Martin Terrier is a hired killer who wants out of the game — so he can settle down and marry his childhood sweetheart. After all, that's why he took up this profession! But \the company\ won't let him go: they have other plans. Once again, the gunman must assume the prone firing position. A tour de force, this violent tale shatters as many illusions about life and politics as it does bodies. Jean-Patrick Manchette subjects his characters and the reader alike to a fierce exercise in style. This tightly plotted, corrosive parody of \the success story\ is widely considered to be Manchette's masterpiece, and was named a *New York Times* \Notable Book\ in 2002. *The Prone Gunman* is a classic of modern noir.

The 17152nd greatest book of all time