Lemons Never Lie

This 1962 gangster novel set in Las Vegas features Alan Grofield, a theater owner in need of quick money who is invited to join a brewery heist. Everything goes wrong from the beginning, when Grofield pulls three lemons on a slot machine and then walks out on the planning meeting for the heist. Steve Aveson narrates the novel with a steady voice and few characterizations, ably delivering the ironic tone of the story. In the tradition of Raymond Chandler, the plot is a little strained and the dialogue simple. Aveson is perfect as the narrator of an old-fashioned story of misadventure during the commission of a poorly planned crime. M.B.K. (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine