This is my second Christopher Moore novel, the first being Fluke, which I didn't really like, and I am glad that I gave him a second chance. Moore writes the quirky. Occasionally, it's nearly too quirky, but I found that with A Dirty Job, that just going along for the ride, makes for a fun read.

Charlie Asher is a lovable dork who unwittingly becomes a death merchant and must protect his unborn daughter from the rise of the underworld, which is about to occur in a mega showdown in his hometown on San Francisco. Moore's talent lies in creating memorable characters. Each character is nearly more bizarre than the very strange things that are happening around them. I love, love, love Audrey and her squirrel people. Best characters ever! Especially Bob with his spork.

I laughed out loud many times while reading this book and even had to read my boyfriend paragraphs that I thought were so well written. Moore is great with phrasing and writing comedy.I was mostly very entertained, which is why I gave this book a four star rating.

The bits that I thought were super dull were everything with the Morrigans, the central evil characters of the book. I found myself skimming through these parts just to get back to Charlie. I wish that a lot of it had been cut out and that the characters were kept more mysterious. It was tedious to read.

Also a bit tiresome was the picking up of vessels. At first, it was intriguing, but it went on too long.He kept having another name in his book and another person to track down. I felt that this book could have benefited from tighter editing. Maybe a few sections cut would have made a sharper story. A few of the scenarios were extraneous and didn't really drive the plot or character development.

Overall, I would recommend it and I look forward to reading another Moore novel. He has an interesting take on the world and is a unique author.