Prisoners

At the beginning of this first novel, Danny DeVoto says that ""it is getting increasingly difficult to have a little fun without ticking somebody off.'' Still, in the course of a trip from Texas to California, Danny and his cohorts are able to feel ``rushes of sensuality beneath the repressive, the commonplace.'' Dreams, drug-induced fantasies, childhood memories and acts of depravity are meant to reveal the lives of this motley collection of cruel hustlers and impassive victims adrift in America. Unfortunately the episodic chapters are often difficult to follow and the protagonists' bizarre and sadistic encounters are unpleasant. A reader who is willing to go along for the ride may feel squeamish about this short novel and wonder whether the occasional compelling passage is worth the trip. (January)