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Conman (Paperback)

by Richard Asplin (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
Price: £5.96 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Customers buy this book with Gagged: (a Thriller with Jokes) by Richard Asplin

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Price For Both: £15.95

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Product details

  • Paperback: 416 pages
  • Publisher: No Exit Press; FICT edition (21 May 2009)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 184243294X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1842432945
  • Product Dimensions: 19.3 x 13 x 3.3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 404,822 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Product Description

Conman is the story of young Neil Martin, a kindly family man. A bit geeky, a bit nerdy. If you met him, you would assume he runs a failing comic memorabilia store in London's Soho. Which he does. In order to bail himself out of a huge stock-ruining, poster sopping basement flood, he needs to claim on his insurance. Which he would do - if he'd remembered to pay his premium.

Terrified of losing everything - his wife Jane, his daughter, his business, his home - and scared to appear the dumb, working-class pleb that Jane's father always took him for, Neil reluctantly agrees to help Christopher - a passing confidence trickster - use his premises for a big sting. So the con is on and the trap is set. Neil meets Christopher's crew and, as he introduces them to the world of the vintage comic collectable, he is introduced to the life of the grifter. The swaps, swindles and switcheroos. The colourful patter of marks, mitt fitters, cacklebladders and cold pokes.

But things are never as they seem in the twilight world of the confidence man. And when Christopher's real target is revealed, Neil finds himself plotting, switching, swapping and scamming for revenge, for redemption. And for his life.

Somewhere in the shadows, where High Fidelity meets The Usual Suspects, where David Mamet meets Ben Elton, Conman will keep you laughing, guessing and up all night until the last page is turned and the breathtaking truth is revealed.



From the Author

Well here it is kids. Book 3. And boy oh boy is it a cracker. By my reckoning this baby was about 6 years in the making or thereabouts. And - even if I say so myself, which I do, as you're about to find out, here we go, just watch me - it's been a blast. This one, once again, will appeal to those who like their humour as English as a bowler hat covered in Coleman's mustard on the head of a South London cab driver. Not a single word would have been written without 30 years of Douglas Adams, PG Wodehouse, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Ben Elton and Cyril Bonfiglioli doing what they do. Plus, you can sling in a heap of David Mamet and Christopher McQuarrie there too.New book - PSYCHE - should be with you next year...
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Conman
94% buy the item featured on this page:
Conman 4.2 out of 5 stars (5)
£5.96
Gagged: (a Thriller with Jokes)
4% buy
Gagged: (a Thriller with Jokes) 4.7 out of 5 stars (3)
£9.99
T-Shirt and Genes
3% buy
T-Shirt and Genes 3.6 out of 5 stars (13)
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Customer Reviews

5 Reviews
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4 star:
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3 star:
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Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Dark and funny novel for our times., 26 May 2009
Richard Asplin's novel is part crime-caper, part morality tale - the Sting meets High Fidelity.

Neil Martin runs a comic memorabilia shop in London, specialising in first edition comics, Elvis Presley clocks and posters of `the Sting'. He is a likeable guy, flawed in many ways, but totally devoted to his wife and baby daughter. He is a man sinking under the weight of debt and prone to burying his head in the sand, much to his wealthy father-in-law's annoyance.

An encounter with a group of fraudsters and grifters offers him an escape route that will save his family and business. And he agrees to become a conman and take a wealthy and obnoxious collector from the States for every cent he has.

But who is conning who in this novel of twists and turns?

Asplin is an excellent writer. He has a playful style, genuine comic timing and wit. But this is all counter-balanced by a streak of British absurdism, where existential despair rubs shoulders with belly-laughs. It is this dark take on modern life that sets him slightly apart from the lad-lit of Tony Parson or Carl Hiassen.

Top notch and one to check out if you want to try something fresh and original.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars A comic caper, 9 Mar 2009
By S. Murphy "smurph" (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Asplin's Conman is a pacey London thriller that will keep you guessing and questioning even after you've finished. Follow the hapless (or is he?) Neil as he tries to find an easy way out of financial ruin and laugh out loud at the situations he gets himself into. This is The Sting to the naughties.
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3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing, 15 Oct 2009
Having read the authors previous two books, i had high hopes for this one. maybe my hopes were a bit too high, because it just doesnt get there.

the writing is of the expected high quality, but the plot twists can be seen a mile off and ending was pretty obvious. Maybe that was intentional, maybe you were supposed to learn as the book progressed the conmans methods and work them out for yourself.

in the end it was a decent enough read, i just expected better after 5 years.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh & Funny
Remember the tv series called Hustle? I loved that, but this is much better. The genius of the clever cons, the suspense of never quite knowing who is conning who and what the... Read more
Published 4 months ago by literary_spy

4.0 out of 5 stars Asplin's twists and turns keep you guessing right to the end!
If films like The Grifters and The Thomas Crown Affair float your boat, if you have even a passing fancy for the odd comic here and there and if you like your tales of crime &... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Bobby Sox

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