Yellow Medicine
Anthony Neil Smith
Reviewed by Tom Morton
Yellow Medicine, by Anthony Neil Smith,
is a prime example of what happens when a bad cop goes, well, bad.
Fired from
one department amidst accusations of taking bribes, looting stores
ravaged by
Hurricane Katrina, and rumors of murder, Smith’s intrepid hero, Billy
Lafitte,
finds succor in the department headed by his ex-wife’s brother in
another
state.
Billy soon finds
that the prevalence of local meth-makers an easy source for a little
extra
money on the side –old habits dying hard and all that –and local girls just love a bad-ass in a uniform.
Yup,
all in all, not too bad a gig for a man who days before the call from
his
(ex)brother-in-law was playing Russian Roulette with his revolver.
Until, (didn’t see
that coming, did ya?) psychobilly singer Drew asks for Billy’s help to
get her
boyfriend out of trouble with some Asian boys who turn out not to be
meth-dealers moving in on Billy’s territory, but a not-so-organized
terrorist
cell who are trying to recruit Billy by threatening those under his
“protection.”
Billy soon decides
that you don’t get on his good side by beheading his people and that
retribution, revenge, and law enforcement can
be found in the same sentence. Until, (didn’t see that one either, did
ya?) DHS
(Homeland Security, not Human Services) agent Rome
has Billy arrested for conspiring with the cell, treason, and some
stuff he
just made up.
Clear, concise
flashbacks fill the reader in on pertinent information to flesh out
this “bad”
cop with a big heart while not getting confusing and the short chapters
are an
ADHD’s dream. A perfect blend of off-beat humor and drama make this
book a
compelling read (I didn’t want to put it down, I did, but I didn’t want
to!).Smith has a real hit here.