Jordan Harper’s fast-paced debut novel, She Rides Shotgun, opens with a disturbingly haunting introduction to “Crazy” Craig Hollington, the leader of a gang known as Aryan Steel. Utterly Brilliant. Confident, brutal, but always human, Jordan Harper's She Rides Shotgun is a violent parable of family and sacrifice. She Rides Shotgun Jordan Harper. Nate made dangerous enemies in prison: a gang called Aryan Steel has put out a bounty on his head, counting on its members on the outside to finish him off. I totally loved it. It’s been a while since I felt so totally in the heads of each of the main characters. Nate, all tattoos, shaved head, hard body and faded blue eyes, shows up at Poll. Jordan Harper will sign and discuss She Rides Shotgun (Ecco Press; $26.99).. Jordan Harper was born and educated in Missouri. Unable to add item to List. I loved it! The best debut novel that I've read this year. She Rides Shotgun is a gripping and emotionally wrenching novel that upends even our most long-held expectations about heroes, villains, and victims. Think Mack Bolan in Pendleton's War Against the Mafia with a lone one-man, one-little girl, and one ferocious bear against the united might of the Aryan Steel prison gang. Get this from a library! Lots of action. Does this book contain quality or formatting issues? Find all the books, read about the author, and more. At several points, the writing becomes too enamored with itself but this was a fun, bloody, read. Polly has only dim memories of her father, Nate, who has been in prison for much of her life. Fighting to just stay alive. His skin told his history in tattoos and knife scars. Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2018, Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2018. Marked for death on his release, Nate soon realizes that everyone he has ever loved is a target - including his daughter, Po. for a grim yet moving tale about an ex-con’s efforts to protect his young daughter. That soon as you found something to live for, you found something to die for too. Will they ever be able to live an honest life, free of fear? The Apprenticeship of Nigel Blackthorn (The Apprentice Series Book 1), American Terrorist (The Rayna Tan Action Thriller Series Book 1), Manipulate: A Crime Action Suspense Novel (The Noah Reid Thrillers Book 3). Eleven-year-old Polly McClusky is shy, too old for the teddy bear she carries with her everywhere, when she is unexpectedly reunited with her father, Nate, fresh out of jail and driving a stolen car. What really makes this novel purr like a slick race car is that Harper takes the rough, nasty, vicious world of prison gangs, meth heads, no-holds-barred retaliation and juxtaposes it with an eleven-year-old misfit princess who carries around a teddy bear and acts as if it's alive. Set in California, this is a terrific example of grit lit with a strong father/daughter relationship at its core. He teaches her to: Story hits the ground running which i like. He has been a music journalist, film critic, and TV writer. Thanks to Nate's actions in prison, Polly isn't safe, and the next few weeks are a whirlwind of robberies, strength training, and brainstorming ways to survive the hit that the prison gang Aryan Steel has put out on the two of them. Think Ryan and Tatum O' Neal in Paper Moon, a father- daughter team committing legendary exploits. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. This item has a maximum order quantity limit. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. Jordan Harper was born and educated in Missouri. But this shy young girl is forced to grow up fast when her mother is killed and Polly goes on the run with her dad. She Rides Shotgun audiobook by Jordan Harper, narrated by David Marantz. She barely knows this man—even though he is definitely her Dad. lovers of great writing, exciting crime novels, and Lone Wolf and Cub-type stories, Well, to use a bad pun, She Rides Shotgun is one wild ride. She's fresh and winning...A gritty, dark thriller packed with action. Do you believe that this item violates a copyright? Visceral...Expert pacing and well-developed characters lift this above the thriller pack. Like. Not too long ago I read another book with a plot somewhat similar to this novel. Nate, in turn, learns what it’s like to love fiercely and unconditionally—a love he’s never quite felt before. She Rides Shotgun is a gripping and emotionally wrenching novel that upends even our most long-held expectations about heroes, villains, and victims. She Rides Shotgun (Book) : Harper, Jordan : When enemies from his time in prison put a bounty on his head and target his family, Nate McClusky takes his eleven-year-old daughter Polly from in front of her school into a world of robbery, violence, and the constant threat of capture, or death. It’s been a while since I felt so totally in the heads of each of the main characters. Rita Mae Brown (born November 28, 1944) is an American feminist writer, best known for her coming-of-age autobiographical novel, Rubyfruit Jungle.Brown was active in a number of civil rights campaigns, but tended to feud with