Product Description

There is nothing unusual about the barrel-organ man who walks into private detective Louie Knight's office. Apart from the fact that he has lost his memory. And, his monkey is a former astronaut. And, he is carrying a suitcase that he is too terrified to open. And, he wants a murder investigated. The only thing unusual about the murder is that it took place a hundred years ago. And, needs solving by the following week. Louie is too smart to take on such a case, but also too broke to turn it down. Soon, he is lost in a labyrinth of intrigue and terror, tormented at every turn by a gallery of mad nuns, gangsters and waifs, and haunted by the loss of his girlfriend, Myfanwy, who has disappeared after being fed drugged raspberry ripple.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25149 in Books
• Published on: 2006-04-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Review
'Malcolm Pryce is the king of Welsh noir he dishes up a dastardly mix of gothic comedy where Edgar Allen Poe meets Phoenix Nights in a flurry of blood-stained absurdity' Sunday Telegraph 'Marvellously imaginative You'll weep and laugh, on the same page. Wonderful' Guardian 'Exuberant comic fantasy The plots entangle with spontaneous combustion, poisoned ice-creams, the cloning of Jesus, buried skulls, sexy nuns, false names and lots of gunfire' Sunday Times 'Packed with witty and original writing things are blacker than ever, involving fast and furious plotting with many gruesome twists the quality of writing is to be relished on every page' Scotland on Sunday

Sunday Times
‘Exuberant comic fantasy’

Scotland on Sunday
‘Packed with witty and original writing … the quality of writing is to be relished on every page’

Customer Reviews

Too dark to be fun
The Unbearable lightness of being in Aberystwyth is a parody of Raymond Chandler mysteries. The twist is that it's set in Wales. At first, the play on the style is enjoyable but any pleasure in Pryce's silliness quickly disappears due to the gore and sadness of the story. Plot lines including infanticide, rape of prostitutes, and human slavery take away any fun that the idea of a noir tale in Wales might have held. This style of story is done so much better by Jasper Fforde in his novels set in an alternative Swindon. Fforde is able to keep up a mystery without sinking his playful characters in tragedy or gore.

Aberystwyth will disappoint any reader. For serious mystery fan, the goofiness of the characters - organ grinders and monkey, ice-cream addicted gumshoes, and veterans of Patagonian wars -- will serve as more an annoyance than as an addition of texture. For those who love playful stories, this will be an unpleasant experience. Pick up The Eyre Affair instead.

Writing if the highest quality
I was delighted by something on almost every page of this book. The writing is of the highest quality. The sysnopsis may make it seem that this is simply an enjoyable (as long as you enjoy surreality) detective story with LA transplanted to Wales, suitably transformed in the process. True enough as far as it goes, but there are ideas, insights, and sections of prose throughout that give this book real depth and quality. One of the reviews on the jacket says they turned down the corners of many pages so as to be able to go back to some particular detail, and now I know why. Most reviewers seem to either love or hate this book, but few are indifferent to it. I love it. I hope you will too.

Surreal detective adventure in Aberystwyth
Take Mike Hammer from a Mickey Spilline book and put him in a welsh seaside resort in the darkness of the off season. Wry fun with the Welsh identity, Ice cream making italians and druid mafia wash through the grey and wet landscape as the mystery of the disappearing local diva unravels.

Violent encounters, a hint of romance and a police chief in league with the plotters .... or is there another sub plot.

My favourite of the Aberystwyth books from Malcolm Pryce and the one that I have read more than once.

Its not a pre-requisite to read Aberystwyth Mon Amor first but it helps you decide if you are going to relate to this book or not. I loved it and smiled throughout but its one of those marmite books. You will love it or hate it but you will not find another like it.