Down Don’t Bother Me audiobook

This is an amusing book with a lot of twists and turns. It too bad the other titles in the series aren't available in audiobooks.Story ****Audiobook ****Overall ****

Slim is coal miner in southern Illinois and a reluctant detective. The mine owner recruits Slim to find his missing son in law with the promise of a secure pension. As we are all disgustingly aware, pension benefits have been universally diminished by greedy corporations so a better job in the mine and vested pension benefits were an offer Slim could not refuse. The assignment becomes increasingly complex and deadly as multiple bad guys with mixed hidden motives focus Slim, his friend Jeep Mabry, his teenage daughter Anci and girlfriend Peggy in the cross-hairs. Without detailing the plot, this "country noir" mystery is like a blast of cool air on a humid summer night. Slim is a wickedly funny protagonist as written by an author with a sharp sense of humor and a talent for writing witty analogy's. That and the originality of the coal mining locale make this debut novel highly entertaining 5 star crime fiction. I'm on board for what I hope will be a long running series.

Jason Miller suddenly appears in the world of mysteries, a neatly wrapped package tucked under his arm, and presents us with the real thing: a well-written, seamlessly-plotted mystery with a likeable, everyday hero in a well-drawn world nearby but foreign to most of us – Little Egypt, the coal fields of southern Illinois.Slim, from a family that’s been in the mines for generations, is asked by the mine’s owner to look into the disappearance of the owner’s son-in-law, possibly in retaliation for the younger man’s investigating gangs cooking meth inside the mine. Initially reluctant, Slim agrees when his pension is guaranteed if he takes the case, a big deal in the lousy mine economy. From there on everyone Slim knows or comes into contact with (including his daughter and Slim, himself) is threatened, shot at, wounded, severely beaten, and/or killed. Not necessarily in that order.Slim’s investigation pits him against miners, activists, thugs, owners, the sheriff, and his own girlfriend. Chasing down one lead after another, not only does every character seem to have valid reasons to both thwart Slim and assist him, but his own daughter must be kept safe from people working to do anything to stop him and keep buried what he’s trying to uncover.Although the setting may be unfamiliar to us, Miller tightly integrates the characters and the scenery into Slim’s story – the narrative is never sparse and never laden with unnecessary description. The tale held me from the very beginning, the reading faster than the motorcycle Slim uses to get around the hills. Very few characters, other than the local police, appear in minor roles (sorry), and I was continually guessing in which faction most of the characters really belonged. And just how many factions there were.Jason Miller’s biggest treat for us: the title page bears the phrase A Slim in Little Egypt Mystery. It appears there are more to come. No doubt after Slim and a few of his friends heal a bit first.I liked Slim's character right away and we got even closer when he made an allusion to something under the surface being the size of Angkor Wat. I really appreciate an author who goes out of his/her way to work with the language, to craft new phrases and thoughts, and to make the language seem effortless. My hero.>>Support independent bookstores by buying real books from real stores where you can talk with real booksellers.

I'm not a fan of mysteries in general, but the author's style makes up for a lot of the genre's typical shortcomings.

This is a grand first novel for Jason Miller

Now in addition to having an eBook and a physical book always on the go, I also have an audio book queued up as well - sometimes to help me fall asleep.Well, there was no way I was falling asleep listening to Jason Miller's debut novel Down Don't Bother Me. In fact - I stayed up much later than I had planned!Miller's protagonist is Slim, an Illinois coal miner with a propensity for finding people. It's not a job for Slim, but he's helped out folks before. But this time, he doesn't have much of a choice. A reporter is found dead in the mine - and the photographer working with him is missing. Luster, the mine owner, wants to run his own search for the photographer - who just happens to be his son-in-law. Well, Slim is a single father, so when Luster dangles a pension as a carrot, Slim takes the job.Now, I'm sure the written book will Miller many fans. But - the audio version was fantastic! The reader was Johnny Heller - one of my favourites. He has a low, gravely, worn voice that completely embodied the mental image I had of Slim. Heller's interpretation of Miller's story was perfect rhythm, cadence and tone.The setting is just as great. Slim makes his home in Little Eygpt - one of the last colliery towns in Illinois. Its down and dirty, populated by a wild variety of characters - methheads, environmental activists, gangs and everyday folks just trying to make a go of it.I'm going to applaud the supporting cast as well. Slim's daughter Anci is a firecracker - smart and wise to the ugliness of the world even at twelve. I enjoyed the relationship between Slim and his girlfriend Peggy - the give and take, the yes or no. Every protagonist needs a sidekick and Slim has a good one with Jeep - a big, strong guy who is like a brother to Slim. But, the standout of course, is Slim - he's rough around the edges, but smart, caring and a guy you'd want to have in your corner. He's a lead character you can't help but get behind and cheer for.What sets off these relationships, and indeed the whole book, is Miller's dialogue and descriptions. Miller's prose are folksy, real, gritty, and so addictive to listen to. I don't think I would have enjoyed the written book as well. The audio just brought the novel to life. The descriptions of the mines and the men who work them were atmospheric (and for this reader claustrophobic!) I could taste the coal dust as the men emerged into the light.Now, I need to mention the mystery as well - which was wonderfully plotted. I couldn't predict where the story was going to go and happily went along for the ride through the back roads of Little Egypt, eager to join the search for the photographer.This is the first in a planned series and I will absolutely be listening to the next entry. Highly recommended. Down Don't Bother Me is a great entry in the 'grit lit' genre. Fans of Elmore Leonard's Justified will enjoy this novel.

