Al, an insurance claims manager, and JT, a lawyer, are both on their uppers and are casual acquaintances at a California golf club. Over a drink they devise a personal injury insurance scam that they hope will dig them out of the hole they are in. They involve three employees of the golf club. Their plan is simple – what could go wrong? What follows is a cautionary tale of the pitfalls that chance and stupidity that can throw up, and the measures that Al and JT take to overcome these, but will they be successful and come out on top ……?

The story is a good one, chapters are short and the tale moves on apace. I was gripped by it and found it most enjoyable, but, as a British reader and non golfer, I was glad to be reading it on a Kindle as there were numerous colloquial expressions together with golfing and North American terms which were beyond my knowledge and experience, and in a number of cases were beyond the resources of my Kindle dictionary! I understand that this is Jack Bunker's first novel, but I am sure that we shall be seeing more from him and I look forward to it.

Very good plot with a lot of interesting detail. Loved the ending.

I gave it 4 stars because the ending was not what I expected. Good job developing the story line and then twisting it all around.

Excellent - great writing, intriguing characters, and a great scam plot. Multiple characters weave in and out of each others lives as a insurance scam grows into a whole 'nother ballgame. Excellent ending.

TRUE GRIFT is author Jack Bunker’s debut novel, and what a ride it is. This is a witty, funny, cautionary tale about what can happen when a not-so-well thought out scam/grift goes wrong…with darkly hilarious results. The characters are well written as not overly intelligent characters who seem to think they are smarter than they really are. Of course, whatever can go wrong does, and everyone (mostly) get what they deserve in the end.

Fun and highly entertaining, and I'll be looking so see what Jack Bunker brings us next. He is an author to watch as he hones his writing.

Thanks to Netgalley.com, Jack Bunker and Brash Books for the advance ARC for my review.

This is Jack Bunker's debut book, it has some hilarious parts, some serious parts, and reminded me of Elmore Leonard with still standing on it's own feet.

Made me think what if Dan Fielding was a down on his luck personal injury attorney. For those who don't know who Dan Fielding was, he was a prosecutor on the classic TV show Night Court and portrayed by hilarious John Larroquette.

Pair J.T. Edwards a bankrupt personal injury lawyer, with Al Boyle a greedy Insurance Senior Claims Manager, add in Mack a fraudulent slip and fall victim who is his own worst enemy, Wanda a muscular waitress, they'll have to contend with the MOB, betrayals, shakedowns, their own stupidity, a bomb and an ending that will leave a smile on your face.

It should come with a warning, since you're going to be laughing, have tears in your eyes even at one point and people will look funny at you.

I like Bunker's writing style, serious one minute funny the next, and always good to read one, that makes you laugh or isn't too serious.

Never thought a book that basically for a big part happens at a low budget golf club would hold my interest. Since not a golf fan but he makes that part interesting, funny, and grosses you out with the large amount of food, Frankie Fresh eats.

My favorite part of the book, was when Buddy gets mad at Mack for shaking, then opening beers on him and all why playing 18 holes of golf. While Mack takes a porta potty break to masturbate. Buddy sees a tractor decides to pay him back, puts the tractor in neutral and lets it roll that it bumps in the porta potty. Knocking it over, causing it to breaking apart, leaving Mack covered in waste, with his shorts around his ankles, a bent swollen penis and in a lot of pained.

I enjoyed 'True Grift', one of my favorite debut novels, definitely recommend it, and can't wait for Jack Bunker's next one.

Sure it be another vivid satirical, quick, witty read and leave you with a big ole grin on your face, with a ending you weren't expecting.

A great book to read when you are having a bad day. A weird collection of colorful characters provides the ingredients of a horrible day for a desperate lawyer and his companions. The action seems like outtakes from "Dumb and Dumber." Many "Oh no!" moments lead eventually to hearty laughter as the plot continues to congeal. You can't help but smile at the ending. Not a tough read, but a fun read..

A not particularly honest attorney and an insurance adjuster who is convinced he is losing his job because of a merger get together to set up a scam to con the insurance company out of a goodly amount of money. They use people employed by the course where they both golf to assist them in the scam. Any and everything that can possibly go wrong does leading to a humorous tale of misadventure. It was fast and fun reading.

