Book Reviews | Guy Portman's Blog

The 5 Books I’ve Read Recently

Aug 21 2020

The last few months I have been concentrating on my own writing (more on that next week). I am currently taking a short hiatus from my fiction writing and catching up with some other stuff, including reviews of books that I’ve read. Here are the five books that I have read recently. Three of them are my typical dark fiction/dark humour fare, while the other two aren’t. Click on the links to read my reviews.

Disaster Inc.

Disaster Inc is the first instalment in a series by former Irish stand-up comedian and successful television writer Caimh McDonnell.

My Review: Bunny McGarry is an Irishman in America on a mission to find someone. Hungover one morning, he is having breakfast at a diner, when …(more)

My Opinion: Funny but convoluted.

Six Days: How the 1967 War Shaped the Middle East

Through its numerous interviews, journalist Bowen imbues his account of the conflict with a personal touch.

My Review: Over a six-day period in 1967, Israel fought and defeated an Arab coalition consisting of Egypt, Jordan and Syria. Tensions had been …(more)

My Opinion: Interesting and too long.

My Sister, The Serial Killer

The intriguing premise, darkly humorous elements and dialogue-heavy content make for an enduring combination.

My Review: Twins Koredie and Ayoola are very different. Conscientious Korede is a senior nurse in a hospital while the beautiful Ayoola is …(more)

My Opinion: Lives up to the hype.

Walden

Walden, which comprises the vast majority of this book, is an account of the author’s two years living in the New England wilderness.

My Review: This Collins Classics publication consists of two works in one. The latter, Civil Disobedience, is a pamphlet-length, instrumental anarchist …(more)

My Opinion: Onerous yet rewarding.

Blood Meridian

Set in the 1800’s, Blood Meridian is an episodic book, which is almost unparalleled in its misanthropy and repugnant content.

My Review: ‘The Kid’ is a fourteen-year-old hailing from a Tennessean backwater. Following an ill-fated stint as a conscript in a …(more)

My Opinion: Bleak and exceptional.

The Books I Read In 2019

Dec 27 2019

As is my custom at year’s end, this post is devoted to the books that I read in 2019 – the good, the bad and the ugly. Click on the book titles to read my reviews. The following 20 books are presented in the order in which I read them.

Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk (1999) – The last survivor of a cult has hijacked an aeroplane, which is now flying on autopilot. This innovative and erudite social commentary is brimming with satirical observations.

Spencer’s Risk by Andy Greenhalgh (2018) – This third person, thespian-themed work offers an authentic insight into the mind of a compulsive gambler.

Women by Charles Bukowski (1978) – A concise, visceral story about the exploits of degenerate drinker, gambler, womaniser and ageing lowlife Henry Chinaski; Bukowski’s alter ego.

Neon Empire by Drew Minh (2019) – Set in the near future, this dystopian sci-fi novel is based in a high-tech city. The book’s scant storyline is submerged beneath a sea of detail.

Child of God by Cormac McCarthy (1973) – A tautly written and compelling work of ‘country noir’. This bleak book’s themes include loneliness and necrophilia.

Job by Joseph Roth (1930) – The fableesque story’s themes are loss, faith and, as is the case with all of Roth’s fiction, nostalgia. While Job is far from being the author’s finest work, there is much to like about it.

The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami (1993) – This curious and comical compilation of seventeen first-person short stories is set for the most part in Japan during the economic boom of the eighties.

American Pastoral by Philip Roth (1997) – Much of this elegiac tome is devoted to detailed character exploration, which takes the form of extensive internal dialogue.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy (2006) – The story is about a father and son trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. This reader was impressed by this unrelentingly bleak and minimalist work.

The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort (2007) – This tome is teeming with escapades entailing stock manipulation, brushes with the law, prostitutes, family drama and copious amounts of drugs, particularly Quaaludes.

