Road Dogs: A Novel

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal." -- Matthew 6:19

I loved reading this book and stayed up until 3:30 a.m. to finish it.

No one does the crime story from the criminal's perspective better than Elmore Leonard. Place one of his plots anywhere in La-La land as occurs in Road Dogs and the pleasure just increases.

Road Dogs combines great character development with a wonderful psychological tension surrounded by some of the funniest sequences you can imagine. I could see in my mind the movie that will be made from this book as I read the pages. It's hard to add humor to crime stories, but Mr. Leonard's deft touch makes that look easy.

Those who want lots of action will find this book to be tedious until near the denouement.

If you haven't read or seen Out of Sight, Road Dogs gives you a good reprise about the earlier activities of Jack Foley, the narrator of Road Dogs, Deputy Marshal Karen Sisco, and Special Agent Lou Adams in Out of Sight who all appear in Road Dogs. Mr. Leonard gives you a little more of a thumbnail background on Cundo Rey (from LaBrava) who is Jack Foley's fellow road dog (buddy who helps protect a convict in jail or prison), but it's enough. You don't need much background to appreciate Dawn Navarro who earlier appeared in Riding the Rap.

But it's best to focus on these characters as though you haven't met them before. They combine naiveté, fear, suspicion, and calculation in ways that are unknown to those who haven't made a living from criminal activities.

So what's the plot? Jack Foley has just been returned to prison after escaping (through a series of very unusual events) when his buddy, Cundo Rey, offers to pay for his appeals with the remarkable attorney, Miss Megan Norris. As a result, Jack is soon released from prison and Cundo sends Jack west to meet his "wife" and to hang out in one of Cundo's multimillion dollar homes in Venice, California. Jack is concerned that he's going to be asked to do more crime to pay back Cundo. Dawn has different plans for Jack. When Cundo arrives a day early, the sparks start to fly. Who will get burned?

From that point, you'll see the sharks circling one another. The first one to bleed in the water is likely to be attacked by the others. The story is nicely balanced and your fun in reading it depends on not knowing what happens next. Don't read anything that goes further than this in describing the plot.

Does crime pay? I especially liked thinking about the moral implications of this story. Mr. Leonard has buried some important points about the value of innocence and treating others decently.

Out of Sight: A Novel,LaBrava: A Novel,Riding the Rap

Man, Elmore Leonard has a warped and wicked family tree! I'm glad I don't have to live with them, but I'm thrilled to read about them. For those of you that haven't been reading Leonard's work for the last thirty years as I have, I'm referring to his fictional family members that are strung throughout his novels.

I don't know how Leonard manages to keep all of his characters straight, but then again I have no problem remembering who each one of them is when they come on stage. Even though several books and years have passed. Leonard's characters live and breathe, and they become real to his loyal readers. Even when a surname is dropped in the course of a story, readers who've read several of Leonard's novels can probably guess at parentage and familial links.

In Road Dogs, Leonard brings back three of his most memorable characters. Jack Foley is a bank robber from Out of Sight, and he even manages a cameo of Karen Sisco, the US Marshal that brought him down. George Clooney played Foley in the movie, and I could see him in the role in this novel.

Cundo Rey was the cat dancer from La Brava, the 128-pound killer who is always cool as ice and mean as a snake. He plays that role again in this novel, but he brings a lot of humor to the tale as well. I enjoyed reading about him as much as I worried about him turning on Foley at any moment.

Navarro Dawn is from Riding the Rap, the second Raylan Givens novel. There are also mentions of several other Leonard characters like Maximum Bob and Harry Arno. This book is a cornucopia of "family" photos for Leonard fans.

The plot almost seems too simple. Two inmates in prison hook up and become friends (Foley and Rey), and they decide to look out for each other. Foley doesn't really care because he's in for thirty years. However, Rey puts him with a brilliant lawyer and they get him out in a matter of months with time served. Suddenly Foley doesn't know what to do with himself.

Then the complications set in. Rey wants Foley to go meet his common law wife, Dawn Navarro, who's running psychic bunko scams. Of course, Dawn is the hottest thing Foley has seen in a long time, and there's even a nude painting of her in his bedroom.

Little Jimmy is Rey's business partner, even though he's the one basically manufacturing all the profit. No one back home is looking forward to Cundo Rey's release. Dawn tries to recruit Foley to help her get rid of Rey, but Foley isn't a murderer - he's the nation's best known bank robber, a vocation he thinks he'd like to get out of with the way technology is advancing.

I had a blast with this book. The dialogue is rich and colorful, and the characters feel like real people - most of them people I don't want in my everyday life. And there are a lot of twists and turns that end up being laugh-out-loud hilarious.

Watching Leonard play his shell game with all the characters and their various motivations and quirks is a treat. The set up takes a little longer in this novel than feels necessary, and the payoff comes almost abruptly, but it's pure Leonard. And when the dust settles, the "family" isn't quite the same.

Elmore Leonard is among the very best crime writers on the scene today. Usually he combines street-wise characters with utterly believable dialog and a coherent action filled plot that moves things along. "Road Dogs" is a bit rocky, though, and doesn't have the usual punch of an Elmore Leonard novel.

It isn't "bad" in any meaningful sense of the word. It just doesn't move along quite the way one would expect.

