Customer Reviews

Not the End of the World

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

NOT THE END OF THE WORLD is an apocalyptic millennial book that is dark comedy at its darkest. Although Brookmyre missed a bit on the facts and timing, this tale of fanatical religious zealots trying to destroy America and rebuild it in their image is unfortunately all too timely. The zealots in this fictional account are Christian, not Moslem; but when dealing with fanaticism the exact flavor scarcely matters. However, Brookmyre uses his book to mount a scathing attack on fundamentalism of any sort and simultaneously makes a compelling, albeit tragically jaded, case for atheism: "Some wee old spinster in Coatsbridge, in her hairy coat, plastic Rainmate and furry boots, nipping into the Co-op minimarket for a half-pound of cheap mince on the way home from the chapel, Scottish Catholic Universe under her arm, might tell herself she wasn't, spiritually speaking, doing any harm. But she'd be kidding herself. And acting the humble innocent wouldn't help. Hardline Islamics would have her on the dress-code, for a start. Vain, shameless slattern, flaunting herself like that in public, for all the world to see. Hindus wouldn't go a bundle on her planned ingestion of bloody flesh, or her wider complicity in the sacred animal's slaughter. Attendance at the 'temple of the Satanic anti-Christ of Rome' remains something of a no-no as far as the Scottish Free Presbyterians and Ian Paisley's mob are concerned. And as for a woman being able to read, well, ask the Taleban about that in Kabul. Then duck. Cumulatively, the world's religions could provide a God-given justification to hate anything about anybody. Steff had decided some years ago to hate them all back." And there is much more. In fact, Brookmyre's apparent vitriol toward organized religion is so strong that I am surprised the book was published in America at all.

But those of us who are not offended by that point of view will find NOT THE END OF THE WORLD a terrific thriller, with a fascinating and ever-twisting plot that engages the reader throughout. Just when I thought I knew what would happen next the action took another unexpected but plausible turn. And the characterizations were engaging; even the villains had some sympathetic motivations to their heinous plans.

Brookmyre has a darkly wicked sense of humor and pays homage to the Monty Python gang and Scottish comedian Billy Connolly, among others. All in all, NOT THE END OF THE WORLD is definitely worth a read, even though the dates in the book didn't quite pan out. People are still reading 1984, aren't they?

Christopher Brookmyre is an unusual writer. His works are sort of detective fiction, sort of block buster thriller and sort of left wing satire. Until this book all of his books were set in Scotland. His first book quite ugly one morning introduced a new sort of hero, a short sarcastic investigative reporter called Parlabane.

This book is set in Los Angles but one of the main characters is a visiting Scots photographer. The plot is as with his other works somewhat convoluted and ends in a climax which would not be out of place in a Bruce Willis movie. Along the way there is a ferocious satire of Baptist Evangelical Sects and the consumerist aspects of American life.

The main attraction of the book apart from the non stop action is the fact that it is side splittingly funny. Brookmyre is one of the most amusing authors to write mystery fiction. The humour however has a distinctly adult bite to it.

I guess, reading the other reviews, you either love Brookmyre or you hate him! I loved him. Brilliant book, brilliantly written, with more than a touch of black humor. This guy has guts, and he tells it like it is. Recommended reading for anyone who lives in the real world.

Brookmyre has the killer touch when it comes to exposing the hypocrisy of religious fundamentalism. In 'Not the End of the World', he makes a pretty good meal of the media as well!. His humor is really 'in-your-face' - not passive beach reading as one reviewer believes - and, if you look below the (excellent) storyline, you'll see some remarkably accurate social observations about life in general.

Try and get his other books -'One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night', 'Quite Ugly one Morning' and 'Boiling a Frog' - they're also excellent reads.

I actually bought this book because it, then, had a slight science fiction theme, and had received a sterling review in New Scientist. I ususally do not go for thrillers, but I do make now make exceptions for Christopher Brookmyre! This book is highly satirical, funny, grisly, and thoughtprovoking. The heroes work in porn industry, and the crooks are biblethumpers and "patriots".

