Lucky Supreme

Darby Holland #1

by Jeff Johnson

Best Crime Novel of the Year--Joy Ride through the Tattoo Underworld of Portland's Old Town.

The night world of Old Town, Portland, Oregon, has gone mad in the grip of gentrification, and at the center of it all is Lucky Supreme, a seedy tattoo parlor, whose proprietor is a street-bred artist with a unique approach to problem solving. Darby Holland has enough on his radar, but when some “flash” (tattoo artwork) stolen from him resurfaces in California he can't help himself. His efforts to reclaim it set him on a dangerous path, dragging along his delightfully eccentric colleagues, including the brains behind his brawn—Delia, a twiggy vinyl-clad punk genius secretly from the other side of the tracks. No one knows why the art signed “Roland Norton, Panama, 1955” is worth anything or how it came to hang on the walls of a tattoo shop in Portland, Oregon. Only the deranged former owner can say--and he's not talking. Before the wrecking balls swing through Old Town in the name of “progress,” Darby must settle old scores and face new demons to save his reputation, his shop, and his sanity. He has secrets of his own, and a tattoo shop in Old Town was a perfect place to hide, but when cash, lies, crime, and history collide, Darby Holland will need his ramshackle skill set, his wits, and a lot of luck to rise to the top of a human food chain, or be eaten alive.

Lucky Supreme is an intuitive thrill ride from start to finish. It is the first of a trilogy featuring Darby Holland, Delia, and the other unforgettable nocturnal residents of Old Town. Jeff Johnson is a new voice in noir, as entertaining and as fresh as Elmore Leonard or Dennis Lehane.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Noir

294 pages, Hardcover

First published April 11, 2017

About the author

Jeff Johnson is the author of Tattoo Machine, The Lucky Supreme Trilogy, Deadbomb Bingo Ray, I Shop At Laney's, and more. Visit him at greatpinkskeleton.com and on Instagram @jeffjohnsonarium.

Reviews

[Char · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars!

From Jeff Johnson, a man who is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors, comes this noir-ish tale of theft, ball bearings, tattoo shops and gentrification. I loved it!

Set in Portland, Oregon, (with some forays down to the California coast), the city itself became a character. Old Town, one of the holdouts from the gentrification going on all around, was vividly drawn. A neighborhood with lots of rain and dilapidated buildings, but also with residents who, (with the proper motivation), will help protect their own.

Darby owns a tattoo shop, Lucky Supreme, and a few years back some of his old flash was stolen. (This is the name for the designs that hang on the wall in tattoo shops, some of which is valuable now.) Darby has had the word out about it, and he finally gets a lead as to where the stolen flash is located. As Darby heads to the California coast to get his flash back, he meets up with characters I won't soon forget-some enemies and some friends, but all compelling. Darby himself is somewhat of an enigma.

" I found myself smiling at the quantity of the madness I carried around inside me. "

That's all I'll say about the plot, except for 2 more things: food and humor. All of Jeff's books feature at least one character who cooks, and man, the food always sounds delicious. Lastly, his books feature a black sense of humor that always works for me and this book was no different.

"Hurl crazy hookers at the enemy at every opportunity. Sun Tzu said that, didn't he?"

I swore to myself that I wouldn't start any more books that were part of a series, but with Jeff Johnson, I could not resist. This is an engaging tale full of captivating characters, a protagonist you can root for, (even though he's not the typical hero type), and a city where it is nearly always raining, but whose residents have a spirit that rises above. Lucky Supreme is a fun book with often sharp insights into human behavior and I give it my highest recommendation!

Available here on April 11th: Lucky Supreme: A Novel of Many Crimes (A Darby Holland Crime Novel)

*Thank you to Edelweiss and the publisher for the free E-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it.*

[Bill · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good story with some interesting characters that started developing nicely as the tale progressed. A little too much introspection from the main character who is evidently a philosophical zen tattoo artist type with a penchant for expensive scotch and violence.

