VEGAS HEIST
By Van Allen Plexico
White Rocket Books
231 pgs
Some books seem to fly through your
hands; they being that much fun to read. Such is the case with Van Plexico’s
new offering, “Vegas Heist.” A serious change of course for a writer best known
for sci-fi and superhero prose, this time Plexico ventures into crime fiction
and he does so with surprising results. It is quite clear from page one that
our author is a Lawrence Block and Donald Westlake fan, as his characters are
familiar iconic types seen over and over again in the works of those two great
writers. And still, despite these obvious clones, Plexico adds his own
satirical whimsy to the caper giving it an authentic historical background and
infusing it with a pacing remindful of a short, lit fuse. Any second you know
it’s going to explode.
John Harper, a professional thief, does
his best avoid schemes involving robbing the casinos of Los Vegas. Why? Because
the obvious risks far outweighted the slim possibilities of monetary gain. Then
one day his old pal, Los Vegas Attorney Saul “Salsa” Salzman calls him with a
plan that in its concept is almost foolproof. During during the building of
Caesar’s Palace, one of the many construction contractors, one Roy Funderburk,
had a secret tunnel built under hotel leading several miles under the city
streets to an innocuous exit no one has yet to uncover.
With the hotel nearly completed and
due to open on New Year’s Eve, all they would have to do is assemble a team,
find the hidden tunnel entrance and undetected, break into the vault, steal the
cash and be gone before anyone was the wiser. The only glitch is a two bit
mobster murdered Funderburk before he could reveal exactly where this tunnel
entry was located. But Salsa doesn’t see that as a problem and
convinces Harper they can find the disguised locale long before the grand
opening. Tempted by the possibility of a rich grab, Harper agrees to take on
the job and, with Salsa’s advice, they hire two more men; Tommy Donovan, an old
time safe cracker, and Brett Rooker, a big, beefy thug to be their security
muscle.
With the team assembled, they head
to Sin City and the grand future that awaits them. Of course in all such tales,
things are never exactly what they appear to me and soon Harper learns that there
are other players in their little play. Primary among these are Julian Monti,
the small time hood who killed Funderburk, and told Salsa about the secret
tunnel, and Lois Funderburk, the dead man’s widow who knows a lot more than
they were led to believe. Harper’s personal philosophy is never trust anyone
and on this heist, it is one that may just keep him alive.
“Vegas Heist,” is one of those books
impossible to put down. Like his characters, Plexico brings us along his own
devious plotting filled with twist and turns that you don’t see coming until
the very end. It is a terrific read and one we highly recommend. As for John
Harper, we want more; a whole lot more.
