No Laughing Matter: Nick Madrid Series, Book 1
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Book Description
Tom Sharpe meets Raymond Chandler in this humorous and brilliant debut that will keep you on a knife edge of suspense. When a naked woman flashes past Nick Madrid's hotel window in Montreal it's quite a surprise - not only is he on the fourteenth floor but there isn't an outside lift. The management is horrified when she lands in the swimming pool - not only is she dead but she makes a real mess of the shallow end. This new reprint of Guttridge's hilarious crime caper will delight his existing fans and win him many more.
From the Author
Finding a murderer among 250 comedians is no joke...
My debut comic crime novel was inspired by my years writing about the comedy industry in the US and the UK - believe me, hanging out at festivals like Just For Laughs in Montreal or at the Edinburgh Festival with a couple of hundred comedians is no laughing matter. They're not like normal people - in any situation, they're always looking for the punchline. So my main protagonists, Nick Madrid and his journalist sidekick Bridget "Bitch of the Broadsheets" Frost find there's no rest from the witty - except when someone start knocking them off. I wanted to write the funniest book I could whilst making it very suspenseful (is that a word? If not, it should be). That's tricky because the laughs can often release the tension of the serious bits. I wanted the novel to seem real so I filled it with real US and UK comedians - everyone from Jim Carrey to Paul Merton. The climax in Hollywood, at a huge party at Randolph Hearst's old castle, also features every modern movies star, from Jack Nicholson down (no expense spared in this novel, I tell you). Originally, they were all blabbing away, comedians cracking wise but my publishers got nervous about copyright on the gags so now all the comedians are still in it - but mute. The critics gave my little masterpiece good reviews, though my favourite was one that I didn't understand because, on first reading it sounds clever, then you think: huh? It went: "This is a funny novel masquerading as a very funny novel." Mmmm. Good reading - oh, and don't try the yoga position at home. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
My debut comic crime novel was inspired by my years writing about the comedy industry in the US and the UK - believe me, hanging out at festivals like Just For Laughs in Montreal or at the Edinburgh Festival with a couple of hundred comedians is no laughing matter. They're not like normal people - in any situation, they're always looking for the punchline. So my main protagonists, Nick Madrid and his journalist sidekick Bridget "Bitch of the Broadsheets" Frost find there's no rest from the witty - except when someone start knocking them off. I wanted to write the funniest book I could whilst making it very suspenseful (is that a word? If not, it should be). That's tricky because the laughs can often release the tension of the serious bits. I wanted the novel to seem real so I filled it with real US and UK comedians - everyone from Jim Carrey to Paul Merton. The climax in Hollywood, at a huge party at Randolph Hearst's old castle, also features every modern movies star, from Jack Nicholson down (no expense spared in this novel, I tell you). Originally, they were all blabbing away, comedians cracking wise but my publishers got nervous about copyright on the gags so now all the comedians are still in it - but mute. The critics gave my little masterpiece good reviews, though my favourite was one that I didn't understand because, on first reading it sounds clever, then you think: huh? It went: "This is a funny novel masquerading as a very funny novel." Mmmm. Good reading - oh, and don't try the yoga position at home. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
What I didn't appreciate when I first raced through this to find out whodunnit was just how smart the comedy is. It's painful what happens to Nick Madrid but without the laughs ever feeling bolted on after the plot. I was especially taken aback by a glorious chase sequence that has Nick flailing through every slapstick circus gag you can imagine. Completely necessary to the plot, it was tremendous because it successfully managed to be visual humour in prose.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have little new to add to all the other positive reviews. This is a funny, interesting murder mystery. You want to find out what happened, and why. And it makes you laugh. I think I am going to try the yoga position, though, and see what happens.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I do yoga so I bought this book because the main character does yoga. I'm not really a crime reader but I LOVEd this. I thought the characters were great, the story - it's all set in the world of comedy on stage and in films - was really interesting and the humour was non-stop. What was best was that however harsh the jokes, all the characters had something going for them.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Entertaining and very amusing!
I really liked this book - the story was fast paced and was amusing whilst not detracting from the plot. Read more
Published on 5 July 2009 by Mrs. L. J. Padwick
Cracking good entertainment: a breath of comic fresh air
I laughed from page one and read it all at one go. I'm now a fan who has read the next two and can't understand why they're not on the telly. Read more
Published on 16 Jan 2001
One of the very funniest
One of the funniest - I mean laugh out loud, embarrass yourself in public places funny - books I've ever read. Read more
Published on 11 Jan 2001
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
