Second Grave on the Left (Charley Davidson #2) by Darynda Jones

Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones


Charley Davidson, Grim Reaper Extraordinaire, is back in this sexy, suspenseful novel of supernatural shenanigans

When Charley is rudely awakened in the middle of the night by her best friend who tells her to get dressed quickly and tosses clothes out of the closet at her, she can’t help but wonder what Cookie’s up to. Leather scrunch boots with a floral miniskirt? Together? Seriously? Cookie explains that a friend of hers named Mimi disappeared five days earlier and that she just got a text from her setting up a meet at a coffee shop downtown. They show up at the coffee shop, but no Mimi. But Charley finds a message on the bathroom wall. Mimi left a clue, a woman’s name. Mimi’s husband explains that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old friend of hers from high school had been found murdered a couple weeks prior. The same woman Mimi had named in her message.

Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He’s left his body because he’s being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can’t let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they’ll have a portal to heaven. And if they have a portal to heaven…well, let’s just say it wouldn’t be pretty. Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Will Cookie ever get a true fashion sense? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel them as they do?

Here is your signpost for the most hilarious read of the summer: Second Grave On The Left.


This series is freaking awesome. The end.

Okay, I guess I'll give you a little more than that. This series, and this book, are really freaking awesome and everyone who likes to read...well, anything...should read the Charley Davidson series. I'm not really even sure what genre these books are. My bookstore had First Grave on the Right shelved under mystery, but Darynda Jones won a paranormal romance award for the book, while Charley's grim reaper-ness makes me think more urban fantasy.

Well, whatever this is, I love it.

Charley Davidson is back again in Second Grave on the Left and she's brought Danger and Will Robinson with her. She's also brought along her snarky, spunky attitude. I just adore Charley's inner monologue. She doesn't have the same reactions to situations as most people would, and therefore she is thinking some pretty odd things at some pretty inappropriate times.

“…Two men from the FBI are here,” Cookie said. 

Crap. “Men in black are at the office?” “Well, yes, but they’re actually in more of a navy.” Crapola. I so didn’t have time for men. In any color. “Okay, two questions. Do they look mad, and are they hot?”

After a long, long pause, Cookie said, “One, not really. Two, no comment at this time. And three, you’re on speakerphone.”

After another long, long pause, I said, “Okie dokie then. Be there in a jiff.”

This book focuses on two main mysteries (just like the last one did). First, Charley's nothing-if-not-loyal assistant Cookie has a good friend named Mimi who has mysteriously disappeared after contacting her, and Cookie has enlisted Charley's help to figure out what happened to her. The second, but by no means less important, focus of the book is Charley's stubborn and desperate search for Reyes' corporeal body before it meets its death, despite Reyes' firm protests that if Charley finds his body a war between heaven and hell will begin. And let me just take a moment to say, Ahhhhhhh Reyes.

"He was like chocolate-covered heroin, and I was an addict through and through."

I think I'm an addict as well. Reyes is one smoking hot literary character. Darynda Jones describes him so perfectly that I can picture him more vividly in my mind than most other fiction hotties. He's mysterious. He's angry. He's passionate. Yum.

In Second Grave on the Left, the secondary characters really shine bright. Cookie cracked me up a couple of times and Charley's dead, ghostly investigator, Angel, was terrific when he was involved. I also love Garrett. I feel like we're going to get some kind of major story line with him some time soon. Like, maybe he is secretly in love with Charley (or Charles, as he has decided to call her this time around). I just really love their interactions and their relationship. I also love Charley's father and uncle, although they kind of take a back seat to the other secondaries in this installment.

I didn't mean to just gush on and on and out this book. But, I really did like it THAT much! I laughed (out loud!). I teared up. I felt the pull on my heart strings. All around, this is a great read. Thank goodness number three is coming out in February! This one kind of left us with a bit of a cliff hanger and I can't wait to read what happens next!

"Well?" Cookie asked as I walked to my apartment, her head poking out her door. How did she always know I was coming? I was pure stealth. Smoke. Nigh invisible. Like a ninja without the head wrap.

"Crap," I said when I tripped on my own feet and dropped my cell.