The Amateurs of the title, in this absorbing new book by Marcus Sakey, author most recently of the wonderful “Good People,” are Alex, a bartender with an ex-wife to whom he is perpetually late with child support payments for his adored ten-year-old daughter; mysterious Ian, a trader with a coke habit; Jenn, who has a ‘friends with benefits’ relationship with Alex but feels like her life has her in a place where she has ‘missed something,’ that ‘now I’m out of time. All there is left to do is wait to turn into my mother;” and Mitch, a hotel doorman who pines for Jenn [unknown to her]. All in their early thirties, with a vague dissatisfaction with their lives, they have drifted into a years-long friendship that puts them together for an occasional dinner at Ian’s, Cubs games in the summer, Saturday brunch, and Thursday evenings at the bar at which Alex works.
When the opportunity presents itself, therefore, although some are at first hesitant, they ultimately jump at the chance to do something radically different, and make a big score at the same time – an adventure, something they think is pretty much risk-free, and take them all out of the rut in which they individually and collectively find themselves. But such things are rarely risk-free, which these amateurs find out to their peril. The violence, when it comes, is fast, and unexpected, and from that point on [as was the case with Mr. Sakey's previous novels], I could not put this book down.
The last section of the novel is prefaced with a quote from George B. Leonard: “The best games are not those in which all goes smoothly and steadily toward a certain conclusion, but those in which the outcome is always in doubt.” Which is certainly the case in Mr. Sakey’s hands. The author continues his fictional forays into the minds of everyday Chicagoans who make decisions that in an instant cause their lives to veer off into unforeseen and grim directions. Mr. Sakey just keeps getting better. [And I loved the tip of the hat to Jack Reacher/Lee Child!] The writing is terrific, and the novel is highly recommended.
I’ve read all of Sakey’s novels and I think The Amateurs is his best yet. Definitely his darkest and most painful novel to date.