacos.
Some notes I jotted while reading that didn't fit into my overall review:
- I absolutely love Luke Fischer in this one. He's spicier than ever, clearly having woken up on the wrong side of the bed for at least a few weeks straight leading up to the main story thread. My only complaint with Three Minute Hero was that Luke felt a little dry compared to his funny and compelling deuteragonist, Mostly Harold. While Harold doesn't appear in this one, I didn't particularly miss him because Luke's crankiness and sarcasm felt like it had been cranked up to 11.
- Speaking of Fischer’s characterization, the fact that he’s been living in Mexico for (presumably) several years now and still barely knows more Spanish than your average Californian high-school graduate cracks me up (and is perfectly in-line with his “stoner detective without the weed” character). This story also continues the tradition of Fischer having a somewhat odd manner of speaking, often confusing non-native speakers with his frequent idioms and odd, long-in-the-tooth insults like “lughead” and “peckerwood.” It’s a great bit of quirky characterization that really makes Fischer stand out from the usual tough-talking hardboiled gumshoe.
- In addition to good fisticuffs, Terlson writes excellent shootouts. I think this is partly why I liked Mostly Harold so much in Three Minute Hero – he brought a deadly edge to the story since he had no qualms shooting people.
- Not sure if it was meant to be read this way, but I like to think the author made a personal cameo as the "sun-burned gringo in a green straw hat" who's described as furiously scribbling in his little notebook near the beginning. Anyone who follows Terlson on Twitter will know what I'm talking about.
- I feel Fischer’s hatred for Corona deep in my soul. I also really like this setup for the line: “Like bad beer, I couldn’t figure this guy out.”
- On a similar note, I love this description of Fischer trying out a fine Case Azul tequila: “I took a sip of the amber elixir and for a moment believed there was a God.”
May 15, 2025
“Sometimes things are different, and mostly that’s okay.”
An opening line that also serves as a mission statement for Sayulita Sucker. This is the fourth Luke Fischer book from Craig Terlson and we find ourselves in Mexico again, but all is not as it seems. This is a refrain that pops up later in the story, but the reader (if familiar with the series) will likely sense it much sooner.
Firstly, Fischer is spotted drinking Tecate. The ignominy! “Who the hell runs out of Pacificos?”
But sometimes change is good, right? Especially in a series that has just broken the trilogy barrier, with a third book that opened up the possibility for more Fischer adventures but also ended in a perfect place to wrap things up. We like the familiar vibes, but there’s always the danger that it all gets stale and repetitive. Vive la difference, as they say in the Middle East.
Fear not…Luke Fischer is still the same wise-cracking, tooth-chipping son of a gun as before, and the writing is still firing on all (admittedly laidback and breezy) cylinders. The orange reflections of a sunset “spread out like syrup on a glass plate”, and Fischer himself is still working hard to do as little as possible by the beach.
So when a man comes to see him about a missing girl, he’s perhaps at his most obnoxious and irritable as he tries to wheedle his way out of the job. He’s also hungover, so I won’t judge. We’ve all been there.
Needless to say, this wouldn’t be a mystery novel without a mystery to solve – even if Fischer still insists after all this time that he’s not a detective. When will he learn? He takes the job, and we find ourselves on a segunda bus north.
Later on, in a moment of brazen but possibly unintentional meta-fiction, Fischer/Terlson explains that “I like how they take their time. It reminds me to never be in a hurry.”
He misses his stop, because Fischer gonna Fischer, he walks into the wrong place and then he walks into the REALLY wrong place. Suddenly it is game on.
“This was turning into one hell of a Thursday. Or was it Monday?”
I won’t say much more about the plot. It unspools in a typically Fischerian (Fischeresque?) manner, which is to say that one thing happens to him after another and he deals with it in his stoic but snarky way. But our guy seems a little more annoyed by the general vicissitudes of life this time around.
Like I said, this book is a little different to the others. It is shorter and the only one that is solely set in Mexico. The reader might be tempted to think of Sayulita Sucker as a minor episodic entry in the Fischer oeuvre. Yeah, I just used the word oeuvre—correctly—in a crime fiction review. I also used “vicissitudes” in the paragraph above. Deal with it.
But…despite the novella length, this book might even be seen as a turning point in the series (provided there are more books coming). We start to see some of the real world creeping into this idyllic and idealised Xanadu south of the border, and it ain’t pretty.
