Tooth & Nail (Bloodlines) [Paperback]

John B Spencer (Author)

Book Description

Series: Bloodlines | Publication Date: September 15, 1998

Spencer's riveting slice of London crime life, reminiscent of Trainspotting and Pulp Fiction, pulsates with a pervasive nastiness even if it never quite coheres. Darren Friend is a minor-league criminal with a privileged girlfriend and a dubious business interest in replacement windows who likes hitting people and making easy money. A woman client slow to pay her window bill is beaten into a coma. Her husband, a higher class of criminal, and his business partner, Reggie, whose sexual preference is near-death orgasms, can both help Darren reach the big time with a scheme to severely reduce the value of prime London real estate with random acts of vandalism and arson. The non-linear narrative is littered with acts of death and destruction, peppered with rock music trivia (the author is a professional musician) and features a sprawling cast of low-grade hoodlums who all copulate at a frenzied pace and are mostly indistinguishable from one another. Emphasizing form over substance, this flawed novel delivers a fast, frenzied jolt of pure yobbish energy from start to finish.""--Publishers Weekly

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Spencer's riveting slice of London crime life, reminiscent of Trainspotting and Pulp Fiction, pulsates with a pervasive nastiness even if it never quite coheres. Darren Friend is a minor-league criminal with a privileged girlfriend and a dubious business interest in replacement windows who likes hitting people and making easy money. A woman client slow to pay her window bill is beaten into a coma. Her husband, a higher class of criminal, and his business partner, Reggie, whose sexual preference is near-death orgasms, can both help Darren reach the big time with a scheme to severely reduce the value of prime London real estate with random acts of vandalism and arson. The non-linear narrative is littered with acts of death and destruction, peppered with rock music trivia (the author is a professional musician) and features a sprawling cast of low-grade hoodlums who all copulate at a frenzied pace and are mostly indistinguishable from one another. Emphasizing form over substance, this flawed novel delivers a fast, frenzied jolt of pure yobbish energy from start to finish.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Darren Friend, a small-time punk who works in the house-renovation business, wants passionately to toss it all and join the big leagues--except he's not sure how to join, and he's not sure what he'll do if he makes it. It doesn't help matters that his weird assortment of friends and lovers seems to be conspiring to keep him just where he is. And when Darren finally snaps, it's with a vengeance. Spencer's sixth novel is very well excecuted (fans of the publisher's Bloodlines series will recognize its terse, oddly constructed style). Its seemingly plotless structure actually works in its favor, for readers will feel they are a part of the pointless, confusing swirl of events surrounding Darren and will understand his frustration and intense desire to make it all go away. The novel may be a little explicit for some readers, but it will strongly appeal to fans of British noir. David Pitt

Product Details

• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Do Not Pr (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1899344314
• ISBN-13: 978-1899344314
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,662,665 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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