Read as part of CBR15bingo: edibles. The plot centers around a large shipment of marijuana, which I guess is technically edible though you can use it in things that are actually edible. Admittedly, I’m reaching here but the suggestion on the OP did include “drugs.”
Hixploitation (the author’s words, not mine) — like blaxploitation and other specified identity genres — hit a frenzied peak in the 70s. It was the era of the Film Brats and just as they influenced studio Hollywood, the Bs were changing as well. Whereas small budget, sad screen scifi and rip off gangster/detective movies had dominated the market, it was now saturated with crime and action films that fit a particular ethno and/or regional identity. Hence, hixploitation.
Burt Reynolds was the king of this genre with films like Gator. But whereas blaxploitation still lives on in works such as Black Dynamite and Proud Mary, no one is doing much on the southern front, save the abysmal Dukes of Hazzard remake.
Fortunately for those that are fans of the genre (I myself am not but I appreciate its impact), Scott Von Doviak does a great job bringing it to life in the span of 283 pages. This is a rip roaring crime tale in which the good ol’ boys try to outrun Johnny Law, with a few other interesting characters thrown in the mix.
Von Doviak could have easily let this veer into parody but he wisely choses not to. Instead, he imbues the characters with gravity so that the stakes feel real. There is plenty of caper wisecracks and silliness but you finish the book feeling like you spent time getting to know these people. A little sluggish at times for what the story is trying to be, it nevertheless is a fun callback to films of a different age. And you don’t have to appreciate that age to appreciate this one.
