Review: A trip through the colorful world of Tubby Dubonnet
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 23, 2012
This is the first book I ever read where I came to THE END at 4 o'clock in the morning, stared stupidly at those two words and thought, Must be a mistake! Where's the rest of it? Author Dunbar wrapped up the story in fine style but I just wasn't ready to stop reading.Here's the kind of book CROOKED MAN is:New Orleans lawyer Tubby Dubonnet and Dr. Marty Feingold sit beneath ceiling fans in a hotel dining room with rows of windows that allow them to watch the passing parade. Tubby orders softshell crabs. Dr. Feingold orders trout and raves about snorkeling in Costa Rica.Feingold: "It's a great sport. You see things you never imagined."Tubby: "Actually, Marty, I get enough of that in my law practice. What I see walking around on the streets amazes me on a daily basis."One by one Dunbar brings on those amazing characters, some for color and the unspooling of Tubby's character, some for plot and further revelation of Tubby's character.In the thick of the plot are Casey and Freddie, a couple of thugs working for Sheriff Mule, who plans to rip off drug money from one of Tubby's clients. Up to her eyebrows in the caper is Monique, who ran away from a spotty past in Alabama, landed in New Orleans, and worked her way up from a job as an exotic dancer to a better job as her boss's main squeeze and confidant.Tubby takes on a simple open-and-shut case. Think again. Nothing is ever simple. Tubby is caught up in blackmail and betrayal, but he's quick witted and nimble-footed when his survival depends on it. It all comes together in a drug bust that goes terribly wrong and Tubby ends up holding the bag.The key to Tubby's character: "Tubby did not like moral dilemmas. He tried to avoid them whenever possible and to see things in practical terms -- what worked and what didn't." What he goes through to save his own skin and get rid of a client's ill-gotten gains is both funny and dangerous.