Richard Price

The author of Lush Life constructs a guilty-until-proven-innocent story

Comments (0) By Thomas Rundle Thursday, Mar 5 2009

In Richard Price’snovel Lush Life, police scramble to solve a murder in modern-day New York City. Eric Cash, a 34-year-old bartender, becomes a suspect after an acquaintance is killed during a mugging. Even though he didn’t do it, Cash may not be able to pull himself out of the tangled mess. Witnesses lie, police officers chase a confession instead of the truth and the tabloids are calling the dead man a hero. The pressure is building to solve the case at any cost, and Cash is an easy fall guy. Readers know from the start who the killer is, but that’s not the point. The mystery here is who’s going to catch the killer. Price vividly depicts the many different cultures of the Lower East Side, a place where high-priced lofts exist next to rundown housing projects. And his fully believable characters grab readers’ attention with colorful dialogue.

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The author of seven novels and an award-winning scriptwriter for the HBO series The Wire, Price will discuss and sign Lush Life as part of the Inprint Brown Reading Series. 7:30 p.m. Alley Theatre, 615 Texas. For information, call 713-521-2026 or visit www.inprinthouston.org. $5.

Mon., March 9, 7:30 p.m., 2009