Hitmen and middle-aged women.

Max Allan Collins is one of my favorite writers. His style is incredibly blunt and, at times, sensual. This is his second Quarry book for Hard Case Crime. I had read his first one, The Last Quarry, a couple of years ago without knowing that the main character, a hitman named just Quarry, was one of Collins' on-going characters. I loved it and just recently finally got around to reading this one.

Obviously it's a prequel and a great one at that. It's the story of Quarry's first professional job as a hitman. He has to take out a college professor who's writing a damaging book that certain powerful people don't want published. Along the way he gets involved with a seductive older woman and slimy private detectives. Saying anything more will spoil it.

It's a quick read and moves very fast. People drop dead likes flies and Quarry manages to solve lots of problems with quick thinking and a gun. Now I have to throw the third book, Quarry in the Middle, onto my pile of books to read.