This book surprised me, in a good way. I’m not sure it’s literary fiction, but it IS well-written…at times laugh-out-loud funny and, at other times, frenzied, like an action movie. The story revolves around Harry, a not-afraid-of-anything bail bondsman in a small town near the deserts of western US. When local dancer Capri talks her boyfriend Ted into stealing a load of high-quality marijuana from the dispensary that Capri works for, it sets in motion a chase involving Harry, Ted’s lawyer Gus, and the dispensary’s slightly unhinged law enforcement. The race to track down the fugitives builds to a fight in a western ghost town and the result is downright violent.

No one in Zig Zag is ever not smoking marijuana…it’s like a haze that follows the characters around. And no one passes by on a drink (or five or ten) when there’s one to be had. I was thoroughly entertained by the whole of it. Most of the time, it’s good old western fun, but sometimes it’s downright slapstick, like the time Harry and Gus take to horses when their car breaks down. Let’s just say drinking and smoking don’t mix well with riding horses. I recommend this to anyone who likes the wild west with a side of pot and a good dose of humor. My husband is already reading it because I put it in his hands with the directive to “read”.

Thanks to NetGalley and Schaffner Press for providing me with an e-ARC.

This was a fantastic book that I loved! Set in the L.A. where the glitz and glamour aren't, this is a tale of Harry, the cowboy-obsessed, never-was bail bondsman tasked with finding the son of his favorite bar's owner. Populated by characters filled with various forms of regret, the writing slowly lulls you into an overwhelming feeling of mellow and calm. The plot flows as smoothly as the weed everyone in this novel is smoking. Where O'Brien really excels though is in his descriptions of the various towns that the characters pass through. I'm from the Reno area and he crushed it. If I had to give a two-word description of this novel, I'd go with cowboy noir. The only happy ending in the book is the feeling of satisfaction you'll have when you're finished. I definitely plan on getting my own copy so I can lose myself in O'Brien's prose. One of the best books I've read in some time.

A lot of fun, but while I thought it would be extremely my taste, it ended up not satisfying whatever I needed it to. I enjoyed O'Brien's writing!

I’m the first to rate and review this book. A privilege and a pleasure when the book is good. So, let’s do this…
Reading outside of my comfort zone sometimes means (armchair)traveling outside of my comfort zone. The West - wild wild or otherwise – has never been my jam. Not the cowboys, not the dust, not the culture nor the patois. And yet…
This book charmed me completely. Surprisingly so.
Its protagonist, the self-style rhinestone cowboy bail bondsman/bounty hunter, and the various and colorful characters he interacts with and encounters as he tries to locate a small time criminal who jumped bail were singular delights of offbeat randomness and delightful aphorisms. The West was a character too, vivid and cinematic. In fact, the entire book comes to life as you read it – and plays like one of those offbeat crime drama/comedies. My sleepy brain can only come up with Fargo for comparison, which I know isn’t ideal and way off geographically, but there it is.
All in all, this book was oodles of fun. A most impressive debut novel for an author who knows how to zig and zag his narrative to tell a good story. Recommended. Thanks Netgalley.