I was intrigued by the description of this book. Unfortunately, it was just too dark for me. I tried several times to "get into" the book to no avail. The book is very well written and I think would be fascinating for many readers but Charlie's world is just too depressing for me.

Down To No Good is the second book in the Charlie Miner series. The author gives us plenty of background information so this can be read has a standalone You can check my read review out for Down Solo here. (LINK) if you fancy the first one.

In this book we catch up with Charlie weeks after his near death experience with a broken down marriage and doing his to look after his daughter Mindy and finds himself involved on a case after a phone call from David about Psychic Tamara Gale giving crucial information about three murders

Not only are the characters unique and quirky and but the whole story is I also love the element of humour in it. Charlie and David make a brilliant team.

Once again I absolutely loved the idea of this story with a twist of paranormal. It is a fast paced easy read that will have you hooked from start to finish.

If you're looking for a crime book that is a little bit different then this is the book for you, which I highly recommend giving it 4.5 stars.

I had no preconceived ideas about this book. The thought of investigating a psychic interested me. I didn't realize Charlie Minor had such difficulty dying. He is a devoted father despite being a drug addict. He also cannot stay off the shady side of the law, even when working somewhat alongside Detective Dave Putnam.
Much of this is Dave's story. It is gritty, dangerous and unpredictable. Part police procedural (although definitely not by the book) part psychic con job with added stalker hit man aspects and potential terrorist action.
Told in an unconventional format with various viewpoints and jumps back and forth in time, the reader gets all the information required, never in a linear fashion.
You will enjoy this story more than you expect. Definitely surprising.

DOWN TO NO GOOD
Earl Javorsky
Fiction Studio Books/The Story Plant
ISBN 978-1-61188-253-7
Hardcover
Thriller

DOWN TO NO GOOD was not originally on my list to read or review, but rather was nudged into my attention by its intriguing premise. It combines elements of mystery and the supernatural, with a very gritty streetwise worldview involving people who for the most part you would not want to know but would very much want to watch.

The narrative alternates between the first person present viewpoint of Charlie Miner and Dave Putnam, friends by choice and partners by circumstance. Miner is the more prominent and interesting of the two, mostly for the wrong reasons. He is a reluctant yet eager drug addict (those who ride the wild horses of addictions in all of their forms need no further explanation). He and his bitter, angry ex-wife have somehow managed to raise what at this point is a reasonable, wise and pleasant teenaged daughter named Alison who lives with Charlie because she hates her mother. Alison is the one and probably the only bright spot in Charlie’s life. Oh, one other thing. Charlie is capable of resurrection, as in “from the dead.” This concept was introduced in DOWN SOLO, the first Charlie Miner book, and is further built upon in the second, though by no means explained. It is probably a combination of things, from the multiple combinations of pharmaceutical cocktails which Charlie ingests on a daily basis to a rehabilitation clinic where Charlie failed miserably to get with the program. He did, however, meet a gentleman named Daniel, a somewhat slippery yet very well-meaning chameleon-like character who wanders into and out of Charlie’s life while providing him with enigmatic explanations of what is happening with him, including that astral projection thing which Charlie does on occasion. That latter ability comes in handy, especially when he is called upon to help his buddy Dave in an investigation. Dave is an LAPD homicide detective for whom alcohol is the sweetest mother’s milk and he demonstrates no particular desire to be weaned from it anytime soon. Charlie and Dave do much more than prop each other up. Dave has carried Charlie’s corpse out of the line of fire a time or two so that he might live again, and, as is demonstrated in DOWN TO NO GOOD (the sequel to DOWN SOLO), Charlie’s astral projection can help Dave solve crimes. In DOWN TO NO GOOD, Dave is investigating a connection between two homicides which are seemingly linked by the helpful if questionable assistance of a psychic named Tamara Gale. There is some question of whether Gale is the real thing, though she certainly seems to be so when she successfully predict a mass poisoning incident at a high school. Something doesn’t ring quite right, however, from Gale’s movie-star handsome husband to her extremely unconventional daughter (who eventually gets around to having a steamy relationship with Charlie) and all the way back to Gale herself. The question that is asked --- and answered --- in very dramatic fashion --- in DOWN TO NO GOOD is whether Gale has true powers or is just trying to sell books...and, if the latter, how far she will go to do so.

