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Summary
Summary
Orphaned by an act of senseless violence that took their mother from them, half-brothers Clarence Luckman and Elliott Danziger have been raised in state institutions, unaware of any world beyond its walls. But their lives take a sudden turn when they are seized as hostages by a convicted killer en route to death row. Earl Sheridan is a psychopath of the worst kind, and as he and his two hostages set off on a frenetic path through California down to Texas, Clarence and Elliot must come to terms with the ever-growing tide of violence in their wake. It's a path that will force them to make a choice about their lives, and their relationship to each other--and it will change their lives forever. Set in the 1960s, Bad Signs is a tale of the darkness within all of us, the inherent hope for salvation, and the ultimate consequences of evil. Praised by Alan Furst as a "uniquely gifted, passionate, and powerful writer," R.J. Ellory once again delivers a thriller as beautiful as it is riveting, returning to the haunting ground of his international bestseller A Quiet Belief in Angels.
Author Notes
Roger Jon Ellory was born in Birmingham, England, June 20th 1965. He was orphaned at age seven when his mother, Carole - an actress and dancer - died of pneumonia.
Between August 2001 and January 2002 Ellory wrote three books, the second of which was called Candlemoth which was published by Orion in 2003. Candlemoth was translated into German, Dutch and Italian, and has now also been purchased for translation in numerous other languages. The book was shortlisted for the Crime Writers' Association Steel Dagger for Best Thriller in2003.
Roger's third book, A Quiet Vendetta, was released in August 2005 and went on to win the Quebec Laureat 2010 and the Villeneuve Prix Des Lecteurs 2010 in its French translation.
In 2006 Ellory published City of Lies which again was nominated for the CWA Steel Dagger for Best Thriller of that year. His fifth book - A Quiet Belief In Angels - was published in August 2006 and was selected for the Richard and Judy Book Club. The book has since been translated into twenty-five languages. A Quiet Belief In Angels went on to be shortlisted for the Barry Award for Best British Crime Fiction, the 813 Trophy, the Quebec Booksellers' Prize, The Europeen Du Point Crime Fiction Prize, and was winner of the Inaugural Prix Roman Noir Nouvel Observateur, The Strand Magazine Best Thriller of the Year, the Livre De Poche Award 2010, and the US Indie Excellence Award for Best Mystery.
Ellory's subsequent book, A Simple Act of Violence, received a Barry Award nomination for Best British Crime Fiction of 2008. A Simple Act of Violence went on to win the Theakston's Crime Novel of the Year Award.
In late 2009 R. J. released The Anniversary Man and then Saints of New York in early 2010. He has now completed Bad Signs for a June 2011 release.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (3)
Publisher's Weekly Review
This unpleasant thriller shows British author Ellory (A Quiet Belief in Angels) at far from his best. In California in 1952, when Elliott "Digger" Danziger is six and his half-brother, Clarence "Clay" Luckman, is five, Clay's drunken, enraged father breaks their mother's neck with a baseball bat in front of them before running off forever. In their early teens, Digger and Clay end up in a juvenile correctional facility in Hesperia, Calif., where in 1964 they're taken hostage by a death row inmate, Earl Sheridan. After breaking out, Sheridan takes the boys on a murderous rampage, which triggers a massive manhunt. Horrified by Sheridan's violence, Clay must find a way to stay alive. Innocent bystander after innocent bystander is slaughtered, and whatever sympathy Digger garnered as a result of his traumatic childhood is quickly dissipated. Readers should be prepared for gratuitous bloodshed, heavy-handed foreshadowing, and baroque prose ("Clay knew then that his brother was more than likely lost, and again he questioned the woof and warp of all things"). Agent: Euan Thorneycroft, A.M. Heath (U.K.). (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Is it truly possible to be born under a bad sign? The half brothers in Ellory's (Ghostheart, 2015, etc.) latest novel think so, and their attempts to shake their destiny are the subject of a haunting thriller set in the early 1960s. The trials of Digger Danziger and his sibling, the ironically surnamed Clay Luckman, begin when their mother is murdered by Clay's impulsive father. Both come of age in abusive juvenile prisons; their only escape comes when Earl Sheridan, a psychopathic killer bound for execution, breaks out of jail and takes them both hostage. Sheridan manages another string of grisly killings before he's caught, and Clay escapes just before the law catches up. Taking his revenge for the escape, the dying Sheridan convinces authorities that Clay was responsible for the murders. After his death, Sheridan influences the brothers in opposite ways: Digger emulates him and becomes an even more brutal killer. Clay continues his escape run with Bailey, a wise-beyond-her-years teenage girl who was orphaned in one of Sheridan's rampages. He doesn't know he's being pursued by the authorities, who believe Digger is dead and Clay is the criminal. The story has enough depth to work on a few levels: as an existential look at the nature of fate or as a gripping story in its own right. And it wouldn't be a stretch to see the caring Clay and the violent Digger as symbols of America's divided psyche at this point in its history. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
*Starred Review* After witnessing the murder of their mother, half-brothers Elliott Danziger and Clarence Luckman are placed in state institutions that do little more than warehouse orphans and juvenile offenders. Elliott, who christened himself Digger as a little boy, renames Clarence Clay, hoping to make his younger brother's life a bit easier. He also defends Clay frequently. The boys are inseparable, even though very different. Digger is impetuous; Clay is more insightful. But their lives are changed forever when a convicted murderer being delivered for execution escapes, takes them hostage, and begins a violent road trip from California to Texas. Clay simply prepares to die, but Digger seems to soak up the killer's insane rants. Clay, who once feared for his brother, becomes afraid of him. Ellory, an Englishman who regularly brings vivid life to diverse American characters, locales, and eras (Ghostheart, 2015), may be drawing on some of his own experience here. Orphaned as a boy, he was sent to boarding school by his grandmother. Ellory brilliantly renders Clay's sense of loss, loneliness, and fear but also his resolute hope for salvation. Pair this striking mix of character study and thriller with John Hart's similarly gripping Iron House (2011).--Gaughan, Thomas Copyright 2016 Booklist