their leaders over the marginalising of lesbians within the feminist groups. Marked for death, she will have to fight and steal to stay alive, learning from the most frightening man she knows--her father. Hollington lives in a Supermax cell at Pelican Bay State Prison, “where the lights were on for twenty-four hours a day [and] he couldn’t own anything firmer than a Q-tip.” The characters' loyalty, love, and struggle for redemption grip the reader and don't let go. Nate is a robber who has just been released from prison where he ran into trouble with Crazy Craig, the leader of Aryan Steel. In Polly McClusky, the eleven-year-old girl at the heart of his darkly irresistible debut novel She Rides Shotgun, Jordan Harper gives us a hero for our times. Review by Max Booth III. Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK. Eleven year old Polly still carries her teddy bear with her everywhere. And he does it to save her life. To get the free app, enter your mobile phone number. It left me a bit unsettled. And he does it to save her life. When he gets to their house he finds his Ex and her husband dead, which are Polly's Mom and Step Dad. Jordan Harper is a Missouri native who’s been fascinated with crime since childhood, likely due to a familial involvement in law enforcement. Nate takes Polly to save her life, but in the end it may very well be Polly who saves him. He has been a music journalist, film critic, and TV writer. Marked for death on his release, Nate soon realizes that everyone he has ever loved is a target - including his daughter, Polly. This is the good stuff. Craig runs the Aryan Steel criminal enterprises from prison and he issues a death warrant on the race traitor Nate and his entire family, including his 11 year old daughter Polly. Start by marking “She Rides Shotgun” as Want to Read: Error rating book. She Rides Shotgun is a gripping and emotionally wrenching novel that upends even our most long-held expectations about heroes, villains, and victims. She decides she is from Venus, carries her bedraggled teddy bear everywhere with her, and misses her Dad who was sent to prison years ago. SHE RIDES SHOTGUN by Jordan Harper ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 6, 2017 In his first novel, Harper returns to the seamy criminal fringe he explored in his story collections (Love and Other Wounds, 2015, etc.) 5 Stars !!! Crazy Craig found out that Nate killed his brother. On the night that Nate was released from prison he found out that Crazy Craig had issued naming him a dead man along with his Ex and his daughter Polly. OMG !!!!! bear was so brave, indeed! Top subscription boxes – right to your door, © 1996-2021, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Literary Fiction. The developing relationship between father and daughter was a joy to “see”. They’ve already murdered his ex-wife, Polly’s mother. Awesome turn of phrases and groovy metahors. I loved the duo. I felt like I was reading something from a veteran author, one who has honed his craft and fine-tuned his writing voice over many years and many books. Edgar Award for Best First Novel 2018. With shades of Mattie Ross but an intelligence and fervor all her own, she is unforgettable. *WINNER OF A 2018 EDGAR AWARD FOR BEST DEBUT NOVEL*, NAMED A BEST BOOK OF 2017 BY St. Louis Post-Dispatch • Booklist. Crazy Craig is the president of the prison gang known as Aryan Steel, which made him the president of all the dirty white boys in California. And Polly is their next target. Maybe more than a bit. This is an update of a previous post by Sharon Rickson.. I've just added it to my "Want to read" list. When released, a hit or "greenlight" is put on the convict, his eleven year old daughter and ex-wife. In the first book the father had a choice, he could have left his daughter to be raised by her grandmother, in this Nate has no choice. Nate takes Polly to save her life, but in the end it may very well be Polly who saves him. He takes her from the front of her school into a world of robbery, violence, and the constant threat of death. Now, forced into hiding by the greenlight placed upon them, Nate finds himself having to teach his estranged daughter how to survive in a kill-or-be-killed world, all the while observed by Polly's teddy bear, who is soon the only outlet for the little girl's emotions. Check out selected results from NYPL Title Quest 2019, held August 2, 2019, as well as Title Quest 2018.. Will they ever be able to live an honest life, free of fear? Rather than go to the mall together (an activity that they both hate), Melinda’s mother decides that her daughter will take the bus to her store, Effert’s, to shop. 1 likes. Eleven-year-old Polly is smart far beyond her years. Crime, a strong family bond between a father and his daughter, (as well as a stuffed animal), lots of violence which at times was hard to read yet the story was so compelling, I absolutely couldn't stop !! But he guessed in the end it was a good trade.”, Barry Award Nominee for Best First Novel (2018). “She buried her head in a towel. 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