Cheapskates

You know, life really isn't fair. Talented writers - really talented writers - like Charlie Stella languish in back rooms and low shelves while hacks like James Patterson make everybody's bestseller list. "Cheapskates" is another crime fiction jewel from the wily Stella, a clever and darkly humorous tale of crooked deeds and undying, if misplaced, loyalty. Reese Waters and Peter Rizzo are roommates - roommates at upstate New York's Fishkill penitentiary. Reese has served his time, and upon his release, he promises Rizzo he'll do what he can to recover $50,000 his ex-wife chiseled from him. If the well-meaning Reese thinks he's getting the runaround from the pathologically greedy ex-wife, Janice Barrett and the low-rent New York gangsters her contractor dad and brother hang out with, he finds that life can get really ugly when buddy Rizzo turns up murdered. What separates "Cheapskates" - and Stella - from the mob is the cast of offbeat characters that breeze through the pages of his novels. There's Jimmy "Wigs" Valentine, the slime ball Mafioso with lots of disguises but zero class. Then you have Micheal Barrett, the sixty-eight year-old self-made millionaire, who is so cheap that he stocks up on day-old and damaged Entenmann's pastry that he eats for breakfast - and lunch - all week long. Or Arlene Belzinger, the tough-as-nails NYPD detective with a body and attitude to match. But the real star here is Janice Barrett, a bitch in every one of the meanest ways the name conjures. A woman so miserable that Rizzo pines, "Sometime I think that if I ever got cancer, I'll run her over on the way to chemo." Combined with her cheapskate father and slacker brother, Stella creates a whole new dimension to the dysfunction family. Couple this cast with Stella's own brand of slick, hip dialogue and you've got some of the most engaging fiction of vice and corruption this side of Elmore Leonard. So do yourself a favor - get off the well beaten track and get introduced to Charlie Stella. The Goodfellas and Godfathers have never been so entertaining.

Charlie Stella writes like he has more insight into this dark world than a "good man" should. Fabulous dialogue. Page to page action. Full of plot twists and double crosses. A fitting follow-up to "Charlie Opera" This is his best book so far.

Hopefully, soon, there will come a point where readers won't have to "discover" Charlie Stella because he'll have the recognition he deserves as one of our best crime novelists at work.CHEAPSKATES is a page-turner in the best sense of the word, both funny and suspenseful, with engaging characters, and a wonderfully orchestrated ending. Check out CHEAPSKATES and then go back (if you haven't already)and read EDDIE's WORLD, JIMMY BENCH-PRESS, and CHARLIE OPERA.

Looks like Charlie Stella did it again. Nobody builds the tension better than Stella, especially in this novel, where, at the end, I actually found myself holding my breath. He cuts back and forth between characters at the most crucial moments, leaving you full of suspense and anxiously awaiting the climax. Nobody hooks you better than Charlie Stella. And if you're a fan of Stella's crisp and catchy dialogue, you won't be disappointed with CHEAPSKATES. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys great crime fiction.

"Cheapskates" is further proof that Charlie Stella's novels get better and better each time. This is a real page turner that hooks you with both dialogue and story. I'm a big fan of short chapters, which help move the story along at a dramatic pace. Stella is a rising star in crime fiction. He has a an incredible knack for character development. For a man fresh out of prison, Reese becomes a very likeable character. On the other end, the reader will despise Michael and Janice Barrett. If any of Stella's four books becomes a movie, this should be the one.