by Lou Berney
First published 2024
Shake Bouchon thought his wheelman days for the Armenian mob were behind him. He's settled into married life with Gina in quiet Bloomington, Indiana, where nobody knows about their criminal pasts. Then a brutal Armenian thug appears in his backyard with a demand. The mob boss Alexandra "Lexy" Ilandryan has vanished, and Shake must find her. The problem is that Lexy happens to be his ex-girlfriend. Shake travels to Siem Reap, Cambodia, where Lexy was last spotted. He navigates a treacherous world of Cambodian gangsters, mob politics, and opportunistic expats. Everyone has an angle, and the rules keep shifting. With only a clairvoyant hippie and the Armenian thug for backup, Shake enters dangerous negotiations to rescue Lexy. The mission could cost him his life. But his biggest threat arrives when Gina shows up in Cambodia, furious and determined to save Shake from himself and from the people trying to kill him.
Genres: adventure, mystery, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water, rescue-mission
Setting: Bloomington, Cambodia, Indiana, Siem Reap
Period: Contemporary
315 pages · Kindle Edition · William Morrow Paperbacks
Content warnings: violence