Last Call for the Living

It’s considered a thriller, but it’s more than that. It’s human drama, gritty and as hard to look at as it is to look away. It is a complex-character-driven story about an ex-con with nothing to lose, a girl who is as crazed for sex as for drugs, the bank teller lucky enough to live, but not lucky enough to be left behind and the agents on their trail who have baggage of their own.
When Charlie went to work that day his biggest problem was his over-bearing mother. Now he’s a hostage surrounded by ruthless criminals with little hope of escape.
This is a dark thriller and they are comparing it to Cormac McCathry’s No Country for Old Men, which I feel is a good comparison. The writing is captivating. The characters are show more captivating. The story is captivating and disturbing in a way that won’t let you but the book down. Author Peter Ferris is talented in a way that makes you wonder what the hell goes on in his head at night. show less

You may also read my review here: http://www.mybookishways.com/2012/05/early-review-last-call-for-the-living-by-pe...

Looking to settle down with a nice, gentle mystery, maybe about quilting, or something along those lines? Well, that’s not gonna happen with Last Call For the Living. Not by a longshot. Strap yourself in and get ready for a bumpy ride into the dark, Georgia woods with some of the nastiest characters I’ve come across in a long time. Young bank teller Charlie Colquitt was opening the bank with his manager on a normal Saturday morning, when hell burst through the door, killing his manager and taking him hostage. Hell, in this case, goes by the name of Hobe Hicklin, member of the Aryan Brotherhood, fresh off a long show more stretch in prison, and on the run from the partners that he decided to double cross out of the heist, and their take of the cash. Along with his junkie girlfriend, Hummingbird, Hicklin takes Charlie to a cottage in the woods to hide out and catch his breath. This is where things get really rough…

All Charlie can think about is going to school and building rockets. Somewhat of a savant, socially awkward, fiercely loved by his damaged and protective mother, Charlie is terrified when he’s taken hostage by Hicklin, but in the midst of the abuse that he suffers at the hands of Hicklin (and the pitiful, broken Hummingbird), something else begins to happen. Hicklin isn’t sure at all why he took Charlie hostage, but years of crime, prison, scoring quick cash, and doling out the abuse that was also heaped on him as a child have taken their toll, and you can sense the weariness in Hicklin, even if he is akin to a coiled snake, always just about to strike. The law is racing to find Hicklin and Co., in the form of Sheriff Tommy Lang and GBI agent Sallie Crews, but it’s not the law he’s worried about, it’s his former partners, and fellow AB members, that give him pause, because they’ll be out for blood (and they give Hicklin a run for his money in the mean department.) Make no mistake, Hobe Hicklin is a nasty, mean, no good son of a bitch, so how in the heck did I start to feel a glimmer of sympathy for this man by the end of this book?? I’m gonna chalk that up to Peter Farris’ talent as a writer, and he has plenty of it. I thought I knew where this book was going, and it surprised me at nearly every turn. Speaking of surprises: in addition to the tight, no-nonsense writing and pacing that doesn’t let up, there’s a scene in this book that I can only describe as awesome (in the classic sense.) I’ll just say that it involves a church revival, rattle snakes, and a shoot-out, and leave it at that. It’s amazing, and it left me with my jaw hanging open, blinking in shock. This whole book (in particular that scene) just screams “big-screen”, but I digress… It’s not for the faint of heart, though, and the terms “gritty”, “visceral”, and “raw” definitely come to mind. If you’re looking for a book that will shock you out of your current “book rut”, or a suspense novel that is just straight up made of awesome, look no further than Last Call For the Living! show less

A parolee and member of the Aryan Brotherhood (AB), robs a bank solo without waiting for his two partners, grabs a bank teller as a hostage and holes up in the mountains with his meth addict girlfriend. Violent and dark, the police and the AB brothers work to bring him to justice of one type or the other. There is some weirdness around the bank robber, the loner bank teller, who is the highlight of the book, and his mother. If you like Blood Meredian or No Country for Old Men, you will like this; if not, read something else.

in the same vain as The Donnybrook and The Devil All the Time, paunch you in the face story of violent men coming to violent ends. a great debut!