Customer Reviews

Slammer

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Remember how you felt the first time you watched 'Saw'? That's EXACTLY how I felt as I was reading this book. Gritty and raw doesn't begin to describe it. Before I started reading this one I wanted to see what else Mr. Guthrie had written Holy dark-and-foreboding Batman! Either Allan has some serious problems or this man has some serious talent. After reading this book I'll go with the latter.

Nicholas Glass is a character who is right in the middle of the stink. This poor man can't catch a break and is in a prison surrounded by demons of all kinds This entire novel is one nightmare after another, but one scene really stands out: Glass is in the hallway listening to grunting and moaning, wondering what to do. He makes his decision and... whoa! The first time I read it I was like, "what"? The second time I read it I was like, "no way". The third time I read it, I couldn't stop laughing!! The reason I referenced 'Saw' earlier was because of the PURE evil in it. People being evil for no reason other than the need something to do This book was the same way; actually this book surpasses it. The ending just pushes it over the edge.

I enjoyed this book so much because it was just so incredibly brutal. Brutal and real. Brutal, real, and hard. Brutal, real, hard, and one heck of a disturbing read. This is not a book you would read before you go to bed. This is a book you would read before you do a drive-by. Don't believe me? Read it... I freaking DARE you.

Having never read anything by Allan Guthrie, I went into reading the book with an open mind. The writing is exceptional to where you can relate and believe all that Nick Glass is going through as this is reality written in the finest. Once you start the book you just can't put it down as I found out. I did not like the content of the book as I found it very dark and depressing, but this is the intent of the author. The main character, Nick Glass, just gets caught up in a situation where there isn't a chance for him to get out of it. It just keeps on snowballing and snowballing and you get caught up in it also. You want to put the book down, but you can't. Just like Nick, you gotta keep on going even though you know the outcome will not be good. The content of the book is very real as it could and has happened to many of us, maybe not as severe as what happened to Nick, but everyone can relate to a point. I can't say I liked the content of the book but I do respect how Allan Guthrie wrote it.

SLAMMER is not a nice book. It is not a book you read as a bedtime tale to your kids. It does not have a nice protagonist. In fact, there aren't too many (if any - I'm trying to think) nice characters in the whole story.

It is gritty and dark. It makes you want to wash your hands when you set it down. It makes you think. And then rethink what you just thunk (ain't that a word?).

Did I "like" SLAMMER? No. Will I read it again at a future date? Doubtful. Am I glad I read it this time? Definitely.

Remember the movie Identity with John Cusack and you'll have an inkling of the impact of this book.

This is just one of those books that is difficult to rate. I chose this book because I often enjoy movies and literature where the setting is in a prison (ie... The Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, Dreams from the Monster Factory).
If I was trying to label this book, I wouldn't be able. It is not a thriller. It is not a mystery (although a mystery is contained in the ending!). It wasn't that the novel was scary. I could definitely read it before bed. It isn't an "easy read", "page turner", and definitely not "light". It did keep my interest, and I almost enjoyed it.

The main character was believable. I could follow the story clearly through the first part. Although I've had no experience or knowledge about drugs or drug usage, the character's experiences were easily followed and understood. Even when the drugs caused him to react in ways that went against his formed character, the reader can truly get the sense of who he was within the limitations that the drugs caused.

The story began getting jumbled around the middle. I truly tried to follow it, and enjoyed reading it, yet I didn't understand. The ending so confused the items that I thought I had read! Needless to say, the ending was a disappointment. I still don't understand what truly happened. I think I would have given the book four stars if the summation would have been in a neat package with a bow on it. Instead, I am left with questions... I don't even know what I read.

As a fan of this writer, I have greatly enjoyed his hard-edged approach to storytelling. There is a certain cache to hard guys, their stubbornness in the face of brutality, a sort of blunt heroism that can be appealing. Unfortunately, Slammer misses the mark for me, the protagonist, Nicholas Glass, neither hard nor good. At twenty-two, Glass is a rookie prison guard at an Edinburgh penitentiary with a wife and young daughter. Lorna has a temper and Nick is too immature for family responsibility, but he is willing to take the heat on his new job to provide for his family.

And what a job it is. The cons are vicious- all but a near-blind prisoner, Mafia- and the other guards are relentless in their brutal "practical" jokes. Slight of body and easily intimidated by his environment, Glass refuses to believe that Mafia is guilty of a double homicide, is on the lookout for a feral kitten that roams the prison and is marked for his weakness early on by coworkers. When Glass is coerced to mule drugs into the premises, Lorna and Caitlin, his daughter, threatened by a con named Caesar, Nick gives is too afraid to say no. Predictably, one favor becomes another; thus begins the gradual, agonizing disintegration of Nick's personality. Chipping away at the drugs he is moving to maintain his equilibrium, Nick is on a slippery slope that will end in a bloody confrontation, the point of no return.

Guthrie treads this territory with authority, Glass a victim of his own paranoia as a drunken Lorna assaults her husband with his many failings and reality is nearly indistinguishable from fantasy. It's ugly, bloody and violent in this world, where there is no joy and no relief. These conditions would be fine if the story carried the weight of its actions. But other than the setting and the terminology, there is little of Edinburgh here to distinguish this novel from an exercise in human depravity. Even the final twist fails to deliver the kind of impact I have come to expect from this talented author. Luan Gaines/2009.

