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Shotgun Opera: A Novel

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Mike Foley can never forget the night he tagged along with his brother on a job for the mob that ended in a hail of bullets. Now his brother is dead, Mike’s making wine in Oklahoma, and life is almost as good as it gets when you’ve been hiding out for forty years. Until his past comes calling.

Mike’s nephew Andrew needs to disappear, and he needs to do it yesterday. Hanging with the wrong kind of friends, he’s seen something he shouldn’t have, and now he’s running for his life with an assassin on his trail. The consummate professional hit woman, Nikki Enders is the most lethal of a deadly sisterhood. And Andrew Foley is next on her extermination list. Unless Uncle Mike can stop her. As kill teams descend on Foley’s farm, one pissed-off ex—tough guy is about to take a final, all-or-nothing stand with shotguns blazing....

305 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

23 people are currently reading
255 people want to read

About the author

Victor Gischler

369 books413 followers
Victor Gischler is an American author of humorous crime fiction.
Gischler's debut novel Gun Monkeys was nominated for the Edgar Award, and his novel Shotgun Opera was an Anthony Award finalist. His work has been translated into Italian, French, Spanish and Japanese. He earned a Ph.D. in English at the University of Southern Mississippi. His fifth novel Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse was published in 2008 by the Touchstone/Fireside imprint of Simon & Schuster.

He has also writes American comic books like The Punisher: Frank Castle, Wolverine and Deadpool for Marvel Comics. Gischler worked on X-Men "Curse of the Mutants" starting in the Death of Dracula one-shot and continued in X-Men #1.

Gun Monkeys has been optioned for a film adaptation, with Lee Goldberg writing the script and Ryuhei Kitamura penciled in to direct.

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5 stars
115 (30%)
4 stars
150 (39%)
3 stars
90 (23%)
2 stars
16 (4%)
1 star
7 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
Profile Image for Eric_W.
1,954 reviews428 followers
July 16, 2010
I’ve read three Gishler books now, and this, I suspect, may be my favorite. It’s a wonderful parody of the hit man novels becoming so prevalent. You have hitmen chasing hitmen, chasing hitwomen, all in a madcap over-the-top set of scenes. Every possible caricature is presented: a dysfunctional family formerly headed by a lunatic CIA operative, his three daughters (Big Sister, Middle Sister, and Baby Sister) the oldest of whom takes on the task of eliminating witnesses to the exit into the United States from a ship’s container of an Islamic suicide bomber. Their mother, another CIA operative has settled into dementia and is knitting a never-ending scarf (shades of Madame LeFarge.) At each step along the way, the actors in the soap opera subcontract their jobs to other misfits, including Jack Sprat a diminutive circus performer married to a 420 lb. alligator wrestler on steroids. In one really great scene, Middle Sister, now trying to go more or less straight, dons her uniform as an army major (but putting on the leaf cluster of a light colonel for good measure) commandeers a fully armed helicopter to attack Mike Foley, himself a retired hitman growing grapes for wine in Oklahoma!, and kill Andrew, Mike's nephew, who is the real target. She decides to strafe and while doing so gets a call from her husband wanting to know how to make his supper. I thought it was hysterical. You get the idea.

Very enjoyable and very clever. Gishler is worth reading.
Profile Image for Maddy.
1,707 reviews88 followers
May 3, 2010
PROTAGONIST: Mike Foley, geriatric retired mob guy; Nikki Enders, hit woman
SETTING: Oklahoma
SERIES: Standalone
RATING: 2.75

My first introduction to Victor Gischler was when I read GUN MONKEYS, his debut novel that was nominated for an Edgar. Given the fact that the book opened with a headless corpse rolling around in the trunk of his rental car (and the protagonist bemoaning the fact that he should have lined the trunk with plastic), I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from SHOTGUN OPERA. Dark humor, noir attitude, high body count—cool!

Or so I thought until I got past the first few chapters of the book. Andrew Foley is a college student who needs some money and goes along on an easy score with his two cousins. All that's involved is moving a cargo container to a different location, easily done until the Arab that is encased in said container pops out. Obviously, any witnesses to the Arab's existence have to be eliminated. Andrew's father at one time told him that if he were ever in dire need, he should get in touch with his uncle Mike, a man he's never met who is firmly ensconced in a vineyard in Oklahoma. Mike and Andrew's father were stone cold killers back in the day.

Andrew takes his dead father's advice. From that point on, he is the target of a wide variety of hit groups, including a lovely family of three sisters, two of whom are hit women and one of whom is pretty much crazy – Twisted Sisters, indeed. Anyway, a whole bunch of people are killed; surprisingly, three people are left alive at the end of the book to live happily never after.

