Mr. Gone: A Novel

by Gene Triplett

Jack Ritter was once the juvenile delinquent scourge of Oklahoma City, specializing in grand theft auto and one of the best in that criminal line of work. When the cops were getting too close and life with a drunken, widowed mother and a wild little half brother were starting to take their toll, he’d fled to start a new life elsewhere as a straight citizen. But ten years later, in the awful spring of 1995 when his hometown is in turmoil in the wake of Murrah Building bombing, an unrelated murder and his own gnawing guilt have pulled him back, forcing him to infiltrate a ring of thieves that’s thriving while law enforcement officials are distracted by the worst terrorist attack ever perpetrated on US soil. Ritter’s mission is more personal—tracking down the killer of someone once close to him—someone he felt he’d selfishly abandoned a long time ago.

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 26, 2017

Reviews

[Matthew Price · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fast-paced crime thriller from the former city editor of The Oklahoman newspaper in Oklahoma City. Triplett sets this caper in the weeks following the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, as a former car thief returns home to OKC to find out who murdered his brother. The bombing doesn't play into the plot directly, but Triplett recreates the city of the time as a backdrop to the events of the novel.
It's filled with fast cars and fast women, and while the characters don't overlap with Triplett's previous novel, "Wheel Man," those who enjoyed his writing there will find a similar style employed in "Mr. Gone." Those who enjoy noirish, hardboiled crime fiction should be sure to check out "Mr. Gone."