Season of Smoke
Overview
It looks like ex-con Jack Palace’s troubles will never end when he is pressured by the mob to kill one of his best friends.
Jack Palace is trying to go legit with his own security company — but his old life keeps trying to pull him back in. A mobster named Sammy DiAngelo wants revenge for a killing that happened in Jack’s past. DiAngelo blames Jack’s friend Grover for the murder and gives Jack an ultimatum: kill Grover or be killed himself. Meanwhile, Grover has plans of his own. He wants to rip off the mob, and he needs Jack’s help to do it.
Jack is desperate to start a new life with Suzanne, a woman from his past … but is he desperate enough to kill?
Reviews
It’s hard to change. It’s even harder to leave your past behind. What gets you through? Street smarts. Friends. A powerful right hook. And love. In this story, quick and sharp as a knife, we’re plunged into a cutthroat world of betrayal, loyalty, addiction and hope. Jack Palace is tougher than us, has seen more nasty things—heck he’s caused them—but in the end he wants the same things we all want, a good life and a chance at happiness. And in this gripping story, he tries to get them while dodging those who really, really don’t want him to succeed. Season of Smoke is as compelling as a mobster and as good company as a best friend. With as many surprises as life itself, it’s a thriller with real heart.
Pasquella vividly captures the dog-eat-dog existence of the Toronto underworld.
Getting impatient with hard-boiled conventions? Try this.
Pure hard-boiled comfort food: dangerous characters and tight spots always putting the squeeze on a tough guy we can root for. Jack Palace is fun to spend time with — especially if you like your fun a little bloody and bruised.
Pasquella easily captures the seamy side of Toronto and gives readers an array of memorable bad guys. Devotees of gritty crime fiction will eagerly await Jack's next outing.
Rich in atmosphere, with plausible characters ... All in all, Season of Smoke is an entertaining read.