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A review by davidr
Stonemouth by Iain Banks
5.0
The author's name "Iain Banks" usually means science fiction to me. I was quite surprised by this remarkable novel. Stewart Gilmour returns to the gritty town of Stonemouth in Scotland, after five years of exile. We don't really know why he was exiled, but it had something to do with one (or both) of the crime families in the town. Banks maintains a tension as the story bounces between the present time and events that occurred five years ago. There is always an undercurrent of dark hatred and potential violence.
My favorite character is Stewart's friend Ferg--an addicted druggie and drunkard, who has a unique conversational style. In fact, many of the characters, including Stewart, have interesting ways of talking. Part of this is the Scottish slang among young (and old) people, and sometimes I really had to think about the numerous interesting turns of phrase.
This book kept me "at the edge of my seat", trying to guess what would happen next. Some loose ends remain at the conclusion of the novel. Despite what seems like a happy ending, the future of the main characters is not entirely certain. The resulting ambiguity is delicious.
My favorite character is Stewart's friend Ferg--an addicted druggie and drunkard, who has a unique conversational style. In fact, many of the characters, including Stewart, have interesting ways of talking. Part of this is the Scottish slang among young (and old) people, and sometimes I really had to think about the numerous interesting turns of phrase.
This book kept me "at the edge of my seat", trying to guess what would happen next. Some loose ends remain at the conclusion of the novel. Despite what seems like a happy ending, the future of the main characters is not entirely certain. The resulting ambiguity is delicious.