Slanted Jack by Mark L. Van Name

From the Publisher

Slanted Jack:  a novel that bobs and weaves, takes you on a headlong race through a strange but believable future, and never slows down.

The job looks simple enough:  Jon Moore, the nanotech-enhanced, world-weary, soldier of fortune, agrees to help a con man, a friend from a part of his past he’d rather forget, protect a very special young boy.  The deal doesn’t stay simple, as each move Jon and Lobo make results in more danger and more enemies.  The situation grows even more complicated when a beautiful woman with an unclear agenda joins them in their quest.

The best con man Jon’s ever known, a ruthless gang boss, a heavily armed group of religious fanatics, and an interstellar government out to clean up a dangerous frontier world rush together toward an explosive climax—and Jon and Lobo are caught in the middle.

Slanted Jack: the second novel in the Jon & Lobo series.

Publishers Weekly

While the character development, world building and thematic depth are mediocre at best, Van Name's flare for witty dialogue, breakneck pacing and nonstop action compensate for the narrative inadequacies and make this high-powered sequel to 2007's One Jump Ahead an undeniable page-turner. When nano-enhanced soldier of fortune Jon Moore and his sentient assault vehicle, Lobo, run into a former acquaintance, a conman and thief named Slanted Jack, Moore's kindheartedness gets him and his sarcastic battlewagon into a deadly predicament. A religious fanatic who moonlights as an arms dealer, an irate gang leader and a powerful government councilor are all ready to wring Jack's neck, and Moore becomes the target of their collective fury when Jack suddenly disappears with an allegedly psychic child and a cache of invaluable artifacts. The flat characters and undemanding plot may discourage more cerebral readers, but those who gravitate toward action-heavy story lines will find Moore's escapades highly entertaining. (July)

Jackie Cassada - Library Journal

Mercenary and former conman Jon Moore and his constant companion Lobo, an intelligent PCAV (Predator Class Assault Vehicle), get drawn into a multiplanet confidence operation revolving around a former partner and perennial troublemaker named Slanted Jack. Involving a quasireligious cult, a master arms dealer, a psychic child and the boy's self-appointed body guard, and a woman who both infuriates and attracts Jon, the operation takes Jon and Lobo to a number of planets, accessible through a series of jump gates, and keeps his several marks guessing as plans change, betrayals complicate matters, and Slanted Jack's unpredictability constantly threatens to topple Jon's intricate house of cards. Van Name's fast-paced follow-up to One Jump Ahead expands on the gritty future universe made up of expansionist governments, greedy corporations, interplanetary arms dealers-and a few decent individuals who do the right thing, even if it means breaking all the laws in the books. With strong appeal to fans of John Ringo (see p. 72) and Eric Flint, this sf adventure belongs in most libraries.

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