A diverting, intelligent fusion of black comedy and political thriller.
In this novel, people in a near-future world clash with a hateful right-wing group operating in Europe.
Jim, a nearly 50-year-old Londoner, first hears of the Nous Sommes La France while enjoying his retirement on a cruise ship. NSLF is a xenophobic organization that’s singled out the Mashubians, immigrants that hail from Ukraine and Belarus. Jim sees the extent of NSLF’s hostility in the French town of Le Rayol when an anti-immigrant demonstration turns violent. Meanwhile, travel journalist Jean-Pierre, whom Jim meets on the cruise, covers the Mashubian story for a right-leaning newspaper. It’s just a job, as his political beliefs are the antithesis of the publication’s. He makes the dangerous choice to infiltrate the NSLF, certain it’s up to something even more sinister than opposing immigration. The journalist winds up in Jim’s hometown, where hate-fueled We Are England rallies are soon on the rise. Demands of repatriation in France, Britain, and elsewhere spur riots as well as targeted assaults. Jean-Pierre struggles to unravel the two groups’ mysteries, including WAE’s enigmatic, never-seen founder. Tree deftly pairs humor with this novel’s hard-hitting commentary. A public speech on climate change, for example, blames some of the carbon dioxide emissions on “farting cows.” But characters against immigration are undeniably loathsome racists whose despondent message is akin to real-life groups around the world. Much of Jim’s first-person narration as well as Jean-Pierre’s corresponding letters to his love, Helen, teems with clear-eyed political discourse and rhetoric. The author also delivers an abundance of vivid passages, like this one about Jim’s early morning walk in France: “The small-hours light was mucky as dishwater, and the remnants of the night were on the narrow streets of the old town.” As the engaging story unfolds, a few surprises pop up, from something a scientist devises for the WAE and NSLF to a startling revelation involving the Mashubians.
A diverting, intelligent fusion of black comedy and political thriller.Pub Date: Dec. 22, 2022
ISBN: 9798366659079
Page Count: 369
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.
Stephanie Plum’s 31st adventure shows that Trenton’s preeminent fugitive-apprehension agent still has plenty of tricks up her sleeve, and needs every one of them.
The current caseload for Stephanie and Lula—the ex-prostitute file clerk at her cousin Vincent Plum’s bail bonds company, who serves as her unflappable sidekick—begins with two “failures to appear.” Eugene Fleck is suspected of being Robin Hoodie, who robs from the rich and, yes, distributes the proceeds to the poor. Racketeer Bruno Jug, who’s missed his court date on charges of tax evasion, is also suspected of drugging and raping a 14-year-old. But neither of these fugitives can hold a candle to Zoran Djordjevic, aka Fang, a self-proclaimed vampire wanted in connection with the gruesome fate of his late wife and three other missing women. As usual, Stephanie’s personal life is just as helter-skelter as her professional life as a bounty hunter. She’s managed to get herself engaged both to Det. Joe Morelli, of the Trenton PD, and Ranger, a former Special Forces agent who runs a private security firm; she thinks she may be pregnant; and she’s willing to marry the father, whichever of her fiances that turns out to be. On top of it all, her nothingburger schoolmate Herbert Slovinski suddenly pops up at one of the funerals she ferries her Grandma Mazur to, hitting on her relentlessly and gilding his importunities by cleaning and painting her shabby apartment and laying new carpet. Luckily, Lula’s on hand to offer cupcakes that stave off the worst disasters, and whenever this hodgepodge threatens to slow down, another FTA appears, or fails to appear.
As usual, Evanovich handles the funny stuff better (much better) than the mystery stuff.Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781668003138
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Oct. 26, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2024
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.
A woman accused of shooting her husband six times in the face refuses to speak.
"Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. They had been married for seven years. They were both artists—Alicia was a painter, and Gabriel was a well-known fashion photographer." Michaelides' debut is narrated in the voice of psychotherapist Theo Faber, who applies for a job at the institution where Alicia is incarcerated because he's fascinated with her case and believes he will be able to get her to talk. The narration of the increasingly unrealistic events that follow is interwoven with excerpts from Alicia's diary. Ah, yes, the old interwoven diary trick. When you read Alicia's diary you'll conclude the woman could well have been a novelist instead of a painter because it contains page after page of detailed dialogue, scenes, and conversations quite unlike those in any journal you've ever seen. " 'What's the matter?' 'I can't talk about it on the phone, I need to see you.' 'It's just—I'm not sure I can make it up to Cambridge at the minute.' 'I'll come to you. This afternoon. Okay?' Something in Paul's voice made me agree without thinking about it. He sounded desperate. 'Okay. Are you sure you can't tell me about it now?' 'I'll see you later.' Paul hung up." Wouldn't all this appear in a diary as "Paul wouldn't tell me what was wrong"? An even more improbable entry is the one that pins the tail on the killer. While much of the book is clumsy, contrived, and silly, it is while reading passages of the diary that one may actually find oneself laughing out loud.
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.Pub Date: Feb. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-30169-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018
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