The Good Son by You-Jeong Jeong (2016) – The Good Son is a psychological thriller set in Seoul. There was too much analysis and not enough first-hand action for this reader’s taste.

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (1995) – Set in the 1990s, High Fidelity is a wryly humorous, music-themed novel that analyses man’s fixations and foibles.

Papillon by Henri Charrière (1969) – ‘Papillon’ is determined to escape from his penal colony in French Guiana. The story is highly entertaining, if somewhat relentless.

Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut (1961) – Howard W. Campbell was a Nazi propagandist. Now he is in prison awaiting trial for war crimes. This ambiguous morality tale is brimming with satirical observations.

Red Russia by Tanya Thompson (2017) – The story is about a pair of Americans visiting Russia for a business trip. It could best be summed up as a frenzied, post-Soviet satirical transgressive work.

Quite Ugly One Morning by Christopher Brookmyre (1996) – A police procedural type book purporting to be a comedy-cum-crime caper. This tepid offering has an excess of toilet humour.

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (1890) – We all know what the story is about. The poetic prose, dark Gothic theme and plethora of barbed epigrams will appeal to many; the convoluted storyline less so.

Geek Love by Katherine Dunn (1989) – The Binewski’s are a clan of freaks who run a travelling carnival. There are numerous subplots and endless meandering.

Checking Out by Nick Spalding (2018) – A black comedy sprinkled with hope about a young man with a terminal illness. Many will be drawn to its protagonist due to his wry wit and likeable personality.

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn (2009) – This dark psychological thriller shifts between two time periods. The suspense, unpalatable subject matter and reprehensible characters intrigued this reader.

5 Darkly Humorous Reading Recommendations

Dec 20 2019

This week’s post is devoted to five dark humour books. Click on the links to discover more.

Checking Out by Nick Spalding

Checking Out is a black comedy sprinkled with hope. Many will be drawn to its protagonist due to his wry wit and likeable personality.

My Review: Nathan is a young, well-off musician with a gorgeous girlfriend, a sportscar and some exceedingly expensive bi-fold doors. He is also successful, thanks to his …(more)

Knockemstiff by Donald Ray Pollock

Knockemstiff is a transgressive compilation of short stories. Topics include drugs, drinking, disease and sexual degeneracy.

My Review: These interlinked short stories are set in ‘The Holler’; an impoverished part of Knockemstiff, a real-life Ohioan backwater. ‘The Holler’s’ air is permanently imbued with the stench of …(more)

Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut

Mother Night is a concise, ambiguous morality tale brimming with satirical observations and darkly humorous details.

My Review: During WWII, Howard W. Campbell was a prominent Nazi propagandist. Now he is languishing in an Israeli prison awaiting trial for war crimes …(more)

Damned by Chuck Palahniuk

Damned is a a light-hearted satire of hell, punctuated with comical details, pop-culture references and Theological irony.

My Review: The protagonist is thirteen-year-old Madison, the daughter of wealthy alternative parents. The privileged Madison studies at an exclusive Swiss boarding school and spends her holidays alternating …(more)

Spencer’s Risk by Andy Greenhalgh

Spencer’s Risk is a third person, thespian-themed work that offers an authentic insight into the mind of a compulsive gambler.

My Review: Spencer Leyton’s life is spiralling downhill. He has split from his wife, is virtually estranged from his kids, his career is in tatters, and he has a serious …(more)

Another Week Bites The Dust

Sep 20 2019

It’s Friday again. They sure come around fast. Last week I unveiled the front cover for Golgotha (release: early Dec) the final instalment in my black comedy Necropolis Trilogy. If you missed it, here it is again.

On another subject, today I came across these three Roe deer on my morning walk.

They didn’t seem too alarmed by my dog and I. Evidently they were not aware of how keen on venison we are. Trigga was fixated on this tree in my garden for ages yesterday. Likelihood is a squirrel had gone up it, or it contains a late season pigeon nest.