Jack Foley, suave bank robber who made only a few mistakes in his career of robbing more than 100 banks is facing a 30 year prison term. He makes a new friend in prison, the multifaceted Cundo Rey, who pops for a major bill to retain a lawyer for Foley. The lawyer gets the sentence reduced from 30 years to 30 months. Foley heads west to California to wait for Cundo's release, occupying on of two multi-million dollar homes owned by Cundo through his business manager, Little Jimmy. The other house, across the canal in Venice (California) is occupied by Dawn Navarro, Cundo's sort of wife and a psychic.

Foley is being dogged by FBI agent Lou Adams who thinks it won't take long before Foley robs another bank. Foley enlists the involuntary assistance of local gang bangers including one named Tico.

Add one more character, a recently widowed movie star and the cast is complete.

Foley doesn't know what Cundo expects him to do repay the thousands of dollars the lawyer cost. Dawn is intent on separating Cundo from all or a good sized chunk of his fortune. Dawn wants Foley to help her. Dawn wants everybody to help her in every conceivable way for every conceivable purpose.

Cundo is released from prison and shows up a day early. Obsessed with Dawn's "marital" fidelity to him, Cundo is a bit out when he confirms his suspicions that Dawn has not been living the saintly life he demanded of her.

Things kind of poke along to their conclusion which is, frankly, cute and very cinematic. Leonard says he wrote this thinking of George Clooney reprising the Jack Foley role in another movie. In fact, not only would Clooney fit the role, but "Road Dogs" is a better screenplay than novel.

It isn't bad. The characters are entertaining and well-developed. (If they make it into a movie, the right actor could win an Oscar in the Little Jimmy role.) The dialog is very witty. And the plot is less, rather than more, passable. It just isn't Elmore Leonard at his best.

Jerry

Elmore Leonard's latest is yet another good one. ROAD DOGS is getting some attention because it stars three characters from previous novels: Jack Foley from OUT OF SIGHT, Cundo Rey from LaBRAVA, and Dawn Navarro from RIDING THE RAP. Jack Foley is the best known of these, not just for being the main character in his previous novel, but for having been portrayed by George Clooney in the movie version of the book (and Clooney gets a mention in the novel in a moment of self-referentiality). The book doesn't feel formulaic, though there is something of a formula that Leonard employs for most of his novels: throw a bunch of volatile, strong characters with their own agendas together (usually pretty seedy agendas) and see what happens. What I find delightful in this way of working is that the books are all character based, not story based. You sense as a reader that you are finding out what is about to happen in the same way that Leonard most likely learned what was going to happen.

Usually in Leonard's books there is a character who is a bit more in control than the others, the one who is going to dictate how things are going to turn out. If you can identify that character in one of his books, you can usually get a general idea of how it is going to end. It is often, though not always, a male (KILLSHOT's controlling character was a woman). These characters always are streetwise, courageous, and possess a sort of inner calm. They don't panic and don't fall apart at crucial moments. They aren't always the action hero types.

I'm not sure how much sense it makes to characterize one of Elmore Leonard's books as one of his worst or one of his best. I'll just say that I enjoyed ROAD DOGS as much as I've enjoyed many others that are usually considered one of his best, like SWAG, KILLSHOT, HOMBRE, or LaBRAVA. I guess I'd classify books not so much as "good" or "bad" as ones that will enable you to enjoy "the Elmore Leonard experience." These are books with memorable characters, complex situations whose end cannot be easily anticipated, a gritty sense of humor, and pages of memorable, effortless dialogue. ROAD DOGS definitely falls into this category. I'll add in closing that while it helps to have read OUT OF SIGHT, RIDING THE RAP, and LaBRAVA, it isn't at all necessary. This can be read and enjoyed on its own. It does involve some minor spoilers in those other books (e.g., Cundo Rey apparently dies at the end of LaBRAVA), but nothing that will ruin the experience. If you love a well-written crime novel, this one will almost certainly please you.

Unlike many writers of crime fiction, Elmore Leonard has rarely come out with sequels. Although many of his stories take place in the same world, and characters do recur throughout his various novels, sequels - in the sense of a story that is a direct follow-up to another one - are pretty uncommon. Be Cool may be a sequel to Get Shorty, but that's around it, until now. Road Dogs is another exceptional novel: a sequel to Out of Sight which also involves characters from other novels (particularly LaBrava and Riding the Rap).

The main character in Road Dogs is Jack Foley, who may be the best bank robber ever, having knocked off over a hundred banks. Foley is a savvy guy but also a nice one, disinclined to violence. As the story opens, he's in prison facing a long sentence; fortunately, he's friends with Cundo Rey, a wealthy con who hires Foley a competent lawyer, one who reduces Foley's sentence to a manageable two-and-a-half years.

When Foley gets out of prison, he stays at one of Rey's houses while Cundo serves out the last few days of his sentence. While appreciative of his friend's efforts, Foley is also wondering what will be asked of him: what new crime is Rey planning that Foley will be forced to participate in? Adding to the complications is Dawn Navarro, a psychic, a con artist and Cundo's girlfriend, who's been waiting a long time to get a hold of Cundo's millions. To her, Foley would be the perfect partner. Then there's Lou Adams, an FBI agent out to get Foley for reasons that aren't purely professional.

