Set in Australia, this offbeat crime novel from collaborators Broderick and Barnes (The Hunger of Time
) strives for laughs at the expense of pretty much everything else, with uneven results. In the first chapter, someone drives a Mack truck into Feng Shui Solutions, the consulting office of the book's hero, Recherché Doubting Thomas Purdue, while Purdue is interviewing an attractive prospective female client. What starts out as satire eventually takes a serious turn with the revelation of Purdue's tragic backstory. A drug-sniffing dog foiled his attempt, at age 21, to smuggle dope seeds into the U.S. After his conviction, Purdue went out of his way to spend an extra half-year in prison to bulk himself up, unaware that his wife was dying. Racing-camel doping, UFO mutilations and cyber-stalking all play a part in the zany plot. (Aug.)
