Texas by the Tail

By: Jim Thompson

Narrated by: Jeff Brick

To everyone he's every played dice with, Mitch Corley seems like the luckiest guy around. But in truth, Corley's fast hands are the only gift fate's ever given him. He's never held down a steady job, and when it comes to women, his luck might just be the worst of all -- his girlfriend and partner-in-crime Red would double-cross him in a heartbeat if she knew just how short on cash they really were. And if Red ever finds out about the wife Corley neglected to mention, there's a good chance that Corley might not survive the night.

At first, Mitch was sure Texas would be the perfect place for him and Red to run their game -- there are players in nearly every back room and side-street across the state and here, the pockets run just a little deeper. But Corley forgot about one thing: Texans don't forgive easily. And there's nothing they hate more than a cheater.

Not Bad for a Jim Thompson Novel

The story and characters are all good albeit most weren’t fleshed out. However, a good noir novel.

The world was a sh!tpot with a barbed-wire handle

“The world was a sh!tpot with a barbed-wire handle and the further he could kick it the better he liked it.”
― Jim Thompson, Texas by the Tail

Not exactly crime fiction (although there is crime). Not exactly noir (maybe Texas Noir?). Texas by the Tail falls into more hustler fiction. Like most of his novels, his writing is penetrating, funny, and sharp. He fits right in with some of my favorite crime/noir/hard-boiled writers (Chandler, Hammett, Highsmith, and Leonard), this just isn't his best. It was entertaining, but I never felt trapped by the novel like I have previous Thompson novels. A solid book, just not top-shelf Thompson.