Mine All Mine.

Davies, Adam (author).

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Know why Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible trapeze act wouldn’t work in real life? Because a hyperspecialized security guard—a “pulse”—would have already been inside the vault, patiently waiting to push the panic button. At least, that’s the premise of Davies’ fantastically imagined novel, set in a world where people with things to protect don’t rely on technology that can be subverted by airshaft egress or clipped green wires. Otto Starks is a pulse whose ability is off the charts but whose recent track record has him heading toward termination. Why does the Rat Burglar keep getting the drop on him? And why can’t he pop the question to Charlie Izzo, the love of his life? And what will happen if he can’t make the loan-shark payments on his boat, the Clean Getaway? In a novel that is equal parts comic monologue, screwball romance, and crime story, Davies employs clichéd suspense devices with results that are wholly original. If we’re mildly impatient when the plot mechanics take over, that’s only because we can’t get enough of Davies’ wonderful word-nerd writing, which scarcely needs a raison d’être. Our own words can’t do this cartoonish but touching novel justice—you’ll have to read it for yourself.