Very noirish - if you like the hard-boiled smart talking detective novel, you'll like this. If you're from southern Illinois, you might not like the characterizations of some denizens, but if you're like me - a damn Yankee who lived there a piece - you can get past it. It's very comparable to the Hard Case books from Dan Simmons - very homogenous, very easy to read, well paced, and very enjoyableOne big issue someone else mentioned that I also saw - everyone sounds the same. All the characters are hard-boiled smart-alecking people, even the protagonist's tween daughter. I can forgive this for two reasons. First, this isn't high literature - it's a romp. It's a mystery-thriller meant to be enjoyable, not analyzed for character development and deep thematic content. Second, the point of view is 1st person limited- the protagonist is telling the story, so it kinda makes sense that everyone sounds the same.I'm looking forward to the next book in this universe. As a former resident of the area, this is only the second time I've seen any entertainment set there (the movie "Poor White Trash" was also set in southern Illinois). And as a fan of noir detective stories, how can I resist?

Down Don't Bother Me is an incredibly well crafted novel.It started a little slow for me, but I like that Miller took the time to establish his characters so when the story really ramped up you were invested in everyone, even the antagonists. I liked the twists - some I had an inkling of and some nearly knocked me outta my chair - and when it was done i was able to think think back to different exchanges between characters that made certain outcomes all the more clear. Favorite scenes include: (view spoiler)[Slim and Jump Down's exchanges, both at the bar and in the woods and the shootout on Park Avenue. (hide spoiler)](view spoiler)[ Also I'm really glad he didn't kill the cats. So many authors in this genre have their main character come home to find their house has been broken into, get to poking around and find the bodies of the beloved family pets. Thanks for not doing that Jason my heart can't take that shit. (hide spoiler)]

Great book! Taking place in coal mining country in Illinois, there are some interesting presentations about the environment, sociological as well as ecological, that don't come across as polemic but are revealed as the murder mystery unfolds. They are potent. Slim is a reluctant sleuth, a coal miner and single dad to a 12 year old daughter. I look forward to more in this series. Excellent review from a Nashville paper available via Internet search, just know there is more than one Jason Miller. This one lives in Nashville, at least when this book was published earlier in 2015.

"The bit about the job was nice, but the last thing knocked me asshole-over-teakettle. Johnathan produced a glass of water. I drank it. The glass went away. He really was a magician. I waited for him to fart out a platinum coin."Need I say more?? LOLThe above comment was when I was in mid stride within the book. Now that I have finished it, I still liked it but it slowed down in steam a bit, and seemed to have spun around in circles a bit. Still had that campy attitude as mentioned above. And still an enjoyable debut novel. Look forward to the second in the series...

Didn't know what to expect, but was very pleasantly surprised by this... having gone to school in the area, he pretty much has it down pat -- wouldn't mind reading more of this character and fully expect this to pop up on television/streaming at some point to fill the JUSTIFIED sized hole that's been left in many people's viewing.Get it - Read it. NOW.

really great dialogue

unexpected twists and turns. A nail biter.A really good read.

This is a great little debut. Dark and funny, it's perfect for fans of Frank Bill, Craig Davidson, Iles, and Elmore Leonard.

When you combine "crime fiction" and "coal", my mind jumps straight to the Elmore Leonard short story that spawned the excellent TV show "Justified." That takes place in Kentucky coal country, and this book is set just to the north of there, in the southern part of Illinois known as "Little Egypt." Similar to Leonard's work, this debut is chock-a-block with colorful characters, quips and banter aplenty, and so much double-crossing it'll give readers whiplash.Our hero is "Slim", a rangy single father to a teenage girl, eking out a living in the mines. His father was a union boss, back when that meant getting one's hands dirty outside the mines, and Slim grew up in an atmosphere of violence. The story kicks off with the body of a local reporter found dead in the mine Slim works in, and his photographer partner missing. The mine boss tells Slim to track down the missing photographer in exchange for a guaranteed pension. From that point on, the story gets extremely convoluted, but involves meth gangs, various women, lots of killing, mining runoff pollution, and a whole lot more.The basic pattern of the narrative is that Slim pokes around, there's wisecracking, and eventually either an epic fight or shootout. The fights are graphically described, and are akin to action films in the sense that people seem to be able to walk away from encounters that sound permanently disabling when described. Similarly, there's a lot of casual gunplay and people being very blase about having conversations with folks who days before were trying to maim them. If you're not on board for that kind of stylized, supersized crime fiction, this likely won't appeal. All in all, I found the writing lively and fun, and will gladly be tracking down the sequel.