DOWN SOLO by Earl Javorsky

4 out of 5 stars

Crime Thriller/Supernatural

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber's Review Team

Another gritty, unusual and often darkly amusing thriller from Earl Javorsky, this time with a clever hint of the supernatural.  Charlie Miner is a fast talking, various substance snorting PI involved with many shady characters; the fact that he's actually dead adds another dimension to his dealings. 

He has a drink-crazed ex-wife and a daughter, Mindy, who he loves dearly and who has to deal with the scattered lives of her parents.  Among the cast are drug dealers, gang members, a priest, shady investment entrepreneurs, and a particularly perceptive taxi driver, Daniel.

The dialogue in this book is excellent, sharp and realistic, and zips along, with prison visits, road trips, kidnappings, arson, gunfights, from Santa Monica to Mexico.  It's not predictable at all, which I loved, and there's never a dull moment; aside from this, Earl Javorsky is just a very stylish writer, and Charlie is a great narrator. 

I didn't like it quite as much as his other book, Trust Me, because I would have preferred it if it was just a straight thriller without the supernatural element, and I felt it could do with a little tidying up in places, but the first reason is only personal taste, and I'd certainly say, yes, read this.  It's good!

TRUST ME by Earl Javorsky reviewed HERE

 

TRUST ME by Earl Javorsky

4.5 out of 5 stars

Murder/thriller set in LA

On Amazon UK HERE
On Amazon.com HERE
On Goodreads HERE

Reviewed by me as a member of Rosie Amber's Review Team

Trust Me is a well written and cleverly plotted crime/murder thriller set in and around Los Angeles.  The main character is Jeff Fenner, a heavy drinker and jaded coke/LSD dealer whose life is imploding as his addictions wear him out, and one piece of bad luck follows another.  Running alongside is the story of deeply troubled Holly, who gets involved with SOL, the 'Save Our Life' organisation that purports to solve problems of addiction and psychological blocks by way of finding one's 'inner child'.  At an SOL meeting she meets the mysterious Art Bradley. 

Ron, a journalist, befriends Jeff; he is helping his cop mate Joe to solve a series of suicides-that-might-be-murders.  Soon, the links to all storylines become clear—and there's a great twist at the beginning of Chapter 27, at 44%; didn't expect that at all, even though I had my suspicions... 

I loved the character of Jeff, and Ron was another favourite; Art Bradley was scarily sinister from the off.  Aside from the highly readable story, I liked the way that this book was amusingly scathing about New Age self-help psychobabble, and the comments about the unreliability of the field of mental health, and how doctors and psychiatrists dish out one medication to counteract the side effects of another, and then another, and another.   

I haven't got anything negative to say about this novel; it held my interest throughout, ends well, and isn't predictable.  For me, it just missed the spark that sends a book into the '5*, I loved it' zone, but that's only personal taste; it's jolly good, I'd recommend it, and I'd definitely read more by this author.