Stan Pottinger, The Boss

The Boss

Stan Pottinger

St. Martin's, December 2006, $24.95

ISBN 031227677X

In Houston, not even forty years old, Jack "Spin" Patterson has worked his way up the ladder of success, leaving behind many a corpse as he reaches the acme of Gulf-Tex Oil, the company he inherited from his late father-in-law. This expert at exploiting others is affluent with money, power and women. Spin also has a past. However, his empire teeters when his wife Audrey has had it with his neglect at his best, or scorn as his norm; she not only plans to divorce him, but threatens his seat as THE BOSS.

Oil runs in Max McLennon's veins, though he knows the down side as his father died by a rig and his brother is disfigured. He worships his hero Spin, until he begins to observe the dark side that would allow Gulf-Tex Oil employees and stockholders to lose everything, just because his former idol has become too big for his britches, as he refuses to negotiate with Audrey. Max decides to spin a different ending for the amoral Patterson, because now he knows Jack.

Readers will see the obvious connections to the TV show Dallas, as THE BOSS is a spicy Texas thriller that in some ways satires the Hageman drama by lampooning the "bigness" belief of elite natives. Spin steals the show with his super-size ego that enables him not only to step on people including his wife, and to a lesser degree his mistress Tacoma Reed, but also allows him to believe he never makes mistakes as he is above human frailty. Max becomes his adversary as the statue falls from pedestal. Stanley Pottinger provides a fascinating look at the biggest of the big Texans.