In a striking image captured on the book’s cover, Fischer grapples with the darkness that surrounds him and no amount of picturesque Mexican sunsets, pretty senoritas or Pacificos can keep it at bay, a violence that “swallowed humanity and spat it out like a lone surfboard by the rocks.”
Still, we get some crazy japes and even some magic realism (maybe?) as the story rattles along to its conclusion. Fischer makes it out alive (spoiler!), but he’s left licking his wounds and wondering what comes next. So is the reader.
Sayulita Sucker might be a good entry point into the Luke Fischer books. It is lean and therefore prone to fewer digressions, but retains that loosey goosey style that is the biggest draw for the initiated. And it is a PI novel, so we are legally required to have some fisticuffs and Chandleresque prose that clangs with unbridled glee.
(I’m not a fan of Raymond Chandler… yeah I know he’s an iconic crime writer blah blah blah… but his stories are total nonsense and his language is overcooked. Don’t bother arguing – save it for the bartender ‘cause I don’t wanna hear it.)
So in true PI fashion we get this doozy: “I felt as out of place as a figure skater at a monster truck rally”…and in true Fischer fashion, he pushes it over the edge: “I was doing a whole different double-axel.” Oh brother….
Sayulita Sucker isn’t interested in a plot of Swiss watch precision. It’s a slightly inebriated but nevertheless charming barfly cornering you late in the evening with one hell of a story to share.
An opening line that also serves as a mission statement for Sayulita Sucker. This is the fourth Luke Fischer book from Craig Terlson and we find ourselves in Mexico again, but all is not as it seems. This is a refrain that pops up later in the story, but the reader (if familiar with the series) will likely sense it much sooner.
Firstly, Fischer is spotted drinking Tecate. The ignominy! “Who the hell runs out of Pacificos?”
But sometimes change is good, right? Especially in a series that has just broken the trilogy barrier, with a third book that opened up the possibility for more Fischer adventures but also ended in a perfect place to wrap things up. We like the familiar vibes, but there’s always the danger that it all gets stale and repetitive. Vive la difference, as they say in the Middle East.
Fear not…Luke Fischer is still the same wise-cracking, tooth-chipping son of a gun as before, and the writing is still firing on all (admittedly laidback and breezy) cylinders. The orange reflections of a sunset “spread out like syrup on a glass plate”, and Fischer himself is still working hard to do as little as possible by the beach.
So when a man comes to see him about a missing girl, he’s perhaps at his most obnoxious and irritable as he tries to wheedle his way out of the job. He’s also hungover, so I won’t judge. We’ve all been there.
Needless to say, this wouldn’t be a mystery novel without a mystery to solve – even if Fischer still insists after all this time that he’s not a detective. When will he learn? He takes the job, and we find ourselves on a segunda bus north.
Later on, in a moment of brazen but possibly unintentional meta-fiction, Fischer/Terlson explains that “I like how they take their time. It reminds me to never be in a hurry.”
He misses his stop, because Fischer gonna Fischer, he walks into the wrong place and then he walks into the REALLY wrong place. Suddenly it is game on.
“This was turning into one hell of a Thursday. Or was it Monday?”
I won’t say much more about the plot. It unspools in a typically Fischerian (Fischeresque?) manner, which is to say that one thing happens to him after another and he deals with it in his stoic but snarky way. But our guy seems a little more annoyed by the general vicissitudes of life this time around.
Like I said, this book is a little different to the others. It is shorter and the only one that is solely set in Mexico. The reader might be tempted to think of Sayulita Sucker as a minor episodic entry in the Fischer oeuvre. Yeah, I just used the word oeuvre—correctly—in a crime fiction review. I also used “vicissitudes” in the paragraph above. Deal with it.
But…despite the novella length, this book might even be seen as a turning point in the series (provided there are more books coming). We start to see some of the real world creeping into this idyllic and idealised Xanadu south of the border, and it ain’t pretty.
In a striking image captured on the book’s cover, Fischer grapples with the darkness that surrounds him and no amount of picturesque Mexican sunsets, pretty senoritas or Pacificos can keep it at bay, a violence that “swallowed humanity and spat it out like a lone surfboard by the rocks.”
Still, we get some crazy japes and even some magic realism (maybe?) as the story rattles along to its conclusion. Fischer makes it out alive (spoiler!), but he’s left licking his wounds and wondering what comes next. So is the reader.
Sayulita Sucker might be a good entry point into the Luke Fischer books. It is lean and therefore prone to fewer digressions, but retains that loosey goosey style that is the biggest draw for the initiated. And it is a PI novel, so we are legally required to have some fisticuffs and Chandleresque prose that clangs with unbridled glee.
