Dara’s in Djibouti to shoot a documentary about Somalian pirates. She’s assisted by Xavier LeBo, her 73 year old cameraman, security, and could-be lover. They encounter Billy, a billionaire with CIA fantasies, Helene, who’s auditioning to become Billy’s wife, Idris, a rich and stylish pirate, Harry, a diplomat/gunrunner, and Jama, a terrifyingly effective al Qaeda operative.

“Why do bad guys take themselves so seriously?”

“Cause they dumb.”

This is Elmore Leonard’s key insight into the criminal mind. His bad guys are schemers, but self-deluded. Idris and Harry want to sell Jama to the American embassy for a million dollar reward, then convince themselves they can get 25 million. Jama, once he escapes, intends to kill Dara, tho he’s pretty sure they could have a great conversation first.

Once again, Leonard doesn’t so much plot the story as create the characters and turn them loose in the wild, to see where that takes him. He’s a master. --John

From ICPL Staff Picks Blog