Scream if you want to go faster [Kindle Edition]

Russ Litten walks a tough line well here-stark modernity and real warmth. I don't read many books like this and it's not for want of looking. Although very much of its time and place (Hull after the floods) this is one of those texts that rather than being defined by its setting, instead uses its vivid locale as the source of a story (in the form of several separate but interwoven tales) that tells us something about what it's like to be human wherever you are. Irvine Welsh with less drugs, Bleasdale's Blackstuff swapped for flood water. Very good indeed.

Unputdownable! A word often bandied about in book reviews but never more truly meant than with regard to this stunning debut novel: Living in the area where the book is set, every sentence, every paragraph created a film reel in my head. The characters in the book are so well described you feel they could be any number of people you pass walking around the streets of Hull. I loved the fact that the author has writes using many words native to the North in general and Hull in particular. I am proud to be from Hull and Russ Litten should be extremely proud of this wonderful piece of work. Let's hope this novel is just the first of many more.

Of all the books I've read this year, this was undoubtedly the best. I have rarely felt so much involved with the characters described here. Each is a fully-rounded, utterly believable and very real person. The book is very funny in parts and yet also very 'gritty' - occasionally frightening and violent. As in life, we are frequently presented with a new character whose real face is not seen in full and, once revealed, the whole picture presents a big surprise.

I felt that this novel defied genre. It is a thriller, a romance and a dystopic picture of the grim north all at the same time - exactly as the finest literature should be.

The setting of Hull, to my mind, was secondary. The book could have been set in any place - although the wonderful descriptions of Hull Fair gave the book an atmospheric thrill which could be lacking if the setting was different.

I strongly recommend that you read it and enjoy it. This book will stay in my mind for years.

Litten explores the lives of a sprawling cast of working class characters over an intense weekend, with the annual Hull Fair threaded through their struggles, couplings and heartbreaks. To Litten's credit, this is not a literary Jeremy Kyle with plebs performing for the middle-class reader. His characters live strident, unapologetic lives...the appealing Dave and Kerry behave believably, but shockingly. There are serious practical problems: there are too many characters with vanilla names - you might persist confused or give up in disappointment, but I drew a map. And one or two plot twists are just silly. Three-and-a-half stars!

I found this novel hard going at first. A lot of characters and scenarios came racing at me thick and fast. The structure is unusual too, with small snippets, mini chapters if you will, headed by a time and location.

However, once I'd settled into it and gotten used to the style I started to enjoy the book. Piece by piece Litten builds up the story and it seems every new page added another piece to the jigsaw.

The author's observations were spot on. He brings humour, pithy observation about life and a very diverse range of characters. The novel is set in Hull and written in the local dialogue. For those outside of Hull this won't spoil your enjoyment even if it does take you a little while to get used to it. The events in the book take place during the annual Hull fair week when a huge travelling fair comes to the city every October. This is a major event in the local calendar and everyone in the city feels they have to visit the fair at least once. Litten uses this local sense of excitement and anticipation to great effect within the story.

Litten scores points not only for his excellent characterisation but also for his talent for creating just the right atmosphere. His descriptive writing is also top notch. I started this novel feeling a little bemused and finished it having enjoyed it thoroughly and admiring the talents of Russ Litten. A must read for most folk. A mandatory read for the folk of 'Ull! Russ Litten could well be Hull's answer to Irvine Welsh.

I had heard a lot about this book and being born in Hull and fiercely proud of my City, was keen to see if all of the hype about the book was justified.
In my opinion, I am afraid to say that I found the "Hullishness" to be gratuitous and thought that it would only serve to reinforce the external stereotypical view of Hull and its people as being foul-mouthed, drunken, drug-taking smokers.
Hull is a working class city and is proud of its uniqueness which, to me as a life-long inhabitant, means the independence and single-mindedness of "getting on with it", whatever the circumstances and to some extent whatever else is going on in the world outside the city boundaries - as exemplified by the war years and more recently the floods.
For me, this true character of the people was overwhelmed by the perhaps commercially driven use of the stereotypes referred to above and on that basis I found the book to be a disappointment although I would say that the author did weave the various stories of the individual characters together in a skilled manner.