(I’m not a fan of Raymond Chandler… yeah I know he’s an iconic crime writer blah blah blah… but his stories are total nonsense and his language is overcooked. Don’t bother arguing – save it for the bartender ‘cause I don’t wanna hear it.)
So in true PI fashion we get this doozy: “I felt as out of place as a figure skater at a monster truck rally”…and in true Fischer fashion, he pushes it over the edge: “I was doing a whole different double-axel.” Oh brother….
Sayulita Sucker isn’t interested in a plot of Swiss watch precision. It’s a slightly inebriated but nevertheless charming barfly cornering you late in the evening with one hell of a story to share.
June 14, 2025
Luke Fischer longs for a quiet, uncomplicated life. The kind where he can enjoy some cold cervezas (preferably Pacificos), a bowl of spicy peanuts, and a pleasant evening breeze that rolls in off the Pacific Ocean. That and the calming sight of a big orange sun as it slips into the sea. Good company is optional.
Unfortunately, Mr. Fischer, the "I'm not a detective" people-finder guy, gets swept up by the darker currents of others' agendas. Of course, these usually end up not running in his favour. Regardless, his heart pulls his often-beaten and ever-tired mortal coil again into the fray, as he tries to set right the terrible wrongs done to those he's sent to find. Or at least to pull them from harm's way.
In "Sayulita Sucker", author Terlson takes Luke down some dark paths as he's swept up by circumstances deeper, wider, and more dangerous than he realizes. The writing here is terrific as always, and Terlson's tight prose crackles with tension. Sparing with his descriptions, the author deftly brings us right into the heart of the scene as we follow Luke's journey, like a compatriot but one who cannot reach out to help him.
As with the rest of Craig Terlson's body of work, "Sayulita Sucker" is finely nuanced. He brings to his storytelling lovely textures of setting to bring his locations to life, a cast of wonderful characters who are each in the midst of their own struggles, and an authenticity of dialogue amid the highs and lows woven into his tales.
The bonus short story that follows, "Thunderbowl", was also such a treat. Wonderful to read some further exploits of one my favourite characters from Luke Fischer's world.
If you hadn't guessed already, I loved this newest addition to the Luke Fischer novels! And if you've not yet ready anything by Craig Terlson, wait no more. Start anywhere, but grab one of his books right away. If you like modern Noir crime fiction, you'll love this. Cheers!
Unfortunately, Mr. Fischer, the "I'm not a detective" people-finder guy, gets swept up by the darker currents of others' agendas. Of course, these usually end up not running in his favour. Regardless, his heart pulls his often-beaten and ever-tired mortal coil again into the fray, as he tries to set right the terrible wrongs done to those he's sent to find. Or at least to pull them from harm's way.
In "Sayulita Sucker", author Terlson takes Luke down some dark paths as he's swept up by circumstances deeper, wider, and more dangerous than he realizes. The writing here is terrific as always, and Terlson's tight prose crackles with tension. Sparing with his descriptions, the author deftly brings us right into the heart of the scene as we follow Luke's journey, like a compatriot but one who cannot reach out to help him.
As with the rest of Craig Terlson's body of work, "Sayulita Sucker" is finely nuanced. He brings to his storytelling lovely textures of setting to bring his locations to life, a cast of wonderful characters who are each in the midst of their own struggles, and an authenticity of dialogue amid the highs and lows woven into his tales.
The bonus short story that follows, "Thunderbowl", was also such a treat. Wonderful to read some further exploits of one my favourite characters from Luke Fischer's world.
If you hadn't guessed already, I loved this newest addition to the Luke Fischer novels! And if you've not yet ready anything by Craig Terlson, wait no more. Start anywhere, but grab one of his books right away. If you like modern Noir crime fiction, you'll love this. Cheers!
May 7, 2025
Sayulita Sucker is the fourth book published in the Luke Fischer series. First, the cover by phil/i2iart.com. This desolate scene evoked a sense of loss that I carried with me into this story. This is a more introspective Fischer who’s not so much mad at the world as he is annoyed with it. He seems more isolated, perhaps in search of a purpose to his existence. But never fear, Luke is still as quick with a repartee as he is with a punch.
These books have no hard timeline and may be read in any order, but this novella is a great jumping-on point for new readers. This is a taut story that flows from stillness to sudden violence to the dark underbelly of life and back again effortlessly.
