16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A conspiracy thriller with elements of science-fiction, January 20, 2008
Bad Monkeys is a book certain to satisfy fans of science-fiction, of mysteries, and of conspiracy thrillers. Author Matt Ruff masterfully combines all three genres in his fourth novel, which is anything but "genre fiction."
The novel opens in the psychiatric ward of the Clark County Detention Center (Las Vegas, NV). Accused murder Jane Charlotte explains to her psychiatrist that her alleged crime was authorized by a covert organization dedicated to crime prevention. Jane was an operative in the Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons ("Bad Monkeys"), regularly dispatched to eliminated evildoers who eluded the justice system. Her life story revolves around this organization and its departments of Ubiquitous Intermittent Surveillance (Panopticon), Optimal Utilization of Resources and Personnel (Cost-Benefits), internal affairs (Malfeasance), and The Scary Clowns. She tells her story from childhood to date as her psychiatrist gently points out inconsistencies between her version and the official record.
The reader is left to question, "who is Jane Charlotte?" Ruff layers the story with basic questions of good vs. evil (characters named Wise, True, and Love all make appearances) as he leaves the reader with riddles upon riddles about the sarcastically funny Jane Charlotte. The author delivers a surprise ending worthy of a tale with this level of manic energy.
Visit author Matt Ruff's website to read the soundtrack of music he "listened to obsessively while writing this book."
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42 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing Finish, November 28, 2007
This novel begins so well, and is so fast-paced and compulsively readable, I was recommending it to people left and right .
Then I finished it.
To make a movie comparison, this is like the Matrix trilogy, where 2/3 (3/4 ?) through the story, all the interesting story arcs and subplots are abruptly dropped, and the story finished quickly in a bizarre, disjointed and unsatisfying manner.
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19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Matt Ruff's Terse Psychological Thriller That's His Best Novel To Date, October 6, 2007
One of the finest writers of American fiction working today, Matt Ruff is one whose work remains unfamiliar to most, due perhaps to his keen interest in science fiction and fantasy, and his elegant literary mastery of both. But he's an important writer worthy of widespread attention simply because of his ample artistic talents. He's an elegant literary stylist whose most endearing quality is a consistently uncanny ability to create memorable characters within mesmerizing tales. He's a smart, brilliant writer who can transport the reader to a vivid "Dudgeons and Dragon" fantasy set on the campus of his collegiate alma mater, Cornell University ("Fool on the Hill") and then, many years later, inside the fertile imagination of a young woman afflicted with multiple personality disorder ("Set This House in Order"). Ruff is truly notable for being able to plunge successfully into fantasy, cyberpunk and psychological science fiction in a remarkable literary career that now spans twenty years; his early works "Fool on the Hill" and "Sewer, Gas & Electric: The Public Works Trilogy" remain cult classics still treasured by those familiar with his sparse output. Hopefully, with "Bad Monkeys", Matt Ruff is now poised to acquire the vast audience that his ample literary talents deserve. Why? In "Bad Monkeys" he offers the reader a heart-pounding original twist on the very nature of evil, wrapped up in a terse, film nourish thriller, that owes as much to Philip K. Dick, as it does to great crime fiction novelists like Elmore Leonard, in its engrossing exploration not only on the very essence of evil, but also in focusing upon one's own motivation to commit heinous deeds against humanity. It is a heart-pounding tale that's a literary rollercoaster, replete with unexpected twists and turns, culminating in a bizarre, but still brief, ending that's almost inexplicable. A wickedly funny brilliant tale that's impossible to put down, and will leave you speechless at the very end; one that deserves recognition as among the finest works of fiction published this year.
Who is Jane Charlotte? Is she a delusional, homicidal crime suspect trapped in the psychiatric ward of the Clark County (Las Vegas, Nevada) Detention Center? Or is she a member of a secret organization devoted to fighting evil, belonging to a division known as the "Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons", which goes by the name of "Bad Monkeys". Is Jane Charlotte a Bad Monkey? These incredulous facts are those she told the police immediately upon her homicide arrest; "facts" which a doctor assigned to the psychiatric ward attempts to determine by his extensive interview of her; an interview that's among the most engrossing I've encountered in fiction. One that most readers ought to find as compelling and as brilliantly realized as I have.
Though set almost a year after the events of 9/11, "Bad Monkeys" is not just a clearly conceived excursion into paranoia and police thriller fiction. It is a spellbinding work of science fiction whose contemporary setting may persuade most readers that it is a witty, terse, and elegant, example of crime fiction. But it is a clever piece of science fiction writing, for reasons that will become obvious all too soon to a discerning reader. However, I suspect that most will miss these reasons, and conclude erroneously that Ruff has written just a brilliant, exceptionally well-crafted, psychological thriller. Without question, it is a captivating piece of splendid fiction writing that will remain in your consciousness long after you've finished reading it, like a still vivid memory of a memorable film or some hitherto unknown, but remarkable, wine. "Bad Monkeys" is a most original tale from one of the finest writers of my generation, and one that's worthy not only of the critical praise it's garnered so far, but ample popular acclaim too.
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