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Better Days
When you achieve your life’s ambition at eighteen, what do you do with the rest of your life? For Darwin Burr, a cushy job working for his boyhood friend fits the bill.
Coasting through his grown-up years on the fading memory of a long-ago high school basketball championship, Darwin isn't looking for much. He's happy right where he is coaching high school basketball.
But when his friend vanishes trying to elude the FBI, Darwin's loyalty is tested beyond anything he could have imagined. Now, he must risk everything to save his friend.
Better Days is an attention-grabbing crime story that will grab you from the first page and keep you rivetted in your seat until you finish.
Coasting through his grown-up years on the fading memory of a long-ago high school basketball championship, Darwin isn't looking for much. He's happy right where he is coaching high school basketball.
But when his friend vanishes trying to elude the FBI, Darwin's loyalty is tested beyond anything he could have imagined. Now, he must risk everything to save his friend.
Better Days is an attention-grabbing crime story that will grab you from the first page and keep you rivetted in your seat until you finish.
339 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 19, 2018
619 people are currently reading
343 people want to read
About the author
Len Joy
11 books43 followersLen Joy had an idyllic childhood, growing up in the gem of the Finger Lakes, Canandaigua, New York. As a typical small-town boy, he had a wide range of interests, most involving sports. He lettered in four sports in high school and went off to the University of Rochester with dreams of becoming a football hero and world-famous novelist.
When he awoke from those dreams, he switched his major from English to Finance and quit the football team, but started dating one of the cheerleaders – Suzanne Sawada. Three years later they were married, and four decades later, they still are.
They moved to Chicago where Suzanne became a corporate lawyer and Len, with his MBA and CPA, became the auditing manager for U. S. Gypsum. Despite the thrill of auditing gypsum plants, Len found himself wanting a different challenge.
He bought an engine remanufacturing company in Arizona and for fifteen years commuted to Phoenix. Despite the travel, he managed to stay married and have three kids. While flying, he read hundreds of novels, which renewed his dream of becoming a world-famous author.
In 2004 he wound down his engine business and started taking writing courses and participating in triathlons.
While world fame remains elusive, Len has made advances in his writing career.
His third novel, EVERYONE DIES FAMOUS, was published by BQB Publishing in August 2020. KIRKUS described it as a “…a striking depiction of small-town America at the dawn of the 21st century.” It won 1st Prize in the 2020 Top Shelf Book Awards for Southern Fiction and a Silver Medal in the IBPA Ben Franklin Awards for Midwest Region fiction. It was also a Book Excellence Award winner in the category of Aging.
Kevin Wilson, NY Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here and The Family Fang had this to say: “Len Joy's Everyone Dies Famous is a clear-eyed examination of how we live in an uncertain world. By creating imminently understandable characters and skillfully linking them to a specific landscape, one that is so evocatively described, he shows us all the ways in which we're connected, how fragile those threads are. In clear prose, Joy does real work here. I'm grateful for it.”
Joy’s first novel, AMERICAN PAST TIME was published in 2014. KIRKUS praised it as a “darkly nostalgic study of an American family through good times and bad, engagingly set against major events from the ‘50s to the ‘70s as issues of race simmer in the background…expertly written and well-crafted.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite gold medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and took 1st Prize in the Top Shelf Book Awards contest for Fiction – General.
His second novel, BETTER DAYS (2018) was described by FOREWORD Reviews as “a bighearted, wry, and tender novel that focuses on love and loyalty.” KIRKUS called it “a character-rich skillfully plotted Midwestern drama.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite silver medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and was a finalist in the Indie Excellence Book Awards in the category of Fiction: Midwest.
Today, Len is a nationally ranked triathlete and competes internationally representing the United States as part of TEAM USA. His three kids (a son and two daughters) have grown up and moved away, although the daughters return frequently to Evanston to do their laundry and get legal advice from their mother.
When he awoke from those dreams, he switched his major from English to Finance and quit the football team, but started dating one of the cheerleaders – Suzanne Sawada. Three years later they were married, and four decades later, they still are.
They moved to Chicago where Suzanne became a corporate lawyer and Len, with his MBA and CPA, became the auditing manager for U. S. Gypsum. Despite the thrill of auditing gypsum plants, Len found himself wanting a different challenge.
He bought an engine remanufacturing company in Arizona and for fifteen years commuted to Phoenix. Despite the travel, he managed to stay married and have three kids. While flying, he read hundreds of novels, which renewed his dream of becoming a world-famous author.
In 2004 he wound down his engine business and started taking writing courses and participating in triathlons.
While world fame remains elusive, Len has made advances in his writing career.
His third novel, EVERYONE DIES FAMOUS, was published by BQB Publishing in August 2020. KIRKUS described it as a “…a striking depiction of small-town America at the dawn of the 21st century.” It won 1st Prize in the 2020 Top Shelf Book Awards for Southern Fiction and a Silver Medal in the IBPA Ben Franklin Awards for Midwest Region fiction. It was also a Book Excellence Award winner in the category of Aging.
