Wrestling with the Devil: The True Story of a World Champion Professional Wrestler - His Reign, Ruin, and Redemption

Johnny Heller brings a largely conversational style and unassuming-guy-next-door attitude to Luger’s memoir that recalls the highs and lows of his career as a professional wrestler and culminates in a dramatic religious conversion following years of drugs, alcohol, and adultery. Luger recounts his story in a no-nonsense, straightforward manner, and Heller ably captures this. The narrator reserves emotional intensity for key turning points in the narrative, e.g. Luger’s experience of isolation in jail and his paralyzing stroke while alone in a San Francisco hotel room. And, Heller nails Luger’s ability to connect with fans via approachability and vulnerability. A Tyndale Momentum hardcover. (Aug.)