While too graphic for my taste, the fast-paced Slammer is remarkably well-written. The reader follows prison guard Nick Glass as he's coerced, through his family's safety, to break rule after rule. Glass becomes drug mule to hardened violent offenders. As cajoling turns to outright threats, the balance of his mind starts to chip and splinter.

Words like "dark" and "gritty" and "thriller" and possibly even "hard-boiled" may be used to describe Slammer. The dialogue and plot are attention-grabbing, but the book simply didn't appeal to me. If the above adjectives are more your style, you may really enjoy this book from award-winning writer Allan Guthrie.

Allan Guthrie's "Slammer" is a fast-paced pulp noir. Short, bloody, and quick to read--the pages fly by in violent fashion. I wanted to love this nasty little novel, but in its entirety, the story never quite came together as cleverly as was probably intended. I'd recommend "Slammer," however. It may not be great literature, but as a diverting entertainment--it's a genuine success.

Chronicling the life of Nicholas Glass, a new guard in a violent Scottish prison, "Slammer" introduces an environment reminiscent of various other "prison" stories. Glass is a bit of a milquetoast, both at home with his family and as the new kid on the block (get it?--it's a cell block! I'm a riot). Befriended by a solitary prisoner, Glass's days are filled with tortures from another section of convicts as well as his fellow officers. Preying on the weak, the guard soon succumbs to the pressure of a particularly nasty criminal. If Glass doesn't do his bidding, including being his mule, a thug on the outside will terrorize the young man's family. The story spirals out of control, as does Glass, in increasingly disturbing ways.

Part of the pleasure of "Slammer" is also one of its primary weaknesses. Glass, as the narrator, is prone to flights of fancy. Brief sections of the book divert to an alternate reality where Glass imagines something else has happened. While this device is fun and may catch you by surprise, it soon calls into legitimacy everything else that is being related to you. So some of the cleverness that may be intended as the book draws to its conclusion has already been telegraphed. Far from shocking, though, "Slammer" is still good fun--especially if this genre appeals to you. I'd rate at 3 1/2 stars for entertainment value even though the novel might not stick with you. KGHarris, 10/09.

I first discovered Allan's work a bit over a year ago and quickly tracked down everything I could find. I read (or re-read) one every few months so as to not run out before the next book/novella is published. Slammer has been one of my favorites thus far and easily made my list of top 10 reads of 2010 (which was full of great work). If you like tight, lean writing and great dialogue, I would highly recommend Allan's work. I'm not a fan of the phrase "page-turner" but there is no doubt that Slammer had me hooked from the get go and kept me on the edge of my mental seat. Highly recommended work and author.

This was one dark trip into the mind of Allan Guthrie. He has penned another outstanding book that details the mind of a psycho. It is no wonder Guthrie is the King of Psycho Noir. No need to rehash the plot, but the plot will have you speeding through this book at the pace of a bullet flying from a gun. I have been waiting for this book to be released in the US and next time he publishes a book I will be visiting Amazon UK to avoid the wait. Guthrie clearly raises the bar for all the leading and unknown noir authors with this book. This is hard edged noir at its best and you would be wise to disregard reviews from the weakhearted. Buy a copy and enjoy.

My advice to anyone picking up this book is to plan on setting aside the hours to finish it in one sitting and to prepare your mind to be blown away! I just finished the book and immediately went back through to check the dates (the book is organized by date and time) and try to organize my thoughts on just exactly what the heck happened. The book grabbed me from Page One, and I read right on to the last page without stopping. That said, I would also have to warn the potential reader that this book about prison life is very graphic and shocking. It reminds me a bit of the TV show, "Oz," only maybe more so.

The story revolves around what goes on inside the mind of a prison guard, Nick Glass, whose fragile ego (in the usual sense and in the Freudian sense) is under serious threat from all sides: his family life, his colleagues at work, the prisoners, and ultimately drugs and his own mind. Nick has always been an outsider and that remains true in his new job as prison guard. The other guards ridicule him, and the prisoners threaten and harass him and finally rope him into illegal schemes that will hasten his spiral into self-destruction. The action unfolds in various scenarios in Nick's mind, and the reader is dragged along at breakneck speed, both fascinated and repelled by the violence and perversion. Nick's family life is almost as harrowing as his job, as his marriage disintegrates and his wife returns to a previous drinking problem. The one bright light in his life is his young daughter, Caitlin, whom he adores. When the prisoners begin to threaten the safety of his family, Nick is terrified and feels himself to be at their mercy. As the story unfolds, the reader begins to suspect that all is not as straightforward as it first appears, and an elaborate labyrinth of bizarre characters and actions is laid out. Contrary to what might be expected, however, the story is never so confused as to become off-putting. Instead the plot intricacy simply increases the suspense and the atmospheric tension.

I would recommend this book to readers with a strong stomach and a taste for the dark side. I gave it four stars because it absolutely would not let me put it down, and I was kept wondering what was really going on until the very last. The author clearly is very talented at creating a mood and maintaining a deadly suspense.