‘Mine All Mine’ by Adam Davies

  In Adam Davies’ romantic comedy “Mine All Mine,” Otto Starks’ life begins falling apart.
  Once a top pulse, or highly trained security guard, he watches as his career is shattered by the Rat Burglar, a thief who steals looted art and gives it back to the rightful owner. Otto, hired to protect some of these very expensive pieces of art, is rolled four times by the Rat Burglar, and not only is he demoted, but the cops begin to suspect the thefts are an inside job and that Otto is involved.
  Otto turns to his girlfriend, art history professor Charlie Izzo, for comfort. Otto has kept his job secret from Charlie, and just before he decides to come clean with her and pop the question, she runs off. A stunned Otto becomes even more puzzled when suspicious pictures of Charlie surface. He sets out in search of the truth and enlists the help of some very colorful characters.
  The characters are what makes “Mine All Mine” an enjoyable read. Davies, also the author of "Goodbye Lemon" and "The Frog King," creates some funny images, especially with Kong, a criminal tech mastermind.
  "Kong’s appearance lives up to his sobriquet in more ways than the speediness of his anger. Sprouting from his shirt cuffs, his tightly cinched collar, the gaps between buttons are dense patches of coarse, black, gorilla-like hair. His body is carpeted in it; his beard begins under his eyes and only barely spares his nose; there are tufts of dark hair protruding from his aural canal and attached to his pinna, making his ear look like a bristling Venus flytrap. He is not the Wolfman, exactly, but he could cover for him on a sick day."
  The other great quality of the book is the dialogue.
  “ ‘Do you know what this is?’
  “He raises the curling iron in front of my face, moving it in a threatening circle.
   “ ‘Wax on?’ I say.
  “He punches me in the side of the head. It’s not as bad as a hammer, but it’s close.
  “ ‘Try again,’ he says, rotating slowly.
  “ ‘Wax off?’ ’’
  The plot of “Mine All Mine” is pretty predictable, but the comedy in this crime caper kept me turning pages.