As always, Leonard is on top of his game, so Road Dogs is a real joy to read. You don't need to have read the predecessor books to enjoy this one (though why deny yourself the pleasure?); indeed, for me, it had been years since I'd read any of them. There is a reason why Leonard is considered one of the top writers around: his sharp dialogue, his wonderful characters and his entertaining stories. Road Dogs has all three.

There are very few authors folks who regularly turn out books that are considered "must reads," but it's safe to say that Elmore Leonard's audience considers him to have mastered that art---the very definition of a sure thing, storywise, for nearly six decades, he continues to innovate, and more importantly, entertain, in every novel he pens. That's certainly the case with Road Dogs, where Leonard looks in on several characters from prior novels, even as he weaves a witty, arresting tale of grifters on the make in the exotic locale of Venice, California. Playing secondary roles are such notables as Judge Bob Isom Gibbs, a.k.a. "Maximum Bob," and Federal Marshall Karen Sisco. Cuban con-man Cundo Rey from LaBrava is a key player, as his paramour, Dawn Navarro, who first appeared in Riding the Rap. Rounding out the cast, and providing plenty of macho charisma, is America's top bank robber Jack Foley, who, like the aforementioned Karen Sisco, first appeared in Out of Sight. Big trouble is in the offing from the first moment Rey and Foley become "road dogs" of sorts while serving time together; things only get worse when siren/"psychic"/succubus Navarro is added to the already volatile mix.

All the traits that raise Elmore's stories far above those of the rest of his peers are on ample display in Road Dogs, from his crisp, quirky, true to life dialogue, to his welcome sense of the absurd, to his well drawn supporting players (many of whom, like Cundo's partner Little Jimmy, or Foley's dogged pursuer, FBI agent Lou Adams, deserve a novel all their own), to the potential in all his characters to suddenly do something outrageous and unexpected. It's the combination of these attributes that make each of Leonard's (who Stephen King mentions in the same breath as Joyce Carol Oates and Cormac McCarthy) novels and stories a pleasure to read, and keep his grateful audience coming back for more.

There's a macho swagger to an Elmore Leonard novel that can't be denied. A cool vibe drifts off the page and there's a natural rhythm to his dialogue that never sounds forced or fake. Elmore Leonard has been writing novels for over 50 years but he still has the touch. His story-lines rarely follow a conventional path and he creates memorable characters that never fail to entertain. His characters range from low life losers, to gorgeous babes working the angles, to cool cons who know the score. Road Dogs delivers a healthy mix of new characters and familiar ones (from Out of Sight, Riding the Rap, and La Brava, with references to characters from Maximum Bob).

OK, so Road Dogs may not completely measure up to vintage Leonard (my personal favorite is Rum Punch). Some readers may feel it takes a while for the novel to kick into full gear (and even then it's still a pretty simple story) but even a middling Leonard effort is far better than most of what's out there.

Road Dogs plays itself out as a kind of cat-and-mouse game in a dog-eat-dog world. There's plenty of great banter and positioning before the players make their moves (and counter-moves) and the violence begins. The banter is great and the plot plays itself out in very entertaining fashion.

It's hard for me to imagine any fan of Elmore Leonard being disappointed with this one. Road Dogs is a quick, enjoyable read. I don't expect it will be long before George Clooney is back on the silver screen reprising his role as Jack Foley. It's very easy to picture this novel being turned into a movie. One thing is for sure. They won't need to change a word of dialogue. It's pitch perfect, just the way it is.

I have read several books by Mr. Leonard, mostly westerns, a long time ago. The jacket blurbs and other sources will tell you this book features characters from previous books, perhaps it is even a sequel. I can tell you, you will thoroughly enjoy this one even if you have not read the previous adventures of Jack Foley, worlds leading bank robber, or any of the others in this cast. "Road Dogs" brings together individual social deviants with a wide range of violent skills.

Jack, our hero who robbed thousands of banks without physically harming anyone, demonstrates mastery of the art of violence to the point that he puts a professional thug into the hospital with finesse and style. The mix includes a psycho federal cop who is ready to spend big bags of his own money and commit any crime inorder to put Jack back into the pen for another bank robbery. The various parties mix together until the inevitable explosion leaves Jack standing triumphant.

I do wish this book included more about a lady cop that Jack locked in his car trunk as he escaped from prison, then spent a night in a hotel getting to know each other in the bibical sense. The next morning she shot Jack in the leg and sent him back to prison. Alas, that all happened before the events of "Road Dogs" and is described as conversational exercise as Jack and his financial angel Condo Rey discuss what each will do when they get out of prison.

The morality and ethical standards of everyone in the book is way off center, but in the end the better guys triumph and the badder guys get their come uppance. But it was great fun sharing the trip with all of them.

When Cundo Rey befriends Jack Foley at Glades Correction, Foley is doing thirty years for basically having lived a life of crime and being America's most prolific bank robber. Since Foley is looking at additional time for escape and for kidnapping a Deputy U.S. Marshal, Karen Sisco, Foley's chances of seeing life outside is pretty remote. Cundo hires Foley a really sharp lawyer and soon enough his thirty years is thirty months, and the kidnapping and escape charges are history.

What Cundo wants from this is Jack to help him rob banks from the inside, and to go back to Venice Beach, California and make sure his true love Dawn Navarro is maintaining her saint hood during Rey's eight years on the inside.

