LORD VISHNU'S LOVE HANDLES

Travis Anderson's psychic abilities have allowed him to enjoy an upwardly mobile lifestyle--but then everything begins to fall apart. Travis tries chemically altering his reality but finds himself hallucinating in deeper, paranoid waters. William Dufris gives an energetic performance as the deluded, financially desperate, eventually detoxing Travis. Dufris's version of the Hindu holy man Travis meets in rehab is priceless, and his interpretation of assorted government agents is nicely nutty. Even with an overly contrived climax, Will Clarke might just make it into the Wackiest Writer on the Planet Sweepstakes with this debut novel, and Dufris's deliciously wild and witty narration exactly fits its manic mood. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 05/ JAN 06]