Kevin Wilson, NY Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here and The Family Fang had this to say: “Len Joy's Everyone Dies Famous is a clear-eyed examination of how we live in an uncertain world. By creating imminently understandable characters and skillfully linking them to a specific landscape, one that is so evocatively described, he shows us all the ways in which we're connected, how fragile those threads are. In clear prose, Joy does real work here. I'm grateful for it.”
Joy’s first novel, AMERICAN PAST TIME was published in 2014. KIRKUS praised it as a “darkly nostalgic study of an American family through good times and bad, engagingly set against major events from the ‘50s to the ‘70s as issues of race simmer in the background…expertly written and well-crafted.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite gold medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and took 1st Prize in the Top Shelf Book Awards contest for Fiction – General.
His second novel, BETTER DAYS (2018) was described by FOREWORD Reviews as “a bighearted, wry, and tender novel that focuses on love and loyalty.” KIRKUS called it “a character-rich skillfully plotted Midwestern drama.” It was the 2019 Readers’ Favorite silver medal award winner for Fiction – Sports and was a finalist in the Indie Excellence Book Awards in the category of Fiction: Midwest.
Today, Len is a nationally ranked triathlete and competes internationally representing the United States as part of TEAM USA. His three kids (a son and two daughters) have grown up and moved away, although the daughters return frequently to Evanston to do their laundry and get legal advice from their mother.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
May 12, 2020
I couldn't put this book down. I stayed up until 3:30 AM to finish it, and when I was done I was so agitated I couldn't get to sleep for another hour. Any book that's so good that it has to be read in one sitting deserves 5 stars, right? But...but...but...I'm so angry with Darwin Burr, the narrator and main character of the story! And dammit, there are WAY too many unanswered questions for me to give this 5 stars, right?
Without giving away any spoilers, here's why I loved the book: It was well written. The character's narration was interesting, conversational and it let me into his head (although I found that I REALLY didn't want to be there after a while). Darwin is a rather clueless small town guy who works for his best friend since high school, who one day disappears. The disappearance of his friend and the subsequent investigation that follows with the FBI leads Darwin, ever loyal, to make some sketchy decisions that could get him into deep trouble. AND some very stupid decisions that just made me want to throw the book in disgust.
Then there's Daina, Darwin's Latvian wife, a public health nurse, who wants more for Darwin in life than working for his best friend at an auto parts store. Her own job can be dangerous, and the family is drawn into some gang warfare activity that leads Darwin to find out more about his wife than he ever knew.
And there's the lovely Fariba, who, with Darwin, coaches his daughter's high school basketball team. She's Iranian, and there's more to that story as well. No spoilers.
There's a lot going on in this book, and it flip flops back and forth among all the action, but in an interesting and absorbing way. I was hooked.
But...and it's a big but: I hated the ending. There were way too many questions still left unanswered from too many teasers the author had thrown out. Too many unresolved issues. Grrrrr! Frustration!!!
I actually debated just giving this book 3 stars because it was so unfinished, in my opinion. But how could I do that with a book I also thought was so fascinating? I compromised with a generous 4.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hark! New Era Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Without giving away any spoilers, here's why I loved the book: It was well written. The character's narration was interesting, conversational and it let me into his head (although I found that I REALLY didn't want to be there after a while). Darwin is a rather clueless small town guy who works for his best friend since high school, who one day disappears. The disappearance of his friend and the subsequent investigation that follows with the FBI leads Darwin, ever loyal, to make some sketchy decisions that could get him into deep trouble. AND some very stupid decisions that just made me want to throw the book in disgust.
Then there's Daina, Darwin's Latvian wife, a public health nurse, who wants more for Darwin in life than working for his best friend at an auto parts store. Her own job can be dangerous, and the family is drawn into some gang warfare activity that leads Darwin to find out more about his wife than he ever knew.
And there's the lovely Fariba, who, with Darwin, coaches his daughter's high school basketball team. She's Iranian, and there's more to that story as well. No spoilers.
There's a lot going on in this book, and it flip flops back and forth among all the action, but in an interesting and absorbing way. I was hooked.
But...and it's a big but: I hated the ending. There were way too many questions still left unanswered from too many teasers the author had thrown out. Too many unresolved issues. Grrrrr! Frustration!!!
