"HONESTLY, THIS WAS THE MOST ENJOYABLE I FOUND THE WRITING OF A NOVEL,"CROOKS' LOU BERNEY

Lou Berney's Crooks will probably end up being one of my favorite books of the year. It follows the five siblings from the Mercurio family who were practically raised for a life of crime in a form of novellas with each story focusing on one of the kids, Ray, the oldest underestimated as a dumb thug, Alice, the smart sister, Nathan, the charmer, Tallulah, the adopted wild child, and Piggy, the youngest and and outsider "white sheep" of the clan. It spans decades and is full of suspense, humaor, and genuine emotions as each family member gets their own crime fiction subgenre. Lou took some questions from me about the book, declining to answer one in a way I respect.

SCOTT MONTGOMERY: What idea came first doing a mosaic of connecting novellas or siblings raised as criminals?

LOU BERNEY: The original idea was a sweeping family that focused different sections on individual siblings. The crime element seems a good fit for that.

S.M.: How did you come up with the family name of Mercurio.? I can't help but think there's some meaning in it.

L.B.: I like the idea of “mercurial” for this family – it captures their essence for me.

S.M.: Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the book would have just been a collection of novellas if it weren't for Piggy's story at the end. Did you know that's where you were going all the time?

L,B.: For me I never thought about it as separate novellas. There’s enough connection and overlap to make this a whole rather than a series of parts. At least that was my intention.

S.M.: Which Mercurio did you find the most fun to write for?

L.B.: I loved writing for them. Honestly, this was the most enjoyable I’ve ever found the writing of a novel. Ray might have been my favorite to write for, since there was such a disconnect between his physical appearance/actions and his interior life.

S.M.: Which sibling proved to be the biggest challenge and how did you approach them? 

L.B.: Alice was probably the biggest challenge for me, just from a plot standpoint. I had to figure out (and re-figure out) how she’d finally get the upper hand with her adversary,

S.M.: The Godfather, the works of David Goodis, and David Joy, and now Crooks. What makes crime fiction and family go together,

L.B. I don’t think writers should have to answer questions like that! That’s for the critics.