Friends Helping Friends

A Novel

De: Patrick Hoffman

Narrado por: Jacques Roy

An exhilarating thriller about a white nationalist group—and the man taking them down from the inside—written with critically acclaimed author Patrick Hoffman’s “crisp pace and superb timing” (The Wall Street Journal).

Bunny Simpson is at his usual post behind the counter at a Denver cigarette store when his volatile friend Jerry presents an opportunity: 500 dollars to beat a guy up. Jerry has been dealing steroids to Helen, a lawyer, who is getting rapidly stronger just as she gets more erratic, vengeful towards her cheating ex-husband who she asks Jerry to attack. Bunny’s relatively solid conscience isn’t enough to stop him from biting—Ray, his beloved quasi-uncle, is behind on rent for the apartment they share, and Bunny will do anything to bail him out. And it’s a small favor; just friends helping friends. Right?

Not quite. When Bunny and Jerry arrested, Bunny finds himself faced with a choice: Go to jail for years, or take a plea deal to go undercover in a white nationalist group under federal investigation. Bunny obliges, and soon he finds himself witness to a new world of startling violence, toxic masculinity, and warped conceptions of discipline, religion, and patriotism. If these men discover that he’s a snitch, they’ll kill him without blinking. His life is at stake, but so is his freedom. Soon Bunny is embroiled in a criminal enterprise far darker than he could’ve imagined—a wasp’s nest with eyes on him from all sides—and he needs to penetrate it at its center.

Patrick Hoffman, critically acclaimed author of Every Man a Menace and Clean Hands, is at his brilliant best here. A wholly unique portrait of friendship, extremism, and the dual power of technology and money, Friends Helping Friends is an electrifying thriller from a veritable talent.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Jacques Roy’s superbly paced narration is perfectly matched to this story. When Helen asks Jerry to help her wreak a little revenge on her ex-husband, Jerry seeks the help of his friend, Bunny. This triggers a series of events that puts Jerry and Bunny in increasing danger as their lives spiral out of control. Roy creates a strong and believable character in Helen, while also making Jerry and Bunny highly likable yet flawed protagonists. Roy demonstrates his strong skill at characterization when voicing the wide cast of larger-than-life characters that Jerry and Bunny meet in their adventure. This is particularly evident during the scenes of dialogue, which are also rich in humor. Roy’s timing helps the tension build as the story twists all the way to its conclusion."

creepy

I loved loved loved Clean Hands, as did my wife. This is well written, but it's hard to like any of the characters. Either their current paths are creepy, icky, or their pasts are. Should be titled something like How Damaged People Damage Each Other Under the Guise of Friendship. Children of abuse, white supremacists, drug dealers, and a lawyer with no soul whatsoever. You keep listening because you want to hear how it unfolds, but the farther you go, the harder it is to spend time with these folks. An accomplishment of sorts.

Great Book!

Patrick Hoffman has done it again. Another great book added to his catalogue. Blows my mind that the nimrods in Hollyweird aren’t lining up to adapt his novels into movies. But I digress, innovative story with lots of twists and surprise. Great writing.

Classic hardboil

Delicious fun and very of the moment. I have almost nothing in common with Bunny and Jerry but feel like I would like hanging out with them.