Review of "Duplicity"
By Charlie H. Johnson, Jr.iUniverse, Inc., 2003
Review by Su Terry on May 5th 2004

Duplicity by Charlie H. Johnson, Jr. is a thoroughly engrossing novel about a
psychic detective who tangles with the wrong spirits. Part mystery, part occult
thriller, and part psychological memoir, it is all award winning writing. This
novel will keep you up reading late into the night…with the lights on!
Duplicity is set
Duplicity is a book that explores the dangerous worlds of the alcoholism,
addiction, and the occult. Carlos is someone who is far from physically or
mental healthy. He lives his life on the edge of poverty. His lifestyle is
riddled with addictions. His hold on reality seems held together by duct tape. He
is a perfect candidate for abuse by a dominant personality. He even has
difficulty dealing with the casher at the corner convenience store. The
presence of a malicious spirit and copious liquid spirits only exacerbates Carlos'
self-destructive tendencies. It is only a matter of time before Carlos finds himself
sliding down that slippery steep slope to complete disintegration. While his
psychic friends – Joe, Marie, and Borys – appear none too stable, they at least
have developed strong defenses for venturing into the world of the occult.
Carlos, while the novel hints at a long history with a love-hate relationship
with the psychic realm, seems to have built up no such walls. It is a wonder
that he has lasted as long as he did as a psychic detective.
This book has award potential. The writing is stellar. Carlos is
accurately depicted as a man of a fast track to hell. This is especially true
in the descriptions of his disintegration through the subtle but steady increase
in his growing paranoia. Many of the secondary characters add wonderful comic
relief. While as a character Carlos' time seems destined to be short, if
Johnson continues this series, which I encourage him to do, I will be the first
in line to buy any further adventures of Carlos, the self-destructive psychic
detective!
"Charlie Johnson Jr. has spent the past 30 years in
the professions of student, itinerant historian, freelance writer and jack-of-all
trades. He has written about landmark
Duplicity by Charlie H. Johnson, Jr. is more than a psychic detective novel. It
is a tale of a man's self destruction. It is engrossing and riveting. I could
not put down. It has award potential written all over and all throughout it. I
highly recommend it.
© 2004Su Terry
Su Terry: Education:
B.A. in History from Sacred Heart University, M.L.S. in Library Science from
Southern Connecticut State College, M.R.S. in Religious Studies/Pastoral
Counseling from Fairfield University, a M.Div. in Professional Ministry from
New Brunswick Theological Seminary, a Certificate in Spirituality/Spiritual
Direction from Sacred Heart University. She is a Licensed Minister of the
United Church of Christ and an Assistant Professor in Library Science at