Thanks to Net Galley and Brash for an ARC for an honest review.

I think this was one of the funniest books I have read in a long time. I have never seen such morons. Even the "smart" guys were morons for giving the real morons a second chance at trying to scam the insurance companies.

I laughed out loud numerous times at these idiots. I mean after a while, I would be thinking this person is going to . . . and yep, he did the stupidest thing you could do. I was doing a lot of head shaking during this one.

Finally someone got some smarts, I mean you can only deal with stupidity for so long and then it just gets boring. I definitely recommend this and you can see who gets the last laugh. It's definitely entertaining and you might not want to read it in public. People tend to glare at you and look at you strange when you are laughing out loud in public. And you definitely don't want anyone to think your laughing at them. HA!

Thanks Brash Books and Net Galley for providing me with this free e-galley in exchange for an honest review. I definitely enjoyed reading this and am glad I read it at home. My roommate had to come check on me and see what I was watching that was so funny, he wanted to check it out. HA!

Grift is a swindle or a scam. In the novel True Grift, there are many scams going on and it makes for a story where you need to keep reading to find out what happens next.
TScreen Shot 2015-10-29 at 6.59.29 PMhe main plot is about a lawyer, JT, who is down on his luck. The kind of guy using one credit card to pay the other credit card hoping sometime soon a big case will come his way. At the same time Al, an insurance agent finds his company is being sold to some other insurance company. To keep his job he needs to move, but he in underwater on his mortgage.
The two guys know each other from golfing. One day the hatch a plan create an insurance fraud injury case. They convince Mack, the golf course greens keeper, to be part of the plan. Mack is not too smart, so he messes with the plan.
At the golf course is also a local bookie for an organized crime family. The bookie catches wind of the fraud and demands to be cut in on the action.
The plan morphs into a new larger plan in hopes of getting a bigger payday. Everyone has an angle and their agenda. Trying to figure out who in the end will make off okay and who will be screwed over is way more enjoyable than it should be.
I always have loved the books by Elmore Leonard. Where an underdog criminal is like a hero for the story. Leonard is no longer with us, but Jack Bunker has captured that same tone. For the longest time, I have been waiting for a good story like this one.
True Grift has a number of supporting characters. Each one provides more depth to the con central to the story. It is not like some stories chalked so fun of people you can’t keep up with who is who. They play a good role and in the end help tie up some loose ends.

While I did enjoy reading this book, I did not find at any laugh out loud lines as the blurb from Joseph Wambaugh suggests. The story starts with an insurance claims administrator whose company is being taken over. He decides on orchestrating a false claim before losing his job in the takeover. He enlists a shady lawyer who recruits a golf course maintenance man. But then things start to go bad and everyone starts to double cross each other and more people get involved. There are a lot of twists and turns in the plot and I did not expect the surprise ending.
I give it 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4) out of 5. I received this book free from the publisher, Brash books, through NetGalley.com

Two guys meet in a bar at a Southern California golf course – one a lawyer of questionable integrity currently confronting serious financial problems, the other a veteran (17 years) senior insurance claims manager whose continued employment in the business is in jeopardy due to a pending merger. Together the two hatch a scam that has all the earmarks of the plot of a great movie. If Robert Altman were still with us, this would be an ideal vehicle for his talents since the unconventional characters in this book puts one in mind of his movie Short Cuts - with each GRIFT character, from the 420 lb. mobbed up Frankie and the “good old gal” waitress Wanda to the golf course maintenance guys, Mack and Buddy have a back story to tell and their own individual cons in play. The book has that neo-noir flavor of Sam Raimi’s A SIMPLE PLAN or some of the Coen Brothers offerings. Any fan dark humor featuring a cast of schemers and bunglers who eventually get the “just desserts” will find Jack Bunker’s first novel TRUE GRIFT a wildly enjoyable read that makes the time just fly by.

I haven't stopped smiling yet! Very funny plot. Reminds me when in a hole, stop digging! Not all the colloquial language crossed the pond too well and I expect an American reader would have laughed even more!