In reading a book like this, you know early on that it is going to be Over The Top, that things are going to be pretty implausible. It's almost as if the author establishes an agreement with the reader that they will be entertained enough that they can work their way through the narrative in spite of the obvious exaggerations. However, SHOTGUN OPERA went way beyond that to become completely OVER THE TOP, and that fragile agreement was broken by the bizarre and ridiculous events of the book. For me, that happened when a brutally murdered individual turned out not to be dead. From that point on, I felt like Gischler was just pushing the envelope in trying to come up with ever more outlandish scenarios. It didn't work for me; the book moved from being entertaining to being irritating. Astronomical body count, flat characters, not much plot—there was nothing there to reel me in.

In looking at the title, I couldn't help but compare the book to an opera. Act One opens with an innocent going astray and then taking a journey into an unknown country, sopranos singing sweetly in the background. Cymbals clash – danger is in the air – BAM – shotgun– BAM BAM BAM – the alto section swells and roars; the conductor drops his baton—he's dead; a throbbing crescendo – BAM BAM BAM – the strings have been cut down; Act Two, Act Three – EAAWWWW – the tenor screams her dying notes. And you know that saying, "It ain't over till the fat lady sings"? Well, the Fat Lady died before there was an intermission. There's nobody left to sing the Coda, and the audience members have left the house.

Profile Image for Carlos Trevino.
130 reviews2 followers
January 13, 2014
Usually Victor Gischler's books hook me from the very first page and don't let go until the end. The fact that this one really didn't should have been a sign. I found most of the dialogue and story pretty cliche and predictable. Whether this has to do with the fact that this is actually one of Gischler's earlier books I'm not sure. I had to give up about two and half hours in when I realized I already knew what was going to happen next. Nobody wants to read a predictable novel no matter who wrote it.
Profile Image for Dale.
553 reviews4 followers
November 2, 2011
I've said it before, Gischler could publish his shopping list and I'd read it. If he was a chicken, the eggs he laid would be hardboiled. And not nice hardboiled either - but the kind of hardboiled you find at gas stations and convenience stores with that scary looking liquid in the package.
Profile Image for Annette.
31 reviews
January 31, 2008
I actually did not finish this book b/c it was so silly.
Profile Image for Brandon Nagel.
371 reviews18 followers
May 13, 2013
Gischler at his best. Top notch non stop action from page one. If you are a fan of his other work, you will love this one...
Profile Image for Johnny.
Author 10 books144 followers
December 17, 2021
How can a novel have a body count that rivals a battle in Vietnam and still make you laugh? Victor Gischler’s Shotgun Opera does just that, albeit his version of a more serious Deadpool (only in the sense of making one laugh guiltily over something you could never condone in “real life”) takes more relish in the equipment used to off targets and the tradecraft used to set up or avoid a hit than the comic and film version of an assassin/mercenary gone awry.

As with so many plots, the structure of Shotgun Opera wouldn’t have occurred without carelessness on the part of those who didn’t follow the fundamental rule of an illegal operation (that is, “Do the thing and get out!”) and the paranoia of those who operate in the shadows. When the nephew of a mob hit man sees what he isn’t supposed to see, he flees to his hit man uncle who, in turn, has accomplished what most “former” hit men cannot actually do, established a new identity for himself and a life free from the entanglements of “our little thing.” But he knows he can’t stay incognito forever and senses that his sabbatical from violence is over when he gets that call from his nephew, that individual who was careless enough to precipitate this mess and was unaware enough to leave loose ends.

Shotgun Opera has arias of violent scenes and recitatives of conversations about how things ought to be, yet are not. It has tragedy that is almost operatic in scope, but what keeps one hanging in there is the comedic element peeking through the sordid, the bloody, and the senseless. As I said, it was like a more serious Deadpool and I’m as ashamed I liked it as when I waste too much time on a computer game. I really shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t stop.
1,249 reviews23 followers
May 11, 2021
Shotgun Opera is an odd title for an odd book. Andrew and a small group of friends do a sneaky job by moving a cargo container away from customs inspection and are shocked when a Terrorist emerges. Since they weren't supposed to see that-- immediately they find their lives are in danger as a killer begins to take them out one at a time. Andrew flees to Oklahoma, where he meets for the first time his Uncle Mike, who once was a thug back in the day. Soon, odd killers are showing up at Mike's place with the intent of taking Andrew out.

