Deadfolk: Mangel

at least not alive they don? t. Royston Blake is the Head Doorman of Hoppers Wine Bar & Bistro. He drives a Capri 2. 8i and can walk down the street in Mangel knowing he? s respected by folks. But now there? s a rumour out that Blake? s lost his bottle. Even Sal? s heard the rumour. What? s more, the Muntons are after him and the thought of ending up in the back of their Meat Wagon is almost too much to bear. Something? s got to give. Determined to prove he hasn? t lost his nerve, Blake embarks on a plan designed to re-establish his reputation as a hard man, ensure his everlasting appeal to women and seal his future with the new owner of Hoppers, even if he is an outsider. Murder, mayhem and a chainsaw called Susan intertwine in this astonishing debut which marks the appearance of a fresh, funny and brutal new voice in British crime fiction. ? Cross James Ellroy? s unblinking eye for vicious gangland enforcement with Bill James? s gut-feeling for Britain? s meaner streets and you would end up in a trashcan alley somewhere near Mangel? I can? t wait for the next instalment? 5-star review, Western Daily Press ? Demented, hilarious, and near impossible to put down? Jason Starr, author of Tough Luck ? There is a dark heart to England, a claustrophobic core of oddity and violence. Deadfolk comes straight from this English heart, and even through all of its offbeat humour, there is no mistaking the earnestness of a writer who has something to say.? Nicholas Blincoe ? Plenty of memorably grim moments along the way? Big Issue in the North ? Carnage, chaos and a chainsaw called Susan add to his remarkable debut, which marks the appearance of a totally new voice in British fiction? Buzz ? Charlie Williams has come up trumps? the more politically correct among you can read this as social comment, the rest can just enjoy the ride? Guardian ? Imagine if you will the comparatively genteel Midsomer Murders transplanted to darkest Somerset and given a delight in excess worthy of Tarantino, the whole dripping with pitch black comedy and panache... this is compelling and highly enjoyable? The Third Alternative