Synopses & Reviews
The landscape of contemporary Paris, the best restaurants, the trendiest bars and clubs, is usually filled with the wealthy, the famous, and
le rake or
le roué, the charming, educated sophisticate with little or no conscience. Into this cushy world bursts Dr. Crandall Taylor”or rather the actor who plays himthe star of a dated American soap opera that is now one of the hottest primetime shows in France. And this newfound fame, as enriching as it is unexpected, is not wasted on Crandall, eager to put his dark and often violent American past behind him and enjoy all the fruitsand the womenthat Paris and fame have to offer him.
But TV fame isnt enough. Randall wants a feature film. Every actor wants a feature film, and so Crandall uses his charm and intellect to draw into his narcissistic web four different women: an executive at the network that runs his show; an American porn star reaching new heights on the internet; a bookish university student with a slightly nasty bent; and the beautiful would-be actress wife of an arms dealer. Against his better judgment, Crandall accepts both the arms dealers cash and his beautiful wifes advances. Soon, Crandall is on the run through the alleys and streets of Paris, trying not only to fund a film but simply to stay alive. But this is no ordinary chaseand Crandall is no ordinary mouseand soon his penchant for violence, sex, and megalomania erupts into full blown war.
Rake is the latest noir classic from the author of The Ice Harvest. It features a charming, despicable anti-hero and a funny, satiric take on modern entertainment culture. Phillips turns his gimlet eye on the lush life of an actor who, on his destructive tour through Paris, crosses the line from garden variety narcissism into full-fledged psycopathy.
Synopsis
Celebrity and crime pay off big time for an American sociopath in Paris in "one of the great joys in new noir fiction" (Los Angeles Review of Books).
Dr. Crandall Taylor--or rather the actor who plays him--is enjoying a cushy new life in the City of the Lights where his now-cancelled American soap opera has become a prime time retro cult hit. This newfound stardom isn't wasted on him. Anxious to keep his brutal past a secret from fans, he's enjoying all the fruits that fame has to offer: adulation, entr e into the trendiest clubs, and sex. What he really wants is to fund a feature film.
Crandall uses his charm and intellect to draw into his narcissistic web four women: a horny network executive; an internet porn star; a bookish university student with a nasty bent; and the fetching starlet wife of an arms dealer. Crandall accepts both the crime lord's cash and his beautiful wife's advances. Big mistake. Now Crandall must channel his violent, megalomaniacal dark side just to stay alive--and on the run.
From the national bestselling author of The Ice Harvest comes "an ingeniously twisty old-school noir along the lines of James M. Cain" (Spinetingler Magazine). With it, the "mad, bad, and dangerous to know . . . quintessential American huckster . . . and in Phillip's sly, deft hands we find ourselves sinking down eagerly with him, glorying in the beautiful muck" (Edgar Award-winning author Megan Abbott).
About the Author
Scott Phillips is the author of The Ice Harvest, The Walkaway, Cottonwood, and The Adjustment. He was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, and lived for many years in France.