Book Review: The Hot Kid

Back in 2002 I read my way through the works of Elmore Leonard, who began his writing career with westerns and ended up writing some of most interesting crime novels I've ever come across. His dialogue was snappy, his characters intriguing, and I was never sure when I started one of his books whether the good guys would win or not.

At the time I read all of his works from his first novel, The Bounty Hunters (1953), up to his kids book A Coyote's in the House (2004). I was clearly reading at a much faster pace than my current "one book a month" style. At the point I caught up with him, I moved on to my next author and figured I would keep up as new books came out.

Turns out I didn't, and when the author passed in 2011 I still had six books to go, At the time I was working through Robert R. McCammon's books, and afterwards I switched to Richard Matheson and then Charles de Lint, so it was only now I've managed to begin catching up.

The Hot Kid is a prohibition-era crime story following a U.S. Marshall named Carl Webster as he tracks down a number of bank robbers. He plays on the bank robber's need for attention and tries very hard to bring them in alive. The novel follows both Carl's story and that of the villain, Jack Belmont, the son of a rich man who desperately wants to become a John Dillenger-level criminal.

The novel is fast-paced, fun, and feels like a fun throwback to his western novels. Well worth the read.