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"In the Clear" is a howl. Steve Lopez probably overdoes the hilariousness, but reading him is too much fun to notice, let alone to mind.
A Times columnist, Lopez introduces us to Albert La Rosa, sheriff of a small town, Harbor Light, on the New Jersey shore, where independent fishermen have been squeezed out by conglomerates and where local storekeepers waste away, pressured by Bargain Acres, which bills itself as the largest retail space under one roof in North America.
Bored from a diet of nothing-much-doing, Albert is middle-aged, graying at the edges, tired round the eyes, weary of playing it safe. Then he's offered a job as chief of security at a new casino to be built in town and all hell breaks loose. The prospect of Atlantic City moving in splits the little town. Albert's friends turn against him. His father, proud owner of "La Rosa's Hardware & More, Service With Pride Since 1950," practically disowns him. The woman he planned to marry, who runs an eatery, "Peg's As You Like It," named after her mother, walks out on him.
Shots are fired, cars blown up, Bargain Acres goes up in flames, death threats and an actual death disrupt the sedative routine of many years, upsetting Albert's plans, bringing in the FBI (predictably ineffectual) and challenging his cop's instincts.
The listless world of...