The Repossession Mambo [Mass Market Paperback]

Eric Garcia (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 31, 2009

Thanks to the technological miracle of artiforgs, now you can live virtually forever. Nearly indestructible artificial organs, these wonders of metal and plastic are far more reliable and efficient than the cancer-prone lungs and fallible kidneys you were born with—and the Credit Union will be delighted to work out an equitable payment plan. But, of course, if you fall delinquent, one of their dedicated professionals will be dispatched to track you down and take their product back.

This is the story of the making—and unmaking—of the best Bio-Repo Man in the extraction business, who finds his soul when he loses his heart . . . and then he has to run.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Garcia, it seems, is one of those writers who can do pretty much whatever he puts his mind to. A novel about a con man with OCD? Sure, no problem: Matchstick Men. A spoof of chick lit? Piece of cake: Cassandra French's Finishing School for Boys. A series about a dinosaur private eye? Child's play: Anonymous Rex and its sequels. A near-future story about guys who repossess artificial organs for a living? No trouble there, either. The Repossession Mambo, originally published in 2009 as a mass-market paperback, now has been reissued as Repo Men, to tie-in with the movie version, also written by Garcia. The novel is gritty and imaginative (and, consider yourself warned, occasionally the imagery is rather, um, visceral). Garcia tells a simple story: a repo man, unable to keep up the payments on his own artificial organ, goes on the run from his former colleagues. But the story is told with such gusto, such a keen sense of time and place—Garcia really makes you feel like you're part of this near-future world—that you're captivated by the sheer power of the narrative. Another excellent, offbeat, and unique novel from this very talented writer. --David Pitt

About the Author

is the author of several novels, including Matchstick Men, which was made into a feature film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Nicolas Cage, and the Anonymous Rex series. A native of Miami, Florida, he now lives in Southern California with his wife, two daughters, and a dog.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Harper (March 31, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061802832
• ISBN-13: 978-0061802836
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #663,302 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Boring book and a rip off too... February 24, 2013

By Sarah

Format:Mass Market Paperback

So I took up the book after watching the rather mediocre film Repo Men, and was surprised to find that it was even worse than the film. The writing was dreadfully lazy and through a friend I actually discovered just why that is. To my fury I discovered this book is actually a blatant knock-off of a rather fun musical/ film by the name of Repo! The Genetic Opera. I was able to draw about 27 obvious similarities between the musical and this book (the book was released a year after the musical). I took to the web and found out that the actual creators of the musical have nothing to do with either Repo Men or this book and are struggling to keep producing more gems like their musical. It is truly horrible that this author is getting money and credit for a concept he didn't come up with and via a book as godawfully written as this.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting book April 27, 2010

By Sarah Krebs

Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I bought this book after i had seen the movie with my boyfriend, I liked the movie and typically books are always better so i knew it was a must read. The book was very interesting, it jumps around more between the main characters life now, and his past then the movie did but all and all it is written well. The main character is the narrator in the story and he plays his part well, i find it to be very descriptive, a tad dark, and filled with irony. If you liked the movie and are a reader then i would definatley check this book out.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Shape, great story May 9, 2013

By Tally

Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I was very thrilled at the shape of this book, it could have passed for brand new and didn't even have a crease in the spine. Beautiful condition, and the story is fantastic!
A recommended novel and a great bargain.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Pretty disappointed. July 26, 2012

By Liam Rogers

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I found the writing style to be pretty lazy on the authors part. I don't expect everything in chronological order in fact the opposite is often more interesting but the jumping around does little to build suspense and is more so just a way of stitching together all the anecdotes that make up the book. A third or more of those anecdotes easily being about the protagonist's ex-wives. Yet I did not find a single female character to be believable and there is even a quip in the story about writing from a "male-centric point of view". I'd say that's putting it lightly. If you like a story with a meat-headed protagonist, underdeveloped characters and loosely associated plot points this is probably the book for you. I got it for the sci-fi organ harvesting premise but it was not nearly used to it's potential. It isn't so much that it is a bad book as it just isn't good and if you, like me, value your time then why spend it reading sub-par novels?

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Appreciate the story November 22, 2012

By Rory Hachamovitch

Format:Mass Market Paperback

This book grabbed me from the beginning and pulled me in. Great plot, great story. The story told by the protagonist reviews his life and mistakes. His moment of clarity opens for the reader as it opens for him. The flashbacks to earlier times in his life are well timed and fit in excellently.

I strongly recommend it as a good read

0 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Repossession Mambo March 7, 2011

By T.D. Smith

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I couldn't decide wither to give this three or four stars. I finally decided on three. It starts of pretty slow and jumps around a lot. It leaves you hanging in places so that it can fill in the details later which take some getting used to. But after about the half way point it started to pick up and I started to enjoy it more and that's why I decided on four stars instead of three. If you're willing to stick out the first half and get used to all the jumping around it's a pretty decent read. However I did expect more from this book so don't set your sights to high or it'll probably let you down.

1 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome May 22, 2011

By Tez Miller

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I remember adding Eric Garcia to my authorial wishlist. Karin Slaughter was at the Melbourne Writers Festival, and talked of how she was more nitpicky of the locations in the Vincent Rubio series, when really she should've questioned the realism of a dinosaur going undercover in contemporary America. Dinosaurs, crime and humour? I was hooked. Those three books have been long out of print, though, so I've never acquired them.

I have, however, read MATCHSTICK MEN (which is okay) and CASSANDRA FRENCH'S FINISHING SCHOOL FOR BOYS (which is great). But Eric Garcia's crowning glory is this magnificent tome: THE REPOSSESSION MAMBO, later republished as REPO MEN. The premise is irresistible: people can have transplanted artificial organs, but if they don't keep up the payments, the artiforgs are repossessed.

Our unnamed narrator has been through five marriages and subsequent divorces, driven tanks in wartime Africa, and worked as a Bio-Repo man for the Credit Union. But now he's hiding out, writing his memoirs while he's still alive - which may not be for much longer.

Simply put, I adore this novel. I love the premise, the narrator's voice, the humour, the looping internal structure, the world-building, and even the romance. I'm not usually one for romance, but the ending totally made me coo, "Aw!" If I was a writer, I'd totally want to write something as awesome as this.

Be sure to stick around for the author's essay, THE TAMING OF THE MAMBO, which charts the twelve-year journey from idea to short story to novel to screenplay and back to novel. I haven't seen the film, REPO MEN, which unfortunately went straight to DVD in Australia, so I can't tell you how the book and film measure up against each other.

And no, I'm not familiar with REPO!... THE GENETIC OPERA, so I can't talk comparisons, similarities and differences. Read more ›