I actually debated just giving this book 3 stars because it was so unfinished, in my opinion. But how could I do that with a book I also thought was so fascinating? I compromised with a generous 4.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hark! New Era Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
December 3, 2018
Darwin Burr was, once upon a time, a hometown hero – a basketball star who took “the Shot” that gave his downstate Illinois high school the state championship. Even now, as Darwin faces middle age, the luster of his stardom has not entirely faded, even if the local bar – transformed into a real restaurant –no longer offers Dar free drinks and has removed from its wall a commemorative photograph of his shining moment. Yet always, even at the moment of Darwin’s youthful triumph, another figure has been present, supporting him – indeed, making his achievement possible. Billy. Billy, who threw Darwin the pass that set up the Shot. Billy, who convinced Darwin to drive sixty miles to Chicago to hang out on Rush Street, where Dar met Daina, the woman who would be his bride. Billy, the best man at Dar’s and Daina’s wedding. Billy, now in middle age, Dar’s boss at the distribution center at “AutoPro,” the largest employer in town. Billy, a true friend, if ever there was one. Or…was he?
In his new novel Better Days, Len Joy paints a convincing picture of a man who, like many fine athletes, reaches the height of his fame very early in life. In middle age, while other men may be coming into their full powers in their chosen professions, Dar is content with an easy job and the “unofficial” duty to be “Billy’s golf partner when he was being wined and dined by AutoPro’s suppliers.” Darwin handles his descent from glory without any particular resentment or noticeable malaise. However, the smooth sailing is destined to become bumpy. In the first line of the novel – before we know anything else about Darwin, we read: “Last October, a few weeks before everything went to hell, Daina told me I lacked ambition.” That opening line reveals tension between husband and wife that will unfold as the story develops, and leaves no doubt that rough seas await.
Darwin’s life in Billy’s shadow has had its appeal. Dar’s position at AutoPro has not challenged him, but has allowed him to feel secure. As Dar tells us, “Billy took care of me.” Dar’s family life, while lacking the intimacy of open communication between husband and wife, also seems secure. The Burrs have a beautiful home and retirement savings. Astra, the couple’s daughter, is thriving and a talented basketball player in her own right. Daina, an immigrant from Latvia, is committed to her job as a social worker, which consumes much of her time and requires the kind of zeal she yearns to see in her husband. Yet, as we know, everything is going to go “to hell.” And we suspect, early on, that the approaching calamity will have something to do with Billy.
Better Days is, above all, a great story. Told in the first person by Darwin, the tale’s twists and turns keep the pages turning. Darwin, while carefully avoiding anything that seems like a promotion at work, at Billy’s prodding takes on the job of assistant to the new coach of the high school girls’ basketball team. That new head coach, Fariba Pahlavi, the school’s guidance counselor, is a triathlete from Iran who, notwithstanding her pedigree as an athlete, has never played basketball. At last, Darwin has found a challenge he actually wants to take on, recruiting his daughter and, later, the fantastically talented Toni, an African American girl who previously avoided this “white girls’ team.” “I have to admit,” Dar reflects, “that the idea of getting back in the game, even as a coach for a team that hadn’t won a game in two seasons, had me stoked.” At work, though, the trouble arrives. Darwin knows something is off when the long-time receptionist addresses him as “Mr. Burr.” Life is about to change. The reader, already hooked, takes a deep breath and prepares for the journey.
The story, good as it is, is only part of the appeal of Better Days. The book explores a number of themes and poses ethical dilemmas, particularly centering on the overlapping themes of loyalty, betrayal, and self-preservation. Darwin faces hard decisions in his relationship with Billy, the patron whose benefactions may not always have come through legal means. He faces them with Daina, whose disapproval needles him, but with whom he barely communicates. Darwin does not wish to face these things – he does his best to avoid having an inner life, but there it is, in spite of his avoidance. “I was overthinking this whole situation,” he once tells himself. He withholds critical information from Daina, presupposing that she will act in a certain way and seeking to deflect rather than discuss. He avoids talking about his own problems and hopes to avoid thinking them through. Indeed, he sums up his attitude toward self-awareness, saying, “They say eighty percent of life is just showing up. That’s what I did. My life was unexamined and that was fine with me. Adam and Eve before they took that bite. I never thought my life was perfect, but it was good enough.” That is pretty darn self-aware, for a guy who has no inner life. Darwin fights against his self-awareness, denying it, perhaps because he doesn’t want to acknowledge that life is going to change.
I loved Better Days. Darwin is a wonderful character, carefully crafted and believable. The plot never disappoints, and the pages turn quickly. The setting in small town Illinois – life just in the shadow of Chicago – is particularly absorbing for those who, like me, have lived there. The ambiance of the mid-2000s also drew me in – complete with allusions to Law and Order, for goodness sake, my favorite show from that era! Len Joy puts his own experience as a triathlete to good use in creating the character of Fariba. The basketball scenes are delightful for any fan of that sport (also my favorite!). For all these reasons, I highly recommend Better Days. Len Joy is a gifted writer, and this is a book to be savored.
