Just Thieves

Frank’s day job is as a thief, but he believes himself a philosopher at heart, and uses his constant learning and contemplation to justify his ways. Ownership isn’t real anyway, he tells his partner, Rick, during their long stakeouts. There are hints that the two are a couple, but love or any kind of emotion seems beyond Rick, whose ennui and lack of agency sees him take on a life of crime because, whatever, it’s all the same. Mr. Froehmer, a crime boss who will remind readers of Breaking Bad’s Mr. Fring—aloof, sparing of details—assigns the partners seemingly meaningless things to steal, and they’re off on a trajectory that eventually sees Rick forced to take hold of the reins when his mentor can no longer make their decisions. Readers will love to hate Denise, Rick’s shifty ex, and will cheer Rick as an unlikely hero when he shakes off the blahs and takes charge of what matters. Fans of dialog-rich novels are the audience for this thoughtful noir from Galloway (Careful and Other Stories; The 39 Deaths of Adam Strand).