Over a couple weeks Foley and Rey are freed and high-tail it to California to begin the next chapters of their lives of crime. FBI agent and mystery writer Lou Adams is in hot pursuit looking for the end of his book featuring Foley, who seemingly has little interest in his old profession. Little Jimmy, Cundo's prison bitch, is supposed to hold the key for their new lives of crime, but will he come through?

Driven by dialog, opportunity, sex and greed Dutch Leonard's characters both surprise and dazzle the reader. Road Dogs is the sequels to at least three previous novels, Out of Sight: A Novel, and Riding the RapLaBrava: A Novel. Perhaps Lou Adams or maybe Little Jimmy will get a sequel as well.

In Road Dogs, Elmore Leonard reunites characters from several earlier novels, principally Jack Foley, the All-American bank robber from "Out of Sight." When last seen, Jack was headed off for a thirty-year stretch in the pen, having been shot in the leg and captured by his one-time lover, Marshall Karen Cisco.

Jack is now released early, after serving only a few months, thanks to the hot shot lawyer hired by his prison pal, Cundo Rey. Jack and Cundo are road dogs--friends who watch each others' backs while doing time together. Cundo, who is about to be released himself, sends Jack to live in one of his exclusive Venice, California beach houses. Cundo's other beach house is inhabited by Cundo's extremely sexy and ambitious common-law wife, Dawn Navarro.

Jack expects that Cundo will want something in return for his generosity. Dawn has plans of her own regarding Cundo's fortune, and when Cundo gets early release lots of schemes are set into play.

As is always the case in an Elmore Leonard novel, the characters are far more interesting than the thin plot. And, as always, the author does not disappoint. These are great characters and watching them play with and scheme against each other is great fun. Leonard fans will rejoice.

As usual, Leonard delivers the verbal goods. He's got a great ear for street talk and that makes these characters work, to a certain degree. But I have to say, Elmore's beginning to show his age.

For instance: time and again he inserts a reference to some new band or some other new cultural reference to look as if he's hip...but the references are so clearly the work of a 70 year-old mind, not that of these characters. It's like writing a '70s book and saying, "Yeah, this Barry White guy is where it's at for grooving. Right on and far out, baby."

There are plot holes left and right. Won't share any spoilers, but suffice to say the various schemes make little sense when held up to the light of day. EL admits in the interview on the the store product page that he was writing with Hollywood actors in mind, and tha is overall what Road Dogs feels like: a spec script he knows he's gonna get a cool million for as long as the banter is hip.
Check.
Or rather, cheque, please.

The book starts strong but quickly slows and by the end I just couldn't care less what happened to Foley et al. It was all too neat and had none of the real edge of Leonard's earlier stuff.

If you're a real fan, you'll enjoy it, but to anyone new to Elmore, go back a few decades and read his best work. There's plenty of it.

Elmore Leonard brings back three characters from prior novels in this amusing tale of subterfuge: Jack Foley from "Out of Sight," Cundo Rey from "La Brava," and Dawn Navarro from "Riding the Rap." Jack and Cundo are serving time in a Florida prison and become friendly, taking care of each other, watching each other's back, in prison parlance, "road dogs." Jack is serving a 30-year sentence, Cundo seven-and-a-half. Then Cundo retains his lady lawyer to bring an appeal for Jack. She gets his sentence reduced to three months, with Jack scheduled to be released a short time before Cundo, who pays his way to Venice, CA, and lets him live in one of his two homes there (one worth $4 million, the other $2.5 million).

Dawn Navarro lives in the other home, supposedly waiting for Cundo, celibate, for seven-and-a-half years. Sure. What she is doing is waiting to cash in on Cundo's wealth, scheming with anyone she can find or think of. When Cundo finally returns to California, the fun just begins, and Jack is caught in the midst of all the plotting and scheming, using his wits and intuition to stay ahead.

As in all Elmore Leonard books, the novel is written with panache, plotted carefully and is very funny. It is also highly recommended.

This latter day Elmore Leonard novel contains plenty of what long time fans have come to expect. In fact, a number of characters, locales and plot elements have been resurrected from previous Leonard offerings. Most notably, professional bank robber Jack Foley from Out of Sight, a character brought to life by George Clooney in the movie of the same name, serves as the book's protagonist.
Much of the narrative plays out in sunny Venice Beach, the home of wealthy marielito Cundo Rey, Jack's prison buddy or "road dog". Cundo's common law wife is Dawn Navarro, a psychic adviser who seems to believe a good deal of the previous life stories she often feeds to those she is trying to con.
Road Dogs, at its essence, is a tongue-in-cheek tale of duplicity and betrayal among a group of individuals, none of whom can be trusted for more than 30 seconds. The characters are all delightfully quirky and the plentiful dialogue is both funny and authentic sounding.
Certainly, Leonard has written many better, more substantial books, including the relatively recent Mr. Paradise. But Road Dogs is still a worthwhile read, especially for Elmore Leonard fans.

Elmore Leonard returns with one of his best in years. Road Dogs starts off with Jack Foley (Out of Sight) and Cundo Rey (La Brava) in prison. Cundo pays for a lawyer to reduce Foley's sentence from 30 years to 3. Upon release, Cundo invites Foley to stay at one of his houses in CA with Dawn Navarro (Riding the Rap). Foley quickly learns that Dawn has it in for Cundo and Foley too if he gets in the way. As Foley gets deeper into the action, he doesn't know who to trust, including a Fed agent who has sworn to follow Foley every day until he breaks down and robs another bank.