The garden is still growing pretty quick, and having ignored it for a few weeks, the time has come to get back to work.

What with all the dog walking and gardening, I have been losing weight. So, it’s out with the healthy stuff …

And in with the high calorie fare. You can’t beat vegetable samosas and onion bhajis.

Three chocolate brownies down; two to go.

A book delivery arrived yesterday. It’s a good feeling receiving new books; if you’re a bibliophile like me that is. For the most part, my reading matter currently comprises the genres I write in; namely dark humour and Transgressive Fiction. While Dark Places doesn’t fit into those categories, it is dark fiction. I will be reviewing them here and on Goodreads in due course. All I need now is some bookshelves to store this ever-expanding reading matter.

A reminder that Tomorrow’s World: Darkly Humorous Tales From The Future is free at all retailers. My satirical book of vignettes finally received a decent batch of reviews on Amazon US this week. It appears my book is a bit like Marmite. People either love it or hate it.

And that’s it for this week. Have a good weekend. And if your nation is playing in the Rugby World Cup, I wish you the best of luck, unless your from Tonga that is.

6 Humorous Reading Recommendations

Aug 23 2019

This week I have six humorous reading recommendations for you – five of which I’ve read and one that I have written. Click on the links to read my reviews.

High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

Set in the 1990s, High Fidelity is a wryly humorous, music-themed novel that analyses man’s fixations and foibles.

My Review: Rob is a record shop owner from North London. The thirty-something has just split up with his girlfriend Laura and is now single. He had been …(more)

The Squirrel that Dreamt of Madness by Craig Stone

The Squirrel that Dreamt of Madness is a bizarre and humorous novel about the author’s time spent living homeless in a park.

My Review: The author Craig Stone is becoming increasingly disillusioned with the predictability and banality of his everyday existence. Deciding that it is better to live dreaming than …(more)

Rant by Chuck Palahniuk

Rant challenges our own traditions by demonstrating how we contort our recollection of events in accordance with our desires, motives and beliefs.

My Review: Rant is the oral history of Buster ‘Rant’ Casey, recounted by an array of people including his relations, friends, enemies and lovers. Rant’s childhood companions from the …(more)

Candide by Voltaire

Candide is an eighteenth-century satirical classic that evaluates optimism; the prevailing philosophical ideology of The Enlightenment.

My Review: Brought up in the household of a German baron, cheerful protagonist Candide has been instilled with the philosophy of Leibniz, notably – That all is for the best in this …(more)

Knockemstiff by Donald Ray Pollock

Knockemstiff is a transgressive compilation of short stories. Topics include drugs, drinking, disease and sexual degeneracy.

Tomorrow’s World: Darkly Humorous Tales by Guy Portman

This quick read’s subjects encompass manic capitalism, extreme celebrity worship, virtual reality and a grotesquely ageing population. (Free at all retailers – you can also download it through this link)

Daily Squib Review: There’s something about the future that scares the shit out of people a lot, maybe it’s simply the thought of the unknown that affects us with such fear. What possible delights await …(more)

The 10 Books I’ve Read In 2019

Jun 28 2019

As is my custom at the halfway point of the year, I am devoting this post to the books that I have read so far in 2019. You will notice a preponderance of dark and Transgressive Fiction. This is because they are my favourite genres.

I hope you find something that is of interest to you. Click on the links to read my reviews.

Spencer’s Risk by Andy Greenhalgh

Genre: Black Comedy

Spencer’s Risk is a third person, thespian-themed work that offers an authentic insight into the mind of a compulsive gambler.

My Review: Spencer Leyton’s life is spiralling downhill. He has split from his wife, is virtually estranged from his kids, his career is in tatters, and he has a serious gambling problem …(more)

My Opinion: Humorous but turgid

Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk

Genre: Transgressive Fiction

Survivor is an innovative and erudite social commentary, brimming with satirical observations.

