Gischler released his first novel, Gun Monkeys, in 2001. After several false starts, it will finally be released as a major motion picture starring Pierce Brosnan, Morena Baccarin, and (in his final role) the late James Caan. It is not clear right now when the movie will be in theaters near you although it has been previewed at an October 2023 movie festival. The book is being re-released by Hard Case Crime as Fast Charlie to follow along with the movie title.
If you are looking for a fast-paced, hardboiled crime novel that is filled with cover to cover action, you are not going to find anything better than this. It’s a mix of Goodfellas with pulp noir elements and features the misadventures of a gun monkey, Charlie Swift, caught in the middle of a battle between two warring factions in Orlando.
When there is a change of corporate management, it’s always stressful on the peons. Heads often roll and loyalty often seems not to matter. Here, Charlie is rather unhappy when Stan and Stan’s team seem to have outlived their usefulness to the Outfit. The thing is though such a corporate restructuring is extremely painful and often fatal when dealing with criminal elements.
Charlie though decides he’s not going to just pick up stakes and leave. He’s loyal, this one. And he’s going to try to pull off whatever he can to protect whoever is left on his side when the smoke clears – and there aren’t many.
But what’s really incredible about this book is the voice it’s told in. It is told in a matter of fact tone that just draws you in. This book has more gunfire and bodies wrapped in plastic and and all out battles than almost any other book. And it’s hot that gallows humor thing going right from the start.
This is what happens when the crime boss you’re working for disappears and your other gun monkeys are taken out one by one, an army of trained killers and FBI agents are on your tail, and you have to figure out who gave you up.
Pulp, Crime, & Mystery Books 