Customer Reviews

Sex and Drugs and Sausage Rolls

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This was the first Rankin novel I tried, and I'm now chewing my way through the rest of them. The humour is about as zany as it gets, and there are some real laugh-out-loud moments. The premise of many of his novels is the same, and very british: Jim Pooley and John Omally live in Brentford and lack gainful employment. Their picaresque adventures could be interpreted as products of their overactive imaginations. In various novels they come face to face with the antipope, aliens from Ceres, time travel, and a host of other delightful oddities, always helped by their friend the Professor. Don't expect anything deep, but expect a riot of imaginative humour. Maybe I should just read you the first few sentences of this novel.

`She does what?' John Omally looked up from his pint and down at Small Dave.

`Reads your knob,' said the wee man. `It's a bit like Palmistry, where they read the lines on your hand. Except this is called Penistry and they can tell your fortune by looking at your knob.'

It was spring and it was Tuesday. It was lunchtime. They were in the Flying Swan.

`I don't believe it,' said John. `Someone's been winding you up, Dave.'

`They have not. I overheard two policemen talking about it while I was locked up in a suitcase.'

`Excuse me, Dave,' said Soap Distant, newly returned from a journey to the centre of the Earth. `But why were you locked in a suitcase?'

`There was some unpleasantness. I don't wish to discuss it.'

And a lot of time travelers put in a lot of - well, time to make it this way, so don't go messing it up.

Rankin gives us a seriously skewed view of a world a lot like ours. All of commerce, all of industry, and a fair bit of the government have been taken over by one megacorp, but the placid little town of Brentford putters along the way is has for the last few hundred years. And a good thing, too. For one thing, there's that new band with the feel-good music, the kind that really leaves you feeling good. There's Jim Pooley whose name goes down in history as the biggest cockup ever, and getting killed early on doesn't seem to get in his way. There's a stove-top genetic experiment in horse breeding, with success of peculiar sorts. There's the fortune teller who doesn't read your palm but your - well, women don't seem to have very much ahead of them. And there's the end of the world, not that anyone seems to care very much. It all comes together in a readable, entertaining story that all ends just about where it began, only not quite.

This seems to be one interlude midway through a series of books centered on Brentford, but a newcomer will pick up the who's who and what's what (even the when's when) quickly enough. It lacks Terry Pratchett's level of fantasy and huge personalities, and lacks Tom Holt's sense of frenzy. Still it's a good read, and I'll be back to Brentford again.

Rankin is just starting to catch on in the US, but deserves a lot more attention. He puts together an amusing story. If nothing else, it should hold you until Pratchett or Holt come out with their next.

//wiredweird

Very little sex though real or simulated but keep on reading and... you will laugh really hard twice on each page and chuckle to yourself in between. That said this book is best not to be read in public or in transit, for obvious reasons. This is my third Rankin read and I am continuing through his work but I think this will remain one of my favorite. It has: A Beatles reunion no less, although a Serbian SF/Horror writer had that on before Mr. Rankin. The reason why not to use the internet, demonic possession explained, the Terminator rip off (We all know James Cameron had to pay off Harlan Ellison for his rip off) Definition of Rock 'n Roll as it should be. And the extraordinary funny bit with stable boys, buckets and gene splicing!

Anyone who has read other books by Robert Rankin will not be surprised at the bizarre and convoluted plot that is his trade mark.

Whilst this book isn't as good as dome he has written, it's still hugely funny and well worth reading. A word of caution however, read the earlier books first and you will enjoy this one more, there are all sorts of references to previous books of Rankin's which, whilst not important to the story, will improve your enjoyment just that little bit more.

A solid number of Robert Rankin's books are centered in Brentford around the underachieving pair of John Omally and Jim Pooley. Chronically unemployed, the duo manages to find adventures that border on absurdity. As the title "Sex and Drugs and Sausage Rolls" suggests, this book is no exception.

The good news is that the Beatles are back together, and Jimi Hendrix is alive. Even Elvis is still making music. The problem with this scenario is the means by which it was done. As John Omally tries to convince a mysterious local band named Gandhi's Hairdrier to let him be their manager, the world is changing. The band's lead singer's mysterious powers of voice only add an extra layer of peculiarity. Time has already ended, causing the people of the future to return to the past and change it according to their whims. The consequences can be staggering.

Gags are cleverly placed like landmines throughout the book, often causing readers to laugh out loud. It is also amusing to see the rockers we miss, having a go in old age. These scenes almost make the book worth it alone.

While I did not enjoy this book as much as his Toyland tales, it is a very entertaining book. Though I may be in the minority, I find his humor far more amusing than Terry Pratchett.

This is my first Rankin book. Clearly this guy has been around for awhile. He has a strong fan base and deserves it.

This 5 star review is merely a reminder to myself to order more of his stuff. I don't think I'm going to add much to the discussion, really.

This book disregards the confines of time and the 20the century. The characters can move in way that are not limited by the laws of physics, reason, or propriety. That's what makes it fun.

He touches on pop culture, rock music and the strange way the brits seem to act. All worthy deviations from the old classic tales.

In the end it is fun fast read. A super summer vacation book. I didn't think about the economy once while reading this book.

Hilarious. Absolutely mad. Check out his other books and read the reviews on amazon.co.uk (he's an English writer).
Brentford does exist, it is near Heathrow airport on the way into London. Couldn't find the pub though.

I am not into science fiction, or time travelling, but I am into inspired, slightly insane, totally off the wall, writing. There's none better than Robert Rankin.

Recommended.

This was the first Robert Rankin book that I read and I've been hooked ever since! It has an ingenious plot and written excellently by the master himself. Give the guy credit - he even makes Terry Pratchitt laugh, and that must be pretty hard! All in all, this is a book that I'd definitely recommend to ANYONE!

I read this whenever I need to have a good guffaw and be amazed. Compelling, inspired and funny.

Mr Rankin is without any doubt insane and I think he would agree if he could escape from the asylum to tell us. I started reading his books about 200 years ago and have not recovered since. A comic genius maybe, but without any doubt insane!