Great characters, familiar faces, and funny situations make this one of Leonard's best in a long time. From ghost hunting to bank robbing to double crossing, this book offers nonstop action supported by Leonard's gift for realistic and fast paced dialogue. You don't have to read any of the previous books to enjoy this one. The necessary references are there either in dialogue or brief passages so you'll know what characters are talking about without the story getting bogged down. This would make a great motion picture follow-up to Out of Sight if they could get Clooney to reprise the role.

Elmore Leonard is always an easy read.He sets the scene ,characters and the mood,with a brevity of well chosen words. ( in a few words)
I really enjoy recalling the walk,the talk,from the movie-" Out of Sight".George Clooney did a fine portrayal of Jack Foley in this movie with Jennifer Lopez. I know this is a preceding book to Road Dogs but Clooney does a great Jack Foley.

Elmore Leonard reprises three characters from previous novels to mix them together in a new highly entertaining novel titled Road Dogs. Jack Foley from Out of Sight, Cundo Rey from LaBrava, and Dawn Navarro, the psychic in Riding the Rap, interact in the new novel alongside a captivating cast of supporting characters. As always with Leonard, the dialogue provides the plot momentum and the insight into each character. The realism in this dialogue brings readers into every scene. Despite the recycled characters, Road Dogs stands fine on its own. New readers may be motivated to read the earlier novels to sate an appetite for more of this great dialogue. Any reader who watched George Clooney play bank robber Jack Foley in Out of Sight will hear Clooney's voice in whenever Jack speaks his totally cool lines in Road Dogs. Leonard's choice of words is perfect throughout, and he makes the work of writing such a fine novel seem easy. Few other writers come close to Leonard's skill, so it's certainly not as easy as it seems.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)

Out of Sight--the film--was my first introduction to Elmore Leonard. It features some of my favorite characters, Jack Foley and the enthralling Karen Sisco and is the only Jennifer Lopez movie I like. I've followed Karen Sisco through books and tv shows (Carla Gugino was great) and so, I picked up Road Dogs with the hope of getting just a little taste of my favorite U.S. Marshall only to find that while she's mentioned, she never materializes. A phantom at the back of Jack's mind and ensconced around his heart.

This isn't a problem. Jack, Cundo, and Dawn (all making at least their second appearance in a Leonard yarn) are just as interesting and the complex cross and double-crossing of the novel are well worth the effort. Jack, the gentleman bank robber, is always a few steps ahead. Lou, the the vigilant and vengeful FBI agent, always knows exactly what's going on but is powerless to stop it and Dawn...oh, Dawn. Just to mention her name is to be both aroused and in fear for your life.

You would think that after over 30 years of doing this that Leonard books would feel formulaic but they don't. His prose, as usual, crackles. His characters always speak with a rhythm and style that is just so naturally cool and, after reading several of his novels, I always feel like I'm returning to spend a little time with old friends.

Friends that might put a bullet through my forehead just as easily as they serve me a cocktail but, in the end, that always seems well worth the risk.

Highly Recommended.

As noted, this one brings back the Jack Foley character from "Out of Sight." Once again, Elmore Leonard sticks to the formula that his fans expect and pretty much succeeds. If you are new to his novels, I'd suggest starting with the earlier stuff in his crime fiction catalogue before tackling this one. Not that you miss anything, but I just think it will give you a better feel for what this guy's writing style is like. And if you haven't read "Out of Sight" (which I think is a better novel than this one), you should definitely start with that one first so that you are more familiar with the characters. But this one is pretty darn good too; more snap-crackin' dialogue and plot surprises. Elmore remains the master.

This was my first experience with reading Elmore Leonard - I've seen "Get Shorty" but that's about it.

The book really touts as an attribute the reappearance of some of the author's most fun characters, but I didn't feel like I missed much by not knowing their back stories. This is a good thing - if I pick up an author for the first time, I like not feeling in the dark about the characters' pasts.

It was a quick and really entertaining read, but certainly not deep in any way. There were maybe a few too many "extras" in the cast, and some sub plots didn't really seem to go anywhere, but without them, this would be a short story. They have a feeling of maybe being set up as "to be continued" in a following novel.

Overall, though, it was funny and interesting, and I would recommend it as a quick plane or beach read.

"Road dogs," is a crime novel by uber-successful, best-selling, prolific author Elmore Leonard. It brings back three of his most popular characters: Jack Foley from Out of Sight: A Novel, Cundo Rey from LaBrava: A Novel and Dawn Navarro from Riding the Rap. At the 2009 publication of ROAD DOGS, Leonard had written more than 40 novels, including bestsellers Up in Honey's Room: A Novel,Mr. Paradise,Tishomingo Blues,Pagan Babies and Glitz. Many of his books and short stories have been filmed, some of them twice, including Out of Sight. And many of us will fondly remember that picture, with George Clooney as Jack Foley, and Jennifer Lopez as federal marshal Karen Sisco. At any rate, the book at hand boasts Leonard's trademark wit, and pitch perfect dialog that actually helps drive his plot, a feat few authors can achieve.

