Review: Stanton(s) deliver...
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 24, 2014
Powered through this in a couple of hours straight after reading Martin Stanley's The Gamblers. Really enjoyed it.The Stanton Brothers think they are on for a simple score when they are approached by a former classmate to break into her ex-husband's house, rob a high stakes poker game, and liberate half a million quid from the safe in the bedroom. When they're screwed over by one of their own the tale descends into hyper-violence, witty banter, and double-crossery (real word, that).My only issue with the author's debut novel The Gamblers was that it kinda bypassed character building in order to weave tight-as-hell plot strands together and offer a highly entertaining and hugely engaging read. So imagine my glee, then, when Martin Stanley throws me a curveball in the form of a first person narrative (my favourite kind) told by a solid and three dimensional character in the deeper and cleverer one of the Stantons (you don't find out their first names in this one), and doesn't even nearly jeopardise what I like about his writing. It has all of the trademark back-and-forth humour of a Stanley book, with the smarter Stanton offered a perfect foil for his brains in the form of his gormless yet violent brother. It gives him a great scope for quality dialogue, and he doesn't fail to deliver.Another win for Mr Stanley, another recommended read. Another two hours I was happy to spend. Five stars.