Review by Booklist Review
How is this guy not more widely known? Youer's last three novels--The Forgotten Girl (2017), Halcyon (2018), Lola on Fire (2021)--were startlingly good, and his earlier Westlake Soul (2012) has a large and devoted following. All that, and this new one could be his best yet. Youers' characters are vividly realized, his dialogue is pitch perfect, and the story, about a washed-up actor (and possible wife-murderer) who's determined to protect an aspiring actress from the vicious drug dealer she was ripping off, is downright spellbinding. Like Lola on Fire's Lola Bear, Kitty Rae, the nominal central character of this book, is a completely captivating creation--a woman with deep reserves of strength and an absolute inability to bow down in the face of pressure. Johan Fly, the vengeful drug dealer, is one of the author's more interesting villains, too, with charm, seductiveness, and steel-cold evil in equal measure. Youers has spent years developing his style, perfecting his voice, and with No Second Chances he has produced a book that feels like something Elmore Leonard might have written: a dark and ballsy story that, once you've started it, you absolutely cannot stop reading.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Kitty Rae, the 24-year-old protagonist of this uneven crime novel from Youers (Lola on Fire), moved to L.A. from Kentucky to become an actor. Four months later, that hasn't happened, and Rae supports herself delivering crystal meth. Her fortunes change after she saves her neighbor, former movie star Luke Kingsley, from gassing himself to death in his garage. Luke's career has been on the skids since his wife, Lisa Hayes, vanished three years earlier. The police--and the general public--are convinced Luke murdered Lisa and hid the corpse. Luke helps land an agent for Rae, who believes his claims of innocence. Meanwhile, Rae must evade the violent wrath of a sadistic narcotics trafficker, who suspects Rae has ripped him off. A nicely complex lead and some welcome doses of humor--a B-list actor jokes that his tombstone will include the phrase "Also Starring"--compensate only in part for a familiar plot that builds to a predictable climax. Hopefully, this talented author will return to form next time. Agent: Howard Morhaim, Howard Morhaim Literary. (Feb.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Luke Kingsley's acting career crashed and burned when his celebrated R&B singer wife vanished and he found himself almost universally suspected of her murder. Friend Kitty Rae thinks he's innocent, but she's got a secret hustle running product for social influencer/drug dealer Johan Fly, and Luke must protect her when Johan discovers that she's been skimming. Following the acclaimed Lola on Fire; with a 50,000-copy first printing.
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