Sweet and Vicious

In Sweet and Vicious, acclaimed author David Schickler treats readers to a magical, mystical tale of star-crossed lovers who develop an electrifying bond while trying to evade the nagging ghosts of their respective pasts. In what can be described as a modern day Bonnie and Clyde meets Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet, Schickler invites readers into a world of crime, passion, shame, fury, and ultimately awe-inspiring love.

Henry Dante is a Chicago enforcer who, after a work call takes an ugly turn, hits the road with a briefcase containing the Planets, the seven diamonds he was supposed to deliver to his boss, legendary gangster Honey Pobrinkis. While stopping for gas in a small Wisconsin town, Henry encounters Grace McGlone, an ethereal beauty who walks through a car wash to meet the man she instantly recognizes as "the one." Tucked in between miles of endless highways, campgrounds, and quickies in the back of a pickup truck, Schickler offers readers the backstories of these two unlikely heroes. Henry "muscles" for Honey as a way to "chew up the clock," while Grace is "trying for heaven" as a way to absolve herself from a shameful encounter with a famous evangelist at the age of fifteen. Yet what proves most striking about this unlikely couple is the immediate intensity of their relationship, and Schickler's ability to sustain that coup de foudre sensation throughout the novel's somewhat bumpy ride. In fact, it is only when Schickler strays too far from this explosive couple that the story begins to drag, and readers may find themselves skipping ahead to the more exhilarating aspects of the book.

Kissing in Manhattan, Schickler's widely praised debut, gave readers a delicious taste of this richly imaginative and refreshing literary voice. Sweet and Vicious will certainly take fans to the next level of author appreciation. As Henry says, "There are bold moments sometimes, moments that scare you and call to you all at once." Readers who heed the call are sure to be rewarded with a thrilling adventure. --Gisele Toueg

"Fascinating and hilarious," "relentlessly clever," and "truly haunting" are all phrases that have been used to describe David Schickler's unique talent. And all apply to this brash, brilliant novel featuring two of the most memorable characters in contemporary fiction: Grace McGlone and Henry Dante.
Sexy and willful, Grace McGlone is saving herself for the right man. When Henry Dante pulls into the small Wisconsin town where she works at the car wash, she instantly knows he's the one. He knows it too. But when Grace discovers Henry has "The Planets"--a stolen set of famous Spanish diamonds--stashed in the back seat of his truck, she's having none of it. She's "trying for heaven," and the ill-gotten jewels must go. And so they do, in a race across the American landscape from Chicago to Yellowstone, purusued by a savage gangster obsessed by the diamonds he thought were his.
Passionate, criminal, comical, and possessing all the dark enchantment of a fairy tale, Sweet and Vicious is a modern love story shot straight from the heart of David Schickler's miraculous imagination.

"From the Hardcover edition.