In his new novel Better Days, Len Joy paints a convincing picture of a man who, like many fine athletes, reaches the height of his fame very early in life. In middle age, while other men may be coming into their full powers in their chosen professions, Dar is content with an easy job and the “unofficial” duty to be “Billy’s golf partner when he was being wined and dined by AutoPro’s suppliers.” Darwin handles his descent from glory without any particular resentment or noticeable malaise. However, the smooth sailing is destined to become bumpy. In the first line of the novel – before we know anything else about Darwin, we read: “Last October, a few weeks before everything went to hell, Daina told me I lacked ambition.” That opening line reveals tension between husband and wife that will unfold as the story develops, and leaves no doubt that rough seas await.
Darwin’s life in Billy’s shadow has had its appeal. Dar’s position at AutoPro has not challenged him, but has allowed him to feel secure. As Dar tells us, “Billy took care of me.” Dar’s family life, while lacking the intimacy of open communication between husband and wife, also seems secure. The Burrs have a beautiful home and retirement savings. Astra, the couple’s daughter, is thriving and a talented basketball player in her own right. Daina, an immigrant from Latvia, is committed to her job as a social worker, which consumes much of her time and requires the kind of zeal she yearns to see in her husband. Yet, as we know, everything is going to go “to hell.” And we suspect, early on, that the approaching calamity will have something to do with Billy.
Better Days is, above all, a great story. Told in the first person by Darwin, the tale’s twists and turns keep the pages turning. Darwin, while carefully avoiding anything that seems like a promotion at work, at Billy’s prodding takes on the job of assistant to the new coach of the high school girls’ basketball team. That new head coach, Fariba Pahlavi, the school’s guidance counselor, is a triathlete from Iran who, notwithstanding her pedigree as an athlete, has never played basketball. At last, Darwin has found a challenge he actually wants to take on, recruiting his daughter and, later, the fantastically talented Toni, an African American girl who previously avoided this “white girls’ team.” “I have to admit,” Dar reflects, “that the idea of getting back in the game, even as a coach for a team that hadn’t won a game in two seasons, had me stoked.” At work, though, the trouble arrives. Darwin knows something is off when the long-time receptionist addresses him as “Mr. Burr.” Life is about to change. The reader, already hooked, takes a deep breath and prepares for the journey.
The story, good as it is, is only part of the appeal of Better Days. The book explores a number of themes and poses ethical dilemmas, particularly centering on the overlapping themes of loyalty, betrayal, and self-preservation. Darwin faces hard decisions in his relationship with Billy, the patron whose benefactions may not always have come through legal means. He faces them with Daina, whose disapproval needles him, but with whom he barely communicates. Darwin does not wish to face these things – he does his best to avoid having an inner life, but there it is, in spite of his avoidance. “I was overthinking this whole situation,” he once tells himself. He withholds critical information from Daina, presupposing that she will act in a certain way and seeking to deflect rather than discuss. He avoids talking about his own problems and hopes to avoid thinking them through. Indeed, he sums up his attitude toward self-awareness, saying, “They say eighty percent of life is just showing up. That’s what I did. My life was unexamined and that was fine with me. Adam and Eve before they took that bite. I never thought my life was perfect, but it was good enough.” That is pretty darn self-aware, for a guy who has no inner life. Darwin fights against his self-awareness, denying it, perhaps because he doesn’t want to acknowledge that life is going to change.
I loved Better Days. Darwin is a wonderful character, carefully crafted and believable. The plot never disappoints, and the pages turn quickly. The setting in small town Illinois – life just in the shadow of Chicago – is particularly absorbing for those who, like me, have lived there. The ambiance of the mid-2000s also drew me in – complete with allusions to Law and Order, for goodness sake, my favorite show from that era! Len Joy puts his own experience as a triathlete to good use in creating the character of Fariba. The basketball scenes are delightful for any fan of that sport (also my favorite!). For all these reasons, I highly recommend Better Days. Len Joy is a gifted writer, and this is a book to be savored.
November 7, 2018
What A GREAT read! I thoroughly enjoyed the story & the twists & turns. Extremely well written! I can't wait for the author's NEXT book.
October 17, 2018
I downloaded the kindle version of Better Days with the intent of finishing a hard cover I was reading that was really engaging. I made the mistake of opening the first page on my iPad, though, and that was it. I was quickly drawn into the story and its well-developed characters (starting with Darwin and Fariba) and multiple sub-plots. I loved America Past Time. After Better Days, I am now an official Len Joy fan.
December 1, 2018
“In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” – Charles Darwin
It’s 2005 and we are in Claxton, Illinois viewing life through the eyes of Darwin Burr. Yes, his name is Darwin. Three years have passed since 9/11, the disaster that changed our country forever, making us all more paranoid, jittery, easily provoked into mistaken judgements based upon one’s culture and associations. At the same time, small towns’ demographics have changed and everyone in the town has collaborated, improvised and, well, survived. I think Darwin Burr says it best:
“In the 70s, when I was in school, there might have been some parental reservations about having an Iranian Muslim woman as high school guidance counselor. Back then there were no racial issues because everyone was white. And religious diversity, of which the people of Claxton were very proud, amounted to peaceful coexistence of three Baptist churches, two branches of Methodism, and a breakaway Presbyterian church.”
