Adrift in Los Angeles: Mark Haskell Smith and his book, `Blown`
(LA Times Auto Racing)

`Blown,` the new, funny and sometimes raunchy novel from L.A. writer Mark Haskell Smith, begins on a ship adrift with one dying passenger and $12 million in cash. To talk about it, I asked Smith - who is a friend and game for just about anything - to join me at the only floating restaurant in the...