Johnny Porno
By Charlie Stella
April, 2010
Plot Summary: John Albano is feeling the heat from all sides during the summer of 1973 in New York City. Cut from his Union job for a scuffle with the foreman, John is now scrambling to pay rent, bills, and child support to his poison pill of an ex-wife. In a desperate move, he takes on a job shuttling film cans and moneybags for the local mafia boss. The ‘good guys’ are making a killing screening the illegal porno flick, Deep Throat, and John’s just trying to make a few bucks, but working for the mafia lands him in trouble up to his neck.
Charlie Stella has a gift for nailing the colorful characters in this seedy little corner of New York. The dialog couldn’t be more authentic, and from page one I was transported to a hot, gritty landscape full of guys who say ‘yous’ and women who are used to being used. I got the feeling that Mr. Stella really knows these people intimately, but part of me sincerely hopes that characters like Nancy, the ex-wife, are figments of his imagination. As much as I liked John, I absolutely hated her, and the depth of my emotion shows just how convincing the characterizations were.
I could easily see Johnny Porno being made into a film, and my husband would see it in a heartbeat. For myself, I prefer to consume crime stories in print, and this one turned into quite a page-turner at the end. Mr. Stella does not romanticize street life in any way, shape, or form, and I truly had no idea how he would end it. That makes for an exciting read, but it’s also unsettling, like riding on a rollercoaster at the crest and having no idea where it’ll hit bottom. I’m accustomed to hanging out with the romantics, not the realists, and while Mr. Stella doesn’t tie things up neat and pretty with a bow, the conclusion rang true and it satisfied me.
The story revolves around a wide cast of characters, and the only time I stumbled a bit was when it shifted over to the cops and feds trailing the mafia. Some of the police procedural had me scratching my head, but it didn’t matter because everything was crystal clear when the action snapped back to the criminal element. I relished how the focus was on the guys at the bottom of the totem pole, and I got to see what happens to the drivers, runners, and climbers who associate with organized crime. It ain’t pretty.
Rebecca Baumann (Dirty Sexy Books)
By Charlie Stella
April, 2010
Plot Summary: John Albano is feeling the heat from all sides during the summer of 1973 in New York City. Cut from his Union job for a scuffle with the foreman, John is now scrambling to pay rent, bills, and child support to his poison pill of an ex-wife. In a desperate move, he takes on a job shuttling film cans and moneybags for the local mafia boss. The ‘good guys’ are making a killing screening the illegal porno flick, Deep Throat, and John’s just trying to make a few bucks, but working for the mafia lands him in trouble up to his neck.
Charlie Stella has a gift for nailing the colorful characters in this seedy little corner of New York. The dialog couldn’t be more authentic, and from page one I was transported to a hot, gritty landscape full of guys who say ‘yous’ and women who are used to being used. I got the feeling that Mr. Stella really knows these people intimately, but part of me sincerely hopes that characters like Nancy, the ex-wife, are figments of his imagination. As much as I liked John, I absolutely hated her, and the depth of my emotion shows just how convincing the characterizations were.
I could easily see Johnny Porno being made into a film, and my husband would see it in a heartbeat. For myself, I prefer to consume crime stories in print, and this one turned into quite a page-turner at the end. Mr. Stella does not romanticize street life in any way, shape, or form, and I truly had no idea how he would end it. That makes for an exciting read, but it’s also unsettling, like riding on a rollercoaster at the crest and having no idea where it’ll hit bottom. I’m accustomed to hanging out with the romantics, not the realists, and while Mr. Stella doesn’t tie things up neat and pretty with a bow, the conclusion rang true and it satisfied me.
The story revolves around a wide cast of characters, and the only time I stumbled a bit was when it shifted over to the cops and feds trailing the mafia. Some of the police procedural had me scratching my head, but it didn’t matter because everything was crystal clear when the action snapped back to the criminal element. I relished how the focus was on the guys at the bottom of the totem pole, and I got to see what happens to the drivers, runners, and climbers who associate with organized crime. It ain’t pretty.
Rebecca Baumann (Dirty Sexy Books)
