Customer Reviews

truecrime

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True Crime by Jake Arnott is a riveting novel of suspense, following Harry, a wanted London gangster, and his return to his old hometown. Most of Harry's old contacts are dead or behind bars, but one ruthless individual has focused upon Harry and will let neither rules nor conscience stand in his way. True Crime is confidently recommended as an exciting and deftly written criminal drama, heavy with suspense and featuring a protagonist who doesn't play by the good guy rules either.

Arnott is hyped as a crime writer with a wickedly origial satirical streak. This leads to some rather bizarre (and hypocritical marketing). For example, Arnott satirises the glamourising of crime and violence in the British media, yet his books are puffed by David Bowie who declares 'Whenever Arnott has a new book out, I drop everything, knowing that the next two hours are going to be pure gangland bliss'. Er, exactly.

I find that in his writing Arnott slips up the social satire (which is laid on pretty thickly - public schoolboys going mockney, ghostwriters wooing criminals to publish their memoirs, that sort of thing), the style, which still doesn't present a convincing British rival to the best of American fiction, and the plot, which was implausible and failed to get the pages turning in my case.