Thailand-based Erich R. Sysak’s first published novel is Dog Catcher, which, in the words of Philip Tatham, is “a very exciting gritty urban noir fiction.” Set in the backdrop of the hot Palm County, Dog Catcher deals with the world of greyhound breeding and racing in the state of Florida where the author had worked as a veterinary technician. The book was published in 2006 by Monsoon Books from Singapore.
Staying true to the genre categorization indentified above, the story’s main character is not a detective or police force representative, but rather an Animal Control Officer (aka dog catcher), who early on in the novel becomes the victim of a revenge plot. Coleman Legget chases dogs down the back alleys of Palm County and tries to make an extra buck by not declaring all the dead animal carcasses he takes to the incinerator. But, soon enough, the chaser becomes the chased and Legget finds himself in a struggle-for-your-life situation.
When the source of his extra cash, Dr. Fielding, a prestigious local veterinarian who works with the Animal Control turns against him, Legget’s life takes a nasty turn. A routine call to a woman’s house and a routine inspection at a kennel bring about Legget’s dismissal from his job. Wanting his job back, he starts his own investigation and discovers a greyhound breeding farm where dogs that could not run fast enough were starved to death or buried alive in mass graves.
Still in his twenties and living in a trailer park, Legget seems to have nothing to lose and thus tries to unveil the illegal farm to the authorities. But, in a world where “dogs were sometimes better than people,” there are very few people he can trust and, time and again, Legget gets chased, beaten up, caged, and even shot at. It seems that everyone he meets is corrupt and interested only in the quick profits brought by the greyhound races, with the protagonist himself accepting bribes and cash under the table.
Dog Catcher is a very dark novel with only a few instances of hope, which unfortunately slip through Legget’s fingers too easily. Not only does he lose his chance at starting a decent relationship with Cathy, a dog lover who works at the problematic kennel, Legget is also forced into putting an end to his own dog’s life after it was severely wounded when his trailer was set on fire. This scene is probably the most intense one in the entire novel, followed by the description of the mass grave filled with dogs.
In a perfect world things would have come to a happy conclusion and everyone (dogs included!) would have lived happily ever after. Unfortunately, we don’t live in a perfect world and Erich Sysak makes use of his literary talents to let us know exactly that. Four years after publishing Dog Catcher, Erich authored another crime novel, this time set in Thailand: Stage IV. Both books promise to make Erich Sysak a well-known voice “operating” from Southeast Asia.
