Bandidos relata el encuentro en Nueva Orleans de cuatro personajes: un antiguo ladrón de bancos recién salido del trullo que lleva un cuarto de siglo sin echar un polvo; un antiguo policía expulsado del cuerpo por un descuido estúpido; una antigua monja testigo de las salvajadas más grandes del polvorín nicaragüense; y un antiguo ladrón de guante blanco que, tras un período a la sombra, trabaja en una funeraria. Los cuatro unidos por el afán de venganza de un antiguo general de Somoza en plena captación de fondos entre la aristocracia del GOP de Louisiana.

having an amoral sociopath as a villain is one thing, but an honest-to-god war criminal is another. those atrocities didn’t really jive well with the light-ish story. ( )

pan to steal donations to Contras and divert to ex-nun for leper hospital

Grandes maestros del suspenso

If you like your novels driven by mostly snap-crackling dialogue, you've found the master in Elmore Leonard and in this book published in 1987 at the height of the Nicaraguan conflict between the Sandinistas and the--then U. S. backed Contras. Mr. Leonard really shines. Then again I'm a fan so yeah.

Former Hotel thief Jack Delaney works as a morticians assistant, who's been sent to pick up a body but the body ain't really dead. Enter a former nun who used to work at a lepers hospital in Nicaragua and now wants to let loose and pinch some moola from ex-Coronel Dagoberto Godoy who's in New Orleans to collect funds for the war down there, from rich oil barons, and Republican politicos; armed with a sign and sealed letter of high praises from the champion of anti-communism himself president Ronald Reagan.

Despite the fact that this book was published a while back, the story has a fresh feel to it with believable characters that make for a very satisfying ride.

Reading this book in that unique style of his; Mr. Leonard reminds me that its all about the journey not the destination.



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