Abracadabra

A Novel

Fiction & Literature, Thrillers, Mystery & Suspense
Cover of the book Abracadabra by David Kranes, University of Nevada Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: David Kranes ISBN: 9780874176001
Publisher: University of Nevada Press Publication: November 1, 2017
Imprint: University of Nevada Press Language: English
Author: David Kranes
ISBN: 9780874176001
Publisher: University of Nevada Press
Publication: November 1, 2017
Imprint: University of Nevada Press
Language: English

Abracadabra is a fantastical and inventive addition to the tradition of noir writing, which not only delights and surprises at every turn but also raises important questions about identity, the human condition, the nature of evil, and the state of the union. The novel begins with a mystery, when Mark Goodson, a seemingly well-adjusted married man, disappears during a magic act, precipitating a series of events, encounters, and seemingly inexplicable occurrences, which it falls to a former professional football player, Elko Wells, to weave together into a story that is at once compelling and true. The concussion that ended Wells’ playing career left him open to hearing voices and discerning patterns of meaning helpful to his work as the owner of a missing-persons agency. He also owns a celebrity look-alike agency, which complicates matters in humorous ways, and his reliance on a string of cocktail waitresses called the Bloody Marys who are on the lookout for various people adds another level of intrigue.

Magicians and misdirection, gambling, down-on-one’s-luck, the crazed sense of possibility and impossibility, mistaken identity, impersonators and body doubles, people acting bizarrely with all sorts of chaos, collisions, and overlaps thrown in for good measure. Again and again the reader is swept into treacherous waters, always confident that the writer is in control of his material. Because the many twists and turns the plot takes are all but impossible to anticipate, the experience of reading Abracadabra is deliciously magical.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Abracadabra is a fantastical and inventive addition to the tradition of noir writing, which not only delights and surprises at every turn but also raises important questions about identity, the human condition, the nature of evil, and the state of the union. The novel begins with a mystery, when Mark Goodson, a seemingly well-adjusted married man, disappears during a magic act, precipitating a series of events, encounters, and seemingly inexplicable occurrences, which it falls to a former professional football player, Elko Wells, to weave together into a story that is at once compelling and true. The concussion that ended Wells’ playing career left him open to hearing voices and discerning patterns of meaning helpful to his work as the owner of a missing-persons agency. He also owns a celebrity look-alike agency, which complicates matters in humorous ways, and his reliance on a string of cocktail waitresses called the Bloody Marys who are on the lookout for various people adds another level of intrigue.

Magicians and misdirection, gambling, down-on-one’s-luck, the crazed sense of possibility and impossibility, mistaken identity, impersonators and body doubles, people acting bizarrely with all sorts of chaos, collisions, and overlaps thrown in for good measure. Again and again the reader is swept into treacherous waters, always confident that the writer is in control of his material. Because the many twists and turns the plot takes are all but impossible to anticipate, the experience of reading Abracadabra is deliciously magical.

More books from University of Nevada Press

Cover of the book Back to Bizkaia by David Kranes
Cover of the book Death Valley National Park by David Kranes
Cover of the book The Making of Modern Nevada by David Kranes
Cover of the book Connecting The West by David Kranes
Cover of the book Rough-Water Man by David Kranes
Cover of the book The Gambler's Apprentice by David Kranes
Cover of the book Sand In A Whirlwind, 30Th Anniversary Edition by David Kranes
Cover of the book Embattled Memories by David Kranes
Cover of the book Saving Lake Tahoe by David Kranes
Cover of the book Twenty Miles From A Match by David Kranes
Cover of the book Nevada's Great Recession by David Kranes
Cover of the book A Short History of Carson City by David Kranes
Cover of the book Bodie’s Gold by David Kranes
Cover of the book Great Basin Indians by David Kranes
Cover of the book The Essential Eldercare Handbook for Nevada by David Kranes
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy