A Dirty Job

by Christopher Moore

Charlie Asher is a pretty normal guy. A little hapless, somewhat neurotic, more of a Beta than an Alpha Male. Charlie's been lucky, though. He owns a building in the heart of San Francisco, and runs a second-hand store with the help of a couple of loyal, if marginally insane, employees. He's married to a bright and pretty woman who actually loves him for his normality. And she, Rachel, is about to have their first child.
But normal service is about to be interrupted. As Charlie prepares to go home after the birth, he sees a strange man dressed in mint-green at Rachel's hospital bedside - a man who claims that no one should be able to see him. But see him Charlie does, and from here on out, things get really weird. . . .
People start dropping dead around him, giant ravens perch on his building, and it seems that everywhere he goes, a dark presence whispers to him from under the streets. Strange names start appearing on his nightstand notepad, and before he knows it, those people end up dead, too. Yep, it seems that Charlie Asher has been recruited for a new job, an unpleasant but utterly necessary one: Death.

It's a dirty job. But hey, somebody's gotta do it.

• ISBN10: 0060590270
• ISBN13: 9780060590277
• Publish Date: 21 March 2006
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Collins
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 400
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

They warned me this wasn’t as good as Lamb, but I didn’t listen.

A Dirty Job has the same humor as I was expecting from Christopher Moore, but the pacing was a little more awkward here, and the jokes were much more abrasive. In this book, Charlie Asher becomes a Death Merchant quite against his own will. Death Merchants aren’t Grim Reapers… they’re more responsible for soul transference. When someone dies, their soul is transferred into a beloved object, and it’s the job of people like Charlie to make sure these ascending souls get into the right hands.

Of course, it’s all a bit complicated when two Hell Hounds show up out of nowhere and your daughter can kill people by pointing and saying “kitty”.

I still appreciate the amount of mythology that goes into his books, but this isn’t strictly a book about spirituality. Moore once again takes inspiration from Eastern spirituality, but the story is much more urban fantasy. What bothers me about this one is the humor.

Which, I’ll admit, is weird, because that’s what I loved about Lamb. Moore dared to push boundaries and it really WORKED. It felt more timely and appropriate in that novel, because the subject was relevant. The anti-semetic jokes and sexist jokes and homosexual jokes feel like pointless jabs. I actually don’t believe that Moore is a racist – I think he’s being very tongue-in-cheek about it all… but they add nothing here and are a bit cringy. It’s exasperating, but because you know it’s not meant, it’s not straight of offensive? It’s hard to explain. But given how many people of all shapes and sizes who are not offended by this stuff, I think it’s not just me.

The characters in this book are all pretty good… although Charlie was a bit exasperating. You know those characters who you don’t personally like, but are written just fine? That’s my relationship with Charlie Asher. I really enjoyed Minty Fresh and Lilly, and little Sophie is a firecracker. The quirkiness of the writing is fantastic (questionable jokes aside) and it’s absolutely a fun listen.

I really loved the San Francisco setting, because I feel like it’s an aspect of a city we don’t see very often. Most city-based books take place in either the elite settings… or in a variety of bars and clubs. A Dirty Job takes place between second-hand shops and residential areas and it just felt… fresh? I liked the setting.

Overall, I’m still here for Christopher Moore’s writing. When it’s not funny, it’s still fun, and stories are just quirky enough to feel akin to Terry Pratchett, which I am always into. Now that my expectations have dropped a little, I think I’m adequately prepared to enjoy the rest of his novels. A Dirty Job has a sequel, and I’ll definitely be adding that to the TBR.

Aside – has anyone seen Dead Like Me? George would definitely appreciate this novel. Or, at least, Mason would. 🙂

[bookperson]

Dnf 85%.
Main character is annoying, no emotional connections to the characters whatsoever. Scene in the alley (after massage) made me cry-laugh but not in a good way, it was so bad that I wanted to wash my ears with soap (read via audiobook).
If I could describe book in one word it would be "yuck".

[thepunktheory]

This book is simply brilliant. Christopher Moore's dark humor is right down my alley. It's dark, it's weird, it's sarcastic - just the book for me.
What I especially like is that you can tell how much effort Moore must have put into research. His incorporates several theories concerning death and souls from all over the world.
Let me give you an example: Have you ever heard of the Morrigan? That's just one thing Charlie Asher has to put up: three spooky Irish battle chicks that are death! By now I'm completely into Irish mythology and it's super fascinating!
What I enjoyed most about A Dirty Job is the humor. I haven't read a novel this funny in a long time. Believe when I say it had to put my reader down several times because I just couldn't stop laughing!

Summing up I have to say that A Dirty Job simply is a must-read!
By the way, I'm certain that it would make for an awesome movie - I hope there will be an adaptation in the future.

[Eve1972]

It took me a bit to get into this one, but once I did I found it hilarious!

[ibeforem]

I thought this was great! But if you’re offended by language, you should probably steer clear. We listened to this on a car trip, and laughed out loud a lot. There’s so much to tickle you here, from Charlie’s “beta-male”ness to Sophie’s puppies to Lily and Ray, Charlie’s (mostly) loyal employees. I plan to read many more of his books.