Darwin has done just fine, he’s adjusted, he’s kind of evolved, as everyone has, to the changing world. But well, Darwin is stuck. His marriage is unhappy and a bit strange. His best friend and boss is a funny, friendly good ole boy who’s a wee bit corrupt. Darwin is pushed into volunteering to coach the high school girls basketball team, which has a pretty horrible losing streak and a beautiful Iranian assistant basketball coach he cannot stop thinking about. It’s a struggle to be Darwin because he’s kind of let his life live by itself. He’s not grabbed hold of his life. He’s simply moved out of the way and, well, adjusted.
Then, of course, all hell breaks loose, and the fun begins. Turns out Darwin’s best friend is not just a wee bit corrupt, he’s alot corrupt. And the FBI is so trigger happy they go nutso investigating, jumping to wrong conclusions, eventually targeting Darwin, too. Meanwhile, Darwin’s Russian wife, with a mysterious past, now a social worker, takes on an African American teenager whose family is in trouble with dangerous gangs. Yes, Darwin gets sucked into that too. He struggles with all of this while falling desperately in love with his assistant basketball coach. He kind of survives and kind of struggles. He lands in a messy place, and nothing is perfect. Because life isn’t perfect. But he most certainly evolves.
Len Joy is a clean, fresh writer with a great sense of humor. There is never a cliche character. No one is pure. No one is bad. Everyone is human. You are thrust into a town with many characters but thanks to Len’s detailed eye, we know all of them without being bored with too many details. “Fariba had a clipped, cultured voice where every syllable seems to get its own space.” “I thought he looked like Tip O’neil, but he sounded like Barney Fife.” The best descriptions were of the Russian wife. Little things. I won’t go hunting for them, they are good.
It’s Richard Russo with more energy and funnier plot twists.
This is a fun, fast, entertaining read with heart. Rich characters, lots of twists. And yet, the writer is saying something, something important that only Len Joy can say because he knows what he’s talking about.
It’s 2005 and we are in Claxton, Illinois viewing life through the eyes of Darwin Burr. Yes, his name is Darwin. Three years have passed since 9/11, the disaster that changed our country forever, making us all more paranoid, jittery, easily provoked into mistaken judgements based upon one’s culture and associations. At the same time, small towns’ demographics have changed and everyone in the town has collaborated, improvised and, well, survived. I think Darwin Burr says it best:
“In the 70s, when I was in school, there might have been some parental reservations about having an Iranian Muslim woman as high school guidance counselor. Back then there were no racial issues because everyone was white. And religious diversity, of which the people of Claxton were very proud, amounted to peaceful coexistence of three Baptist churches, two branches of Methodism, and a breakaway Presbyterian church.”
Darwin has done just fine, he’s adjusted, he’s kind of evolved, as everyone has, to the changing world. But well, Darwin is stuck. His marriage is unhappy and a bit strange. His best friend and boss is a funny, friendly good ole boy who’s a wee bit corrupt. Darwin is pushed into volunteering to coach the high school girls basketball team, which has a pretty horrible losing streak and a beautiful Iranian assistant basketball coach he cannot stop thinking about. It’s a struggle to be Darwin because he’s kind of let his life live by itself. He’s not grabbed hold of his life. He’s simply moved out of the way and, well, adjusted.
Then, of course, all hell breaks loose, and the fun begins. Turns out Darwin’s best friend is not just a wee bit corrupt, he’s alot corrupt. And the FBI is so trigger happy they go nutso investigating, jumping to wrong conclusions, eventually targeting Darwin, too. Meanwhile, Darwin’s Russian wife, with a mysterious past, now a social worker, takes on an African American teenager whose family is in trouble with dangerous gangs. Yes, Darwin gets sucked into that too. He struggles with all of this while falling desperately in love with his assistant basketball coach. He kind of survives and kind of struggles. He lands in a messy place, and nothing is perfect. Because life isn’t perfect. But he most certainly evolves.
Len Joy is a clean, fresh writer with a great sense of humor. There is never a cliche character. No one is pure. No one is bad. Everyone is human. You are thrust into a town with many characters but thanks to Len’s detailed eye, we know all of them without being bored with too many details. “Fariba had a clipped, cultured voice where every syllable seems to get its own space.” “I thought he looked like Tip O’neil, but he sounded like Barney Fife.” The best descriptions were of the Russian wife. Little things. I won’t go hunting for them, they are good.
It’s Richard Russo with more energy and funnier plot twists.
This is a fun, fast, entertaining read with heart. Rich characters, lots of twists. And yet, the writer is saying something, something important that only Len Joy can say because he knows what he’s talking about.
