I think Charlie Williams is one of the underrated geniuses in British literature today. The Mangel Trilogy and Blakey are fantastic, I've read all 3. I enjoyed fags and lager a lot, on a par with Deadfolk Id say. The 1* reviewer talks about reading this in a "strange voice", Id say i experimented with a number of accents for Blakey, none spoiled my enjoyment of his narrative.
Blakey is a antihero, Williams hasn't created a protagonist to cheer on or sympathise with, but I found that quite compelling, Blakey drives me mad, but that doesn't mean I don't love him so... There's plenty of other characters to warm to as well, Im a big Nathan fan, he would make my top 5 fictional bartenders without doubt.
To anyone who has spent time in a crap town, I'm sure Mangel and his inhabitants will resonate, Im sure ive met half the characters in the book, and Blakey does remind me a lot of a doorman of a bar i used to frequent in Wolverhampton...