My Review: Tender Branson, the last survivor of the Creedish Church cult, has hijacked an aeroplane, which is now flying on autopilot. His objective: to dictate his life story onto …(more)

My Opinion: A satirical extravaganza

Neon Empire by Drew Minh

Genre: Dystopian/Sci-Fi

The author may well have created an accurate reflection of where we are invariably heading as a society, but it comes at a heavy price.

My Review: Set in the near future, Neon Empire is a dystopian sci-fi novel based in a high-tech city called Eutopia. The place is a latter-day combination of …(more)

My Opinion: Convoluted and confusing

Child of God by Cormac McCarthy

Genre: Southern Gothic

Child of God is a tautly written and concise work of ‘country noir’. Themes include loneliness and necrophilia.

My Review: Having been dispossessed of his land, Lester Ballard is now homeless and eking out an existence in the backwoods of Sevier County, East Tennessee. For food, he steals and forages. For … (more)

My Opinion: Excellent

Job by Joseph Roth

Genre: European Literature

This fableesque story with its obvious parallels to the Biblical character by the same name will appeal to fans of the Austro-Hungarian author.

My Review: Biblical teacher Mendel and his family are Jews residing in the town of Zuchnow, in Tsarist Russia. Mendel has a wife called Deborah, three sons and …(more)

My Opinion: Okay

The Elephant Vanishes by Haruki Murakami

Genre: Short Stories

This curious and comical Kafkaesque hotchpotch of a collection encompasses a variety of themes including relationships and loneliness.

My Review: This compilation of seventeen first-person short stories are set for the most part in Japan during the economic boom of the eighties. These tales, which blend banal …(more)

My Opinion: Bizarre and amusing

American Pastoral by Philip Roth

Genre: Historical Fiction

This tome is in essence an elegy to the death of The American Dream. Much of it is devoted to detailed character exploration.

My Review: ‘The Swede’ Seymour Levov is a towering, athletic blond-haired Jew with striking good looks. The affable high school baseball phenom seems destined for …(more)

My Opinion: Arduous but rewarding

Women by Charles Bukowski

Genre: Dirty Realism/Transgressive Fiction

The story follows the exploits of ageing lowlife and Bukowski alter ego, Henry Chinaski.

My Review: Fat, ugly fifty-something Henry Chinaski is a degenerate drinker, gambler and womaniser residing in downtrodden East Hollywood.
After a lifetime spent toiling in …(more)

My Opinion: Good

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Genre: Post Apocalyptic/Dark Fiction

The Road is a near unrelentingly bleak novel about a father and his young son travelling south in search of something better.

My Review: A cataclysmic event has left the world in ruins, and almost everything and everyone is dead. In the absence of food, the remaining humans are reduced to…(more)

My Opinion: Depressing but good

The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort

Genre: Biography

This five hundred plus page tome is teeming with escapades that entail stock manipulation, brushes with the law, prostitutes and more besides.

My Review: In 1989 Jordan Belfort and two of his friends founded a brokerage house on Long Island by the name of Stratton Oakmont. The company was in essence a ‘boiler room’ …(more)

My Opinion: Entertaining for the most part

6 Dark Fiction Reading Recommendations

May 31 2019

As you may know I am an avid fan of dark fiction. Here are 5 dark fiction books that I have read and one that I have written.

Definition: Dark fiction is concerned with the sinister side of human nature. It is often distinguished from the mainstream horror genre in that it tends not to be fantasy-orientated. Dark fiction may contain elements of black or satirical humour.

Fire In The Hole

This is a compilation of nine short, authentic and atmospheric, American-based, crime-themed stories. The book is named after its longest title, Fire In The Hole. Click here to read my review.

Survivor

Survivor is an innovative and erudite social commentary, brimming with satirical observations and irreverent humour. It is without doubt one of the author’s best efforts. Click here to read my review.

