Straight Lies by Rob Byrnes

 

Think Ocean's 11, but instead of a professional job by a team of skilled thieves, you have a bungled attempt at blackmail, framing, and robbery by a bunch of dumbasses. Ok, maybe don't think Ocean's 11.

Chase and Grant are just a couple of guys trying to make it big in the not-so-seamy not-so-underworld of New York crime. It's refreshing, to pick up a novel at the gay section of your local book store, and not have the gay main character be all noble and deep. Let's face it, not all of us are perpetually seeking the meaning of life. Gay people, like straight people, sometimes just want to get rich fast at the expense of other's.

Grant and Chase aren't lazy; they're willing to put a lot of work and effort into their scams. No wonder their friend Jamie comes to them when he needs help locating a misplaced videocassette, a cassette that contains proof that gay film star Romeo Romero is not so gay. Their plan to blackmail Romeo with proof of his heterosexual philandering is derailed when the tape goes missing, and as they track it down, with help from an alcoholic cab driver, a lesbian realtor and her girlfriend, and a flaky twink, they go from one half-brained scheme to another.

This team of inept yet endearing wannabe criminals goes from Manhattan to the Hamptons in pursuit of their potential score, and along the way, their journey is funny, dramatic, and light-hearted. You root for the bad guys, who aren't so bad really, and after all, aren't we all a little bad, a little good? It's a Kinsey scale of morality, and an enjoyable read.

This has been a bobert review.