There is a certain style of writing that compels you to read until you finish. And then there is a another style that compels you to go and find any other book written by the same author. Fitting into the latter category, the story is as humorous as it is action packed, and is so fast moving that you are simply disappointed when there are no more pages left. Of course you can simply start again, and you'll find that it is just as good on the second pass. The story is great, and will be enjoyed by anyone with school day memories, either good or bad. Of course, the story has very little to do with school day memories and everything to with life, albeit not quite exactly in circumstances that you will find yourself in. Unless of course you are a mercenary with a conscience... Quite simply read this, have a single malt in hand and enjoy.

From referring to Santa Monica as "Santa M" repeatedly to having his main character claim that he grew up in Los Angeles, Brookmyre is miles away from any reality of Los Angeles. His thinks-he's-so-brilliant quips and cliches are tired and show him to be a dull imitator of greats like Irvine Welsh. The absolte funniest/worst part of the book was his made up translation of an ancient document found on the island of Crete, containing gems such as "Often have I wondered, watching the rhytons being filled in sacrifice from a quaking beast's throat, would we do the same were it a cold, clear water that issued forth, and not this liquid jewel, this decorative prize?"

In the end, Brookmyre's approach is too casual and cocky to be convincing and his prose is sub-par. Save yourself the 10 bucks of buying this book. Trust me.

I bought this book in London in 1999 for my long flight back to Sydney. Well, I arrived exhausted and even more jet-lagged than usual because I couldn't put it down!

Brookmyre melds a fantastically twisted thriller with an amused outsider view of LA pop culture and fervent religious fanaticism. Smart, fun, perceptive, great characters -- a great all-rounder. This is a really enjoyable read.

This book probably reads better now than when it was published in 1998 (set in 1999). My recollection of Y2k fears was that a lot of quite rational secular people were afraid of what negligent computer coding would do to the world when the clocks tried to roll over to the year 2000; Christian millenialists may have taken advantage of the new year to preach the end of the world, but those that were well-situated, like Brookmyre's Luther St. John, were certainly looking ahead to more decades of power. So Brookmyre can't really bite into Y2k per se, and he ends up with a plot that is an acknowledged rip-off of the 1978 Superman movie. However, he does a sharp job on the longing of fundamentalist religion to create a millenial atmosphere, which we have seen since both with 9/11 (where the Christian right quickly associated the World Trade Center and the Pentagon with abortion, feminism, and gay activism) and Hurricane Katrina. His understanding of this kind of spin was chillingly prescient.
He presents a face-off between two Americans, a Christian fundamentalist media mogul with Presidential aspirations and a porn actress, both of whom were abused children. Other characters include Larry Freeman of the LAPD, an old friend of Brookmyre's Scottish hero Jack Parlabane, and Steff Kennedy, a Scottish photographer on assignment--and a Dickensian multiplicity of other vividly sketched characters. Larry and Steff have their own issues, their own reasons to mourn losses of innocence and to question the comfort offered by religion.
Brookmyre does make a lot of mistakes in handling the Los Angeles mentality. There is more to sounding American than saying "ain't" and "no way," and American cops don't suss out conspiracies as they head for the lifts; nor do Americans consume Twiglets; nor are Texas instruments of corporal punishment made in Lochgelly. The first 100 pages or so are more careful, switching smoothly between the Scottish mind of Steff and the American minds of other protagonists, but after that it is written to be read by a Brit. Despite these small annoyances, it is a powerful book and I stayed up late to finish it!

I am a big Brookmyre fan and was a little disappointed with his stab at a story set in the US. There Scottish connection is still there, with the main character a Scotsman, but the punch just wasn't there - which really is his trademark. Just read "Quite Ugly One Morning" and you will see. Don't get me wrong, I still liked the book, but it just wasn't up to his usual standard, that's all.