fredag den 18. februar 2011

Declan Burke, The Big O (2007)


This love ... eh caper crime story is the writer´s second novel. No, of course a male Irish writer doesn´t write love stories. Yet... No, certainly not.

"Except what Karen remembered best was his eyes in the split-second when he realised what had just happened. How they got clearer but stayed perfectly still. Tigery eyes, gold flecks in hazel. Karen, knowing he couldn´t see her face behind the helmet´s visor, had been tempted to wink."

So this is the story about Ray and his companions who want to abduct Margaret, Frank´s ex-wife. Or perhaps it is the story about Karen, Frank´s receptionist and Margaret´s friend, who holds up people in her spare time and meets Ray during one of her stick-up ventures. 

And that´s when things begin to get a bit complicated. You are already confused? Honestly, so was I, at least half of the time, but I didn´t mind very much, because this story was just so funny that I didn´t worry too much about who did what to whom.

The book was a gift from a blog friend. I read it for the Ireland reading challenge # 3 and What´s in a Name (size).

9 kommentarer:

Elizabeth Spann Craig sagde ...

Sounds like a fun caper to me! :) Confusing is okay, if it's fun.

Maxine Clarke sagde ...

Glad you liked it, Dorte - I agree it is funny but sufficiently confusing that you have to read it again to work it all out!

Dorte H sagde ...

Elizabeth: I didn´t mind the least, and I found it *really* funny that an Irish crime novel could strike me as some kind of love story - not a really romantic one, but charming, nevertheless.

Maxine: once I figured out that Margaret and Madge were the same person, it helped quite a lot. And the main plot wasn´t confusing, just the exact way they were going to carry it out. Good to see his books are just as funny as his blog.

Anonym sagde ...

Dorte - I'm glad you thought this was so funny :-). Sometimes I've those confusing stories are all the funnier because I was laughing at my fumbling efforts to figure it all out. Burke has a great sense of humour, and I'm glad you liked this one.

seana graham sagde ...

It's a great twisty tale. The opening sequence alone is worth the price of admission.

Yeah, you've got to get the characters all straight in your head and then it works out fine.

Dorte H sagde ...

Margot: I am ready for more Declan Burke :D

Seana: it´s the kind of story that makes you chuckle quietly all the time.

Kelly sagde ...

This sounds really fun. I don't mind being a little confused since, more often than not, it all comes together for me at some point.

Dorte H sagde ...

Kelly: neither do I, and it wasn´t the main plot, just the details that were a bit blurred.

Beth F sagde ...

Glad you had fun with it ... think I'll pass.