Speedster

'Jonah Gibson rocks this book!' 'Read it non-stop.' 'Kept me up half the night!' A Florida based comedy thriller that reads like Carl Hiassen or Tim Dorsey, Speedster is a laugh-out-loud romp through the seedier facets of some popular tourist destinations. Full of twists and surprises and interesting characters who come together like a dysfunctional family to make you rethink your vacation plans. From beach to strip club to fish camp to gated community, it will grab you by the belt and drag you into a world where big fun is more dangerous than it ought to be. Jack McCain is beginning to resemble the antique Auburn Speedster his grandfather left him. Sleek, classy, and powerful in its day, the car is now an anachronism that needs to be sheltered from the elements to prevent its slipping into an ignoble dotage. Jack would like nothing better than to keep himself under wraps in the garage next to his Speedster, but fate has conspired against him. Driven to distraction by a manipulative ex-wife, a self-indulgent and demanding girlfriend, and an epic mid-life crisis, Jack finds it ever more difficult to escape the bitter miasma of his aimless life. Jack becomes the chance owner of a customized import car-a bright, shiny object that captures his imagination and reminds him of the dreams of his youth. He joins a car club run by a bunch of twenty-something tuner punks who don't seem to know very much about cars. When a beautiful exotic dancer and fellow enthusiast follows him home after a club meeting, Jack's life begins to spiral out of control. Meanwhile, a screwball collection of villains including the uncouth owner of a gentleman's club, a Mexican drug dealer, and and a pair of neon-haired slackers, scheme to separate Jack from his precious Speedster. They want to sell it to launch a black tar heroin enterprise on Florida's posh Lower East Coast. They will stop at nothing to get it. Fueled by their spectacular and often hilarious ineptitude, they mire themselves and Jack in a predicament that seems more and more hopeless as it unfolds. When a serial murdering deviant abducts both his girlfriend and the exotic dancer to force Jack's hand, he must come to grips with the dubious choices at the root of his troubles. He enlists the help of his oldest friend, a former Special Forces commando, to rescue the women, but even a boatload of guns and the best intentions may not be enough to beat a determined foe. Tensions rise and bodies fall, from the walled mansions of Palm Beach to the mangrove labyrinths of Florida's Gulf Coast, as events race to an exciting and unexpected conclusion.