May 4, 2023
An enjoyable read
A great story, with characters who leapt from the pages. I don’t usually like books that have a sporting theme, but this one was different because I was captivated by the characters.
A great story, with characters who leapt from the pages. I don’t usually like books that have a sporting theme, but this one was different because I was captivated by the characters.
June 2, 2025
Better Days is a masterclass in understated intensity. Len Joy crafts a deeply human story about the weight of loyalty and the burden of living in the shadow of a past peak. Darwin Burr is not your typical hero he’s quiet, reluctant, and, in many ways, stagnant. But when the life he’s built begins to unravel, we see him awaken in real time. What makes this story powerful isn’t just the mystery surrounding his friend’s disappearance, but the way Joy captures the emotional toll of middle age, missed chances, and the desperate need to matter again. This book sneaks up on you. It doesn’t shout; it simmers, and when it finally boils over, you’re left breathless.
July 14, 2024
I wanted to like this book but frankly, Darwin, our main character is just too dumb to live. The high point of his life is winning a high school basketball game. REALLY?
That’s the best you can do?
He’s working in a no where job, with a wife he doesn’t seem to love and who constantly shows him she doesn’t love him. His only bright light is his daughter.
His friend Billy - and I use the term loosely - uses him to do illegal deals and Darwin allows it time after time. He manages to find love and finds himself in the midst of a gang war but chooses wrongly every time.
How dumb can one man be? The ending also seemed unfinished and rushed.
Sorry, couldn’t find much to like.
That’s the best you can do?
He’s working in a no where job, with a wife he doesn’t seem to love and who constantly shows him she doesn’t love him. His only bright light is his daughter.
His friend Billy - and I use the term loosely - uses him to do illegal deals and Darwin allows it time after time. He manages to find love and finds himself in the midst of a gang war but chooses wrongly every time.
How dumb can one man be? The ending also seemed unfinished and rushed.
Sorry, couldn’t find much to like.
September 7, 2019
The story of Darwin, a basketball high school hero, and his best friend, Billy is one that you will not want to put down. It is moving, descriptive, and mysterious. Well-written. This is the first book I have read by this author, but it is not the last.
September 11, 2020
Mr. Joy does a great job of bringing out the unique personalities and background of the main characters and presents each of their stories in a very detailed, practical manner. It is easy to relate to Darwin and the conflicts he faces throughout the book that challenge his character and loyalties. I always looked forward to the next chapter.
May 10, 2023
Fair story marred by sloppy editing
Nothing distracts me from a book more than poor editing. It is a pity, as the story was fairly interesting.
Nothing distracts me from a book more than poor editing. It is a pity, as the story was fairly interesting.
June 2, 2025
If Raymond Carver wrote thrillers, they might feel something like Better Days. This novel is compact but emotionally immense a literary crime story wrapped around a poignant coming-of-middle-age tale. In Darwin Burr, Len Joy gives us a protagonist we rarely see in fiction: a man who has stopped moving forward, who isn’t particularly ambitious, and who feels that life passed him by while he was still basking in the glow of a high school championship.
But when his friend and boss disappears while trying to outrun the FBI, Darwin is thrust into a situation that demands he finally do something. What follows is a riveting, emotionally intense ride not only through the logistics of the mystery, but through the rugged terrain of Darwin’s soul.
Joy doesn’t write in absolutes. He writes in the grey areas where most people actually live. The emotional realism of this novel is one of its greatest strengths. The author understands regret, denial, misplaced loyalty and how those things can become the quiet architecture of a life.
There’s something deeply courageous about this book. It dares to present a man who isn’t particularly brave or bright or bold and forces him into a crucible. And the result is a character transformation that feels earned, moving, and profoundly satisfying.
But when his friend and boss disappears while trying to outrun the FBI, Darwin is thrust into a situation that demands he finally do something. What follows is a riveting, emotionally intense ride not only through the logistics of the mystery, but through the rugged terrain of Darwin’s soul.
Joy doesn’t write in absolutes. He writes in the grey areas where most people actually live. The emotional realism of this novel is one of its greatest strengths. The author understands regret, denial, misplaced loyalty and how those things can become the quiet architecture of a life.
There’s something deeply courageous about this book. It dares to present a man who isn’t particularly brave or bright or bold and forces him into a crucible. And the result is a character transformation that feels earned, moving, and profoundly satisfying.
June 2, 2025
Some books grab you from the first page with plot twists and breakneck pacing. Better Days does something far rarer: it draws you in gently, so that by the time the action explodes, you’re not just invested in the story you’re emotionally entangled with the characters.
Darwin Burr is the quintessential small-town man who never quite grew out of his teenage glory. His life is quiet, stagnant, and deeply unexamined. And then, like a lightning bolt, the sudden disappearance of his friend throws everything into motion. What follows is a mystery with real emotional stakes because this isn’t about solving a puzzle, it’s about saving a life and, in the process, reawakening your own.
