- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: Time Warner Publishing M/M (Nov 8 1995)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0446400319
- ISBN-13: 978-0446400312
- Product Dimensions: 17 x 10.4 x 1.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 136 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,745,109 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Past and present sins involving covert army operations and shady campaign financing give rise to murder in this sprightly new suspense thriller from two-time Edgar winner Ross (Voodoo, Ltd.). In 1989, army major Edd "Twodees" Partain took part in an illegal operation in El Salvador that his former comrades now want expunged from the record. Meanwhile, top political fund-raiser Millicent Altford needs to recover $1.2 million in stolen under-the-table contributions. These two scenarios dovetail as Altford engineers to have Partain, who was drummed out of the service for assaulting a superior officer, fired from his job in a Wyoming gun store in order to hire him to "ride shotgun" as she goes after the loot. As their associates begin meeting violent, sometimes shockingly brutal, ends, Partain and Altford seek to flush out their enemies (among whom military honchos figure prominently), recover the money and keep themselves alive. Set primarily in L.A. and D.C., Thomas's yarn reaffirms his expertise at the black-humored political thriller, from the sarcastic title and swift pacing through the acronym for a veterans' outfit (Victims of Military Intelligence Treachery) to Altford's offhand remark that "Little Rock" is "real, real grateful for the two hundred and fifty-four thousand I bundled up for them, not the party, just three days after the New Hampshire primary." As usual with Thomas, the plotting is intricate and nearly as difficult to follow as that of his fellow iconoclast Carl Hiaasen, but readers willing to stick with his unpredictable, sometimes loopy story line will surely enjoy the ride. Major ad/promo.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
"Ah, treachery! One of history's favorite shortcuts." Now there is a signature Ross Thomas line. Look closely, and you'll see all the ingredients: a special mix of world-weary resignation and bitter irony; an implied sense of knowing a whole lot more about how things work than you or I do; and a nice, healthy dollop of mischievousness. This is Thomas' twenty-fifth novel, and it offers a return to one of the author's favorite haunts: Washington, D.C., and the treacherous (there's that word again) double-dealing of an assortment of behind-the-scenes types from both Capitol Hill and the Pentagon. It's early 1993, just prior to the Clinton inauguration, and cashiered army major Edd (with two d's; hence his nickname, Twodees) Partain finds himself riding shotgun for political fund-raiser Milicent Altford, who has lost 1.2 million in very soft money and fears for her life. What follows is a typical Thomas plot of labyrinthine complexity involving dirty doings in Central America (including the "disappearing" of Twodees' Salvadoran wife), the deadly cover-up attempt of two nasty army intelligence types, and the counterintelligence activities of a group calling itself VOMIT (Victims of Military Intelligence Treachery). As usual, the various plot elements are forged into an architecturally stunning whole, and the interplay between characters leaves us wishing we could, just once, see the world as clearly and react as shrewdly as a Ross Thomas hero. Bill Ott
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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First Sentence
At 7:33 P.M. on Christmas Eve in 1992, the tall man with hair the color of pewter entered Wanda Lou's Weaponry in Sheridan, Wyoming, and pretended not to recognize Edd Partain, the cashiered Army Major turned gun store clerk. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
At 7:33 P.M. on Christmas Eve in 1992, the tall man with hair the color of pewter entered Wanda Lou's Weaponry in Sheridan, Wyoming, and pretended not to recognize Edd Partain, the cashiered Army Major turned gun store clerk. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
correcting Skip Senekka's error,
By
This review is from: Ah, Treachery! (Paperback)
Ross Thomas, (aka Oliver Bleek) did not write Vandenberg. An excellent book as well, it was written by Oliver Lange. Nevertheless, Ross Thomas is one of the great writers of the last century and will be sorely missed.Allan Cole
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.1 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews) 10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thomas' Last is One of His Finest,
By A Customer - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Ah, Treachery! (Paperback)
Ross Thomas' last published book is typical of his output and agood place to start reading one of America's finest, mostunderappreciated writers.All of the classic Thomas elements are here: the brilliant opening scene, the quirky character names, the sly political wit, and, of course, plenty of great fun. The plot is too complicated really to describe in just a few lines. Besides, it is more fun to read and discover it for yourself. As you can expect from Thomas, it is inventive and unique, with plenty of delicious twists and turns. When Thomas died a few years ago we lost one of the true greats in the mystery/suspense--or, truly, any--genre. His body of work matches up favorably with that of any writer. Each of his books deserves to be read and savored. He is sorely missed. 11 of 13 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Swan Song For Thomas,
By Skip Senneka - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Ah, Treachery! (Paperback)
I've read at least half of Thomas' twenty some novels and I don't know that I could rate any of them higher than "Ah, Treachery!"(a pretty strong statement considering how fondly and vividly I remember "The Fools In Town Are On Our Side", even after twenty-five years). Thomas has a dry and ironic tone in his fiction and a gift for understated outrageousness that is pretty nearly incomparable among today's writers. It's no exaggeration to say that Thomas does better in a paragraph what takes a goodly number of authors a page. He's been compared to Raymond Chandler, and I think he "out-Chandlers" Chandler. As I read Ah, Treachery!, knowing it was his last, I had to marvel at the control and effortlessness of the work--no fading talent here.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Ross Thomas is addicting,
By Catherine A. Murau - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Ah, Treachery! (Paperback)
After having read 5 of Ross Thomas' books, I keep picking up another one. He writes with such style and wit that one wishes one could meet the characters. But perhaps they would be just too cool for us regular folks. His male characters are smart and well-dressed and tough. His female characters are smart and well-dressed and tough. "Ah, Treachery!" is an excellent story about intrigue and the US military and second chances and revenge and impeccable taste in dress and getting the girl.Read a Ross Thomas novel. You won't regret it. |
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