Johnny Porno by Charlie Stella.
Finally got around to reading this this week. I finished it this morning in the barbershop while waiting my turn with a frustratingly slow but very skilled barber.

This book was a gem. It twists a number of stories around the phenomenon that was the reaction to Linda Lovelace and Deep Throat circa 1973. Although the book takes place almost entirely in NYC the author doesn't hand hold. Locations and neighborhoods are named via streets and subway stops for the most part, not "THIS IS QUEENS" or "THIS IS BROOKLYN". For the non New Yorker this may be initially disorienting but I got over it fast enough. For the New Yorker who knows these areas or how they were in 1973 this will be no problem at all.

The primary story in the book, although they are all interrelated, is that of John Albano, a down on his luck laborer whose sense of honor and quick fists have gotten him kicked out of the union and unable to consistently make rent, let alone pay alimony and child support to his shrewish ex-wife, Nancy.

Albano takes a job picking up cash from distributors showing Deep Throat after the previous person who had that job was permanently demoted by the Mob. Albano knows his way around the life (as does Stella) and promises himself he can keep the Mob at arms' length. Of course things don't work out entirely as Albano plans.

In some aspects this is not just a mob book, although the mob plays a major role, so much as it is a book about small time criminals, guys just trying to make a living and cops playing both sides of the fence. Everyone in the story is hustling to make a buck but most of their dreams are small. With the exception of an FBI agent who I didn't quite get, the character's motivations all make perfect sense for the limited lives that they have. This book is quite sleazy. I mean that in a good way. It's the written equivalent of a nasty Funkadelic riff. Stella turns everything up to 11 and you can almost smell the Lysol used to clean up the no-tell motels, strip clubs and restaurants where much of the action takes place.

Stella loves his characters but he also has fun with them. In one hilarious scene a bigoted dimwit can't stand to listen to the vocalizations in Soul Makossa but is just fine with similar nonsensical lyrics in Shambala.

Stella also does a tie-in with the DeMeo crew. There is room for a sequel so let's see if he wants to revisit some of these characters. Stella has gotten a lot of comparisons to Westlake , Higgins or Leonard. Those are fair. I would also add Ridley and possibly even Goines. Again, this is a profane book so if that's not your cup of tea, be forewarned.

The only thing which irritated me was

That aside and my quibble about the FBI agent, I enjoyed this book. I will have to go back and re-read Shakedown because it seems like Stella changed his style quite a bit since Shakedown. But I might be wrong. Anyway, a good read and worthwhile.