I don’t know that DOWN TO NO GOOD is terrific literature, but it’s an absolutely terrific story, one that reads more like short fiction than a full length novel and which leaves the reader wanting more, more, more. It struck me while reading DOWN TO NO GOOD that the characters and subject matter would be very well served by being presented as a (very adult) graphic novel or, perhaps, an ongoing Netflix series. That’s not to disparage this work in its present form, however, which will tear your head off and make you like it. Recommended.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
(c) Copyright 2017, The Book Report, Ins. All rights reserved.

Down to No Good
Charlie Miner Book 2
Earl Javorsky
The Story Plant, November 2017
ISBN 978-1-61188-253-7
Trade Paperback

From the publisher—

Private investigator Charlie Miner, freshly revived from his own murder, gets a call from Homicide Detective Dave Putnam. Self-styled “psychic to the stars” Tamara Gale has given crucial information about three murders, and the brass thinks it makes the Department look bad. Dave wants Charlie to help figure out the angle, since he has first-hand experience with the inexplicable. Trouble is, Charlie, just weeks after his full-death experience, once again has severe cognitive problems and may get them both killed.

Charlie Miner is a most unusual man. He’s a private investigator, a single father to a teenaged girl, a drug addict and, oh yeah, he can’t die. That last is because of an experimental therapy that resulted in a very unexpected side effect. Not many people know this about Charlie but his friend, Dave, does and has pretty much accepted this state of affairs even if he doesn’t understand it and finds it really hard to believe. Dave has his own failings but he and Charlie are good friends.

Dave asks Charlie to help him look into a psychic, Tamara, who has raised red flags about herself with her statements about some murders. When another investigator who may have had information about Tamara is murdered, the stakes get higher and Charlie’s ability to leave his own body may be just what is needed to get to the bottom of who Tamara is and the truth behind several killings.

One of my biggest pet peeves about crime fiction comes into play when the tale is told in first person present tense and that’s the case here. It’s impossible for me to become really engaged because I’m so distracted at the idea that I’m supposed to believe the protagonist is telling me what’s happening in real time. What, is he speaking to me as he goes about his investigative business? Because of this, I can’t say I was totally enthralled but I did like Charlie and Dave and their weird story. In fact, I’d say the author’s strength really lies in his characters, likeable and not.

Reviewed by Lelia Taylor, November 2017.

Earl Javorsky brings back the most interesting new detective of the last several years. Charlie Miner first appeared in 2014 in "Down Solo" (my review), a book that grabbed from the first sentences. The slick combination of the supernatural and murder mystery continues with this second installment. In addition to being dead (but not a zombie he wants us to know), Charlie is still a junkie, divorced from a crazy ex, and trying to do better as a dad. Then there is the whole trying to figure out the being dead part. While Detective Putnam knows Miner's secret only an ethereal character named Daniel seems to really understand what's going on. He just doesn't seem to be in a big hurry to explain it. Except that Charlie has a purpose and he needs to figure that out too.

Javorsky has created something really special here. It would have been easy to cop a standard zombie detective and roll with it. What you get here is infinitely more interesting. Miner is still in the grip of his addiction, which results in the usual bad decisions. But some of those decisions aren't terminal when you're already dead. Beyond the tightly woven story of the psychic and the three murders, there is a deep dive into the conflicted psyche of our hero. There's a price to pay for his reprieve, and it is diametrically opposite of the demands of the monkey on his back.

Earl Javorsky continues to offer up well written and smartly told novels. His characters are believable. The combination of great writing, high energy and off the wall plot twists made me jump at the chance to review his work again. It's always great to find a good storyteller. When you add in quality writing and a singular imagination, it's a winning formula. His books will be something to look forward to for years to come.

"Down To No Good" hits bookstores November 7.

Why You Will Like It - A great murder thriller with a unique and very flawed hero leading the way.

DOWN TO NO GOOD is an inventive and original mystery featuring Charlie Miner, a private detective who has discovered that he cannot be killed. Shortly after being shot through the head, he reawakens and a spirit guide teaches him how to repair his body, although there are some disturbing lapses in his memory. Charlie is further hindered by his heroin addiction which unfortunately still exists despite his supernatural existence. When Charlie's friend, Dave Puttman recruits him to investigate an alleged psychic, the two get into more trouble than anticipated. Fun and interesting read which was so good that I immediately bought the first book in the series, DOWN SOLO.