A young man's first sexual experience is often indelibly etched in his memory. Weller recounts this milestone event in his life in company with a series of equally seductive and precarious events.
In this riveting and powerful account of one young man's life in the seedy underworld of crime, sex, and money, Weller relates a six-month "maelstrom" that both awakened him to the transient temptations of life--loose women, easy money, and reckless living--and the lasting values of integrity, responsibility, and honor. In The Maelstrom, Weller is a young man of twenty tender years, setting out on his own from his parents' home. From the thrill of his first sexual experience to the terror of being kidnapped by a gangster, he receives a crash course in life the first time out on his own. The Maelstrom is written with Weller's characteristic narrative energy and remarkable self-awareness. Readers will be endeared to the author's youthful self, and alternately dismayed and amazed by his boyish naivete and budding maturity. The Maelstrom is a fast read destined to be enjoyed by young and old alike.
Excerpt
George sensed I had figured out Paddy Ryan was not in the Miami area on vacation. "OK," he finally said, "I'll tell you what I feel comfortable telling you. Ryan works for the Teamsters. He's kind of a freelance enforcer. He's here to help the Teamsters settle their strike against ABC Jalousie. He came to me, at Jimmy Hoffa's direction, because of the coverage we've been giving to the strikers and the labor movement in general. Jimmy told him we owed him a favor. I can't tell you anything more than that for your own protection. What you don't know won't hurt you. OK?"
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I couldn't help myself and reached my right hand, holding my drink, out to her in a gesture suggesting she take a sip. She unabashedly touched her lips to the liquid, still looking up at me and then her eyes widened.
Her face reflected shock, as the drink seemed to flow in slow motion over the rim of the glass and onto her dress. The glass fell to the floor as I felt the sting of excruciating pain to the back of my head. I remember only stars, spinning about like electrons around the nucleus of an atom, as the floor suddenly rose to meet my face and body. Then, there was only darkness.
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