Len Joy writes with a kind of unforced grace. The dialogue is sharp and real. The pacing is perfect. And the emotional honesty is bracing. You don’t just see Darwin’s arc you feel it. Every choice he makes matters. Every hesitation cuts. Every revelation hits hard.
By the final chapters, Better Days has transformed into a full-blown emotional and psychological thriller one that resonates not because of explosions or car chases, but because it deals in the more volatile territory of broken trust and long-suppressed truth.
Darwin Burr is the quintessential small-town man who never quite grew out of his teenage glory. His life is quiet, stagnant, and deeply unexamined. And then, like a lightning bolt, the sudden disappearance of his friend throws everything into motion. What follows is a mystery with real emotional stakes because this isn’t about solving a puzzle, it’s about saving a life and, in the process, reawakening your own.
Len Joy writes with a kind of unforced grace. The dialogue is sharp and real. The pacing is perfect. And the emotional honesty is bracing. You don’t just see Darwin’s arc you feel it. Every choice he makes matters. Every hesitation cuts. Every revelation hits hard.
By the final chapters, Better Days has transformed into a full-blown emotional and psychological thriller one that resonates not because of explosions or car chases, but because it deals in the more volatile territory of broken trust and long-suppressed truth.
June 2, 2025
Better Days is as much about masculinity and emotional inheritance as it is about crime and consequences. In the character of Darwin Burr, Len Joy has created a mirror for every man who’s ever wondered what happened to the bold dreams of youth and how loyalty can be both a virtue and a trap.
The premise is deceptively simple: Darwin’s best friend and boss vanishes, pursued by the FBI. But the emotional landscape is anything but simple. Joy uses this inciting event not just to propel the plot, but to force Darwin into an existential reckoning. Who is he without this friend? What does he believe in? What is he willing to risk to do what he thinks is right?
Darwin isn’t a classic protagonist. He’s not naturally courageous or clever. But that’s what makes his transformation so compelling. Watching him take one uncertain step after another motivated not by heroism, but by deep, enduring friendship is heartbreaking and inspiring in equal measure.
There’s grit here, but also grace. And Joy writes with a deep understanding of the way men speak, the things they leave unsaid, and the emotional toll of being stuck in the past. It’s a novel that treats its characters with respect, never reducing them to clichés or caricatures.
The premise is deceptively simple: Darwin’s best friend and boss vanishes, pursued by the FBI. But the emotional landscape is anything but simple. Joy uses this inciting event not just to propel the plot, but to force Darwin into an existential reckoning. Who is he without this friend? What does he believe in? What is he willing to risk to do what he thinks is right?
Darwin isn’t a classic protagonist. He’s not naturally courageous or clever. But that’s what makes his transformation so compelling. Watching him take one uncertain step after another motivated not by heroism, but by deep, enduring friendship is heartbreaking and inspiring in equal measure.
There’s grit here, but also grace. And Joy writes with a deep understanding of the way men speak, the things they leave unsaid, and the emotional toll of being stuck in the past. It’s a novel that treats its characters with respect, never reducing them to clichés or caricatures.
June 2, 2025
Few contemporary novels capture the subtle tragedy of unrealized potential the way Better Days does. On the surface, Darwin Burr is living a decent life coaching basketball in the same town where he was once a star, working for his childhood friend. But beneath that surface simmers a deep, unspoken dissatisfaction. And when that friend disappears under federal suspicion, it doesn’t just upend Darwin’s life it exposes the hollow core he’s been trying not to face.
Len Joy has written a novel that walks the fine line between page-turning suspense and intimate character study. It’s a novel about men who don’t talk about feelings, towns that don’t change, and friendships that have weathered so much they’ve forgotten what they were built on.
What’s remarkable is how Joy finds the epic in the everyday. There are no superheroes here. Just ordinary people trying to do the right thing and often failing. But in Darwin, he gives us someone worth rooting for, not because he’s perfect, but because he wants to be better if only someone would show him how.
Better Days is not just a great crime novel it’s a deeply American one, in the best sense of the word. It’s about the dream, the disillusionment, and maybe, if you’re lucky, the second chance.
Len Joy has written a novel that walks the fine line between page-turning suspense and intimate character study. It’s a novel about men who don’t talk about feelings, towns that don’t change, and friendships that have weathered so much they’ve forgotten what they were built on.
What’s remarkable is how Joy finds the epic in the everyday. There are no superheroes here. Just ordinary people trying to do the right thing and often failing. But in Darwin, he gives us someone worth rooting for, not because he’s perfect, but because he wants to be better if only someone would show him how.
Better Days is not just a great crime novel it’s a deeply American one, in the best sense of the word. It’s about the dream, the disillusionment, and maybe, if you’re lucky, the second chance.