I am interested in seeing where this series goes. Should get interesting.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an extremely well written book. It is very gritty, old school, and has great imagery. I am going to have to check out his other books.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that feels choreographed to a dark, noirish melody

Last year I read another superb book by author Jeff Johnson - EVERYTHING UNDER THE MOON - and I'm so glad I stumbled across this offering.

Both stories take place in Portland, Oregon - a city I love. This tale takes us to Old Town, a part of town I've walked around many times before and this author has a huge talent in bringing his story locales and his characters alive.

Darby Holland is now 40 years old but grew up, at least part of his life, as a street kid. He owns a tattoo parlor in Old Town called Lucky Supreme and has quite a unique mix of people working for him.

One of his past employees stole some tattoo renderings (called flash) from him and Darby has been looking for him ever since. He gets a call from another past employee from Southern California who has spotted the thief. So Darby heads down to California and his troubles really begin.

I loved this story. I loved everything about it, from characters good and bad, to descriptions of just about everything. The story is dark, quirky, made me think, made me laugh. I was thrilled to read that this is the first book in a trilogy about Darby Holland. Author Johnson's skill with the written word is top-notch.

"The inside of my mouth tasted like I’d been chewing on old cigarette butts scavenged from the lobby of a casino full of white wine drinkers."

I received this book from Arcade Publishing through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased review.

[Luca Trovati · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Ma dove sei?"
"In libreria, perché?"
"Ancora?"
"Ma scusa che ore sono?"
"Sei uscito di casa tre ore fa."
"AH"

Funziona più o meno così, entro in una delle innumerevoli librerie di Milano e semplicemente la concezione di tempo svanisce.
Mi perdo letteralmente tra i libri, mi lascio ispirare, lascio che siano loro a scegliere me e non il contrario. Se non ho un'idea precisa di quello che devo acquistare è probabile che ne esca con un libro di cui non ho mai sentito parlare, di un autore che non conosco.
Come Lucky Supreme di Jeff Johnson.
Leggo la quarta di copertina (e che copertina) e mi fido, punto.

Ne esce un hard-boiled fittissimo di contenuti sfiziosi, una Portland dominata dalla pioggia, una città Vecchia che ricorda molto le tavole di Sin City di Frank Miller e un negozio di tatuaggi popolato da personaggi che vorrei conoscere con piacere.
Scopro che è il primo di una trilogia, per fortuna penso. Devo tornarci il prima possibile al Lucky Supreme.

[Il confine dei libri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cari lettori, eccomi qui a parlarvi di un thriller che ho concluso da poco. Sì tratta di "Lucky Supreme", scritto da Jeff Johnson.
Ho trovato non poche difficoltà nella lettura, forse non è il mio periodo fortunato con i thriller, ma non ho mollato, anzi l'ho portato a termine come una sfida con me stessa, ma adesso parliamo della storia.

Il Lucky Supreme è un vecchio negozio di tatuaggi di Portland, è quasi un'istituzione nella Città Vecchia ed è aperto ad ogni ora del giorno. Il gestore, Darby Holland, è un uomo dal passato tormentato che conta sull'appoggio dei suoi dipendenti, soprattutto sulla stravagante Delia.
Tutti i locali della zona, compreso il Lucky Supreme, appartengono a Dmitri, un vecchio ubriacone a cui interessa solamente il denaro, non si occupa mai della manutenzione e si aggira nella Città Vecchia solo per causare problemi. Darby, oltre a doversi occupare del locale, deve anche fare i conti con ciò che ha fatto tempo prima un suo vecchio dipendente, Jason Bling. Il signor Bling ha rubato alcuni bozzetti, che si trovavano affissi alle pareti del locale, disegnati da Roland Norton, un tatuatore del Lucky Supreme ormai deceduto. Darby, però, non sapeva che questi bozzetti avessero un grosso valore e ha così un nuovo obbiettivo: ritrovare questi disegni e riportarli nel suo negozio. L'impresa non sarà tanto semplice come aveva immaginato. Bling ha consegnato tutti i bozzetti ad un criminale mafioso e Darby si ritroverà invischiato in qualcosa di molto pericoloso. Lui, però, è un osso duro e insieme alla sua banda del Lucky Supreme vuole riprendersi a tutti i costi i disegni che gli appartengono. Ci riuscirà? O l'impresa è troppo complessa anche per una persona folle come lui?

