(For a more detailed review of this book, go to )

Road Dogs brings back characters from several previous novels, most notably the character of Jack Foley, the charming bank robber from Out of Sight. He was played by George Clooney in the movie, and it's easy to visualize Clooney reprising the role. In Road Dogs, Foley is as cool, and as conflicted, as ever. He also gets more than his share of attention from the ladies.

The other two returning characters are Cundo Rey, the hot-blooded crook from La Brava, and Dawn Navarro, the sexy psychic con-artist from Riding the Rap. Forget what anyone says about the problems of synchronizing the chronologies of novels that were written in different decades. Leonard makes it work like the proverbial well-oiled machine, explaining just enough to keep the wheels turning.

Road Dogs plays out as a kind of triangular standoff between Jack, Cundo, and Dawn, with a generous helping of vivid minor characters to fill out the story. When the book starts, Cundo and Jack are in prison together, acting as mutual protectors -- the "Road Dogs" of the title. Then Cundo does Jack a favor that gets Jack released from prison, and Cundo sends Jack to Dawn.

Why does Cundo do all this? Therein lies the crux. It could be out of generosity. Or it could be for some ulterior motive. Jack isn't sure, and neither is Dawn. But that doesn't stop the two of them from engaging in some maneuverings of their own. These include setting up a famous widowed actress for a romantic ghostbusting and sussing out Cundo's business partner to tally the extent of his real-world assets.

When Cundo himself gets released from prison, he joins Jack and Dawn in Venice, California, and the fireworks start. Will Jack and Cundo's "Road Dog" relationship in prison translate to true friendship in the outside world? Will Jack return to the ways that made him infamous and got him incarcerated? Will Dawn get the better of these two men for her own purposes? Are they really at odds, or are they just so jaded they are incapable of real trust?

As the author lets these issues play out, he entertains us with some of the best dialog in the business. Much gets made of the fact that Leonard eschews description and exposition, but it's there. He just wraps it in so much dialog that it gets absorbed effortlessly, letting the reader focus on the action. Leonard is a master of narrative economy.

I heartily recommend this book.