For those who have not read or seen the movie Drive, I’ll try and bring you up to date. The young man called Driver was left alone when his mother killed his father. A family named Smith took him in and took good care of him until one day he left, taking their car and leaving a note telling them he was SORRY!! Heading for Los Angeles, he finds people that will help him out. He becomes a stunt driver for the movies by day and seems to have found his niche in life. Unfortunately, he also comes across some people who hire him to drive for them. These people, are on the other side of the law and they eventually come after Driver, to end his career in both fields. The Driver disappears into the gloom and is incognito for about seven years. He leaves his old ways behind and takes on the new identity of Paul West, who has his own business and is about to marry his fiancée, Elsa. One day, while out walking the two of them are attacked by two men and Elsa is killed. Now, we start the sequel called Driven.
Driven picks up a few years later and Driver has become Paul West. After the tragedy of his fiancee’s death Paul goes into hiding. With the help of an old friend, Felix, he tries to get away from the folks from his criminal past, who want him out of the way. He finds a car and soups it up so he can get away from these folks and, for a time, it works. He soon finds out, however, that when he gets away from one group, another is right behind him. Eventually he has to turn and face them.
For folks who liked the movie, this book will be right up their alley. It’s pure Mickey Spillane’s Mike Hammer. It’s a short narrative that is quite satisfying as it explains what happened to the Driver. Let's hope there are more books in the works about the Driver.
Quill Says: When the driver drives away he says, "I Drive, that's what I do," and he isn't kidding. We'll definitely be seeing more of him. And, that’s OK with noir lovers.