That's where the title comes in. The killers are all eccentric professionals and are greatly exaggerated figures. The author provides plenty of action, but these odd characters are meant to be overblown and comical caricatures. Sadly, though, their expertise is too high of a level to be a joke. At times, it almost seems like a scene from a Bruce Lee movie with bad guys coming from all over the place and our heroes facing them.

This one is certainly not on the level of Gun Monkeys by the same author. It is fun, but the sad thing is that the story just seems contrived as a vehicle for odd characters. There is a climactic moment at the end.
Profile Image for Paul.
581 reviews24 followers
July 15, 2017
Not my favorite Gischler novel, but still very entertaining with his usual brand of ironic humor rearing it's head from time to time, just to remind the reader not to take it all too seriously.

Some favorite quotes:

There was a twelve-gauge shotgun, two revolvers, a bowie knife, an axe handle, and a machete in the Caddy's trunk. When Enrique Mars killed somebody, the motherfucker stayed dead.

and;

The shotgun blast plowed through the highly polished wood, and Sprat's left ankle exploded in blood and fragments of bone and blinding pain. He dropped the knife, tilted and went down screaming, his foot barely attached to his leg with a few strands of skin and sinew. He writhed on the tabletop, scattering the decanters.
He managed to raise his head, still looking for his adversary, rage and revenge boiling up through the pain.
None of this was really turning out like Sprat had hoped.
(I love Gischler's attention to grisly detail in the midst of mayhem. It's the little things that count)

Still 4 stars from this reader, even if it's not my favorite Gischler novel.
15 reviews1 follower
August 9, 2024
Huge fan of Gischler, after "Gestapo Mars" and "Conquistador" I kinda started reading all of his later fantasy stuff - The "Ink Mage" series and side quests, and also the "Kingdom of Ghosts" series which I loved, and then i backtracked to his earlier stuff. I picked up "Shotgun..." after reading "Gun Moneys"/"Fast Charlie" I found myself enjoying and loving this one so much, until the very end! I was genuinely upset and disappointed with how it ended up with Nikki and Mike. (spoilers ahead)

I had thought they were going to join forces to take out the Man with the Voice. They seemed to have an understanding with each other. They both wanted out, they had paid their dues and we got to know them well enough that it seemed they'd find some kind of redemption by working that last hit together. Not that they'd end up together at all, but they'd they live out their own lives, truly getting out of it.
Not sure why Gischler ended that way after seemingly setting it up to end differently. Anyway, hence my 4 nor 5 stars. I still loved it and looking forward to starting "Stay" next!

Would love to see "Shotgun Opera" as a graphic novel tbh, i would buy it immediately!
Profile Image for Ashley Wilson.
13 reviews
April 22, 2021
Not as good as his newer books but was enjoyable to the end. Since I already love Victors other works I liked it more than I probably should have.
Profile Image for Tazio Bettin.
Author 66 books18 followers
March 3, 2014
Although I have to admit I have slightly mixed feelings.
The narration is quick paced, the prose very easy and pleasant to read, unembellished and straight to the point as it is appropriate with the genre.
What most shines is the characters. Every single introduction into the story is simply great. You read Enrique Mars entering the stage, and you already know he's gonna be business. You read about Jack Sprat and his wife and you know they're wicked vicious. I have a hard time picking my favorite. They're all jolly great.
The main flaw I saw was a need to close the circle with every thread Gischler wove, which led to scenes that I couldn't help feeling forceful. Example is the last chapter about the man with the voice. Or the epilogue. I really didn't feel the need for those. Or even Mike's final chapter. You could feel that the purpose of that chapter was to surprise you from its very beginning, and that was kind of disappointing, so when I reached that chapter's last word I couldn't help a 'meh' escaping me.
If you can bear this sort of predictability and forcefulness (and I certainly can), it's a fun, delightful book, with some great scenes and awesomeness flowing all around. A book I can only hope they'll make a film of.
419 reviews42 followers
January 22, 2011
After reading it, I thought it would make a great movie--for 15 year olds. It is all slam bang action. We have retired hitmen; professional lady hitment; hitment who are also circus performers in the off season and so on.

It is the sort of action filled novel adolescents would love with a high body count and lots of chases; escapes and gun battles.

But there are some really improbable things going on here and some large plot holes. The author perhaps hopes the incredibly fast pace will help you ignore them. I found it too unbelievable--too much thrown into one novel.

Also, except for one innocent bystander, all the major characters are criminals. I personally like my "heroes" to be at least somewhat moral; this novel is just killers falling out with one another.

