I picked this book up ‘cos of the hype, and nice cover image (not the one above…) and the Giller prize. And how you couldn’t swing a dead cat at the local Coles without hitting one.
And it was okay. Slightly quirky language and quirkier characters. An interesting semi-mystery.
I like how Bergen described people, especially Yen, and the comments he made about how they said what they said. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really identify with anyone in the book, and about 2/3s of the way through the book, the mystery is gone and we’re left watching people I don’t care about do things for reasons that I can’t understand.
I probably wouldn’t have minded so much, if it weren’t for the book’s reputation.