Shakedown

One of the best crime writers working today. Charlie Stella is the real thing. He knows how to tell a story. Shakedown is a good place to start, but for my money, go back to the beginning and enter Eddie's World, move on to meet Jimmy Bench Press, then make the acquaintance of Charlie Opera, get to know the Cheapskates, and land on Shakedown to fully appreciate the range and development of this fine writer who earns and exceeds the comparisons to George V. Higgins, Elmore Leonard, and Donald Westlake. Charlie Stella's fiction never disappoints.

Charlie Stella indeed lives up to what the Chicago Sun-Times describes as "...the best crime writer you've never read." And after ripping non-stop through action-crammed pages of wise guys doing bad deeds, I couldn't help wondering: "why haven't I ever heard of this guy?" Check out the dust cover and just take a look at Stella - that mug screams New York, the mob, and "fuggetaboutit." With a street-hardened rawness that makes Puzo read like Mother Goose, Stella tells the story of Bobby Gennaro, recently retired bookmaker for the mob that simply wants to settle down and marry girl friend Lin Yao, raise a family, and leave the famiglia behind. Except the Soprano-boys won't hear of it, shaking Bobby down for a piece of the action he's stowed away during his wayward days. But in the world of Charlie Stella, the Italian mob isn't edgy enough, and soon Bobby finds himself in the middle of not only the Godfather's guys, but the Chinese mob, their Irish counterparts, and a crooked cop. Suspense builds between some raunchy sex and people getting turned into Swiss cheese, leading to an inevitable crescendo of even more violence. But a word of fair warning to the gentle readers of Berkeley or Palo Alto: Charlie Stella must have been absent for diversity training: his frequent use of insensitive terms like "chink", "Dago", and "mick" may offend more enlightened ears. But don't get me wrong - this isn't all sex, brutality, and political incorrectness. The dialogue is sharp and authentic, and there's even room for a street-smart priest to raise the book's levels of social redeeming factors. But not that much. So trust me - Charlie Stella is the real deal, a crime writer who "gets" the streets of New York and the thugs who walk them. This may have been my first Stella novel, but definitely not my last - I've already ordered two of his earlier works.

When Bobby Gennaro chooses Lin Yao, and love, over his mob job, he asks for trouble and it never stops. The unique plot, hardcore/charming characters, and that realistic Stella dialogue and atmosphere--they'll keep you away from work. Criminal aggression alongside endearing human qualities and humor reach the peak of Stella's inimitable style, and his psychological insights are unparalleled. I laughed the cat off my lap, reading the church scene where mobsters discuss business in a "reverent" manner. There's much more than crime here to love.

I picked up Charlie Stella's first book, Eddie's World, at a small book shop and was pleasantly surprised with my read. So I gave his second book, Jimmy Bench-Press, a chance. That was even better. Then his third, Charlie Opera, which was phenomenal. Each one was better than the next and this is no different. He has such a sharp talent for dialogue that the plot becomes second place. If you have an open mind toward violence and loose language, then prepare to laugh and get ready for a tour de force of a novel. Move over Elmore Leonard.

A big fan of Charlie Stella's since Eddie's World, I was eagerly anticipating his newest work -- and he did not disappoint! Keeping in tradition with his previous successes, Shakedown's dialogue is dynamite, and the action could be well adapted to the big screen. For fans of first rate crime fiction, read Shakedown -- or anything else by Charlie Stella. Fantastic!