Charlie Williams (1) (1971–)

Set in the backwater English town of Mangel. A rumour circulates that Royston Blake, normally respected by everyone, has gone soft. With advice from his best mate, he tries to re-establish his reputation. Eventually, he gets involved with the Munton Brothers, who are the meanest crooks and stand-over men in the town. His life then goes into a downward spiral when he has a fight with Baz Munton and kills him.

This novel was hard to get into because the writing is in dialect, not just the dialogue but the narrative too. In addition, the first third was slow going as it dealt mainly with Blake’s boring life in a boring town. The action started to get going when he tangled with Baz Munton. But it never really reached any high note. The final half of the book staggered from ineptitude to horror and back again. One tantalising item that was never resolved was the “doofer”, which those in the know coveted.… (altro)

I have not read the prior books in Charlie Williams' Royston Blake series and nothing in this book's blurb prepared me for the actual text. Had I read even the first page, I wouldn't have purchased this one. The narrative is written in the first person, from Royston Blake's point of view. The dialect for this character is incredibly heavy and difficult to read. His speech is that of someone bought up in the backwoods, who is uneducated and crude. The text is also heavy on slang words I had never heard before.

The blurb led me to believe that this book revolved around chasing down a serial killer. But that was secondary to Royston Blake's everyday oddities and his life of chasing down women. Between the heavy dialect and the meandering plot, I just could not get into this one at all.… (altro)