June 2, 2025
Every once in a while, a book comes along that transcends its genre. Better Days is one of those rare novels. It’s a crime story, yes but one that’s steeped in emotional intelligence, literary grace, and psychological depth.
At the center is Darwin Burr, a man who has been living in slow motion for decades. Joy paints Darwin with a master’s brush he’s layered, wounded, funny, stubborn, and surprisingly noble. When his best friend disappears under the shadow of criminal investigation, Darwin is pushed into the kind of crisis that reveals who a person really is.
This book doesn’t rely on traditional tropes. Instead, it unfolds with organic tension, building scene by scene toward revelations that feel both inevitable and devastating. Joy’s prose is clean and purposeful, his pacing deliberate, and his insight into human behavior razor-sharp.
By the end, what lingers is not just the mystery, but the emotion. The quiet heartbreak of wasted years. The raw power of unspoken love between friends. The cost of standing still and the courage it takes to finally move.
At the center is Darwin Burr, a man who has been living in slow motion for decades. Joy paints Darwin with a master’s brush he’s layered, wounded, funny, stubborn, and surprisingly noble. When his best friend disappears under the shadow of criminal investigation, Darwin is pushed into the kind of crisis that reveals who a person really is.
This book doesn’t rely on traditional tropes. Instead, it unfolds with organic tension, building scene by scene toward revelations that feel both inevitable and devastating. Joy’s prose is clean and purposeful, his pacing deliberate, and his insight into human behavior razor-sharp.
By the end, what lingers is not just the mystery, but the emotion. The quiet heartbreak of wasted years. The raw power of unspoken love between friends. The cost of standing still and the courage it takes to finally move.
April 7, 2022
Another home run by Len Joy. This guy can write. What an amazing roller-coaster ride, full of twists and turns. A true page-turner. You will not be disappointed by this one.
Perhaps we will get another chapter in the life of Darwin Burr??
Perhaps we will get another chapter in the life of Darwin Burr??
April 14, 2022
Entertaining
How far would you go for a longtime friend who has made your life comfortable and profitable? This is the story of two friends who are at the crossroads of their friendship. It is an engaging story.
How far would you go for a longtime friend who has made your life comfortable and profitable? This is the story of two friends who are at the crossroads of their friendship. It is an engaging story.
July 28, 2024
This book has a great story and characters!
I really enjoyed this story! All of the characters are likeable, and the plot is very interesting and believable. The main character faces some interesting challenges and the supporting characters are well developed.
I really enjoyed this story! All of the characters are likeable, and the plot is very interesting and believable. The main character faces some interesting challenges and the supporting characters are well developed.
November 27, 2024
Good stuff
Against my better judgement, I rather enjoyed this novel. The characters are colourful and honourable, everything is believable and the story rolls along at a good pace. I do not recognise any of the places mentioned but that didn't matter. Good entertainment.
Against my better judgement, I rather enjoyed this novel. The characters are colourful and honourable, everything is believable and the story rolls along at a good pace. I do not recognise any of the places mentioned but that didn't matter. Good entertainment.
February 17, 2019
This one gets under your skin. There’s definitely a serious pull to it. I live the way the Darwin’s voice is done too. It’s really what holds everything together.
April 11, 2022
Excellently constructed, but ended too soon. I wanted more of a resolution, and only a great story line will take me there. I hope there will be a follow-up!
Want to read
April 27, 2023Freebooksy
October 15, 2023
I enjoyed this book. Kept my interest the whole time as I was never sure what was going to happen next.
I would definitely recommend Better Days
I would definitely recommend Better Days
December 30, 2023
good storyline
Easy read with some good characters and twists
In a heartwarming story. Worthwhile book if you are looking for something light and entertaining
Easy read with some good characters and twists
In a heartwarming story. Worthwhile book if you are looking for something light and entertaining
July 18, 2024
kept my interest
I really enjoyed this book. Many twists and unexpected moments. The writing was very good and tight. I that you will find it very enjoyable.
I really enjoyed this book. Many twists and unexpected moments. The writing was very good and tight. I that you will find it very enjoyable.
July 21, 2024
Good read
It was not the type of book I usually read but I really enjoyed reading the book. It ended well
It was not the type of book I usually read but I really enjoyed reading the book. It ended well
August 6, 2024
Realistic
I could hardly wait to read this story. It showed people at their worst and best. All the characters were well-developed, distinct and believable. Well done!
I could hardly wait to read this story. It showed people at their worst and best. All the characters were well-developed, distinct and believable. Well done!
November 21, 2024
Could be better?
Quite the assortment of characters and story line. I was never certain what could possibly happen next. Fascinating, confusing, and very human.
Quite the assortment of characters and story line. I was never certain what could possibly happen next. Fascinating, confusing, and very human.
November 28, 2024
Riveting
This book was great to read from beginning to end. I liked the plot twists and turns. It was engaging.
This book was great to read from beginning to end. I liked the plot twists and turns. It was engaging.
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