The Catch: A Novel (Hardcover)

by Kim Wozencraft (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Few writers know the world of drugs from as many angles as Kim Wozencraft--the former cop, addict, and convict who turned her experiences into a powerful novel (and movie) called Rush. Now, in her second work of fiction, Wozencraft tells another suspenseful story while showing in chilling detail the way drugs destroy not only family values but also whole families.

Annie Trowbridge, former cocaine addict, successful antiques dealer, and mother of two sons, reluctantly agrees to help her charming husband Kurt with one last big hashish-smuggling deal before he retires for good. Things go wrong, and a DEA agent who has been outsmarted by Kurt and Annie in the past gets his revenge. Kurt end up in jail, and the only way Annie can get him out is to put her family's future at risk. The choices she makes are inevitable and dramatic, energized by Wozencraft's experiences and talent. Two nonfiction books by the same author are available: Slam and Notes from the Country Club. --Dick Adler

From Library Journal
Focusing on territory she knows best from her days as an undercover narcotics cop, Wozencraft (Rush, LJ 4/1/90) again engulfs readers in the dangerous world of drugs. The plot clings to one family's involvement in marijuana smuggling. The former coke-addict wife needs her husband to come clean for their children's sake but secretly misses the days when she worked with him, the husband continues to promise his family and himself he will get out but seems obsessed with the thrill, and the DEA agent on the case has conflicting motives that create most of the suspense. As a thriller, The Catch holds its own, but the story works better as a character study, specifically of a woman dealing with her past addiction, her menacing present, and her intolerable future. She runs the gamut from supporter to observer to survivor, and her painful emotions bleed onto the page. Recommended for all fiction collections.?Cecilia R. Cygnar, Niles P.L. Dist., Des Plaines, IL
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; 1st edition (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385485166
• ISBN-13: 978-0385485166
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,501,418 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars well written anti-heroic tragedy, November 19, 1998

By A Customer

A well written book. The author does a very good job of relating the turmoil and confusion most of us face in our lives every day. The only thing that detracted from the book for me was the focus. With the wife of the smuggler as the protagonist, you end up seeing the seeing the smuggler as a victim. The view that an otherwise law abiding person whose only fault is that he smuggles relatively benign illicit substances by the TON, is still a good person flabbergasts me. Yet every day I meet people who would be completely won over by this argument. I understand real life is not black and white, but I seldom read for a representation of real life ;)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Humanization of drug dealers, March 1, 2000

By	Linda Linguvic (New York City) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Annie is married to a big-time marijuana smuggler, Kurt. A former drug user herself, they now have two small children and have etched out a life for themselves in upstate New York. She wants him to quit the business, but he is addicted to the adventure. This is big-time stuff, 10 tons or more, and the risks are high. The law is after him and the penalty is life imprisonment without parole. The plot moved swiftly and caught me up in the drama of their lives.

If I have any criticism, it is that there are a few too many loving family scenes, but perhaps this was necessary given the nature of the situation. After all, this book actually humanizes drug dealers.