Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #13121 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-11
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Time Out
'anticipates James Ellroy and David Peace, among others, in this
terrifying determination to disclose the skull beneath the skin'

Synopsis
When a middle-aged alcoholic is found brutally battered to death on a roadside in West London, the case is assigned to a nameless detective sergeant, a tough-talking cynic and fearless loner from the Department of Unexplained Deaths at the Factory police station. Working from cassette tapes left behind in the dead man's property, our narrator must piece together the history of his blighted existence and discover the agents of its cruel end. What he doesn't expect is that digging for the truth will demand plenty of lying, and that the most terrible of villains will also prove to be the most attractive. In the first of six police procedurals that comprise the Factory series, Derek Raymond spins a riveting, and vividly human crime drama. Relentlessly pursuing justice for the dispossessed, his detective narrator treads where few others dare: in the darkest corners of London, a city of sin plagued by unemployment, racism and vice, and peopled by a cast of low-lifes, all utterly convincing and brought to life by Raymond's pitch-perfect dialogue.

About the Author
Widely admired as the godfather of the British noir novel, Derek
Raymond was born Robin Cook in 1931. The son of a textile magnate, he
dropped out of Eton aged sixteen and spent much of his early career among
criminals. The Factory series followed his early novels, The Crust on Its
Uppers and A State of Denmark. His literary memoir The Hidden Files was
published in 1992. He died in London in 1994.

Customer Reviews

Noir at its best
This is a brilliant book, quite frankly one of the best I have ever read. The plot is simple and yet effective and Raymond avoids the usual clichés that can come with a police procedural. Instead he opts for almost a psychological portrait of his nameless detective who slowly becomes obsessed with the victim and immerses himself in his life.

Like the best noir, almost all the characters are disagreeable and unpleasant human beings while Raymond's hero is as flawed an anti-hero as any.

This is a brilliant book and I would urge anyone who likes their fiction realistic and gritty to read this book.

Weclome reissue of original British noir writer
Derek Raymond was the pseudonym of Robin Cook (used to avoid confusion with the medical thriller writer of the same name) who, despite his upper class background, ended up involved in the demimonde of criminality, alcoholism and drug abuse. He wrote 5 crime novels in his 'Factory' series as well as several other non-series novels set in Soho and France where he lived for a long time. The books were published from the 60s until early 90s (he died in 1994).

This book is the first in the 'Factory' series (the 'Factory' is the name given by cops and criminals to the police station) where the unnamed detective works for the department of Unexplained Deaths. This department has to deal with the 'lowest' murders i.e. those of the poor, the unimportant and the marginalised. In this investigation the detective gradually becomes obsessed with a sad middle-aged nobody who has been found kicked to death. Details of the victim's background are revealed by writings and tapes that he has left behind and which come to haunt the driven detective. The style is lean, terse and very dark despite the occasional lyrical flourish and leavening of the mood with black humour and the usual sharp dialogue. The atmosphere is grim and unsettling and many of the characters are deeply dislikeable but this is still strangely compelling, well-plotted and with a slightly bizarre but satisfying conclusion. Raymond's dark vision makes him the first truly modern noir British writer (continuing a tradition of Graham Greene, Gerald Kersh and Patrick Hamilton et al.) and his is a singular voice that has contemporary echoes in the work of writers such as James Ellroy, Ian Rankin, Ken Bruen and especially David Peace. If you like your fiction dark and sparse, this is an excellent writer to try.

This is a very welcome reissue and Serpent's Tail are to be congratulated on having the foresight to republish most of Derek Raymond's backlist. I very much hope that they continue with their program of reissues although I have not yet seen any future publication dates for the remaining books in the series, How the Dead Live, I was Dora Suarez and Dead Man Upright.

Review.
A cracking example of high quality noir writing. If you are into the likes of Andrew Vachss, Eugene Izzi, Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, Hubert Selby Jr and their ilk, you'll be delighted with this gem. Although a police / crime story in essence, it is so much more. It is a deep, probing study of the darker side of the human condition. Not pulling punches but never anything but subtle, this wonderful book, so simply executed will work it's way right under your skin. Don't miss out on a quality British writer.