As is common with crime thrillers built on humor, The Coaster is more about people than plot. Structural defects, though, are forgiven for Wurster's dark comedic talent, memorable for its delicious doses of immaturity: a wise guy vs. wiseguys. Like its namesake, there lurks within The Coaster more than suspected, especially the unexpected reward of a suburban crime spree story in which husband and wife fight through to salvation by trusting, rather than murdering, one another....Tom Swanson never comprehended what Sarah Patterson knew all along: The coaster is not what he pretends to be.....
--Chris Lazzarino "
Kansas Alumni Magazine"
Bob Patterson is a coaster; a guy who ties his fortunes to someone higher up the food chain. His job as head of a division of his father-in-law's company doesn't require much input from him. His wife, Sarah, is president of Bennett Capital, and their life is well regulated; galas and benefits and rescuing horses and occasional lovemaking keep Bob going. Suddenly, Sarah's father dies, leaving Bob as the trustee of Sam Bennett's multibillion-dollar personal fortune. What's a coaster to do? When blackmail and murder raise their ugly heads, Bob finds out he actually can accomplish quite a lot when necessary. VERDICT Aficionados of comic mysteries such as those by Tim Dorsey will delight in Wurster's laconic, humorous prose; Bob's wry, self-deprecating, and hilarious musings offer keen observations on everything from sports to sex. (starred review)
--Howard J Katz "
Library Journal"
I really liked this book. I really did. I was expecting a run of the mill, average man in trouble with bad guys book, but got so much more. Wurst is an excellent writer, his smooth, unadorned prose is Infused with the right amount of sarcasm and humor. It's different. Try it.
-- "
NetGalley"
Readers might think of a comical Breaking Bad intertwined with Secrets and Lies.
--Elise Cooper "
Black Five"
Readers must be warned: don't let the first 26 pages put you off this fine novel. Wurster is setting up a story involving corporate jerks and has his narrator, Bob Patterson, come off as a primo jerk. In a short space, he belittles wife, colleagues, anybody unfortunate enough to swim within his ken. But then his father-in-law, who subsidized Patterson's plush, pointless life, dies, leaving Patterson, for no apparent reason, in charge of his investment empire. Readers who have hung on will be rewarded, as Wurster spins a devious plot out of his hero's bewilderment. Sharks appear, and Patterson battles them, but this is not a heartwarming story of one man's redemption through steady employment. As he learns what this corner of corporate America is really up to, Patterson reveals a treacherous streak of his own. The style is witty and knowing, as when Patterson wishes he had a cold-blooded but loyal killer chum to rescue him, just like those pop-novel detectives. The violent finale boils with surprises, all the while staying mordantly funny. A rumbustious read.
-- "
Booklist"
Wait til you meet Bob, a man who appears to be a bit on the boring side, who doesn't work very hard at his job, he gets into all kinds of trouble with his brilliant wife, Sarah, since he is usually not being straight with her, and then, just when you think Bob has gotten everyone into deep s*** and they are all going to be killed, Bob rises to the occasion and is much cleverer than everyone thought. This hilarious book is fun throughout but the last few chapters are brilliant. The reader never sees what is coming. This is exactly how a real mystery story should be perfectly done! A fabulous ending with plenty of bad guys with guns and plenty of smart conversation between Bob, THE Man, and his wife, Sarah. I did not want to leave Bob's life, as wild and crazy as it was. What great fun!
--Susan Wasson "
Bookworks"
Wow! A great new and original protagonist. A fast talking slacker (coaster) who is completely aware and unashamed of his abilities and imperfections. Read this book for hundreds of fabulous Bobservations such as: I haven't seen acting that bad since Dan Langham asked what you thought of his wife's new boobs, Sarah said. They were lopsided, I said. It was like staring at someone who has a lazy eye. Also, Some people are just naturally confident. They don't feel pressure like the rest of us. They always think they're going to come through. It doesn't even occur to them they might fail. In everyday life, these people are known as assholes. This book made me laugh many times. Bob is hysterical and is a character I would love hear more from in the future.
--Jeff Smith "
NetGalley"
Wurster salts his first novel, a tale of greed and mayhem, with an ironic and engaging commentary on the foibles of modern mankind. Bob Patterson is a pleasant incompetent whose greatest achievement until this story begins was marrying well. On the sudden death of his father-in-law, a Kansas City, Mo., business mogul, Bob is unexpectedly appointed executor of the extensive estate instead of his supercompetent wife, Sarah. When erstwhile fraternity buddy Dave Corny Cornwallis unaccountably visits, and a slick salesman, Tom Swanson, pushes a business proposal that turns out to be too good to be true, events rapidly churn into a whirlpool of criminal madness. Bob finds inner resources he never knew he had as one ordeal presages the next, even more dire calamity. But with Sarah's help, Bob manages to cope and survive. There are perhaps a few too many discourses on the absurd aspects of society and the human condition, plus a noticeable plot hole or two, but all in all Wurster has delivered an exciting and enjoyable read.
-- "
Publishers Weekly"
Wurster's first novel plunges an amiable Kansas City househusband, a self-described coaster, into perilously deep waters - first financial, then criminal. Robert Patterson has always been content to let his wife bring home the bacon. As president of The Bennett Company, Sarah pulls down a hefty salary and serves as heir apparent to her founding father, who remains CEO. But when Samuel Bennett dies just short of his 70th birthday, his will provides the first of a series of shocks. It turns out that in order to take advantage of an arcane wrinkle in the tax code, Sam has named his lightweight son-in-law, not his savvy wife or daughter, as the trustee responsible for administering his considerable holdings. Bob thinks his minder, James Madison, will condemn him to endless rounds of pointless meetings and interchangeable pitch sessions from hopeful inventors looking for venture capital. He's only half right, because one of those pitches is anything but interchangeable. Tom Swanson, the smiling frontman for Sanitol Solutions, wants Bob to back his revolutionary new method for cleaning up messes, all kinds of messes, without toxic chemicals or unsightly traces or, really, any traces at all. Discovering that Sam originally passed on Sanitol, Bob prepares to do the same, little knowing that Swanson has considerably more resources at his disposal, and considerably fewer scruples, for securing Bob's backing. Only after a pleasantly improbable series of escalating complications, including a direct encounter with Sanitol's Muffin Monster, will Bob be ready for the conveniently pat resolution. With its fish-out-of-water plot and cartoonish characters, this would make a perfect beach read for account executives and unprepared heirs.
-- "
Kirkus Reviews"
