7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gone 'Til November, January 27, 2010
This review is from: Gone 'til November (Hardcover)
Wallace Stroby's third novel "Gone'Til Novemeber" sets the lives of a small-town Florida sheriff and a New Jersey enforcer on an action-packed collision course. The shooting of a young black man after a traffic stop on a deserted road leaves Sheriff Sara Cross and gunman Morgan looking for answers. Cross' choice to back up a fellow officer's account of the shooting puts her in the path of Morgan, who is sent to find the drug dealer's money that disappeared from the young man's car.
You can see the two characters' choices and mistakes hurtling them toward a life-threatening encounter. The tension from waiting for that moment makes you want to finish the book even faster. The story is violent and beautiful. Stroby's writing is spare, exciting and poetic. The ending is bittersweet and perfect.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"You make one decision... it affects everything.", March 5, 2010
This review is from: Gone 'til November (Hardcover)
A late night shoot out on a country road in Florida is the beginning of a harrowing case for Sheriff Sara Cross. Unfortunately, Cross is second on the scene, her ex-boyfriend, Billy Flynn, having shot a stranger who tried to flee, leaving behind a trunk full of guns and ammunition. For all appearances, it is a righteous shooting- except for the nagging doubts of those back at the station and even Sara, who wants to trust Billy but has her own suspicions. Sara is in a tough place, harboring some small affection for Billy after all, but preoccupied with the health of her young son, Danny, who has been gravely ill. With her career on the rise, Sara can't afford complications or emotional traps at this stage of her life.
In New Jersey, a drug-running criminal has hit a couple of obstacles, stiff competition with other dealers, the bad reputation of his product and the potential for a killer deal with some Jamaicans delivering pure product. Mikey-Mike sends his top enforcer, Morgan, to Florida to find out what happened to the driver shot by the cop, the guns and the money that was stashed in the trunk of the car. True to form, Mikey isn't content to trust Morgan, sending twin thugs as a backup in case Morgan can't handle his business. Morgan has his own problems and lots of reasons to get that money back- even if only for himself. Predictably, all the characters come together, each with an agenda, Sara caught in the middle, her belief in Billy clouding her judgment at a critical time. It all ends one violent night, bullets flying, Billy, the Jamaicans, Mikey's muscle and Sara.
Stroby writes with an edgy energy, contrasting the violent world of career criminals with a small town sheriff's office, New Jersey thugs infiltrating the quiet Florida countryside, careless of the collateral damage they inflict on the innocent. A good cop with an instinct for the job and a deep love for her son, Sara is one of those unfortunate women who have trouble believing the worst of an old boyfriend, hoping against all evidence to the contrary, that things will turn out all right or she can help Billy survive his indiscretions. The final bloodbath is not unexpected, drugs, money, greed and guns a powerful combination, Sara learning about misplaced trust and the cost of loyalty. Stroby pulls no punches, his characters as real as the brutality that attends the drug culture at odds with law enforcement. Luan Gaines/2010.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Who Killed Derek Willis And Stole His 350 Gees?, May 1, 2010
This review is from: Gone 'til November (Hardcover)
Sara Cross is a single mother whose adorable six-year-old son, Danny, is battling leukemia. She's also one of the finest deputies in Hopedale, Florida, a small redneck, Confederate-flag-flying community. She arrives on the scene of a shooting where fellow deputy and ex-boyfriend, Billy Flynn, has shot to death a young black man, Derek Willis. Billy claims self defense; however, Sara's investigation forces her to believe otherwise. For example, who stole the 350 gees that were hidden in the trunk of Derek's car?
Nathaniel Morgan is a ruthless, over-the-hill contract killer for gangsta drug lord Mikey-Mike of Newark, New Jersey. Mikey-Mike sends him on a road trip to Hopedale to find his 350 gees. Morgan plans on keeping all the money; he'll kill anyone who tries to stop him, and that includes Haitian thugs, redneck deputies and Mikey-Mike's own henchmen. A bloodbath ensues. Morgan has rare intestinal cancer and needs the money for medical treatment. Dr. Kinzler insists he begin immediate treatment. But Morgan has to take a trip first; he'll be gone `til November.
"Gone `Til November" is the latest mystery from Wallace Stroby. It is not your classic whodunnit. In fact, the reader will probably guess early on who killed Derek Willis and why. Instead, "Gone `Til November" is a violent, action-packed crime drama that is highly emotional. As I read this novel, I thought, "This man [Wallace Stroby] is a damn good writer. I'll never write as good as him." The novel's characterization is what impressed me. Stroby's characters are very three-dimensional and lifelike.
The novel's central character or protagonist is obviously the affable, hard working Sara Cross. She is very trusting, too trusting. She sometimes lets her heart override her judgment. I knew right away that her ex-boyfriend, Billy Flynn, was slime. Why couldn't she see that for herself? But it was Sara's struggles with Danny's illness that drew me to really like her. She truly loves her son.
Sara is surrounded by two evil antagonists. The first is obviously the racist Billy who couldn't be faithful to Sara. The other is Nathaniel Morgan; his character is the novel's most complex and, perhaps, intriguing. On one hand, he is ruthless. On the other, he has a soft heart for women in trouble, especially women with ill children. A part of me despised Morgan, but a part of me also admired him. All of his victims were lawless thugs and one might rationalize they deserved to die. Morgan becomes almost an antihero. I kept hoping he'd find the money in order to save himself.
Yes, Wallace Stroby has a gift for good character development. He also has a gift for creating unique settings such as the beautiful, peaceful Florida everglades which serves as a contrasting environment to that of the gritty slums and ghettoes of Newark, New Jersey. There are other contrasts and conflicts in this novel: they occur between races, between male and female deputies, and between good and bad deputies.
"Gone `Til November" is a fast-paced thrill ride that is guaranteed to please fans of shoot-`em-up crime drama. Wallace Stroby has a penchant for creating mysteries centered around the seedier elements of New Jersey. He has written two other character driven novels: "The Barbed-Wire Kiss" and its sequel, "The Heartbreak Lounge." Both feature former state trooper Harry Rane who gets involved with gangsters in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Hopefully, there will be a sequel to "Gone `Til November" that will feature Sara Cross who, like Harry Rane, refuses to back down and give up.
Joseph B. Hoyos
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