Martin Amis

Writer, Samson Young, is staring death in the face, and not only his own. Void of ideas and on the verge of terminal decline, Samson’s dash to a decaying, degenerate London has brought him through the doors of the Black Cross pub and into a murder story just waiting to be narrated. At its centre is the mesmeric, doomed Nicola Six, destined to be murdered on her 35th birthday. Around her: the disreputable men who might yet turn out to be her killer. All Samson has to do is to write Nicola’s story as it happens, and savour in this one last gift that life has granted him. 'A true story, a murder story, a love story and a thriller bursting with humour, sex and often dazzling language' Independent

London Fields

Melody Izard

London Fields – Martin Amis. This is the first Martin Amis I have read. I have heard that a lot of people hate him. Count me in. The story is about a woman (Nicola) who believes she always knows what will happen ahead of time and she knows she is going to be murdered. Instead of fighting it she decides to allow it to happen – but she wants to control it. The book also is about the impending doom of the earth and mankind. It is set in London and the earth is zooming toward environmental and economic ruin not to mention the apocalypse. The author seems to be saying with this parallel that both Nicola and people of the earth feel that their demise is inevitable. Not only is the end inevitable but they are both engaged in very destructive behavior intended on speeding up the process. The book is carefully crafted – every word seems especially chosen for that position on the paper; which for me – made the writing tedious and overwrought. The book is not for the squeamish – there is a great deal of blood and erotic sex; although I would have welcomed more sex and less verbiage. No recommendation from me.

The narrator, Samson Young, enters the Black Cross, a thoroughly undesirable public house, and finds the main players of his drama assembled, just waiting to begin. It's a gift of a story from real life. . . all Samson has to do is to write it as it happens. Taking a small pocket of time and a richly diverse part of London, Martin Amis dissects the nature of a society as it hurtles towards the millennium.

Wonko the Sane

Karolina Klermon-Williams

Maurice FitzGerald

Bo Smet

Cursed with premonitions since childhood, Nicola forsees her own murder, and sets out to make the two most likely suspects pay in advance for what one of them is going to do to her

London Fields

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