Amazon Review
What kind of a writer is Christopher Brookmyre? He’s markedly – and bloody-mindedly -- unlike any other current purveyor of crime fiction. A darkly comic writer, perhaps? Yes, the work is fiercely, bitingly funny – but that term doesn't really sum him up. Perhaps a kind of strange venturer into the realms of the supra-normal, then? His new book,
Pandaemonium, certainly suggests the latter, with its eye-opening use of elements of the fantastic and SF. But none of these terms really does him justice – and perhaps it’s a good thing that he can’t be pinned down to any one genre.
Pandaemonium bids fair to be Brookmyre’s most extreme entertainment yet – and (as usual with this author) it’s not for the faint-hearted. St Peter’s High School has a problem with its senior pupils – how to help them deal with death of a fellow pupil? The answer (it’s decided) is to be a cloistered retreat at an outdoor activity centre – it will be there, through the aid of programmes of counselling, discussion groups and (of course) prayer – St Peter is a religious school -- that the pupils will be able to adjust. Needless to say, the pupils themselves have other ideas – sex and general misbehaviour being their primary aims. But near the retreat, a highly secret military operations is in train -- one, unusually, that has the services of a religious adviser (and an eccentric one at that). Appropriate, as the experiment involves nothing less than the untrammelling of the forces of the netherworld. The pupils will find themselves fighting for their lives.
Does all of this sound outrageous? For many readers, perhaps – but Brookmyre fans will be rubbing their hands. The bloody chaos on offer is not, perhaps, vintage Brookmyre, but aficionados have no need to hesitate. Satisfyingly (as usual), the forces of the establishment (the Military, The Church) are given an enthusiastic going-over. --Barry Forshaw
Review
** 'A perfect example of the bathos that the Glaswegian satirist uses so effectively, and an indication of the two worlds that are about to collide (
ESQUIRE )
** 'The Scottish author sticks to anti-Establishment finger-pointing and satire that is becoming his trademark (
SHORTLIST )
** 'It's the busload of teenagers who steal the show in a series of quite brilliant and very funny scenes . . . Very well-written, intelligent and daring (
Harry Ritchie, DAILY MAIL )
** '(An) imaginative tale (
Henry Sutton, DAILY MIRROR )
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