On the HahaFiction shelf
Big Trouble
Audiobook available · 7 hr 12 min
Matt Arnold's water-pistol assassination game brings him to Jenny Herk's house just as professional killers arrive for her embezzling stepfather. An advertising man and a drifter sleeping in the yard get caught in the same Coconut Grove mess.
From the publisher’s blurb
“a ferociously funny novel of love and mayhem in south Florida”Read the full description at G.P. Putnam’s Sons / Penguin Random House
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What makes it funny?
Puggy thinks Miami has treated him wonderfully: within hours of arriving, he's been paid to vote repeatedly. Accepting a lower fee for his fourth ballot seems to him like giving something back.
The comedy at work
Barry lets characters apply cheerful everyday reasoning to criminal behavior. The water-pistol game and the real hit overlap, while Kirkus notes that even the animals pursue agendas of their own.
Try this if…
Crime capers with a crowded cast and a relaxed attitude toward suspense are the draw. Kirkus praises the genial handling of the chaos; this is a promising choice when you prefer foolish criminals to grim procedural detail.
Good to know
The setup includes murder attempts, an alcoholic stepfather, and sexual references. Barry's satire extends to Miami's elections and civic life.
A few distinguishing details
- A teenage water-pistol game intersects a professional hit
- A drifter treats paid repeat voting as civic generosity
More funny crime caper
Sources & further reading
- Publisher
Publisher
- Kirkus review
Review
- Unabridged audiobook
Book information
- Chapter one excerpt
Reading sample
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