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Review
‘[Ballard] is one of the few genuine surrealists this country has produced, the possessor of a terrifying and exhilarating imagination – and a national treasure’ Guardian
‘Britain’s number one living novelist. This adds a glinting new facet to his achievement – Ballard, detective-novelist extraordinary’ Sunday Times
‘As thrillingly wired as ever…Dazzlingly original’ Independent
‘Utterly compulsive’ Sunday Telegraph
Product Description
The remarkable bestseller from the author of Crash – Cocaine Nights is an engrossing mystery and unnerving vision of a society enjoying a life of unlimited leisure.
When Charles Prentice arrives in Spain to investigate his brother’s involvement in the death of five people in a fire in the upmarket coastal resort of Estrella de Mar, he gradually discovers that beneath the civilised, cultured surface of this exclusive enclave for Britain’s retired rich there flourishes a secret world of crime, drugs and illicit sex . What starts as an engrossing mystery develops into a mesmerising novel of ideas – a dazzling work of the imagination from one of Britain’s most original and controversial novelists – author of Super-Cannes and Millennium People.
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First Sentence
CROSSING FRONTIERS is my profession. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
CROSSING FRONTIERS is my profession. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I do not remember reading a book that has affected me as profoundly as this one. Set in the Spanish holiday resort of, "Estrella de Mar," "Cocaine Nights," revolves around the main character's attempts to prove that his brother was not responsible for a fire which killed the wealthiest inhabitants of the resort.
On the surface this is a very interesting murder story, with enough twists to keep even the most ardent crime novel fan interested. However, delving below the surface we are able to uncover Ballard's true masterpiece. Akin to his other works such as, "Millennium People," we are presented with an intriguing outlook on a wealthy society. Here is where Ballard truly excels and forces us to question how far would we go to attain a perfect society and whether we truly understand the importance and nature of illicit activity within our own communities. If you will not read this book for its compelling criminality, or the superbly written commentary on a British society transposed into a world of drugs sex and murder, then the relationship presented between the two brothers alone makes "Cocaine Nights," a beautiful novel.
Ballard at his best and the perfect read for fans of dystopian literature. Truly superb!
On the surface this is a very interesting murder story, with enough twists to keep even the most ardent crime novel fan interested. However, delving below the surface we are able to uncover Ballard's true masterpiece. Akin to his other works such as, "Millennium People," we are presented with an intriguing outlook on a wealthy society. Here is where Ballard truly excels and forces us to question how far would we go to attain a perfect society and whether we truly understand the importance and nature of illicit activity within our own communities. If you will not read this book for its compelling criminality, or the superbly written commentary on a British society transposed into a world of drugs sex and murder, then the relationship presented between the two brothers alone makes "Cocaine Nights," a beautiful novel.
Ballard at his best and the perfect read for fans of dystopian literature. Truly superb!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This was another book I read upon finishing my English Literature degree, eight years ago, for light relief. The fact that it was modern and that it was set in sunny Spain appealed to me, but the book didn't live up to my expectations. I'd found Empire of the Sun stuffy when I had read it at school, but I had liked Crash very much, thinking it in fact a masterpiece (a pleasant surprise after that dreadful film). But Cocaine Nights seemed a bit tired, without flashes of Ballard brilliance. Solid stuff, all the same, but unless you are an avid Ballard fan, there is better stuff out there worth spending your time on.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Recommended by a friend, I was initially dubious about this book but was soon pleasantly drawn into his world of crime and passion. He reflects on our own society through a beautifully written narrative, never losing the reader's attention and never overplaying the key parts of the story. After a few chapters I could hardly put the book down, and the ending is awesome - how anyone could say it's a let down is beyond me. It's a book to enjoy and to savour, and I hope he writes many more.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
This book was like a...
Was really disappointed in this book. I never feel like writing reviews. But when I saw all the 5 star reviews on here I felt compelled. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Bruno Hat
Don't be fooled by the title!
I was very much looking forward to reading this book, the title seemed to promise excitment but it failed miserably for me. Read more
Published 1 month ago by D. L. Gough
Disappointing
My first JG Ballard book and having read gushing praise for him over the years had high expectations, something which Cocaine Nights totally fails to deliver on. Read more
Published 3 months ago by David Hampson
Crime as Redemption
Having worked with those members of the ex pat community who have returned, this provided some valuable insights. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Dr. Delvis Memphistopheles
A drag
Tedious and unrealistic, Cocaine Nights is burdened with an awful and distracting excess of similes, two-dimensional characters and a style that I suspect was intended to be... Read more
Published 12 months ago by S. Cryer
Awesome book
How anyone can give this anything but 5 stars is a mystery to me. Haunting and without doubt truthfully scary.
Published 13 months ago by White Swan
a tense and scary book.
In J.G. Ballard's 1996 novel ,Cocaine Nights, Englishman Frank Prentice is in a Spanish jail charged with arson and murder. Read more
Published 18 months ago by Paul D Brazill
Novel of surbuban depravity
Something of a case of having the cake and eating it, in the manner of tabloids writing about 'saucy romps' and so on. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Jezza
Interesting....but far too long!
Ballard was fascinated by the idea of the dystopian society. Many of his novels exposed and examined the behaviour of groups of people, or even entire communities, whose lives,... Read more
Published on 24 May 2010 by Alexis Paladin
I never forgot this one
I read this book about 5 years ago and although i only vaguely remember the story (apart from the obvious), I can say i never forgot this book or the thoughts it provoked. Read more
Published on 6 Oct 2009 by C. Butt
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