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boots's review
5.0
If the words "hello Marcus, it's your father" mean nothing to you, let me give you a bit of context. Fergus Craig is an observant, witty writer who has created a close-to-the-bone parody of a narrow-minded, middle class, suburban English dad. This character, Martin Fishback, is convinced of his own rightness, his own intelligence, and that his son has made a poor choice in attending Leicester De Montfort University. And now Martin has written a book.
I say this because you really need to know that level of abstraction. The narrative voice is blind to its own flaws, and that's the fun of it, but the ignorance-born racism and sexism definitely veers into uncomfortable at times, even if you're in on the joke.
Overall, it's a hilarious paint by numbers crime novel in which the lead detective, Roger LeCarre, drinks whatever can be drunk, chases every flimsy lead he gets, and gets uncontrollably angry at the mere mention of Drugs - when he isn't listing suspects, theories, or furniture he's had sex on in his head.
I recommend getting the audiobook. The delivery is, in my view, an essential part of the experience. From Detective Roger LeCarre's opening observations of a Body, and frequent musings on Crime, through to the terms and conditions at the end (THE MORAL RIGHT OF THE AUTHOR HAS BEEN ASSERTED
I say this because you really need to know that level of abstraction. The narrative voice is blind to its own flaws, and that's the fun of it, but the ignorance-born racism and sexism definitely veers into uncomfortable at times, even if you're in on the joke.
Overall, it's a hilarious paint by numbers crime novel in which the lead detective, Roger LeCarre, drinks whatever can be drunk, chases every flimsy lead he gets, and gets uncontrollably angry at the mere mention of Drugs - when he isn't listing suspects, theories, or furniture he's had sex on in his head.
I recommend getting the audiobook. The delivery is, in my view, an essential part of the experience. From Detective Roger LeCarre's opening observations of a Body, and frequent musings on Crime, through to the terms and conditions at the end (THE MORAL RIGHT OF THE AUTHOR HAS BEEN ASSERTED
carolina_05x's review
2.0
Reading this book was like watching the telly… ads every 5 minutes. Knowing the brand of everything used in the story, from the car the character drove to the lip balm he used was unnecessary and made the reading of the book tiring.
The storyline of the murder case had a great potential, although it felt like it was ruined by the main character. I found it very hard to like the detective even one bit, and the plot at the end of the book just felt so unreal.
It was a quick but bit of a tiring read.
The storyline of the murder case had a great potential, although it felt like it was ruined by the main character. I found it very hard to like the detective even one bit, and the plot at the end of the book just felt so unreal.
It was a quick but bit of a tiring read.
rocketiza's review
1.0
The structure of this book is one sentence to advance plot, then the next 4-5 wildly windmilling tired and predictable jokes which rarely land at you. Pass.
juliav's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
catriona176's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It’s very silly, but isn’t that the point
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Murder
lewiscain's review
4.0
I’m unsure why this book has received a fair few negative reviews, maybe it’s people expecting a serious crime novel with some humor which this really isn’t. If you take it for what it is, just a silly, funny, crime related comedy then it’s a nice little read. Thoroughly enjoyed a break from serious, gruesome murders which were replaced with sex, drugs and some great gags (what’s not to like?). All in all a funny, quick read and I look forward to the next one!
beesleybob's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
annarella's review
3.0
I was expecting a humorous mystery and this is a spoof of a hard boiled mystery. It' humorous, it made me laugh but it's too long and I think it would work better in audiobook.
The main character is quite old fashioned, seems he's channeling the average police detective from the 70s.
I laughed but I also found it a bit boring as the plot was quite thin and not much of a mystery.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
The main character is quite old fashioned, seems he's channeling the average police detective from the 70s.
I laughed but I also found it a bit boring as the plot was quite thin and not much of a mystery.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine