Andrew Hook (2) (1967–)

An interesting single-author anthology. I found myself dipping into this one and, to an extent, savouring the stories, rather than devouring it at one gulp as is my wont. I was reminded a bit by the Japanese-set stories of the late Angela Carter, who resided in Japan in the late 1960s; specifically of her story collection Fireworks: Nine Profane Pieces. Other stories were set firmly in the UK, including one set in my home-town. Recommended.

I give this book 2 out of 5 stars. I finished it, and even enjoyed a couple of the stories, but mostly I want the time back. I was originally interested in this book because I am not all that familiar with noir and thought a short story anthology might be a good way to sample different types of noir. That may be the case, but it has effectively turned me away from noir for the foreseeable future. Too many of the authors seem to be convinced that, in order to achieve true grittiness, their show more stories must be riddled with sexism, racism, ableism, and homophobia. Not only that, but a number of the stories feature explicit sexual assault and violence passed off as a standard, regular thing. This was hard to read, but I also think it was unnecessary. This is supposed to be an anthology of modern noir fiction, and there should be ways to achieve gritty tones and moods without falling back on slurs or snide, discriminatory comments. Additionally, a lot of the stories just didn't seem to be particularly well-written, which was frustrating to wade through. This was especially apparent in a number of the stories' dialogue. If I hadn't been reading this for the purpose of reviewing it, I likely would have given up on it less than halfway through. show less

I'll preface this review with the ever so original "this is not a book I'd typically read", because it isn't. I'm not a fan of first person POV, yet I barely noticed it after the first couple of pages. The structure and style were something I've never encountered, and I was a bit concerned it would be distracting, but I was pleasantly surprised.

The story is so...weird, the characters so...rich, that you just can't stop reading. I LOVED the editors comments added as footnotes. Page 5 had me show more laughing so hard I made a mess of my computer screen. After that I learned not to consume beverages while reading.

I can usually predict an ending...or at least come pretty close to it and I had no clue how this would end. I like that.

I definitely recommend this for anyone with a funny bone. If you don't have a funny bone...well, it's a rough life, ain't it. :)

I look forward to reading more by this author. show less

When it comes to writing fiction, Andrew Hook is a sneaky bastard. He takes his reader gently by the hand, and leads them down a path until they're in a pleasant, lawned area with a bench. He sits them down, hands them a nice cup of tea, has a quiet conversation about various things that don't seem particularly connected to each other, and then asks permission to place a blindfold over the reader's eyes. This odd request granted, he does so. At which point one realises that what he actually show more did was REMOVE a blindfold, becuase everything that you saw until then was fiction, and one is actually sitting with cup of exceedingly fine coffee in the hand, and are surrounded by wonderful flora and fauna in the middle of a country field somewhere in the middle of the New Hebrides. This sudden change of awareness is surprising, but not unpleasant.

That's what his writing is like. Full of surprises, always rewarding, always exceedingly seamless in its use of technique.

He's good; so very, VERY good. show less