A Review of Feelers by Brian M. Wiprud

Ever wonder what happens to the junk in someone's house when someone dies and the next of kin has no idea what to do with it? They call people like Morty Martinez, the main character from Feelers by Brian M. Wiprud. Morty Martinez is a "feeler", a specialist in home content removal. These shady characters swoop in to rid houses of their junk and as part of the deal get to keep anything of value inside. During one job, while moving an old couch, Morty finds $800,000 in "tight ones", small cans of tightly rolled wads of cash.

At the same time, prison assassin Danny Kessel has just been released. Danny was part of a heist of 5 million dollars and is ready to collect his spoils. Unfortunately, the home where he'd stashed the money is empty. Armed with three ice picks and a meat tenderizer, he begins a relentless and bloody quest toward finding the guy who took the money. Soon Morty finds himself facing the wraith of Kessel, cops, fellow feelers, and a few hangers on, all of whom have heard about Morty's good fortune and who want a piece of it.

There is nothing more exciting to a reader than seeing an author he enjoys hit one out of the park, and Brian M. Wiprud does here with Feelers. While I have enjoyed the Garth Carson / Nicholas Palihnic series by Wiprud, these books did not prepare me for the darkly humorous, and amusingly vulgar ride he took me on in Feelers. In Feelers, Wiprud creates a completely believable world of shady business people, cops, criminals, and day workers and weaves the story through a series of unexpected twists and turns that never feel forced. As with his Garth Carson series, he takes us into a career choice that wouldn't necessarily seem to lead to intrigue and spins it into something completely original. As I read Feelers, I could see the book turned into an amusingly dark little comedy film along the lines of something that the Coen Brothers would direct.

If you enjoy the wacky worlds created by people like Carl Hiaasen and Elmore Leonard, you'll love Brian M. Wiprud's Feelers. If there is any justice in the world, this will be the book that helps Brian M. Wiprud top the best seller lists. Highly recommended.