Thursday 5 June 2014

2 BY HENRY SUTTON

Henry Sutton is an another UK author who has only recently appeared on my radar. He's the author of about 8 novels in total including Thong Nation, Flying, Kid's Stuff and Gorleston.


He has also contributed to the DS Jack Frost series of books (R.D. Wingfield) under the pseudonym of  James Henry.














His website is over here. I don't think many of his titles could be classed or categorised as crime fiction, but a good book's a good book, regardless.




Get Me Out of Here

Set in London in autumn 2008, Matt Freeman is tired of the hollow corporate life and empty consumerism around him and desperately searches for a means of escape. Get Me Out of Here is a novel of comic anger, success and failure - and, fundamentally, belief - in a wornout city.

"Sutton's acute rendering of a bloated city in financial and moral freefall, and the ease with which the hatred and violence can overrun its streets, make this a very modern and thoroughly haunting piece of work." (Sunday Telegraph)

"A very funny book for seriously unfunny times, this is the first credit crunch novel, a tale where the laughs are black, bitter, and laced with blind panic." (Tony Parsons)

"Henry Sutton is developing into a high-grade exponent of urban paranoia. A virtuoso portrait of a ground-down metropolitan mind at the end of its tether." (DJ Taylor)

"Henry Sutton - who writes like a dream - has pulled off what Tom Wolfe did for the greed-is-good 80s in Bonfire of the Vanities. He has written - with black, comic brilliance - about out times" (Tony Parsons Daily Mirror, Book of the Week)

"Totally brilliant and I haven't ever read anything quite like it" (Sun)

My Criminal World

A clever, witty crime novel in the vein of Kate Atkinson's celebrated Jackson Brodie series. In awe of his wife, hounded by his agent and ignored by his editor, mild mannered crime novelist David Slavitt finds his life is spiralling out of control. He needs to do something -- but just how far is he prepared to go?

In awe of his wife, hounded by his agent and ignored by his editor, mild mannered crime novelist David Slavitt finds his life is spiralling out of control. He needs to do something -- but just how far is he prepared to go?

My Criminal World introduces us to struggling crime writer, David Slavitt. Living in constant fear that his editor might drop him in favour of the next new talent, David juggles house work and child care alongside plot twists and character development.

But as his wife grows increasingly distant and his agent insists that his new book needs more violence -- a lot more violence -- David is getting worried. He needs to do something if he is to save his career, and his marriage. But just how far is this most mild mannered of crime writers prepared to go? And who is the person really pulling the strings in this story? Interspersed with David's story are extracts from the crime story he is currently writing, which grow increasingly darker as they progress. Does this change in tone reflect the demands of David's agent or is there something more sinister at work? In this clever literary crime novel, there is more than one mystery to be solved.

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One for the ladies, by popular request!

"Dirty, scathing and hilarious" - Geoff Dyer

‘Wilfully pulpy, porny and junky’ -- Kirkus Reviews



Zara wants to do it in the Med, Alicia wants a Brazilian to please Mikey, Sally prefers the garden hose to Brian, and Catherine can only find satisfaction on the tennis court. Charlie and Dorothy?s four over-sexed, grown-up daughters struggle to find fulfilment in Blair?s skimpy Britain, as materialism is turned on its head and less becomes more. 

Deeply satirical, Thong Nation follows one extended family?s fortunes and misfortunes over the course of a long hot summer. Zara is a fledgling rep for failing holiday company Majorcan Dreams. Alicia is a teacher at a grossly under-funded inner-city primary school, and hooked up with seedy boyfriend Mikey. Sally has just been made redundant from her high paying IT job, and wishes hubby Brian was ten times more exciting. And Catherine is a very cross single mum. 

Thong Nation?s climax comes at golf-mad Charlie?s not-so-surprise 70th birthday party when all the family, and a few uninvited guests, have gathered in a supposedly luxury seaside villa.


Apologies for the loss of definition, but I have enlarged the photo to provide more impact!


13 comments:

  1. Thong Nation? *Thong Nation*? I have rarely heard a more off-putting title. But actually the 2 books you feature sound funny, entertaining and interesting so will have to check them out.

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    1. Moira would it surprise you to hear that the "off-putting" book is on the pile. I was half tempted to mention this one, but was concerned about you perhaps choking on your cornflakes as you browsed the blog and happened on the cover photo!

      I was thinking about introducing clothing features into some of my posts and it seemed an ideal area of commonality between us...... perhaps not.

      Shall I upload the book cover to the post - I'll let you decide. You have been warned!

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    2. Col, I absolutely have to see this cover. Please upload. I take full responsibility.

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    3. Moira - you're wish is granted. I can't wait to see a CiB blog post on this one!
      What's that? Sorry, I was momentarily distracted by a flying pig shooting past my window.

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    4. OK, it's even more outrageous than I thought it would be. Perhaps when I start a blog called No Clothes in Books....

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  2. Col, the first one sounds more interesting, as does the cover of the book. Tell us what you thought of them.

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    1. Full reports will undoubtedly follow as and when I read them. I'd struggle to choose between the two as the both have interesting covers and plot lines. I like off-beat, black humour in my reading.

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  3. Col - I admit, the title Thong Nation really is off-putting. But the two books you've described sound like witty treatments of life in an often-very alienating world. And a book about a crime writer? Well, that strikes home... ;-)

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    1. Margot - 2 votes against Thong Nation! It's curious how book titles (and covers?) can alienate so many people and put them off trying something. Don't get me wrong that's just an observation not a criticism.

      I still hope I enjoy it when I get to that one, which will be after these two. It's possibly rude, crude and a little bit bawdy, but hey my SOH is non-PC and we don't all like the same thing, not all the time anyway..

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  4. I hated My Criminal World. I found it a book of ingratiating servility and conceit. Cannot understand how it would appeal to a reader outside the clique of the promo clan.

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    1. Oh, now I'm probably more disposed to reading MCW ahead of his other book after your comment. I'll approach it with an open mind, but will have your thoughts lurking nearby. I think I prefer books when there's a marmite reaction to them as opposed to something being universally lauded.
      Over on AM UK, this has 9 reviews with 4 scores of 5 and 5 scores of 4....or the other way round. Yours is the first negative strike I've seen, thanks.

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  5. I am shocked. Scandalous.

    It is interesting that this author also contributed to the DS Jack Frost series. I have not read any of those that he wrote, but I would think that they would be very different. So he must be a versatile writer.

    I will wait and see what you think of his books. My Criminal World sounds interesting from the description, but who knows.

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    1. Tracy, I would apologise but if you read the comments it's all Moira's fault!

      I have read one of the original Wingfield Frost books and liked it. I'll report back on MCW and the other 2 at some point.

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