Elmore Leonard

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Elmore Leonard has been a true professional for over forty years, writing westers (3:10 To Yuma, Hombre) before turning to mystery and suspense (Mr. Majestyk, 52 Pick-Up). But it wasn't until the middle '80s, and specifically Glitz, that he hit his stride. His books are full of snappy dialogue, colorful characters, and surprising twists. Leonard shies away from well-defined heroes and villains; frequently none of the characters in his books are particularly pure of heart, and generally have complex motivations that don't fit into easy categories. He's also one of the best prose stylists in the field, and his novels, while bleak, are often very funny as well.

After years of generally poor adaptations (with the aformentioned Westerns being excpetions), Leonard's been fortunate in that several excellent movies have been made from his books by directors like Quentin Tarantino and Steven Soderbergh, and Tarantino holds the rights to several more of his books. Neverr pretentious, Leonard is always immensely entertaining.