A well-written, fast-paced dystopian thriller. Ballard's mind for perverse details will find an audience in Palahnuik and Easton Ellis fanboys, which is a good thing because Ballard is a significantly better writer than both of them. "Super-Cannes" paves no new territory for Ballard, but shows him as a gifted story-teller with a flair for the dramatic. It explores themes of sexuality and violence that are often discussed in dystopian novels of this sort, but are expressed in such a forthright way as to throw the reader for a loop. Wilder Penrose, the psychologist/psychopath and driver of the dystopia Eden-Olympia, is a great character in the mold of a wannabe Nietzschean Ubermensch. In toto, "Super-Cannes" is an exciting, well-crafted story that breaks no new ground in the genre, but superbly executes the dystopian novel. ( )

Dreadful characterisation, daft plot. Veeeery disappointed. Can't ... summon ... energy to ... finis ( )

My edition of this novel contains gushing praise from critics, and if you have never read other Ballard novels, this indeed comes across as an original and exciting thriller. But unfortunately it is virtually a rewrite of Cocaine Nights. Quite exciting, but definitely not groundbreaking for this author. ( )

Absolutely captivating. It's many years since I read a Ballard novel but this has the recognisable themes of those which I read as a teenager but many new and contemporary elements. Powerful and angry in a way that I don't recall Ballard being, perhaps because I found his work somewhat difficult 30 years ago or more. This definitely makes we want to revisit the Atrocity Exhibition, High-Rise and others from that era. ( )

This is a book about business and psychopathy. Anyone who has worked in a large multi-national should recognise the inherent truth in Ballard's novel, that the competitive drive of individuals in very large corporations drives not the most competent to the top, but the most psychopathic. In this imagined massive business park in the South of France Ballard's characters are orchestrated by a rouge psychiatrist, Wilder Penrose, into organised violence, sexual indulgence and ultimately random killing. Paul Sinclair the protagonist arrives at Super Cannes as a semi-retired partner of an executive transferred to the site and we follow his story as he tries to unravel the bizarre happenings.

Ballard is a genius and this work is a genuine thriller with a brilliant twist at the end. ( )