Jimmy Veeder is simple kind of guy who just wants to get married, raise his son, drink beer with his friends, and work on his farm. Unfortunately, he’s also the kind of guy who can accidently get on the bad side of a drug cartel kingpin while on his honeymoon in Mexico. In other words, poor ole Jimmy is just a shit magnet.

The books in this series are labeled as Jimmy Veeder Fiascos, and this third one certainly lives up to that billing. After Jimmy’s ill-fated trip to Mexico he returns to his home town in California’s Imperial Valley, but with a small army of cartel goons hot on his trail Jimmy has to turn to his friends for help. Since most of Jimmy’s pals are a collection of small town hell-raisers who thrive on drinking and fighting it isn’t exactly a group of tactical geniuses he can call on. But then again it’s not exactly like Jimmy is known for his long term planning skills either.

Johnny Shaw is one of those writers who is just flat-out funny. Both Jimmy’s first person narration and the dialogue are laced with hilarious lines that get me to laugh out loud, and he’s got a knack for mixing that with action along with some emotional stakes to feel like it all matters. I also appreciate that with Jimmy he’s created a regular fella with a good heart who isn’t a bad ass and really doesn’t want to hurt anyone even as he frequently finds himself in violent situations. Shaw does an equally good job at portraying the rural lifestyle and the oddball characters you might find there. I come from farm country so I’ve known more than a few people exactly like Jimmy’s buddies in my life. Just as Shaw presents them you’ll never have a more loyal friend who can nearly get you killed in ways you can’t imagine, and they’ll usually have a beer in their hand while it happens.

Fans of Joe R. Lansdale’s Hap & Leonard series should definitely give these books a try because they share a lot of the same DNA, but Shaw has got his own style and rhythm that’s he’s pretty much honed to perfection at this point. This was just pure madcap fun to read.

Full Disclosure – I once contributed an unpaid review to the Shaw’s Blood & Tacos e-zine.

Copy furnished by Net Galley for the price of a review.

If you are ready for some high octane hijinks and shenanigans served up with a bottomless shot glass of hilarious banter, you need look no further. Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves are back in action, and this time they are at odds with dueling Mexican drug cartels. Bobby is revving up his old Ranchero, ready to rumble. His carefully coiffed bone-white Elvis pompadour remains intact, and he's still spoiling for the next fight. Brothers Buck-Buck and Snout Buckley continue to be game for anything thrown their way.

What a treat to have Jimmy and Bobby back. There is serious business afoot, but the tone is kept fairly light by the ongoing back and forth patter of these two. Still giggling about Jimmy's fear of Angie's rather formidable <b>corn nut toenail</b>. That cracked me up. I love these guys.

When Tomas Morales tracks down Juan's grandfather, Jimmy Veeder and his wife head to Mexico for a honeymoon and to meet up with him, with Bobby Maves and Grizelda in tow. Little does Jimmy Veeder know that he's stepping into a hornet's nest of drug dealers and killers...

I got this from Netgalley.

Johnny Shaw's dimwitted duo, Jimmy Veeder and Bobby Maves, are back and in fine form. Jimmy gets married and heads to Mexico, only to stir up trouble as only he and Bobby Maves can. Things have changed since the last book, however. Jimmy has build a good life with Angie and Juan and has a lot more to lose.

As with the previous book, the humor is the star of the show. The book is peppered with hilarious lines, shades of early Joe Lansdale. In fact, if Joe Lansdale ever chooses to die and his estate wants to farm Hap and Leonard out to someone, he could do a lot worse than Johnny Shaw.

Speaking of Lansdale, Imperial Valley reminded me of Captains Outrageous, both because of the humor and of the structure, with the first half taking place in Mexico and the second, when the conflict comes home. While I knew Jimmy and Bobby wouldn't die, there were some tense moments.

One thing did irk me, however. When a book is this hilarious, it kind of deflates the sense of jeopardy. When everyone is cracking wise, it's hard to take the violence seriously. That being said, this book is high on violence but higher on laughs. I lost count of lines I would have uttered aloud if anyone was sitting within earshot.

Honestly, the third Jimmy Veeder fiasco does not disappoint. It's as funny as the previous two. Four out of five stars. Special bonus points to Shaw for including the world's deadliest Mexican from Blood & Tacos #1 for a cameo appearance.

IMPERIAL VALLEY: A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco
Johnny Shaw
Thomas & Mercer
ISBN 978-1503941298
Trade Paperback
Thriller

The cover legend “A Jimmy Veeder Fiasco” is a guarantee of good reading. IMPERIAL VALLEY, the third of author Johnny Shaw’s book to bear those words, is the best of the lot to date. Veeder is a farmer in Imperial Valley, an impoverished area along the California-Mexico border. Veeder lives, if you will, in the middle of the middle of nowhere, a geographical location which does not prevent him from finding trouble and vice versa. Part of the reason for this comes in the form of Bobby Maves, Veeder’s lifelong friend. Think of Maves and Veeder as a kind of alcoholic Cheech and Chong, without the fried brains and with superior firepower. Maves, however, is as loyal as they come, as is demonstrated throughout the series in general and in IMPERIAL VALLEY in particular.