We pick up again with Jack Foley, charming ladies' man and multi-bank robber as he is serving a thirty-year sentence in a Miami penitentiary, remembering his hot Detroit weekend with Sisco. But Foley's made an unlikely friend inside. And every prison inmate can do with a road dog - someone who watches his back, someone he can trust inside or out. So that's Foley and wealthy Cuban criminal Cundo Rey. Rey got to the United States as a Marielito in 1980, when Cuban dictator Castro chose to empty his jails, and piggyback the criminals onto an asylum flotilla to which the dictator had previously agreed. Cundo engineers his buddy's early release with the help of hot, expensive attorney Megan Norris, and Jack, after enjoying a friendly evening with his ex-wife Adele, is soon comfortably ensconced in one of Cundo's across-a-canal from each other houses in chic, very expensive and lovely Venice Beach, California. Where Jack's enjoying the attentions of Cundo's sexy common law wife, Dawn Navarro. But Dawn has ulterior motives and a plan, in order to execute which she's waited out the eight long years of Cundo's sentence, to relieve her husband of his considerable fortune. She needs help to do it. Is Jack her man? However, with Cundo's release imminent and rogue FBI agent Lou Adams on Foley's tail, Jack doesn't quite know what he's doing. And now Jack's fooling around with Danialle Karmanos, beautiful recently-widowed Hollywood star.

The book, which some readers will suspect was written and published simply to continue the popular tale of Jack Foley, bank robbing ladies' man, seems to begin nowhere in particular and end nowhere in particular, too. The plot is loose, a grab bag of devices and characters thrown in for no discernible purpose. Some readers may object to the book's plentiful use of profanity. Others may find it a fun, quick read, a little confection that's tasty and lighter than air. But it's quickly forgotten. To me, at least, the books in Leonard's prodigious output seem all to run together. I've read him before, but generally don't these days, unless I know for sure it's a new publication that I can't previously have read. There was the time, you see, when I'd read about a hundred pages into a book of Leonard's, before I came upon a scene of a drug dealer being blown to bits on his toilet, into which somebody had put an incendiary device. And at that irritating moment, I realized I'd read that book before; you can forget everything else in a book, but not a scene of a drug dealer's being blown to bits on his toilet. Mind you, if I was in a cottage where the only book was one of Leonard's, I'd surely read it before picking up the phone book. His work does have its pleasures.

As other reviewers have noted, "Road Dogs" centers around three characters familiar to Elmore Leonard fans: Jack Foley (the gentleman bank robber), Cundo Rey (the Cuban Cat Prince hustler), and Dawn Navarro (grifter, psychic, and possible past-life pharaoh). All three are in great form, and if you haven't read the books that introduced them, you'll still have no problem getting to know and understand them here. Unfortunately, "Road Dogs" seems to be mostly just an excuse to trot them out again.

There is a thin plot, but at the halfway point, and even at the three-quarters point, I was still wondering what it was. Reading "Road Dogs" was like watching a somewhat disjointed stage play: Scene 1: Jack and Cundo meet. Curtain. Scene 2: Jack and Megan meet. Curtain. Scene 3: Jack and Adele have a reunion. Curtain. Scene 4: Jack and Dawn meet. Curtain.

Now, the good news is, few writers can set a scene like Elmore Leonard can, and even fewer have his ear for dialogue. As a result, each of these scenes is interesting, fun, and believable - just not very compelling overall. They do finally cohere into a plot, but it is not well resolved, and the whole book ultimately feels like a setup for a sequel.

"Road Dogs" is good reading, but you will enjoy it more if you don't bring too many expectations to the table.

This was my first time reading Mr. Leonard. He did not disappoint. The characters were well drawn and quirky, the narrative was fast moving with interesting turns and the prose was a thing of beauty. I found myself wishing I had read his previous work to have a better sense of these characters backstory.

Cundo Rey and Jack Foley are prison buddies. After Cundo's lawyer gets Jack's sentence reduced they head to Venice beach where Cundo's crew is located. Murder, sex, and betrayal all find their way into the narrative.

A great read, lots of fun, I understand why mr. Leonard has millions of devoted followers. It may have been my first Elmore Leonard novel, but it will not be my last. Highly recommened.

CD/unabridged: This novel is a sequel of three other characters in two other Leonard books. This is my first Elmore Leonard book and I found it very entertaining. However, there wasn't really a plot. Jack Foley, the charming bank robber, meets Cundo Rey in prison. During the course of the story, they are both released and into the clutches of Dawn.
I was always waiting for something to happen.
Frances James does a narrative of the story. Jack Foley is smooth and reminds me of Micheal on Burn Notice. Cundo is on the lower ranks of humanity and Dawn is out for herself. I don't know if I would have been happy reading this, but it was a entertaining audio.

My credentials for reviewing Elmore Leonard are simple--I enjoy this genre, read lots of it and I go way back with Elmore. I started reading him with "Fifty-Two Pickup." (A great book.)

I haven't read every Elmore Leonard but in general he is very reliable for great dialogue (it's required that you mention this) and terrific plots with vivid, distinct characters.

My consumer cautions on "Road Dogs" are precisely two.

Number 1: not much happens.

Number 2: this is mostly talk.

Okay, a third: if you don't know these characters from previous books, you may be even less interested or less dialed-in to what's going on.

As a stylist, you still can't beat Leonard's rich, word-perfect dialogue and "Road Dogs" is full of it.

