The second Jack Parlabane mystery finds four burglars robbing a mansion and finding the occupants already murdered. The occupants are media mogul Roland Voss (of comparable stature to Robert Maxwell and Rupert Murdoch), his wife, and their two security guards, and naturally the media descend on the criminals who murdered someone who wrote so many of their paychecks.Almost from the start though some holes in the case appear, at least to those willing to look. Nicole Carrow and her boss have defended Tam McInnes (one of the burglars) before, and know that he isn't capable of murder. Furthermore, evidence of their clients' innocence has fallen into their hands, and they plan to make the most of it.They don't get the opportunity. A new round of killings designed to put McInnes and his friends in the frame and on the run occur, and Nicole now has problems of her own.Brookmyre again has his opportunity to describe the policies of the remnants of the Thatcher Tories in all their grubby glory. This time he doesn't resort to ugly descriptions (as found in Quite Ugly One Morning) to vilify his antagonists, instead he lets his clear anger at the policies that put men and women out of work and entire villages in decline shine upon the men who implement them for the sole purpose of maneuvering into power. As in Quite Ugly One Morning, we find out who the primary villains are early on; the true question of the novel is how, if at all, the protagonists are going to prove innocence and guilt. Where Brookmyre truly entertains though is in his cynical yet accurate descriptions of the media and politicians who wash each other's hands and look the other way at their respective misdeeds, and his character Jack Parlabane is an ideal vehicle to rant about the complacency of both. Parlabane's first reaction upon hearing of Voss's death is regret that he didn't get to kill him first (his second is regret that none his fellow journalists got the chance either), and while he inserts himself into the middle of the investigation he also gets to describe his disgust at those who resort to murder to protect their career.It's a more satisfying book, mostly because this time Brookmyre makes use of the Scottish countryside and its people. If there are any negatives, it is in an over-use of cliff-hanging chapters and sudden reversals, which get a little predictable, but even then he managed to come up with a surprise or two. This is definitely a series worth reading.
Country Of The Blind continues to be "Quite The Fantastic An Experience". Mr. Brookmyre is wearing his politics all over himself in this book. Jack Parlabane - Oh Jack, what do I say about you? What are you? Are you God? Are you human? Or are you just an experience that gets inside my head and takes up residence? EXPLOSIVE is probably the only word that can define Jack Parlabane. Every thing you do is magic!! Period!!!As someone has said already "If you fail to read Brookmyre before you die, you haven't lived". And "if you haven't met Jack Parlabane yet, you haven't been born yet". Like the first book in the series (Quite Ugly One Morning), Country Of The Blind leaves a lingering taste that is rich and exotic. Apart from the explosive Parlabane, EACH and EVERY character of this book is sketched to perfection. However, there is a distinct difference in the structure of this book. In Quite Ugly One Morning, the entire plot was led by Parlabane. In Country Of The Blind, Parlabane shares the space with ALL the players in the game. In fact, the pages dedicated to Parlabane are so less (in comparison) that it leaves you panting and drooling to get more of Parlabane. Parlabane continues to be clutter breaking in his all brains, all intelligence, all tracker of truth. But in addition to this book, he is in a relationship as well, which is just as hilarious, raunchy with lip smacking attitude and yet so very endearing. Parlabane continues to throws all alarm bells screaming danger and YET we are still getting drawn towards him. You simply CANNOT miss this series. But remember, the moment you pick up this book you are shoved into a Parlabane situation. And when your world turns into a Parlabane Situation, you can do NOTHING except fasten your seat belts and hope to come out sane on the other side.Boy oh Boy - I am suffering from PJPED (Post Jack Parlabane Ecstaticy Disorder).
What do You think about Country Of The Blind (1998)?
Swithering between rating it a 3 or a 4 star. I plump for three. I borrowed this from a friend and had it for something like a year before I finished it. I seldom give up on a book, but this was one of those that just didn't draw me in from the beginning. I had to keep restarting again and again! I struggled to move past the initial section of the book, it really didn't grab me. The person who loaned it kept saying, No, it's worth it, keep at it! Eventually I got there, but only once it moved into the section where the group of convicts are on the run and the plot began to show some intricacy. Still, I found myself thinking Brookmyre overrated. I've read such routinely ecstatic reviews about his works that I perhaps expected more than I got. One of those times when I smugly think to myself "I could write something better than this" (don't worry, I'm not gonna!) Indeed, once I got past the blockage, the story almost seemed to be wrapped up too quickly and inconsequentially.So overall, the pacing was out of kilter. It lagged where it needed to gallop, it made a mad dash for the finish when it would have been better to cruise home...I haven't read any of Brookmyre's other books and this I'm afraid doesn't give me any great appetite to seek them out to redress the balance. But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and may indeed pick up another, one of these days.
—La Reyne
Brookmyre must be psychic. Or maybe things just don't change. This book, written in 1997 at the nasty end of Thatcher's era, could have been taken from today's headlines. A conservative tabloid billionaire and his wife are murdered at a country estate. The police catch four men fleeing the scene. The men are simple burglars who maintain that they found the bodies, but the press is howling for swift punishment.Jack Parlabane has promised himself and his fiancee Sarah that he will give up risking his life for the next good story, but when a friend of his is killed in a staged suicide that confirms the official story of the murders, he has to get involved. With the help of Sarah and DC Jenny Dalgleish, he uncovers a multilayered plot that involves collusion between the the press (both tabloid and establishment), police and security sevices and officials at the highest levels of the Conservative Party.It's scathing satire that's as timely now as it was nearly 20 years ago, and a ripping good story. Spammy is one of the funniest characters to come down the pike in years.
—Monica
I'm barely into this book and enjoying it so much. Brookmyre is very, very good. The book starts off ironically, with a bit of low-key humor. Just as you relax into it, the tale take a turn, a very dark turn. Some of the characters are "out there." Some are just trying really hard to get from here to there in one piece, maybe doing the right thing along the way. The politicians are slimy and the bad guys are amazingly bad. Refreshingly, Brookmyre writes women characters who are smart and can handle themselves and moves the plot along without using the tired trick of having the women get into trouble by doing stupid things. In fact, most of his characters are believable, even the most kooky. The bad guys are less so, being over-the-top bad. But, frankly, who cares if these folks are caricatures? They stand in for real-life evil-doers who are more three-dimensional and evil on a much larger scale. The plot whips along at a break-neck pace, with blood flowing and bodies dropping. Thank goodness for Parlabane, intrepid journalist, the women who more or less trust him (against their better judgement), a few (very few) decent cops, and some honest crooks. This is a great read.
—L
