The Bottom Line: Don’t miss this sharply funny, impeccably paced action thriller. Amidst an ocean of heroes who take themselves far too seriously, Luke Wesson is a breath of fresh air.
The Stuntman opens on a Hollywood movie set as Luke Wesson – doubling for actor Jordan Reese – prepares to jump his motorbike onto the roof of a moving train. After a bee sting triggers a series of edge-of-your-seat events, Luke considers himself lucky to have survived. Little does he know that doing the same scene a second time won’t be the worst part of his day.
Luke soon discovers his wife in the throes of passion with another man. Rather than confront the adulterers, Luke, who is hilariously obsessed with the fact that all this is happening on his birthday, slinks away, feeling sorry for himself. After meeting up with a hot friend and licking his wounds for a bit, he’s soon back on set – only to be arrested for his wife’s murder.
It’s an alluring setup from author Evan Graver, who first caught our attention with the action-packed spy thriller Rising Phoenix. In The Stuntman, Graver opts for a first-person narration told from Luke’s perspective. Fortunately, the resulting stream-of-consciousness, stripped-down voice is wholly believable, highly observant and entertaining, and also makes for fast reading.
As a story, The Stuntman is somewhere between the lighthearted humor and action of The Fall Guy and the over-the-top motorcycle stunts of The Place Beyond the Pines (and yes, it’s easy to envision Ryan Gosling as Luke). Graver’s hero is likable enough, and once Luke makes bail, he begins taking charge of his own destiny. As an amateur sleuth, he proves to be surprisingly entertaining. But as you’d expect, Graves excels at writing action from Luke’s point of view. In addition to the stellar opening scene, we get hand-to-hand combat, high-speed pursuits and breathtaking climbs.
Graver injects the book with some priceless dialogue (such as a couple of blowhards arguing over the use of a bowline knot), and the world-building – including local headlines about the Santa Monica Strangler – complete the LA experience. The result is a delightfully straightforward action thriller with a series-worthy hero that we definitely want to spend more time with. Highly recommended.
