Sucker Punch: A Cal Innes Novel [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

In the second of Ray Banks's Cal Innes novels (originally published under the title Donkey Punch in the UK in 2007), Cal is found to be an ex-con, former PI, pain pill addict, and chain smoker just freshly off parole. His doctor wants to wean him off the codeine he has formed a habit around, and the local hard boys are making life difficult for him and his boss Paulo at the Manchester gym where Cal works as a caretaker.
If all of that's not enough to contend with for one somewhat damaged fella, the assignment Paulo gives him could be the thing to put Cal all the way over the edge: he is to accompany Liam Wooley - a talented but unstable young fighter - on a trip to Los Angeles, where Liam will compete in a major tournament that could be the start of big things for his career. Liam is known for viciousness, both in and out of the ring, and Paulo wants Cal to make sure the kid stays out of trouble when he's not fighting, and that he acts like a boxer rather than a street-fighter when he's going at it in the ring.

Oh, and when they get to L.A. and start meeting people involved in the tournament, Cal quickly gathers that there is all kinds of crooked business at hand there. The shadiness around the tournament comes to a head when the father of the guy Liam is set up to fight in the championship match offers Cal a hefty bribe to cancel the bout.

Having the events of the book mostly set in America, Los Angeles no less, gives way to much of the biting humor and keen social observation that drives Sucker Punch. The throwaway food items, too-forward people, all the blond and tanned specimens on display in the California sun, etc, gives Cal and his sardonic wit much to reflect upon. In a scene which caused to me to laugh so hard I spit out part of the sandwich I was chewing on while reading, Cal encounters a chatty American at a bar he's gone to after taking in another round of Liam's sullen disposition:

American: You're British.
Cal: If you want.
American: I have a cousin in Birmingham.
Cal: Alabama?
American: England.
Cal: Right enough. I think I know him.
American: You do?
Cal: Yeah. Ugly lad, right? Won't let people drink in peace?

But the most intriguing culture clash occurs when Cal and Liam keep having edgy encounters with a group of spoiled L.A. brats who like to think of themselves as tough boys, one of this pack being the boxer Wooley is supposed to fight in the title bout of the tournament.

Too many contemporary crime writers working in the noir milieu have to work at making their characters and storylines appear authentic; and with too many of them, you can feel them hoping that someone will call them the "new Thompson" or "heir to Raymond," etc. Ray Banks, on the other hand, writes about the underworld in an easy and natural way, and he does it while being funny as hell.

I really enjoyed Ray Banks' Sucker Punch. The characters are very well drawn and the world that they are set in is extremely compelling. I especially liked the lead character Cal Innes who is a tough as nails thug trying very hard to be good, but not quite finding his way. His internal conflicts drive the book. This adds a depth to a book that would otherwise been a pretty light thriller.

Sucker Punch is the second novel in the "Cal Innes Series". I didn't read Banks' first Innes novel Saturday's Child but didn't feel lost reading Sucker Punch which felt like a very self contained novel. I appreciate a writer who can write a series and make each book feel unique, all too often writer's in this genre write fractured stories with an eye to the greater series, Banks resists this temptation and delivers a solid and complete novel.

Sucker Punch is at its best when it's immersed in the world of amateur boxing, the closer to the ring this book gets the better it is. Unfortunately the book takes an extreme left turn about three quarters of the way through that really threw me. It's jarring and really derailed the momentum of the book. Banks' does ultimately pull it all together after that serious mis-step and it's not enough of a mis-step to prevent me from recommending this book, but it would have been a better book without it. The twist also arrests the natural story arch and results in a key conflict not getting the resolution it should have.

If you're a fan of boxing or enjoy the gritty world of sweat soaked gyms and tough guys Sucker Punch is definitely worth checking out.

Ray Banks' second Cal Innes novel, Sucker Punch, is my first. I expect though that it won't be my last.

Sucker Punch takes us along with ex-con, ex-PI, codeine-addicted Callum Innes as he travels from Manchester to Los Angeles as a "babysitter" for Liam Wooley, a young boxer entered into an amateur boxing tournament in California. Innes has no real experience in the world of amateur boxing (outside of his job as a helper in a local gym), and has never been to Los Angeles. Banks uses Cal's natural trepidation about the unknown brilliantly, and slowly cranks up tension as the story moves along without using hackneyed and cliched plot mechanisms. We have the sense something may be about to happen, but at the same time wonder if we, and Cal, are just being paranoid.

Sucker Punch has enough tough-guy (often hilarious) banter, bar fights, and gritty boxing scenes that many reviewers are calling it noir. From the outset though, Banks lets us know that Sucker Punch isn't going to be traditional for the genre; for one thing, there's no underlying mystery propelling the story. Instead, I kept turning pages well past the hour at which I should have been sleeping because I enjoyed spending time with Innes, who just feels more human and accessible to me than most characters in works considered noir. Though Cal's relationship with Wooley is always strained, in fact throughout most of the book Liam dislikes and disrespects Cal, Innes always puts his responsibility to the young boxer first; we get a good look at just what kind of a guy Cal Innes is, and he's immensely likable. Cal may be a tough guy on the outside, but Banks lets us see the worried, highly flawed, self-critical guy on the inside; a refreshing change from many characters in the genre.

Add to that Banks' unique and quirky style (ever hear a character claim something was making his teeth itch?) and his liberal use of British slang, and you end up with an incredibly enjoyable (and quick) read. From the opening scene in which Cal is having his final meeting with his parole officer, to the (slight) plot twist that occurs about 2/3 of the way through the book, to the final (perfect for the book) sentence, I loved Sucker Punch. Banks has written a book that never feels like it's trying to imitate works by the kings of noir, created one of my favorite characters in years, and done it all in his own unique and funny style. That's something few novels in recent memory can say.

HIGHLY recommended.