The Devil at Your Door: A Lars and Shaine Crime Novel

Beetner’s brutal conclusion to his Lars and Shaine trilogy (after When the Devil Comes to Call) takes 50-year-old assassin Lars from his Hawaii hideaway to Montana, where he plans to kill Nikki Pagani, the mobster who mentored him. Lars figures killing Nikki will be a gift to his 18-year-old companion, Shaine, whom he left behind in Hawaii, since Nikki was responsible for her father’s murder. Meanwhile, Nikki has found someone else to mentor: Michelle Isler, the nominal boss of her late husband’s trucking business. When Lars’s attempt to off Nikki goes awry, he wakes up in the hospital, where he’s surprised to see Shaine and even more surprised to hear the doctor’s dire diagnosis. Deadly Shaine and wounded Lars flee the hospital and never stop moving as they mete out rough justice to a variety of foes, including Michelle’s thugs and crooked cops. This fast-paced, sometimes comic trip will appeal to fans of hardcore noir. (Apr.)