Shamus Award winner Ian Vasquez is a rising star in the world of noir, and he reaches new heights with Mr. Hooligan, a gripping, hardboiled story of a man fighting to escape to a new life—-or die trying.
Riley James was small-time, just a kid running messages and money for the Monsanto Brothers, the real players in Belize City. Then one slip in judgment left two men dead. The Monsantos handled the situation for their young protégé—-but accepting this favor put Riley inescapably in their debt.
Now, years later, he's a pro picking up drug drops under the Coast Guard's nose and guiding boats through the reefs, which was something he wanted as a kid but not anymore. He wants out once and for all, and to cancel his debt, he makes a deal with the Monsantos to do one last run. It's Riley's last chance to scrape back to even, to nothing, to a place where he hasn't been since he was just a kid.