There's Never Been A Better Time To Die

There's Never Been A Better Time to Die, a noir/comedy/memoir/satire, is set in Mill Valley, CA. Once the home to the Grateful Dead, Gary Snyder and Sam Shepard, the newer demographic tends toward hedge fund managers, dotcom millionaires and trophy wives. It's a strange place, where people, without any sense of irony, paste "Keep Tahoe Blue" bumper stickers on their gigantic SUVs. Despite widespread affluence, conspicuous consumption and a massive sense of entitlement, there is an undercurrent of fear among the residents—of a downturn causing them to lose it all, of their kids getting mixed up with drinking or drugs, of falling behind their neighbors, and perhaps most of all, of getting found out—behind every great fortune is a great crime. Marin Gothic.

The protagonist (and unreliable first-person narrator) is Rick Davies, a dissipated, ethically challenged (yet somehow charming) Realtor who, while preparing an estate sale, stumbles across what may be an old crime scene. A longtime fan of mystery novels, he decides to take on "the case." Or does he? Is there even a case, or is it just his imagination? Along the way, while unconsciously imitating classic noir characters (Travis McGee, Walter Neff, Chili Palmer), he tools around Mill Valley in his Basic Marin Wheels (yes, that's what they call BMWs), getting into one jam after another, all the while spinning yarns and making derisive social commentary. Every tall tale he tells—essentially everything that occurs in the book, aside from the main plot—actually happened.

The title is, of course, a play on the battle cry of the Realtor, who, no matter what, will tell you, "There's never been a better time to buy." It is a period piece—only it takes place in 2008 (as opposed to peak-noir 1948), when the first ripples of the imminent housing crash were beginning to disturb the placid waters, and everybody from Realtors to home buyers to bankers to tech-bros to baristas was in denial about it. And everything was different  in 2008 because there were (barely) any iPhones, Wi-Fi hotspots or Facebook...it might as well have been 1948!

Meisler's unconventional mystery is brisk and generally funny....An enjoyably off-kilter whodunit with an ethically compromised amateur detective.
--Kirkus Reviews

"Do you hate mysteries with an original voice, a sense of humor, scintillating prose and memorable characters? Then by all means, avoid THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO DIE by Bernard Meisler. And don't feel bad that everyone else is enjoying the hell out of it."
--Peter Blauner, New York Times bestselling author of PROVING GROUND and SLOW MOTION RIOT.

"Imagine Norm from Cheers, everyone's best buddy, playing a poker game with Raymond Chandler, Jim Thompson and Chester Himes. Finally, after 20 years, Norm shows his hand. THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO DIE by Bernard Meisler is a full house! Don't lose out!"
--Andrew Huebner, author of AMERICAN BY BLOOD and WE PIERCE

"Loads of fun. The voice is spot on, Meisler clearly knows the world he's writing about, and it's laugh-out-loud funny on practically every page."
--Kenneth Wishnia, award-winning author of 23 SHADES OF BLACK and THE FIFTH SERVANT, editor of JEWISH NOIR

THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO DIE is dark, twisted, and often hilarious. A fantastic mystery with comedic elements, this novel is perfect on every level. A must read.
--Tony DuShane, author of CONFESSIONS OF A TEENAGE JESUS JERK and host of the long-running Drinks With Tony podcast.

"In the tradition of T.C. Boyle, Denis Johnson, and Don Winslow, Bernard Meisler dares to build his quirky, genre-stretching murder mystery around a deeply flawed protagonist. Fasten your seatbelt for a savage satire of America's richest and weirdest locale in the era of late-stage capitalism."
--Dan Lyons, author of LAB RATS and DISRUPTED

"'Meisleresque, ' let me be the first to coin the phrase for riveting, subversive, hilarious, suspenseful, trenchant. My only complaint about THERE'S NEVER BEEN A BETTER TIME TO DIE is it ends too soon. When I finished it, without thinking I began it again."
--Arthur Nersesian, author of THE FUCK-UP and GLADYSS OF THE HUNT