A Decent Ride by Irvine Welsh – Reviewed by Guy Portman
Terry ‘Juice’ Lawson is an Edinburgh taxi driver who moonlights as a porn actor and drug fixer. Since losing his virginity at the age of eleven, he has been obsessed with ‘gettin’ his hole’. Despite always having numerous women on the go, Terry has an insatiable appetite to find more. We follow his adventures. These entail a ‘hurricane’, a disappearance and dealings with a wealthy American associate, who is intent on getting his hands on a famous whisky trinity. Casting a shadow over everything is an issue that threatens to change Terry’s life forever.
This is a work of Transgressive Fiction with a hint of crime caper. Corkscrew-haired sex addict Terry makes for an effective protagonist, as despite being utterly amoral, he is likeable, raucous and hilarious. Although there is some sinister content entailing incest and necrophilia, this is one of Welsh’s lighter books. Its seediness, humour and bawdy Leith vernacular dialogue will appeal to many.
This reader is of the opinion that A Decent Ride is one of the transgressive maestro’s best offerings.
