A DECLAN NOAKES THRILLER by LaMar Going
Book Name: The Juicy Fruit Man
Author Name: LaMar Going
Book Published on Date: 14 January, 2020
Genre: Crime, Thriller, Action
This book is the first installment in the Declan Noakes thriller book series.
The story is about Declan Noakes, a Vietnam veteran who no longer serves the army because of the injuries he suffered during the war. For survival, he gets into Thai Marijuana smuggling as a small-time drug dealer, but he wants to leave all this behind and tread the path of honesty. Meanwhile, one of his fellow ex-rangers, Ben Fisher, who was supposedly dead, shows up asking Declan to return the remaining drugs in his possession as compensation for past unsettled debts. While the cops and goons are equally chasing Declan to get their hands on Marijuana, his favorite cousin, Rachel, involuntarily gets involved in this chaos. The story thus narrates the repercussions of Declan’s past choices and the ultimate turn of events.
The complete story takes place sometime during the Vietnam War. Declan spends his days traveling to different towns or counties of Arizona to escape his traumatic past, looking for salvation. Hence, the complete narration takes place in all these locations. The flashback scenes mostly occur in Southeast Asia, specifically in countries like Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, and Laos, where he had fought the shadow wars. The title of the book justifies the plot as it involves the smuggling of the juicy fruit, Thai Marijuana.
Our protagonist, Declan, is witty, intelligent, and intuitive. However, his struggle with a traumatic past and ability to deal with vulnerable situations make his character relatable and admirable. He is a compassionate person with high principles, who values relationships the most. Meanwhile, Ben Fisher is the perfect antagonist, devoid of any empathy, and he is both deceitful and vicious. I adore Rachel as, throughout the narrative, she has exhibited a powerful personality with a pleasant sense of humor and an independent attitude. For every character, even if they are supporting roles, the author has taken special care in highlighting specific mannerisms that make them memorable.
It is a well-edited book with minimal grammatical errors. The language used is easily comprehensible. Though there are a lot of colloquial terms used, the language matches the tone of the plot, and the overall writing style is of superior quality. The gory war scenes or action sequences are overly graphic. However, these vivid descriptions make the scenes more impactful. The author has remarkably managed every storyline.
The best part about the book is that the plot twists are unpredictable. Every character plays an equally important role and justifies their inclusion in the narrative. On the downside, the interactions, even though witty, lack rib-tickling humor.
The frequent use of profanity, graphic fight sequences, and the theme of drug trafficking makes this book suitable specifically for a mature audience. Despite the absence of erotic scenes, certain derogatory remarks and racial-slurs, though in jest, might offend readers sensitive to such opinions. Hence, considering my observations, I would still recommend it to readers who prefer a well-narrated crime thriller tale.
Originally published on https://forums.onlinebookclub.org
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