Under the Influence (Paperback)

This was my first read of a "Will Benson" story and, I suspect, if they are now out in paperback, I will be tempted to see how Will was developed in the earlier books.

"Under the Influence" finds Will now in his Thirties; overweight, unfit, mainly drunk and unhappy. He is back at "Theatre World", busking his column after an ill- conceived foray into the soft- porn industry. Slobbing- out in a seedy bedsit with a vile neighbour, Maxie, Will is estranged from his wife, Kim. He drinks to obliterate his despair and his rival Col, who is simultaneously attempting to inveigle his way into both the Editor's chair and Kim's bed.

In the midst of all this, Will is delighted and surprised to hear from his old friend, Nicholas, from whom he has also been estranged for several years. Nicolas, now dying with AIDS, has been visited by the leader of their old late- school, pre- University set, Henry. Henry the flawed genius, held in awe by his acolytes in that golden summer, has surfaced with a long- lost, stolen Vermeer.

The plot twists and turns as Will tracks down all the old gang in attempting to save Henry from the Law and the sublime Vermeer for posterity. We meet all the old set and see how the signs revealed in their salad days have dogged them through to adulthood. Trev the Rev chaotically pursuing his ministry through a pile of dirty nappies, his faith confirmed by a God who tends to answer prayers, "Just when you think the sod's gone away for good"; Natasha, Sloaney- wife of a Captain of Industry with a predilection for a bit of rough on the side;the tragic Rose; Eric and Ernie, a pair of thugs who don't bring sunshine into Will's life.

In common with many contemporary examples of the genre, a neat ending comes with a double- twist. I can't wait for the book to be snapped- up for a tight, Guy Ritchie- type film treatment.

The plot moves at a cracking pace as we grow to like Will and recognise his better qualities. My one gripe is that I devoured the book in three, short chunks and would have liked the characters to be a little more developed and the ending to have been foreseen a little later.

A little cheated, I was left with the impression that I had read a pitch for a TV/ Film script, rather than a full- scale (and priced!) novel.