Come ho già anticipato all'inizio, ho trovato difficoltà a leggere la storia. È stata una lettura un po' pesante, che ho inizialmente accantonato per dedicarmi ad altro per poi riprenderla in seguito. Tutto ruota intorno alla sparizione di questi bozzetti, e coinvolgono purtroppo dei criminali della mafia. L'autore è stato bravo a creare l'ambiente perfetto, sin dalle prime pagine si percepisce l'aria di mistero che avvolge il negozio e tutti i suoi dipendenti, leggendo si ha la sensazione di trovare sempre una brutta sorpresa appena si va alla pagina successiva. Ogni personaggio ha una personalità stravagante che colpirà il lettore in maniera differente. Io, personalmente, ho adorato Delia, una donna sopra le righe, che non ha peli sulla lingua e con una personalità molto particolare.
Se vi piacciono i thriller con un pizzico di mistero e colpi di scena, Lucky Supreme è il libro per voi.
Non vi resta che calarvi in questo mondo e scoprire i segreti che si celano dietro i famosi bozzetti. Buona lettura.

[Ramona · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all I would like to thank Mr. Johnson, Arcade Publishing and Goodreads for a great summer read. The plot moved along quickly and for all his shortcomings I like the main character. Darby is an ethical man and tries to treat people fairly. The environment he lives in in not a suburb, 2 kids and a dog type of place and his actions reflect the environment he occupies. In times it is a dark and scary place, but Darby takes care of those in his life that are less fortunate and does what he needs to in order to survive. Mr. Johnson does a great job of making Darby come to life. Thanks

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book. Loved the seedy Old Town. Darby and his cast of characters, all with their oddities and quirkiness. Darby is a man who lives by this own rules - he is chaos in the making.

A very entertaining read. Will be picking up the next book in this series.

[Ted Lehmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucky Supreme: A Novel of Many Crimes (A Darby Holland Crime Novel) by Jeff Johnson (Arcade Publishing, 2017, 300 pages, $24.99/14.64) opened the world of tattoo culture to me, introducing me to people I don't know in a world I've always approached with suspicion. Lucky Supreme is a tattoo parlor in Portland's Old Town, the rapidly gentrifying former center for a thriving counter culture of run-down shops, taco joints, and Lucky Supreme. It seems its owner, Darby Holland, has learned of the reappearance of Jason Bling, who had once been his employee, but who had stolen valuable tattoo artwork (flash) from the walls of his shop, and disappeared. The mores of the tattoo world demand that he track down Bling and return the flash to its rightful place on the walls of his shop. Johnson's colorful language and crisp, pointed descriptions of both people and settings, get the story rolling, as a new vocabulary emerges for me.

Darby Holland, somewhere in his mid-thirties, has had an eventful, often disconnected, and turbulent life lived in America's underbelly, experienced with frequent violence and dislocation. He has survived, at least partly, by drawing his experience, which has led him to first an apprenticeship and later ownership in Lucky Supreme. With his rise to owning the tattoo parlor has come a place in this often dysfunctional community featuring a large cast of finely drawn characters. They include his erstwhile girlfriend Delia, Gomez, the owner of a Taco shop and Dmitri, proprietor of “mitri's izza” who owns the dilapidated building containing Lucky Supreme as well as other buildings in the neighborhood. There's also a motley collection of hookers, addicts, gang members, and others, almost all of whom view Darby as someone they want to protect.

As a result of Darby's successful search for Jason Bling, he discovers that the story is much more complicated than he thought it might be, while he's led to a series of interactions with a mysterious Korean businessman. The action sequences are well rendered, the descriptions imaginative, highly visual, and somewhat surreal, as you might expect from a character and writer who's a visual artist as well as a linguistic one. The journey of raped and abandoned early teen to owner of a high quality tattoo shop fills the mind and heart with equal parts of empathy and disgust as well pleasing with blasts of unforgettable writing. Readers often skim this kind of passage, eager to return to the action. Don't do it, if you like fine, from-the-gut writing that scratches the painful itches. New words kept lurching out at me, sending me to Wikipedia or the tattoo lingo web site. For those seeking greater, and easier access to the language of the tattoo culture, take a look at this article.

