I saw this author's stuff in bookshops in the UK - he was one of the top sellers there at the time, but little known in the USA. What I got turned out to be a good subway book, a page turner that is a little smarter and a lot funnier than most. All in all, an enjoyable if not very enlightening read, and my only complaint is that, at 500 pages, it took up more of my time than it deserved.Brookmyre, like my friend Tim Cockey, works the border between humor and mystery. His stuff is not quite funny enough to be hardcore humor, and it is a little too lite to be gripping suspense, but of course that is what he is trying to do, and it does work. I did find myself wondering who really is in control here - the clown or the master of suspense. Probably the clown - when he goees into burning sarcasm mode, he is as hot as anybody. But he takes his suspense very seriously, almost a little too seriously for a comic writer. The book is carefully plotted out, and rationales are provided for everything that happens. Practically every page has a cliffhanger on it.The story centers on a college friendship that went awry. Raymond Ash and Simon Darcourt were flatmates and members of the same mediocre rock band, The Bacchae. Simon, a cold, manipulative egoist, always dreamed of stardom - but when this was denied to him, he became a leading international terrorist known as The Black Spirit. Raymond has recently had his first baby and entered the teaching profession. He spots Simon by chance in an airport, which is strange, because Simon is supposedly dead, having perished in a bombed plane. In fact, he engineered the bombing himself. Raymond soon finds himself shot at, then kidnapped by a group of terrorists. I won't give away any more, but the book dips back into the past a lot, explaining Simon's motivations and past relations between Simon and Raymond. The ending is a little too much, and seems designed for Hollywood.Brookmyre is a meticulous plotter and a sarcastic humorist. Some sections are hysterically funny, like his description of a corporate workshop coach who gets people to make up raps about how they are going to help their companies - e.g. "Well here I am, my name is Je-re-mee / And my game is enhanced ee-fish-en-see / Sintek en-er-gee! / There for you and me!" etc. Simon kills him. All in all, an entertaining read, one written by an undeniably funny and careful craftsman.
New to Brookmyre, this book was sent in the post by a friend. Uninspired by the cover (yes I do judge books by their covers - until I've read them) I didn't pick it up for quite a while. But when I did I couldn't put it down. It is funny, well-observed and pertinent. Brookmyre has captured Real Life and exposed it. The language, which I think some reviewers regarded as some kind of shock factor, merely reflected the reality. And provided some rip-roaring laughs from this reader. Lexy and Wee Murph are just genius characters that provide many moments of comic genius. Simon on the other hand was a little flakey as the villain - and his motivation for going bad was a little flimsy but I guess that is also true to life? I enjoyed this. I'm encouraged to read more by Brookmyre because of it though I wouldn't go as far as to say my life has changed because of it - albeit it has its poignant, thought-provoking moments. A satisfying read that tickles the chuckle muscles.
Do You like book A Big Boy Did It And Ran Away (2001)?
There is a terrorist threat to Britain, and a computer-gaming teacher in Glasgow is attacked by men with silenced weapons. Coincidence?The first 15 pages of this book is probably the best rant I've seen in written form. Pure, unadulterated venting, and a lovely microcosm of Brookmyre's style. Loved it.The book then settles down somewhat, into Brookmyre's usual "bad guys have big plans that will have various spanners thrown in by random passers by and civilians" plotline, but all down with his standard flair and panache. The back stories fo the characters are filled out more than normal, but once you've read it all you'll understand why. The finale may stretch the imagination a bit, but only somewhat, given what has gone before, and of course there is scope for a sequel (as indeed eventuated).Overall, a very enjoyable romp.Rated R18 for frequent strong violence, strong coarse language, a sex scene and Aberdeen. 4/5
—Nathan
This is the first in the Angelique de Xavia series, but I had already read the 3rd, A Snowball in Hell, which I felt at the time I would've enjoyed more if I'd already read the previous books, and so will probably reread once I finish The Sacred Art of Stealing. Brookmyre is not for everyone, I think you have to have at least lived in Scotland (as I did for ten years) to follow a lot of the language and get many of the jokes. Not everyone likes satire either, and the humour here is very black, but I thought the plot and the build-up were brilliant and really liked the characters - some very improbable heroes. I read a lot of thrillers and it's refreshing to know upfront who the baddie is and there not always being a twist, at least not in terms of the characters. Simon Darcourt is a professional terrorist known as the Black Spirit who returns to Aberdeen to plan his latest atrocity, and is recognised at the airport by an old friend from Uni, mild-mannered newbie English teacher Ray Ash, who believes that he died in a plane bombing years earlier. Angelique is a Glaswegian Special Branch police officer who recognises signs that the Black Spirit could be in Scotland and sets about finding him. And two kids are skiving off from school and slip into a van left open outside and find themselves trapped inside with crates of guns and explosives.It is a bit slow to get going and there are deliberate distractions and lots of backstory, but the action kicks off in the final third and then wraps up very satisfactorily, leaving room for the next books but no annoying cliffhangers.
—The Cats Mother
I make a sort-of-list of my favorite Brookmyre's and this comes in top 5. The other 3 are A Tale Etched in Blood and Hard Black Pencil (definitely number 1), One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night and It's All Fun and Games Until Somebody Loses an Eye. Can't decide the fifth and if you notice I haven't put any Jack Parlabanes, yet.Maybe this book brings out the bad pretentious douchebag-and-selfrighteousness in me in the form of Simon Darcourt. We are him sometimes, or we wish we were. But as a civilized member of the society, we have to be Raymond Ash. In a strange way, he's my favorite character. An SSC (Suburban Sad C*nt, as Simon put it) with ordinary, anonymous little life. Otherwise known as home.
—eggophilia
