Book 34, 2019

Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



About ten minutes ago, I finished reading Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones. This is the third installment in her "Charley Davidson" series, featuring PI and grim reaper, Charley.

Charley is suffering from self-inflicted insomnia, because each time she falls asleep, she is visited by Reyes, the preternaturally beautiful son of Satan, whom she bound to his physical body. And, he's pissed. Charley is managing, thanks to copious amounts of caffeine and her grim reaper physiology. When she lands a missing person case, it gives her something to focus on.

Charley is soon chasing down leads, trying to learn what became of the good doctor's wife, but she's becoming more and more convinced that he had something to do with her disappearance. In the meantime, Reyes escapes from prison and carjacks Charley in his bid for freedom. From speaking to him, Charley comes to realize that the man he went to prison for murdering may not be dead. Now, she is chasing down leads to learn what became of him. A visit to Rocket, the ghost of a savant who lingers in an abandoned mental asylum, leads Charley to run afoul of a biker gang, out for revenge on the person who poisoned their dog.

In between interviewing suspects, witnesses, chasing down leads, guzzling coffee, and arguing with her father, Charley must also dodge skiptracer Garrett Swopes, who's been assigned to tail her, in hopes of Charley leading the authorities to Reyes. Who ever said the life of a grim reaper was dull?

The story charged out of the gate, pedal to the metal, and it never once let up. Despite her exhaustion, Charley is at her snarky best, leading everyone on a merry chase as she strives to solve her case, learn more about Reyes' past, dodge Garrett, avert a gang war, and try to calm her father, who has suddenly decided she should retire from the PI business. Characters are marvelous, from Charley herself to the silent little ghost girl who keeps appearing at the oddest times and places. Charley's assistant, Cookie, is the BFF we all need in our lives, and her Uncle Bob is the bastion of support each of us deserves. I wanted to sit down and have lunch with them all!

Favorite lines:
♦ Death comes to those who wait, and to those who don't. So, either way...
♦ Better a dead clown in my apartment than a live one.
♦ The short commute was nice and rarely involved rabid raccoons.
♦ I totally should have gone to Hogwarts when I had the chance.
♦ God, I loved Sammy. I'd considered marrying him, but his wife got upset when I asked for his hand.
♦ "Let me express how much I don't care on a scale of one to bite me."
♦ I hated being tailed. What if I wanted to run naked through a wheat field? Or pick up a male prostitute?
♦ "I'll call if I break a leg or get eaten by a bear." // "Play like a rock." // "Now?" // "No, if a bear starts eating you." // I thought a moment before replying. "Do they have screaming, sobbing rocks, 'cause that's probably what I'll be doing if a bear is gnawing my arm off."

Ah, I could have quoted half the book! Charley is so funny, even when the circumstances aren't. A story most excellent--five star rating!