Johnny Porno

Charlie Stella has put in well over a decade writing some of the best hard-core crime fiction out there. I've spent over a decade reading his work, and I've always been well rewarded with countless hours of absorbing, page turning, entertainment. Simply put, Stella delivers.Arguably the very best at crafting mobster oriented crime fiction, centering primarily on the wiseguys, made-men, knock-around guys, wanna-be poseurs and their counterparts in law enforcement, Stella once again comes across with yet another hardboiled, intelligent, fast moving and funny, crime fiction triumph.John Albano (Johnny Porno) is a good guy. Not a "goodfella," just a simple, honest, blue-collar, working stiff trying to do the right thing. The right thing being: pay his avaricious shrew of an ex-wife, Nancy, child support, and maintain a meaningful, loving relationship with his semi-estranged young son.John's quick temper, and fast hands cost him both his union construction gig, and his union card. Cash desperate, John accepts a job from local mobster Eddie Vento. It's gofer work, counting heads, picking up cash, delivering film reels, at various mob operated underground screenings of the notorious porn flick "Deep Throat." A low echelon, wanna-be wiseguy, member of Eddie's crew fits John with the "Johnny Porno" monicker. John loathes the name almost as much as he hates the man who tagged him with it.John's character assets: honesty, loyalty, dignity, integrity, all prove to be liabilities in the violent, scheme riddled world of "Johnny Porno." As the excellently crafted, multi-faceted plot unfolds, John ends up with a target on his back, and a plethora of miscreants, on both sides of the law, setting their sights on it.JOHNNY PORNO is brilliantly plotted, with vibrant characters, both laugh out loud zany (Louis Kirsk & Nancy Kirsk-Albano-Ackerman, [she's a peach!] and Nick Santorra), and diabolically deadly ( Billy Hastings, Tommy Burns), all interspersed with the incisive, sometimes terse, sometimes raucous dialogue that has become a branding signature of Charlie Stella's crime novels. With JOHNNY PORNO Stella has lost nary a step over time, in fact he's kicked things up a notch.

I have read all of Charlie Stella's novels and loved them all. Had I not, I doubt I would have picked this one up due to the unfortunate title and cover art.Stella is an artist in being able to relate life events through the eyes of the average working guy. Most authors are choosing characters of great financial means to give them the ability to carry out their imaginative schemes. John Albano is an honorable guy, who is divorced and is trying to make a living for his young son. This story is told through the voices of average, financiallystruggling people. It is done so with great insight, use of wit and words of the times. A winner.

I have been following Charlie Stella for years, both his blogs and books. 'Johnny Porno' doesn't disappoint loyal fans like myself. It's not the kind of book you want to showcase on the morning subway ride, both because of the title and the scary mugshot of the author on the back, but it's another page turner from a former knockaround guy. Charlie Stella has always had a knack for incredible dialogue, but what makes this book stand out from his others is the backstory of the mafia's connection to the highest grossing movie of all-time, "Deep Throat." New Yorkers, like myself, will appreciate all of the historical references to the city and see just how much things have changed since the 1970's.I give this five out of five cement shoes!~Daniel Scali

I like Mr. Stella's writing style, but this title was only okay. Very well plotted, but a ton of subplots that seemed to go nowhere. I'd still recommend it, but it's not his strongest title.

This is by far Charlie Stella's best novel yet. Not that his previous ones were bad, just that this one is much more full and rich.

I've probably put off reading this for a couple of years now, not from any dread that it wouldn't be any good but more from the realisation that once I'd read it, there was no more Stella on the TBR pile. You don't always get that sense of anticipation with every book you pick up and crack the spine on.Since I read his first offering - Eddie's World a few years ago, I've tried to catch up and keep pace with all his novels. Fortunately, he has another one out this year. Unfortunately, as far as my pockets go, that's another one to be added to the never decreasing wish-list.Eddie's World, 2001Jimmy Bench-press, 2002Charlie Opera, 2003Cheapskates, 2005Shakedown, 2006Mafiya, 2008Johnny Porno, 2010Rough Riders, 2012Johnny Porno is populated with good guys, bad guys, good cops, bad cops, good women, bad women and a kid adored by his father. A tale set in 70's New York concerning the mob cash-cow film Deep Throat which was banned at the time. Johnny Albano is hustling for a living, trying to be a good father and meet his child support obligations, whilst lacking a regular union job after his temper exploded on the wrong guy. An opportunity to collect the mob receipts on the film probably wasn't going to be the best decision he ever took.Albano or Johnny Porno as he's nicknamed, manages to get on the wrong side of the mob, a bent cop, a vindictive ex-cop and his ex-wife as well as her previous sex-mad spouse at various times throughout the book.In a nutshell, there's plenty of gritty action, character, dialogue, wise guys and sleaze throughout.Stella has been likened to George V. Higgins, and having read a few of his early books in the last couple of years, - The Friends Of Eddie Coyle and A Rat On Fire, I can see why. For me there's no real comparison though, Charlie Stella has yet to disappoint.My reading tally for this year is over 80, this is definitely up in the top 5, alongside Michael Zadoorian's Leisure Seeker, Jeremy Dun's Free Agent and Lynn Kostoff's The Long Fall.Shame I can't give it 6 out of 5!

Johnny Porno is an ambitious novel, telling a quite complex story from the multiple perspectives of a fairly large cast. That it hangs together without becoming incoherent or the reader getting lost is testament to Stella's skill as a writer. And whilst relatively slow at the start, as various characters and subplots are set in place, the story gently and insistently tugs the reader along. By the end, it is cantering having turned into a real page-turner. Interestingly, nearly every single scene could be published as a standalone piece of flash fiction. Whilst the plotting is very good, creating a believable story and recreating the sense of place and social relations of 1973 New York, where the novel excels is with respect to characterization and the various social interactions. All of Stella's characters are fully realised with clearly defined personalities, traits, and motivations. Few are pleasant company, but all are vividly portrayed with a fine eye for social realism. How they interact is very well done, especially the dialogue which is excellent: reading the conversations feels as if you're eavesdropping. There are a number of references to George V Higgins in the book and Stella is a worthy successor. In short, Johnny Porno was an engrossing read.