Book Review: Boost

Reviewed By: Harriet Klausner

Boost     Amazon US PB Amazon US HC Amazon UK HC Amazon Canada PB Amazon Canada HC
Steve Brewer
Class/Genre:   Mystery
Speck Press, Nov 2004, $24.00, 225 pp.

He looks like an all-American guy but for the last two decades he has made a living by boosting collectible cars. He has amassed a fortune but he still needs the adrenaline rush which is why he agrees to the request of Robin of Mitch’s Automotive Salvage to steal a 1965 Thunderbird. Before dropping the car off at Robin’s he stops at a 7-Eleven for a drink. The police who are also there admire the car but when a phone rings in the trunk of the car Sam is forced to answer it to allay any suspicions the police might have.

When he pops the trunk, he finds a corpse; he drives to a storage place he rents. The dead man has old tracks on his arms and is wearing a wire. He finds out who brokered the deal and then “chats” with Ernesto Morales who informs him that Phil Ortiz, who is heavily into drug trafficking, wanted Sam to steal that car. Sam concludes that it was Ortiz who placed the anonymous call to Albuquerque police Lt. Vic Stanton about the stolen car. When Sam finds out why Ortiz set him up, he drops the car with the body in the trunk outside Ortiz’s estate to raise the ante in a deadly game.

Although there are some violent scenes in this crime thriller, the author writes in an upbeat manner so that there is a lot of humor in BOOST. The protagonist is an anti-hero who is easy to like and readers will find him adorable for his practical jokes and his protective nature towards those he cares about. Steve Brewer is so good at characterizations that he even makes the villain seem plausible.

Harriet Klausner

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Harriet Klausner