Head Games

HEAD GAMES is the end of life for Hector Lassiter and I was alive in 1945 and I remember 1957 and it was hard believe all this was going on. But I just heard on the radio about the drug fighting going on now 2009 in Mexico. Also heard about Yale University Skull & Bones collecting old Indian chief bones so the HEAD GAMES is not so hard to believe. I also read his TOROS & TORSOS later book of a earlier version of Hector Lassiter with other horrible acts of man on man, or should I say woman on man. The bottom line is that the research that had to be done to write this book is worth reading just to get an idea of what was happening at this time in history unknown to most of us.

This was a hit in my book. Reading Head Games was reminiscent of reading some of the great crime noir of the past, especially the author's namesake (sic), John D. MacDonald. Such a cool feeling to read this stuff again. And with the backdrop of 1957, the New Mexico-Mexico border, the set of A Touch of Evil and sex with black and white bombshells, this debut novel really left me satisfied, smiling and wanting more. So if you don't know what Pancho Villa used the cactus for, read the book and you'll never look at a cactus the same way.

Craig McDonald's first book is a winner. It has a lot of things going for it: originality, great dialogue, a dark streak of humor, and probably most important of all a main character that is, in this day of dime a dozen protagonists who seem interchangeable, a breath of fresh air. Hector Lassiter is many things: a one-time pulp writer, a novelist, a screenwriter, an adventurer, a lover of fine women, and a man who is willing to do what it takes to get the job done. In this case the job is to thwart the bad guys and return the long decapitated head of Mexican legend Pancho Villa to its true resting place. You can read a detailed summation of the plot here already, so no need for me to go into that. But what I would like to impress on a curious reader who is thinking of giving this book a try is that Hector is not like many other crime novel protagonists. He's a man with flaws and a definite dark side. He does some things that will make you wonder about his moral compass, but definitely make him more human and believable. For those of you who are sick of so many of todays crime series heroes who never seem to age or change or develop this book is for you, because Hector ages, changes and develops right here in this one book. I loved the book and wait with much anticipation for the prequel which is titled Toros & Torsos and is due out in late Summer/early Fall. I hope Mr. McDonald will treat us to many more of his imaginative works because he is simply a first rate writer.

Head Games is a darkly funny and action packed story that introduces crime writer Hector Lassiter. Hector is a hard drinking hard living man's man who has worn himself out from self abuse, but doesn't want to slow down. And in this book, he doesn't have much choice anyway. Hector has come into possession of the skull of Pancho Villa. Like Rick's transit visas in Casablanca, it seems that Hector will never be lonely as long as he has that infamous skull. He is pursued across Mexico and California by federales, frat boys, and the father of a future Presidential dynasty. Along the way, Hector makes time to visit old friends like Marlene Dietrich and Orson Welles who are in the middle of filming noir classic "A Touch of Evil." Towards the end of the book, we even get to meet a young man named George W at the Skull and Bones Tomb on the campus at Yale. The book is a great read on many levels. There is enough action, cussing, and violence to satisfy Quenton Tarantino. But this is a thinking person's novel too. There are literal and figurative "Head Games" going on thoughout the book. Hector Lassiter is trying to plot his way out of his predicament like he would plot one of his own crime novels. He succeeds on some levels, but finds that he is unable to control the people he comes in contact with the same way he can control characters in his novels. Author McDonald maintains complete control over an amazing cast of characters in "Head Games." The plot and the writing will keep you turning the pages. The clever and ironic dialogue will keep you smiling. If you like crazy road stories filled with wild characters (a la Kerouac), with a secretive and manipulative organization out to get the main character (think DaVinci Code in Connecticut), along with the sense of humor of Comedy Central's Daily Show, you will love this novel.

Head, head, who's got the head? Ok, it really is a book about people chasing other people who may or may not have Pancho Villa's head. It really is, no kidding. And with that absurd premise Craig McDonald has written a book that actually works as a boisterous, thrill filled action adventure that is a blast to read. The legend of Villa's head being stolen by Harvard's Skull and Bones Society has been documented throughout the years. It was brought up during the Presidential campaign because rumor had it that Preston Bush- yup, of those Bushes- was involved at the time. McDonald uses these myths to form the basis for the aptly titled Head Games. He creates a hard boiled crime writer, his newbie interviewer, a beautiful Mexican girl and throws them into the middle of the fight for possession of Villa's decapitated head (now a skull.) It is filled with car chases, lots of blood and a little love. Head Games is a novel with a strong plot, characters who are characters and plenty of action. Lines like "But talking about your plans is the surest way to make God laugh " prove McDonald's writing prowess. This also shows one of the book's strengths- it sense of humor. McDonald never takes his characters seriously, he lets them run amok with just enough leash on them to prevent them from getting totally out of hand. His crime writer, Lassiter, hangs out with the big wigs of the 1950s- Hemingway, Dietrich and Welles are all brought into the scene. The plot thread that has Lassiter not speaking to Hemingway over a past argument adds a fun touch of fictitious realism. The pile of bodies grows, the number of enemies is ever increasing and the chase seems never ending. And characters from history traipse through the pages, recapturing their forgotten place in our little remembered past. The other surprising strength of the book is its ending, Book 2. It has its end of the adventure, culminating climax that is expected. But the continuation of the story through the years to the book's and the story's actual ending is a charming twist. It adds pathos and emotion to the over all appeal and depth to the book. Unexpected yet appreciated. Bleak House has again found an author and his book that is just off the norm into the creative and diverse. Head Games is a serous bit of black hearted tomfoolery that entertains and diverts.