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Niels Saunders

Mervyn vs. Dennis Kindle Edition

by Niels Saunders (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

25 ratings

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A dark British comedy full of social commentary

Deep in debt, Mervyn Kirby gets a job he doesn't want by pretending to be racist. His new boss Dennis Lane thinks he's found a kindred spirit. When Mervyn confesses he's not really racist, Dennis thinks it's just part of the act.

Day by day, to Mervyn's horror, Dennis worms his way into Mervyn's private life. Despite his fears, Mervyn is torn: his new job pays well but he despises Dennis and everything he stands for.

How far will Mervyn go to free himself? How far will Dennis go to become friends? Will they settle their differences or end up killing each other? And why are so many shifty people carrying pineapples around town?

Print length

271 pages
Language

English
Publication date

5 July 2016
File size

2725 KB
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01I1TAID0
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Imperial Press; 8th edition (5 July 2016)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 2725 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 271 pages
Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1520792131

Best Sellers Rank: 1,282,929 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 2,196 in Humourous Dark Comedy
- 3,752 in Satire Fiction (Kindle Store)
- 12,070 in General Humourous Fiction

Customer reviews:
25 ratings

Customer reviews

5 star		62%
4 star		17%
3 star		13%
2 star 0% (0%)		0%
1 star		7%

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

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Johnzxr

This book caused me to cancel a client meeting

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 July 2016

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This is not the sort of book I normally read, but I think I have been missing out. Set in Brighton (and Hove) and revolving around a few central characters who display very extreme traits, to the point of the ridiculous, yet the author brings them to life in such a vivid, funny and believable way that the plot moves around them effortlessly.

There are some proper laugh out loud moments too, I read most of this book on my daily commute, whilst drinking coffee. A mouthful of coffee coincided with one of these moments and my shirt was ruined. Client meeting cancelled.

Having lived in Brighton for the best part of a decade, I can relate to many of the places and situations, one particular chapter describing a party is so close to reality it actually gave me "the fear" whilst reading it. You don't need to be familiar with Brighton for this book to be enjoyable, but if you are, so much the better.

The plot is unpredictable, satisfying, somewhat "sweary" and slightly dark in places whilst managing to maintain a comedic air.

Highly recommended even if this is not your usual type of read.

2 people found this helpful

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Dan C.

dark and comedic observations sometimes of a wonderfully rude nature

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 August 2016

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Full of cracking humour and sparkling dialogue containing wry, dark and comedic observations sometimes of a wonderfully rude nature, this book tells the story of the relationship between hard up Mervyn and his mad as a balloon new boss Dennis.
Desperate for cash Mervyn applies for and gets a job testing games at Ziggurat in an office run by the disturbingly bigoted and ultra allergic Dennis. Hilarious conversations aplenty ensue between these two characters and throughout the book Mervyn works at uncovering and revealing to all at Ziggurat, who have been working under Dennis' iron rod of insanity for too long, the true depths of their boss' terrifying and shady ways. Dennis has managed to hide his aggressive extreme of character but Mervyn is determined to bring down this watercress munching racist and rid him from his life.
Another character in the book is the wear your crazy on your sleeve Adam Braithwaite, Ziggurat's company executive, like Malcolm Tucker with the addition of charm. Everything that leaves this spectacularly likeable pillocks mouth is gold. There are others too, Mervyns misguided racist friend Clyde, his troubled brother Cecil and Dennis' wife/sister Glenda are all added to this fishy soup of splendour. There's also a mystery to be solved involving Dennis and our protagonist is hot on the case, his suspicion alerted after one to many sightings of men carrying pineapples around his home town of Brighton!
It's well written and never dull; Mervyn vs Dennis is for anyone who enjoys humour, often dark with a twist of mental and with an unusual but clever conclusion which will reveal a bizarre and disturbing league which has very little to do with sport, although balls are involved. Your hesitate before buying your next pineapple. Cracking stuff.

2 people found this helpful

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Shaun

A highly entertaining comic novel featuring many memorable characters

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 October 2016

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Trapped in an endless cycle of low-paid work, aspiring novelist Mervyn is beginning to get desperate. So desperate that at interviews for jobs he's patently ill-suited for he's prepared to clutch at the nastiest of straws. So it is that Mervyn meets Dennis, a manager at a games testing company, and pretends to be a fellow racist to secure a steady income.

Mervyn doesn't expect this tactic to work, overt bigotry being so distant from his own character and worldview. Yet it does - too well, in fact. Dennis won't leave Mervyn alone. He's so enthusiastic about having Mervyn work with him that he agrees to absurd pay demands. With his eyes on the prize, Mervyn realises far too late that he is now Dennis's best friend.

Mervyn vs. Dennis, a highly entertaining page-turner about real misfits, the weirdness of human relationships and the mysteries of pineapples, is a wild ride. It is consistently funny yet somehow manages to avoid lapsing into awkward, squirm-inducing cringe comedy territory.

Comic novels are a rarity today, and perhaps it is for that reason that Mervyn vs. Dennis has been published directly via Amazon. The greatest shame in this scenario is that it may miss out on the audience it deserves, and that potential audience may miss out on a singular and very funny short novel. I could not possibly describe any of the moments that had me smiling, sniggering or laughing out loud - name the last time someone repeated someone else's joke and it was actually funny - but rest assured, those moments were plentiful.

For all that it's an openly fun and funny story Mervyn vs. Dennis deals in some hefty themes. The handling of racism and bigotry is intriguing. Prejudiced characters are mocked, portrayed unflatteringly and turned into figures of fun, rather than being hounded with castigation and punitive exclusion or, at best, receiving a generous explanation of just why they are full of shit. The novel's events take place in 2006, when even in Brighton - the demographically youthful and progressive setting - bigoted remarks were as likely to be laughed off as directly challenged, particularly when they came from your boss. Attitudes may have changed but, regardless of your thoughts on how individual bigots are best tackled today, the direction taken in Mervyn vs. Dennis is demonstrably a valid one for a comic novel.

It's also notable just how empathetic this novel is. It is witty and sharp but it is not cruel. Mervyn's attitude towards Dennis evolves from hatred and contempt to pity and sympathy for the awful, broken person before him.

Perhaps Mervyn tacks ever-so-slightly too close to being a Perfect Protagonist, cleverer and more observant than those around him, but let's not forget that he is a man who pretended to be racist to get a job - he's down here in the muck with the rest of us. And what better medicine can be found down here than laughter?

One person found this helpful

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Ammiewyn

British humour at its best!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 November 2016

Verified Purchase

I didn't know what to expect when I downloaded this book but having read the free pages, I knew that I needed to read the rest. It is, in my opinion, an inspired read. I loved the typical British humour (although some parts were tough to read with my eyes open!) and I especially enjoyed the way the author turned the whole tale on its head at the end. I have no idea how, but I ended up feeling sorry for the awful Dennis! A really great, humorous read which ticks all the boxes. Would definitely recommend - although not for the faint hearted and those not appreciative of British humour!

One person found this helpful

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