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Amazon.co.uk Review
The conceit of the new novel is that Lott is examining a real-life case: at the request of the widow of the late Dr Alex Seymour, he has decided to put certain facts in the public view. Seymour had experienced a life change after seeing a shoplifter caught on a surveillance camera: what was he missing in his own life that surveillance could reveal? He decides to enlist the Cyclops organisation and undertake a revealing overview of his own life--all at the behest of the charismatic American Sherry Thomas. An embarrassing scandal follows, know as the Skin Tapes. And it's this which is (we are told) the basis of Lott’s investigation, as the author interrogates Seymour's widow Samantha. As with the novels of John Fowles, Lott becomes drawn into his own narrative, as Samantha Seymour puts the author himself in the limelight, obliging him to be equally as frank about things he'd rather conceal about his own life.
Sex and dark psychology are always a good recipe for a compelling novel, and Lott is as adroit as ever at marshalling the combustible elements of his narrative into a fascinating whole. His self-involvement is a dangerous gambit--and if Lott doesn’t entirely pull it off, the final effect is exhilarating. --Barry Forshaw --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Product Description
Dr Alex Seymour seems to have it all - with a solid marriage of twenty years, two teenage children, a new baby and an unblemished career as a London GP, his life seems perfect - but then a simple trip to the local supermarket changes things irrevocably. As he witnesses a shoplifter foiled by a combination of the owner's beady eye and the surveillance camera under the counter, Alex Seymour starts thinking about the reality and the fragility of his own seemingly perfect domestic situation, and what he does not see. With a son he suspects is stealing, a daughter whose first boyfriend may be going too far, and a wife he thinks is being unfaithful, Alex needs something to help him find out the truth and put him back in control.
Enter Sherry Thomas, the mysterious Managing Director of Cyclops, a surveillance shop, and the catalyst for Alex Seymour's descent into a world ruled by cameras, tapes, lies and deceit, with devastating consequences. A gripping story of suspense that mirrors modern preoccupations with surveillance, tabloid voyeurism and morality.
Author's Note: I was granted access to this and other tapes from Cyclops Surveillance Systems after extensive discussions with the Metropolitan Police. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
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Lott sets himself as the narrator, pretending to be writing a faithful account of a factual event at the behest of the widowed Mrs Seymour. The relationship between them is interestingly developed throughout the book, and allows the author both to play with the reader's unease at not knowing whether what is going on is based on fact or not and add a feasible if easy to anticipate twist at the end.
There are times when reading the book that belief needs to be temporarily suspended, but this is vindicated by later revelations in the narrative. The one criticism I do have is of the very end, where what has been implicit throughout the novel is made explicit in a way that feels rather patronizing. Overall, though, this book is an pleasurable and worthwhile, if a little undemanding, read.
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