I'd recommend for Leonard completists only.

Elmore Leonard brings back a trio of characters in yet another classic novel driven by realistic dialogue and a superb, fast-paced plot.

Bank robber Jack Foley (Out of Sight) gets out of jail early thank to his friend Cundo Rey (LaBrava). Rey - a hustler - was Foley's prison friend, which is called a "road dog." The pair meet up with Dawn Navarro (Riding the Rap), who is a "psychic" by trade. Each character is working an angle for the ultimate con and three may be a crowd for the agendas that emerge in their individual games.

Leonard better make room on a mantel in his home for year-end awards for this outstanding crime fiction. He remains the gold standard in a genre that gets more crowded each day with writers and books.

Though the actual situation is grim, and the protagonists criminals, Elmore Leonard again manages to create a story where the reader cannot help but smile at the thoughts and antics of the cast. Jack Foley, always cool and ahead of his opponents mentally and physically, is the lovable bank-robber; Cundo Rey his wealthy prison-buddy is naive in some ways, totally sinister in others; and the trickster Dawn Navarro a nasty chameleon whose mind and behavior can hardly be more devious. It's a delight to watch Foley wend his way through the actions of those who would send him back to prison, pull him into crime again, or just plain kill him. It's gratifying to read Leonard's work whatever the theme, but this is one of his most satisfying books.

This is an ejoyable read for those acquainted with Elmore Leonard. For novices his somewhat eccentric style may be off-putting. Hang in there, newbies. Road Dogs is a fun book and views the world's problems distantly (if at all.) Suspense begins early on and continues till the end. I found it difficult to put down. I wondered if the plot might have been opened up somewhat, but ended up agreeing with the author. Slowing the pace would kill the suspense. While this is an imperfect jewel, it shines brightly and recuperates the funny bone. My only criticism is that some of the sequences, while fun, aren't realistic. Without giving away the story I will suggest that a gift of a $4+ million house might be sufficient to bury the unemployed recipient in an IRS coffin. (Quick sale anybody?) But what can you expect from a man with two first names?

Elmore Leonard is best known for the rich authenticity and expressiveness of the vernacular that his criminal characters use, and this is on bountiful display in this book. That is not all one finds here though. Road Dogs is a tale of friendship between two convicts (later ex-convicts) and the manifestations of their friendship. The story is cohesive and its vectors generally aim toward the denouement.

It is sprinkled with eccentrics whose characters are well developed, and Leonard puts his imagination to good use in drawing from them the picture of a criminal culture. Streams of consciousness of various characters show their different understandings of the importance and effects of the same incidents and are used to demonstrate the lack of thought that goes into members of Leonard's criminal culture making life-changing decisions.

At times the plot meanders or is sluggish, but is generally interesting or even compelling.

I recommend this novel without reservation.

This is my second read of books by Elmore Leonard and because I've enjoyed the characters and story line, not my last. I love the true to life "con" street wise guys and dialogue. The characters are rotten criminals that you can't help but find interesting if not like, maybe, if you met one. A lot of talk but not so that the purpose of the story gets lost in it. I must confess I did listen to the book on a CD and which was brought to life by narrator Peter Francis James. It does end quickly without too much of a rap up but then again, what's there to rap up once the crime is committed?

Two guys meet in prison, form a friendship and one (Cundo) helps the other (Jack) get his sentence reduced. Now Jack owes Cundo, or does he? Outside, Jack stays at Cundo's house, meets Cundo's woman and waits for Cundo to get released. Oh, did I mention that Jack has an FBI agent hounding him, waiting for him to rob another bank? What we have here is a peculiar group of characters who definitely are not being honest with each other. "Road Dogs" is filled with witty dialogue, but with a plot that doesn't hold for the full length of the novel. It was enjoyable but there has been better from Elmore Leonard.

It is almost impossible to say anything new about Elmore Leonard that hasn't already been said. In the 30 or so years that he has been writing his breezy black comedies, he has consistently turned out page turning crowd pleasing stories. By uniting three characters already introduced in other works, he shuffles the deck, creating dialogue that sparks off the page and situations that are laugh out loud funny, all the time creating a thriller that will keep the reader up late until the book is finished. Eminently cinematic, now if he can only convince George Clooney to step in as Foley again...

Elmore Leonard is known for his characters. When talking about his writing style he always explains that he focuses on an interesting character and then tells a story about them. In Road Dogs Leonard brings three of his characters from earlier novels together for a fun and interesting story. Jack Foley is the Gentleman Bank Robber from Out of Sight, Cundo Rey was a character from LaBrava, and Dawn Navarro was last seen in Riding the Rap.

In Road Dogs we see Foley in the aftermath of Out of Sight. He is now friends with Cundo Rey, a recent arrival at the prison. Ray hooks Foley up with an attorney and gets him an early release. After his release Foley goes to LA and waits for Cundo with Dawn Navarro, Cundo's common-law wife. Dawn is scheming to get Cundo's fortune, she is running a grift on a rich Hollywood widow, and she wanta Foley's help.

Elmore Leonard wrote and interesting story about two male convicts who form an unlikely friendship intended to protect them but turned into a friendship that is fraught with problems of trust, competition, and ego. Leonard weaves an interesting story that pulls the reader into the world of intrigue. However, Leonard seems to run out of ideas and does not complete the delivery of promise the story holds. He seems to take the easy and less creative path to finish the story and move on which left this reader disappointed and unfulfilled.

