Country of the Blind [Paperback]

Christopher Brookmyre (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 30, 1998

The murder of a media moghul in his country mansion appears to be the result of him disturbing a gang of would-be thieves. The robbers are swiftly caught, but when they are unexpectedly moved to a different prison they escape. Back in Edinburgh, a young solicitor reveals to the press that one of the subjects had left a letter with her some time before the break-in which proves his innocence. Jack Parlabane, journo-extraordinaire, is intrigued, but when he approaches the lawyer he discovers someone else is trying to get near her - someone with evil intent, political connections of the highest order and a corrupt agenda. Fast-moving, blackly humorous and intriguingly credible.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Glasgow's crusading muckraker Jack Parlabane returns in the fifth novel from journalist Brookmyre (Quite Ugly One Morning; One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night; etc.). A plucky English lawyer, Nicole Carrow (out to make it as a public defender in Scotland to rebel against her dad), is finding out she got more than she bargained for with potential clients like Mrs. McGrotty "an elephantine creature in a shapeless brown coat that looked like it had been fashioned from dog-pelts and then dragged behind a heavy goods vehicle for a couple of days." Then she's approached by a strangely courteous ex-con named Tam McInnes, who gives her an envelope full of evidence of a conspiracy that goes to the highest levels of British commerce and government. Shortly afterwards, billionaire media mogul Roland Voss is brutally murdered, and McInnes and three others (including his son, Paul, and Paul's hilariously dissipated roommate, Spammy) have been artfully set up to take the fall. The only one to believe Nicole, however, is the ever-suspicious Parlabane, who knows good media manipulation when he sees it. More murders and a daring jailbreak (or is it another setup?) send McInnes & Co. into hiding and stir up a national manhunt, while back in Glasgow Parlabane races to expose the scam. While the plot may sound hackneyed, Brookmyre's deft character sketches, street-level dialect and mercilessly satirical observations of cross-border politics, journalism and human zaniness keep this good-sized novel moving smoothly along. The U.K. press has called Brookmyre a Scottish analogue to Carl Hiaasen and Elmore Leonard; Country of the Blind actually proves it.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Booklist

Brookmyre has won well-deserved plaudits in the U.K. for his original plots and clever dialogue. His latest may pose problems for some American readers--the dialect is sometimes difficult to decipher, and the references to British culture and customs are often obscure--but perseverance pays dividends. This is a biting, violent, fiendishly funny story of bribery, blackmail, and murder in high places. When media mogul Roland Voss and his wife are savagely murdered at a country estate, investigative journalist Jack Parlabane swears he won't get involved. He's set to marry his longtime lady friend, and she's definitely not interested in Jack's risking his neck on the eve of their wedding. But the pull is too strong, and before he knows it, Jack is involved in what he's sure is a conspiracy to frame the accused killer and divert suspicion away from the real mastermind behind the brutal crime, whom Jack suspects is a leading government minister. An outstanding read for dedicated Anglophiles and for all lovers of hip, intelligent, action-packed crime thrillers. Emily Melton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Abacus (May 30, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0349109303
• ISBN-13: 978-0349109305
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 7.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,284,950 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Corrupt elites get their comeuppance, July 17, 2008

By 

Maclean J Storer - See all my reviews

This review is from: Country of the Blind (Paperback)

In this darkly humorous romp, Brookmyre takes on the power-crazed elites of Britain and their willingness to do whatever it takes to increase their influence and wealth. The violent murder of a media magnate and the framing of four hapless miscreants for the job is the starting point for mayhem of great vigour and violence, interspersed with Brookmyre's frequent bitter asides about the state of decay in British, and more especially Scottish, society. The voice of reason, speaking, like everyone else, in the grating Glaswegian patois, belongs to investigative hack Jack Parlabane, whose cunning and bloody-mindedness prove sufficient to cause the downfall of the mighty. Thoroughly enjoyable and often insightful -- MJS, author of Forward O Peasant

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Brookmyre delight, January 18, 2002

By 

F. G. Hamer "MadManxMan" (Isle of Man) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Country of the Blind (Paperback)

True to the left-of-center credentials of its author, Christopher Brookmyre, `Country of the Blind' takes multiple swipes at right wing businessmen and government ministers who, according to the story, arrange a violent murder and cover-up, eventually raising the wrath of improbable superhero, crusading journalist Jack Parlabane.

Though far from supporting left-wing politics myself (or any `wing' for that matter), I still found myself cheering the good guys and booing the baddies. As with other Brookmyre novels, `Country of the Blind' had me hooked from the first pages where his description of a young lawyer's first clients (Mrs McGrotty) had me in hysterics. Having kicked off to such a great start the story kept up the pace and was as memorable as this author's other novels. The style of writing is very 90s Scotland and includes many pointed comments on the right wing government of 1980s England. Most of these comments aren't entirely original but will reassure the likely leftish, middle-class audience that they have a liberal-minded fellow-traveller who is also quite cross about what went on. Sadly, as comedian Alexei Sayle memorably pointed out, you can't change the world with the lyrics of a pop song - you have to do the dance as well !

4.0 out of 5 stars Country of the Blind, January 21, 2009

By 

Toucan "Valerie" (Fife, Scotland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Country of the Blind (Paperback)

Another 'double edged sword' of Damocles. Behind the ribald humour is the sneaky suspiscion that the author has experience of corruption in the political arena. But then who hasn't! This author, however, does manage to keep this 'thriller' moving along with some tried and tested characters, and I still am caught out every time with gales of laughter - usually in a place that gets me many pitying looks. Love this style of writing....hope he writes many more. That's what this world needs.....more unabashed belly laughs.