Adequate writing--if all you crave is action, go to it. I prefer novels with a bit more substance and more likeable characters.
Profile Image for PescePirata.
135 reviews13 followers
January 3, 2013
Divertimento. Ecco cos'è questo libro. Una serie rocambolesca di azioni che si susseguono con ritmo sfrenato. Personaggi fulminati: un nano lanciatore di coltelli, 3 sorelle killer figlie d'arte, una donna cannone a dieta che va in palestra perché stufa di fare l'attrazione al circo, un ex sicario della mala che finisce a fare il viticoltore, e tanti altri personaggi.
Gischler compensa le imprecisioni narrative con un ritmo sfrenato. Tanta azione, tanto divertimento. Un libro da portarsi in vacanza, per staccare dal mondo. Non è un capolavoro, in alcune parti sembra un po' tirato via, ma comunque si legge veramente con molto gusto. Divertente. L'ho già detto? Almeno mille mila volte.
Consigliato ai fan di Portello Pulp.

Gazza998

http://www.pescepirata.it
http://www.pescepirata.it/aspiranti_s...
45 reviews
November 19, 2013
Wow a very fun action packed and blood soaked opera! A pulpy B movie in written form which you could see tarantino or martinez gladly taking on as their pet project and running wild with. lots of fun characters and almost of them bad who get their comeuppance as you would expect. there is a target that needs to be dealt with and one of the best hitwomen is sent for the job when the target gets away she starts thinking about retirement and brings in her sisters to do her dirty for her. this in turn sets off a whole chain of events with violence at every turn. Easy and wild read and highly recommended.
Profile Image for Baldurian.
1,229 reviews34 followers
June 27, 2015
Un thriller con un tocco pulp e parecchie scene insensate da film di azione di serie B: Sinfonia di piombo è veloce, ignorante e fracassone. Particolari che, di solito, mi fanno adorare un romanzo. Questa volta invece qualcosa non è scattato; non so incolpare più i personaggi, assolutamente non memorabili, o lo stile un po' fiacco di Gischler. Vedi di non morire di Bazell è molto meglio.
Profile Image for Ladiibbug.
1,580 reviews85 followers
May 20, 2015
Crime Thriller

Any book featuring a hitman/hitwoman piques my interest, so with Victor Gischler as the author, this is a double win.

Like his other crime thrillers, the violence is over the top, the action non-stop, with characters that drew me right in, both the good guys and the bad guys. (Most of the people are bad guys/gals.)

Gruesome, high body count, hairpin plot turns that'll give you whiplash. I love his books, but with all the violence and craziness, I don't know why. ;-)
Profile Image for Tim McWhorter.
Author 12 books75 followers
February 18, 2014
Yes! Loved this book. There are a lot of characters to keep straight, but each one is dealt with in a logical and fitting manner. All loose ends are wrapped up by the end and none of them seemed forced or contrived (which sometimes happens with so many characters). Very well written and fun to read. Finished this one last night, and I'm already on to the next Gischler!
Profile Image for Joseph OToole.
21 reviews4 followers
January 10, 2011
Decent action noir story, but could have used some more expansion of concepts or more time spent fleshing things out, but the pacing is incredibly fast and the book moves as if it were a movie already.
Author 7 books10 followers
August 21, 2007
Gischler is a master plotter and someone who writes very funny crime fiction. Here he eschews the humor to focus on a story that finds his characters testing the limits of endurance.
Profile Image for K..
398 reviews9 followers
February 7, 2008
I worked with Victor Gischler when I worked in Oklahoma, so of course this is a five-star book. If you're looking for hard-boiled crime fiction, Victor is your guy.
Profile Image for Bob.
21 reviews1 follower
January 6, 2009
If you would really like to lose a night of sleep, pick this book up about 9PM and start reading it. This book starts off fast and does not let up. The characters are well-defined and stunning.
Profile Image for Mark.
1 review1 follower
January 23, 2009
This is a good, fast-paced book - I couldn't put the book down.
138 reviews5 followers
September 11, 2009
Shotgun Opera was my first time out with Mr. Gischler and it won't be my last. It was a good read, well drawn. For a crime thriller, the writing was a cut above.
Profile Image for Ed.
678 reviews67 followers
February 19, 2013
Outstanding! This book has it all: great action, witty dialogue, memorable characters and interesting plot lines in a kick-ass package!
Profile Image for Erin.
58 reviews
November 8, 2015
A bit predictable but didnt make it any less fun to read. Does read a bit like a screenplay and would make a good shoot 'em up film.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews

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