This is a 'Must Read' for all Elmore Leonard fans, written in his uniquely addictive style. Bank robber extraordinare Jack Foley buddies up with hustler Cundo Rey in prison. Rey hires a lawyer who springs Foley out early, then sends him to live in one of his houses across the street from Cundo's lovely psychic con wife. For added tension, we have an FBI agent tailing Foley, desperate to catch him in one last bank heist.

In true Leonard style, this is a fun read about criminals with unexpected twists. A nice mix of drama and dry humor.

Whenever young aspiring writers come to me for advice, I tell them to put down the pen for awhile and read everything by Elmore Leonard, starting with his most recent (this one, ROAD DOGS) and work back. That's how I did it years ago and I think it worked.
Leonard hasn't lost a step in ROAD DOGS. He is still the best, standing out by a head and shoulders above all others (and they admit it). Proof: pick the book up, read a paragraph or two, and you'll know it's nobody else writing like this.

Speedo

Elmore has created in over forty books a mesmerizing universe of edgy characters communicating in crisp staccato with minor excursions describing their surroundings. Miami, Detroit, Venice, California; locale matters little. Revisiting his favorites time and again; in this case, there are three protagonists in this short focused sex ladened book; the themes being, Jack Foley's survival instincts, Dawn Navarro's desires and the late Cundo Rey's unfortunate demise.

Elmore Leonard has been a favorite for many years, and I found this one at an airport and finished it in one plane ride and then the next day. I've read the books that introduced the characters (Out of Sight and LaBrava) and so it was like old home week when Cundo and Jack wound up on the same van to jail in the first scene. The dialog between the two of them that sets out the back story is so good you cannot stop reading or chuckling to yourself. Enter Dawn, who has changed and rounded out since Riding the Rap, and you have typical Leonard chaos, romance and intrigue.

There are the usual cops in pursuit, street toughs, guns, sex and mayhem.

Elmore Leonard can really write dialog. This story is told almost entirely through conversations between the players. Some rough language, but appropriate to the rough crowd in the story. Not a page-turner exactly, but fun to read. A good story about a world of crime and criminals most of us never see.

Elmore Leonard is one of the great novelists of our time. All his novels are page turners. Story lines are not predictable. Of course, we always think of the TV show "Justified" which was based on his best seller "Raylan"

I am a huge Elmore Leonard fan and gladly acknowledge him as one of the Titans of Mystery/Thriller genre.
But I found this book a real letdown. It started off great with classic dialogue and movement. As soon as Jack Foley gets to LA, though, the plot really bogs down. I found Dawn's character a real drain on the story (even though she plays a huge role). The beginning of this book led me to expect a classic crime drama with Cundo and Jack hooking up and going on an adventure.
It goes in a whole different direction, however, once Dawn is introduced. It did not work for me.
Still there are some incredible tangents of dialogue and prose, as you would expect with Elmore.
Overall, i think those of you spoiled by his greatest works will be frustrated by this one.

Elmore Leonard writes dialogue differently for each of his characters and puts flesh on his characters with this dialogue. His writing mixes humor and pathos with local vernacular to produce a compelling story. This book was no exception.

Elmore Leonard's writing is always top-notch. His stories move along nicely, not to mention he has an unbeatable ear for realistic dialogue, interesting characters, and unusual plot twists. As a long-time fan of his, I liked Road Dogs but would not rank it among his best. If you are reading Leonard for the first time, I'd recommend you start with one of his best, such as Get Shorty, rather than this one.

Foley is somewhat likeable. The plot has some interesting twists. But from early on it was easy to see Dawn was out for herself. Witch is a mild term for her. I just didn't see her as believable at all.

As usual, Leornard has incredibly rich and not-so-simple characters. The bad guys are bad - kind of and the good guys are good - kind of. If you're a fan of Elmore Leonard you'll love this book. If you've never read him before this is a great book to start your enjoyment.

Road Dogs was a fun read; snappy dialogue, plot moved along smoothly, and didn't require any thought to enjoy. I did like that there was no gratuitous grittiness - my tolerance for that dropped dramatically after I had kids. This was actually the first Elmore Leonard book I've read, and it didn't bother me at all that the main characters came together from other stories. The characters come together naturally and don't depend on a backstory.

In his latest work Leonard brings three characters from earlier books and resolves some of the issues left over from long ago. Written in the sparse prose that Leonard fans know and love it makes a good book to have on a place ride.

I really enjoy Leonard's books. Imaginative dialogue and great character development are typical features for his novels. "Road Dogs" is no exception. The plot along with the humor added to the criminal characters make this a fast-paced truly entertaining quick-read. Bottom line: Many smiles provided by this very enjoyable, entertaining novel.

There's nothing to say especially about this book except its classic Elmore Leonard. I can't wait for the movie, a sequel to " out of sight" starring George Clooney and . Who would play Dawn? Maybe Naomi Watts?

ROAD DOGS is a minor disappointment for this major Elmore Leonard fan.
Nothing happens for the first 200 pages. Witty banter will only carry a book just so far- you need a story or plot to hold your interest. Too bad, I really wanted to like this book but for someone who has read every Elmore Leonard novel- this book was Leonard Light.