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A Cerebral Offer
Harry Gnostopolos is frantically trying to keep his beloved indie theater afloat while his frustrated girlfriend implores him to let it go along with his other neuroses. Harry's fate suddenly changes with the arrival of an old bohemian friend and an exotic woman who tempt him with a chance to save the theater and his life. All he has to do is join a subversive cabal of thieves, who have planned a heist that will rewrite history. Bronze medal recipient in urban fiction by the Independent Publisher Book Awards (2021).
334 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2020
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January 1, 2021
3.5 stars. Harry Gnostopolos, a one-time filmmaker (literally, one time - he wrote and directed a critically-acclaimed biopic of Jack Kerouac and then "retired") who, with his long-term girlfriend Dana, owns an small independent movie theater in the Outer Richmond district of San Francisco, is at a crossroads. The theater is in serious financial trouble and Dana has met someone new and wants out of the relationship, the theater business, and the city itself. And Harry has recently developed gephyrophobia, a fear of bridges--not a good situation for someone in San Francisco. Into this turmoil comes Harry's old friend Jackson Halifax, a successful novelist, and the mysterious, seductive Nadine, with whom Harry shares an immediate, visceral (sort of a mutual "lust at first sight") connection. Jackson and Nadine offer Harry a solution to all of his problems. They are both part of a subversive crew planning a heist that, if they pull it off, could rewrite a major part of U.S. history.
Although this book is marketed as a mystery, there aren't really many elements of a traditional mystery novel here. The crime is planned and executed with a minimum of suspense. Much of the story deals with Harry's relationships with Dana and Nadine, as one ends and another begins, and both are complicated. The real appeal of this novel is the author's loving, accurate, and effective use of the city of San Francisco, which is at least as much of a character as the actual human characters.
Here's one small example of how the city plays into Harry's thought processes:
Although this book is marketed as a mystery, there aren't really many elements of a traditional mystery novel here. The crime is planned and executed with a minimum of suspense. Much of the story deals with Harry's relationships with Dana and Nadine, as one ends and another begins, and both are complicated. The real appeal of this novel is the author's loving, accurate, and effective use of the city of San Francisco, which is at least as much of a character as the actual human characters.
Here's one small example of how the city plays into Harry's thought processes:
I was already thinking like a criminal. The voice in my head telling me I would never do this was getting quieter. I had to keep all options on the table and right now that was really the only damn one. Maybe I was just easing myself into the felony, the way one goes into the cold waters of Ocean Beach. Who better to manipulate you than yourself?
Displaying 1 of 1 review