Craig Terlson delivers once again with his witty wordplay and painterly descriptions of the land and the varied people Luke encounters. The author brings the crow, pelicans, and the occasional gecko Luke comes across to vibrant life. Fischer's failed attempts at Spanish tickled my ribs. I enjoyed getting a closer look at Luke’s enigmatic benefactor, Benno.
This is a Luke Fischer book filled with barbed quips and balled fists, but it is also a love letter to Mexico. The beauty of the land and its people shines throughout the book.
Keep a cold beverage and some tasty snacks at hand. A Terlson book will stimulate your appetite.
This book gets the highest recommendation from me for fans of Crime/Noir, and a superbly crafted story.
May 25, 2025
Excellent addition to the Luke Fischer drifter noir series, and I heartily recommend reading all of them. This one is set in a couple of small beach towns in south-central Mexico near Puerto Vallarta, and Terlson brings the whole region to life with his vivid prose. No one does a better job of turning the setting into a character of its own and a vital part of the story than Terlson, and its one of the many reasons I love the Fischer series. Another reason is the collection of colorful characters, beginning with Fischer himself, the "not a detective" who finds people and solves mysteries while drifting through life searching for the perfect cold Pacifico (which can be harder than it sounds). Yes, he buys them two at a time. Luke is a terrific character, a capable hombre who likes to think of himself as a local even though he can't speak the language. He's not really homeless, it's just that his home is the noon sun, the ocean breeze, one-star hotels wherever they might be, and the bottom of a bottle.
So, hop on a segunda and cross through the hills to the nearest surfing mecca, but don't stray into the crime-ridden backside of town, even in the daytime. Be careful who you drink with, and be aware that everything, even a chair on the beach, is a transaction. Oh, and when the mysterious street prophet comes to your table and offers you advice, make sure you listen.
So, hop on a segunda and cross through the hills to the nearest surfing mecca, but don't stray into the crime-ridden backside of town, even in the daytime. Be careful who you drink with, and be aware that everything, even a chair on the beach, is a transaction. Oh, and when the mysterious street prophet comes to your table and offers you advice, make sure you listen.
May 19, 2025
There is a loose, relaxed feel to “Sayulita Sucker” that Craig Terlson has often leaned into in the Luke Fischer books but it reaches a different level here. A natural and satisfying equilibrium. Luke starts grumpy, and the beers and tacos don’t help his mood much. Then he gets lured into a ‘save the girl’ story that he follows without enthusiasm but earns him plenty of knocks. Eventually he gets irked, and the fireworks start. The most endearing trait of non-detective Luke is his reluctance to engage. It’s just his damn bad luck that bad people come at him with damn gnarly intentions. Pity them … “Sayulita Sucker” might be the funnest entry in the Luke Fischer canon and it will make you want to sit under a palapa to watch pelicans fishing. I wish more books took me there. Adios, compadre.
May 13, 2025
Mr. Terlson was nice enough to send me an early copy of his latest. I first met Luke Fischer in July of 2022 and immediately loved the character, the setting and the words – oh the words. This was like sitting down and catching up with an old friend over a couple of Pacificos and a plate of fish tacos – pure joy. Again, Terlson’s words paint a marvelous picture – I love spending time in Mexico and reading the Fischer books is almost like being there. But it’s Luke’s snarky dialogue, the writing, “The Pacifcios slid down my throat like toddlers on a waterslide”, action and colorful characters that truly make this one shine.
November 10, 2025
Imagine sun-soaked beaches, strong cervezas, and a missing-person case that pulls you into a deadly game of cat and mouse. That’s Sayulita Sucker. The pacing is flawless, the characters unforgettable, and Luke Fischer is exactly the kind of antihero you want to follow into danger. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough!
June 23, 2025
Another excellent Luke Fischer tale. This was a fun vacation read. As usual, a really great (though rare) blend of action and literary. Also loved the fun bonus short "Thunderbowl" at the end where we meet an old friend.
May 16, 2025
Excellent.
Great story. My first read of Terlson's and definitely won't be my last! Thought provoking in ways I had no idea I would think. Stellar.
Great story. My first read of Terlson's and definitely won't be my last! Thought provoking in ways I had no idea I would think. Stellar.
May 21, 2025
Fantastic read. Craig’s writing has a texture to which brings the story to life. Loved the short bonus at the end too.
August 2, 2025
A fun read. I recommend you read the Luke Fisher books in order of publication.
December 12, 2025
The descriptions are so vivid that the whole story plays like a movie. I’d watch this on Netflix in a heartbeat. High-stakes storytelling done right.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews