Once again, Christopher Moore presents an oddball situation with a healthy blend of humor and insight. His character development is spot on in "A Dirty Job,", centering around a widowed beta-male who has to raise his daughter alone while learning how to cope with his new job as a "death merchant."
The premise is that souls are passed between bodies through precious objects, such as a necklace or, in one woman's case, breast implants. Charlie Asher learns very quickly that he only has a certain amount of time to collect a soul after its host dies, or the world (well, at least San Francisco) faces dire consequences. A trio of sewer harpies gains strength by feeding on unclaimed souls, and are gradually becoming a threat to the city.
Moore has a beautiful and humorous wit, which makes his books so pleasant to read, but there are plenty of moments of poignancy as well. Such a quality is exemplified in lines such as this one following the death of Charlie's wife in the second chapter: "There's a fine edge to new grief, it severs nerves, disconnects reality -- there's mercy in a sharp blade. Only with time, as the edge wears, does the real ache begin."
The cast of characters in "A Dirty Job" is unsurprisingly quirky and fascinating: the two women who help Charlie take care of his daughter, Charlie's lesbian sister, the goth girl and desperately single man working the counter at Charlie's secondhand store, his fellow death merchant Minty Fresh, and the Emperor of San Francisco, to name a handful. Moore is reliably thorough with setting scenes and personalities; his characters and the situations they end up in always feel complete and clear.
With such immersive build-up, the final couple of chapters are a disappointment. A predictable and hurried ending, the good and evil entities involved aren't really given the opportunity to be the contenders you expect from the prophecy revealed during the story. I won't give anything away (except to say there's not really much to give away), but the final battle left a lot to be desired.
Other than that, and some nitpicky details (i.e. if a creature without lips can't pronounce "P's," why would he still be able to pronounce "B's," "F's," "M's," etc.?, and does he also not have a tongue?, because that adds to the issue), "A Dirty Job" is a worthwhile read, simply to bask in Moore's impressive skills with language. He's a delight to read, even if his endings don't quite measure up.
Makes me want to read it, Abby - nicely done!
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