Artist, writer and musician Jeff Johnson currently lives in Portland, Oregon. His blogs at Will Fight Evil 4 Food. Jeff Johnson is the author of Tattoo Machine, Tall Tales, True Stories, and My Life in Ink, the novels Everything Under The Moon, Knottspeed, A Love Story, Lucky Supreme, A Novel of Many Crimes (Book One in the Darby Holland Crime Series), A Long Crazy Burn (Book Two in the Darby Holland Crime Series), Deadbomb Bingo Ray, and the short story collection Munez, The Monterey Stories. (from his Goodreads profile) In an interview in Time Magazine, Johnson responded, when asked about his favorite story about his job, “I guess it depends entirely on what mood I'm in. A lot of people ask me, "What is your main regret?" I have to say that every tattoo artist will have the same answer to this question, and it's that eventually, one day, everything you made will be gone. There will be a time when my life's work will vanish from this world. And that's the real, only downside to tattooing — that it's on people, and people just don't last forever. But if that's the only downside, then it's really not that bad, you know?” Johnson's writing and his response to this question lead me to want to read more of his work.

In Lucky Supreme: A Novel of Many Crimes (A Darby Holland Crime Novel) , author Jeff Johnson has presented a taughtly written, gritty, humorous, and violent picture of an underclass community many readers are not familiar with. His world of the tattoo parlor in a declining neighborhood contrasts sharply with the strip mall operations most of us see along the highway in more accessible and acceptable neighborhoods. He's discovered an engaging protagonist whose lifestyle he makes recognizable, even though it may seem alien. That's a tall order, which he carries off with rarefied good writing. I read the book as an Advanced Review Copy from the publisher through Edelweiss. I read it on my Kindle app.

[Krissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. I am SO GLAD that I did!

I liked this book SO MUCH more than I thought I would! It is much grittier than the books I usually read. I usually like my book worlds more pristine, cleaner, more antiseptic. I love my mysteries, but they're usually of the Golden Age type. The world of Darby Holland is run down and shabby, neglected, but not necessarily in a bad way. He and the people in his life are worn down by the world around them. And it's so interesting to read about them...they aren't overly characterized, but enough that I feel like they're long lost friends.

Would absolutely read any more in this series. Thank you to the author and Arcade Publishing. I read the book the day I received it, and again, I'm so glad I did. Now I'm trying to figure out who I can lend it to!

[James Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

A noir-ish trip through the Portland Tattoo underworld. Johnson sets up a set of fascinating characters as well as a gloriously sordid world for them to inhabit.

The book cracks along at a great pace for the first 2/3’s but falters when the main villain is revealed. Johnson seems to lose interest in the mystery he’s painstakingly created and would rather talk about gentrification, building regulations and slum lords. As a result the book loses focus and doesn’t quite stick the landing.

That being said this is a promising first novel in a new series and there is a good enough foundation for Darby and his rag tag band of tattoo artists. I’ll check out the second book in the series in due course.

[Bradley Valentine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where the hell did this book come from? Such an unexpected left hook. This is the kind of story I like to read that doesn't come along all that often. A tight noir following underworld figures hiding in our plain sight (a tattoo parlor in this case). I'm not going to say that we learn anything news about how the modern outlaw lives and thrives. I'm not so sure how well researched or experienced Jeff Johnson is with that milieu. However the story provides a convincing representation of the possibilities.

Surprisingly readable, too. I'm dying for more.

[Justin Isla · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun, fast-paced, quick read full of twists and turns, that I didn’t want to put down! As someone who lives in Portland, and is from Northern California, I loved all of the nods to various establishments, some, if not most of which are real places. I am not typically someone who gravitates towards crime novels, and this is not your typical crime novel. Looking forward to reading the next installment!

