''Daaku'' is a 2006 Canadian crime fiction novel by

Ranj Dhaliwal Ranj Dhaliwal ( Punjabi: ਰਣਜ ਧਾਲੀਵਾਲ; born 1976/1977) is a Canadian author. Early life Born in Vancouver, Dhaliwal grew up in Surrey Central, British Columbia in the 1980s, which was a time when Indo-Canadian families were s ...

Synopsis

In the violent and ruthless world of Indo–Canadian gangs, Ruby Pandher is on his way up. A self–described daaku (Punjabi for outlaw), Ruby learns young that might, in the form of his drunken father's fists, is right, and that money is easier to steal than earn. Ruby's small–time scams reveal a knack for leadership and after his first stint in youth detention, the big–timers start to notice his potential. Soon, Ruby is doing collections for Indo–Canadian drug dealers. Now "known to police," Ruby is drawn into a gang war just as he's trying to beat the rap on weapons charges and theft –– while simultaneously organizing a jailhouse smuggling ring. On the cusp of adulthood, and surrounded by Punjabi terrorists, bikers and Indo–Canadian gangsters, Ruby is drawn like a moth to the glamour of power, money, and drugs. A story of betrayal, cold–blooded murder and the rise and eventual fall of one gangster, ''Daaku'' is a bullet–riddled grand tour of Indo–Canadian gangland.

Reception

''Daaku'' has been compared to

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

's ''

Goodfellas ''Goodfellas'' (stylized ''GoodFellas'') is a 1990 American biographical crime film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Nicholas Pileggi and Scorsese, and produced by Irwin Winkler. It is a film adaptation of the 1985 nonfiction book '' Wis ...

'' and

S.E. Hinton Susan Eloise Hinton (born July 22, 1948) is an American writer best known for her young-adult novels (YA) set in Oklahoma, especially ''The Outsiders (novel), The Outsiders'' (1967), which she wrote during Secondary education in the United Stat ...

's '' The Outsiders'', "Daaku provides a fascinating look into the gang world's twisted morality, casual murder, commodification of women, and the inevitability of violent demise." says website "Quill and Quire"

References

{{Reflist 2006 Canadian novels Canadian crime novels Novels about organized crime Books by Ranj Dhaliwal