British Author Challenge October 2023: Monica Ali & Dennis Wheatley

Monica Ali was born on 20 October 1967 in Bangladesh, then known as East Pakistan. When she was three the family moved to the UK and Ali would go on to study philosophy, politics and economics at Wadham College, Oxford.

Ali's first novel, Brick Lane, was published in 2003; it was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and was made into a movie. Love Marriage, her fifth novel, came out last year.

works
Brick Lane
Alentejo Blue
In the Kitchen
Untold Story
Love Marriage

Dennis Wheatley was born on 8 January 1897 in London. He was expelled from school and soon after joined the Merchant Navy.

Wheatley was part of the Royal Field Artillery during World War One and was invalided out after being gassed at Passchendaele. He took over the family wine business after the war, but its decline during the Depression caused him to sell the business and start writing full time.

During the Second World War Wheatley was part of the London Controlling Section and took part in planning the Normandy invasion; he was awarded the US Bronze Star for his work during the war.

Wheatley was a prolific writer who wrote in many genres; his works include pulp adventure novels, historical novels, science fiction, non-fiction histories, and several memoirs. He is probably best remembered for his numerous occult thrillers, including The Devil Rides Out which was turned into a film starring Christopher Lee.

Wheatley died on 10 November 1977.

selected works
Duc de Richleau series
Roger Brook series
Gregory Sallust series
Julian Day series
The Haunting of Toby Jugg
They Found Atlantis
The Eunuch of Stamboul
Star of Ill-Omen
The Devil and all his Works
Stranger than Fiction
Saturdays with Bricks
The time has come : the memoirs of Dennis Wheatley
Murder Off Miami
Who Killed Robert Prentice?

Hi - Brick Lane was my choice.

>3 m.belljackson: I'm planning on reading that one.

The November thread is up!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/354796

Oops, forgot to post about this month's reading!

The Forbidden Territory by Dennis Wheatley

Two men attempt to rescue a friend who has disappeared somewhere in Soviet Russia.

This is a pulpy thriller and very much of its era--who writing these days would have their heroes concerned about having an adequate supply of cigars for their adventure?--but it is an entertaining read. There's some added interest for having an early (1933) depiction of the dangers of Stalinist Russia.

Brick Lane by Monica Ali

So freaking slow! There's actually a pretty good story in there, but the book is at least twice as long as it needs to be.

>6 amanda4242: I trudged through the early chapters of Brick Lane = continued to be boring and repetitive.

>7 m.belljackson: It picks up a bit in the second half, but it's a book that should have been cut down to a novella.