[Paul McBride · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not really a mystery but an entertaining story about a guy who owns a tattoo parlor who has some artwork stolen and what he goes through to get it back.
It takes place in constantly rainy Portland Oregon
In a seedy part of town, with a large collection of misfits for color.
I will definitely try to locate the other two books in the series.

[Toglietemi tutto, ma non i miei libri · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'inizio di questo libro è alquanto monotono ma permette di inquadrare bene i personaggi e la situazione.
Questa non è la più entusiasmante delle storie, si alternano momenti piatti ad altri più avvincenti (ma non troppo).
Anche la parte thriller non è delle più intriganti, insomma tutto ruota attorno a questi bozzetti, ma non è che ci sia poi molto mistero, anzi, la trama è piuttosto prevedibile.
Per me, la parte migliore del libro è quella che riguarda il "mito" del Lucky Supreme, questo negozio che passa di proprietario in proprietario e che accoglie un gruppo di tatuatori particolari.
Anche la narrazione non è male, riesce a farti percepire l'aria pesante che tira nel quartiere del Lucky Supreme.
Insomma, questo libro non è nulla di speciale, dalla trama mi aspettavo davvero di più.

[Kathy Duffy · Rating 2 out of 5]

There are some great reviews on the dust jacket of this book by authors that are extremely well known so I was enthused to read this but the dissonance between the language written it, the descriptions, the dialogue (internal, in particular) were really out of sync with the locale, the characters, the entire milieu. Perhaps I don't get the noir thing -- but this was a glaring mismatch. It was written like a master's thesis or a philosophical meander.... by a guy running a tattoo parlor with a wild slightly unsavory past and old town Portland. Just didn't get for me.

[Davide Di Tullio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un romanzo che ha il merito di avere un ambientazione originale (per quanto è di mia conoscenza, per lo meno.)
Raccontato in prima persona, mette in scena la vicenda di personaggi tutto sommato convincenti. Ci sono pure punti morti, di cui si sarebbe potuto fare a meno senza per questo compromettere il filo della storia; ma devo ammettere che è stata comunque una lettura gradevole.
Il mondo dei tatuaggi è sicuramente un contesto a cui non avrei pensato per ambientare un noir, e questo gioca sicuramente a favore di "Lucky Supreme".
Dunque pollice in su e avanti il prossimo.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great find!

I downloaded this book by “accident”… OMG! Jeff Johnson’s style has such…style? He has a natural humor, dark though it is. I’m in love with Darby Holland and his cast, and the seamier side of Portland. It describes the world of tattoo life and the surrounding players, making it a rich story, full of nuance. Get inside this book!

[Barbara Leuthe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the tattoo shop mystery!!!Great characters and a great story line ,I cant wait for the next book to see what happens next.I received this book free as part of goodreads giveaways

[lara phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

Portland crime novel set in a tattoo shop. Decent but not amazing. Pretty good for a first novel.

[Katie Boland · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book was way too crass for me and the action took forever to get going.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Lucky Supreme” è una rapida discesa nelle viscere dell’oscurità, una ripida scalinata per gettarsi fra le fiamme di un inferno fatto d’inchiostro e pelle.

[La Stamberga d'Inchiostro · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Lucky Supreme” è una rapida discesa nelle viscere dell’oscurità, una ripida scalinata per gettarsi fra le fiamme di un inferno fatto d’inchiostro e pelle.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

The guy writes a great story.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun noir-esque read set in an tangential/alternate universe version of Portland. I liked it enough that I'll likely pick up the next book in the series next time I see it at the library.

[Dotty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent. I want to read this whole series!

[Greg · Rating 2 out of 5]

More a vehicle for the author's philosophies and vicarious living through the protagonist than a real story, but had decent character development and vivid descriptions of places

[Kin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Avete notato che quando su la quarta di copretina appaiono lodi sperticate al romanzo, questo è una pizza? Beh questo è il caso attuale..

[Mandy P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it! Fun characters, tattoo art, and mystery.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

I’m torn about this one... I read it because I wanted to know what happened... But I didn’t care for any of the characters in any way.