Jimmy, as IMPERIAL VALLEY begins, is trying to put his hellraising aside and making an attempt to settle down, as it were. His plans for taking some tentative steps in that direction include marrying Angie, the love of his life, and raising Juan, his son (who is also his half-brother). It is tough to do good, however, when one of your childhood friends is all grown up and is the crime lord of the Mexican state of Mexicali. The friend, Tomas Morales, shows up on Jimmy and Angie’s special day bearing gifts and information. The gift is an all-expense paid honeymoon for Angie and Jimmy at a five star vacation resort in Mexico. The information concerns Juan. Tomas has located Fernando Palomera, Juan’s grandfather. He is reputed to be living out his golden years as the mayor of a mountain village between Mazatlan and Durango. Jimmy decides to combine their honeymoon with duty, feeling the need to let Palomera know about the fate of his daughter and the existence of his grandson. The honeymoon, for as long as it lasts, is wonderful for Jimmy and Angie, even when Bobby and his soulmate Griselda crash it. Things go bottoms up, however when the obligation part of the trip kicks in. Palomera is a crime lord in the area, and decides that he wants his newly discovered grandson back with him. Veeder and Angie demur, of course, and what began as an idyllic honeymoon concludes with the quartet of friends and lovers fleeing Mexico for their lives, having endangered not only themselves but also Juan, who waits for them back home in Imperial Valley. Jimmy thinks that will be the end of the matter, but it’s wishful thinking. And that is just Part One of IMPERIAL VALLEY. While the pacing of the first half of IMPERIAL VALLEY ebbs and flows a bit before going gonzo, Part Two begins with menace in the air and on on the street. It’s not a question of whether trouble is coming; it’s a question of when. And come it does, in due course and repeatedly. Jimmy makes plans to cut off the trouble at its source, but not before Palomera launches an all-out effort to wipe Jimmy off the map and bring Juan to Mexico. The result is forty pages or so of mayhem, which leaves many things changed and at least one popular character taken off of the radar. Some things, however, remain the same, for better and for worse.

IMPERIAL VALLEY is violent in spots and hilarious throughout, thanks in part to the half-maniacal and quietly dangerous Mapes, who remains cool under fire while providing inappropriate repartee at the drop of a hat or the click of a hammer. I wouldn’t mind seeing Mapes get equal billing on the titles or, barring that, a series of his own. The chemistry between Jimmy and Angie and Jimmy and Mapes is the real star and charm of these books, however, and the humor that shoots through the prose makes coming back again and again worth the price of admission. I’m hoping that this series, and these engaging characters, will be back for several more appearances in the future. Recommended.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
© Copyright 2017, The Book Report, Inc. All rights reserved.

anytime you can read a johnny shaw book, consider yourself lucky. this one is back to form for him, love the characters and the fact that jimmy is trying to settle down is a bonus, makes for a better story when there is family involved in the book

Getting a new Johnny Shaw book always puts me in a really good mood.

Especially if it's one featuring two of my all time favorite characters. Jimmy and Bobby. Those two pretty much guarantee a good time.

They haven't changed much...
I had always tried to do the right thing, even when I seemed to consistently make things worse. Now it was time to do the wrong thing. I hoped that worked out better.

Jimmy starts off the book by finally marrying Angie. You think things would be calm now that he has settled down and they are in the middle of newlywed bliss. You'd have the wrong book if that was your plan.
Drug lord Tomas comes calling for the after wedding with a present for Jimmy. Some cash, a pre-paid trip and he has found Jimmy's adopted son's true grandfather. They just have to go to Mexico to find him.
That works out pretty much as expected after Bobby and his girlfriend shows up. These two guys attract trouble like no one else. One thing about it though, they are ALWAYS there for each other. No matter how stupid the other may be.
It's hard to review this one without going spoilery and it's way too much fun to get spoiled on one of these books. Just know that Bobby is his usual self...full of helpful tips.
"You have no idea how hard it is to find good muscle."
"Have you tried Craigslist?" Bobby said. "Look in the 'Hoods and Flunkies' category."

Then throw in all Jimmy's buddies, Snout, Buck-Buck, Mr. Morales, Tomas and a few new wonderful characters that also fit into Bobby's motto of.."I've been waiting my whole life for a fight like this. Finally. It's finally time to fuck some fuckers the fuck up."

These are the guys I'd want as friends if the crap hit the fan.

I'd bring plenty of beer so calm down.
(P.S. You can read these as stand alone's but honestly you would miss the backstory. Go read them all.)

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.