A Lapse of Memory

The crime fiction novelist presents his first novella, A Lapse of Memory, based on his short story of the same name. When the mafia wants a mark eliminated, they turn to contract killer James Randall, a.k.a. Richard Johnson, and he usually delivers in spades. But Randall is aging and has developed the early stages of Alzheimer's. When a hit goes horribly wrong, he finds himself on the run, pursued by his former employers. Gritty, mesmerizing, A Lapse of Memory excites us with the chase, while also providing a back-story of a time long gone by. Himself in search of a lost past, the emotionally complex Randall is determined to evade his pursuers. But can he any longer differentiate friend from foe? Can he search out the secrets of his past as the present slips away? The novella is ripe with inventive incidents, is evocative of the present as well as the physical atmosphere of the 1950's, and offers a number of interesting characters. As usual in Curry's work, the presence of the sea and the city is keenly felt and connected to the psychological action of the story.