Wasting Talent

Leone utilises innovative writing techniques and a frenetic prose style to weave this graphic tale about drug addiction. The story centres around young guitar virtuoso Damien Cantwell. Click here to read my review.

The Road

The Road is a near unrelentingly bleak, minimalist post-apocalyptic novel about a man and his young son travelling south, in the hope of finding something better. Click here to read my review.

In Wolves’ Clothing

This first-person transgressive work features a troubled member of an anti child trafficking organisation. The book successfully broaches a subject matter that is anathema to most people. Click here to read my review.

Necropolis (#1 Necropolis Trilogy)

Brutal, bleak and darkly comical, Necropolis is a darkly humorous work featuring sociopath and public sector worker Dyson Devereux. It is the first instalment in the Necropolis Trilogy.

6 Books for 6 Moods

Mar 22 2019

This week sees the latest instalment in my books for different moods series. Here are 6 books for 6 moods/different states of mind. Click on the links to read my reviews.

In the mood for something shocking? If so then your search is over:

Newspaper Diapers

This compilation of vignettes about child abuse and group homes left an indelible mark on this reader’s mind. What it lacks in length, it more than compensates for in disturbing content. Click here to read my review.

In the mood for a Transgressive classic? If the answer is yes, you can’t do much better than this:

Survivor

In the mood for something heavy and intellectual? This tome has the added benefit that it can also be used as a doorstop.

The Brothers Karamazov

This philosophical tome, Dostoyevsky’s last novel, is widely regarded as one of the great literary works of the last century. Click here to read my review.

Feeling like escaping from reality? Then you might like this dystopian classic:

The Man In The High Castle

This alternative history dystopia is set in a world in which the allies lost The War. It is a somewhat chaotic work, containing many intrigues. Click here to read my review.

Requiring something sleep-inducing? If so, then forget the pills and read this instead:

Go Set A Watchman

Set in the 1950s, Go Set A Watchman is essentially about a young woman maturing mentally, and very little else. It compares unfavourably to the author’s seminal work, To Kill A Mockingbird. Click here to read my review.

In the mood for something satirical?

Candide

Candide is an eighteenth-century satirical classic that evaluates optimism; the prevailing philosophical ideology of The Enlightenment. Click here to read my review.

6 Dark Humour Reading Recommendations

Feb 01 2019

Here are five darkly humorous books that I have read and one that I have written. Click on the links to read the reviews.

Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk

Haunted is a series of short stories, in which the author explores a variety of themes, including the media-obsessed nature of society.

My Review: Haunted is about a group of writers, who have been assembled by the conniving Mr Whittier to attend a writers group. The location of the retreat is in an isolated theatre with no access … (more)

The Blade Artist by Irvine Welsh

The complex and manipulative protagonist, sordid characters and squalid descriptions will appeal to fans of the Transgressive genre.

My Review: Reformed Scottish ex-con Jim Francis (formerly Franco Begbie) is now a successful sculptor living the dream in sunny California with his former prison art therapist now trophy wife …(more)

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis

This satire of the yuppies culture of the 1980s adroitly explores the mind of a psychopath and questions the very essence of capitalist culture.

My Review: American Psycho is a highly controversial novel that brought its author Bret Easton Ellis instant fame. The book is written from the perspective of a young Wall Street financier …(more)

The Butcher by Nathan Burrows

This aptly named book is set in the English county of Norfolk. Topics comprise swine, cannibalism and illegal migrants.

My Review: Frank Pinch is a butcher, his brother Tom a pig farmer. The siblings have a problem. Their dilapidated family farm is struggling financially and under threat of closure due to …(more)

Knockemstiff by Donald Ray Pollock

Knockemstiff is a transgressive compilation of short stories. Topics include drugs, drinking, disease and sexual degeneracy.

Tomorrow’s World: Darkly Humorous Tales by Guy Portman

The book’s subjects encompass manic capitalism, extreme celebrity worship, virtual reality and a grotesquely ageing population.

My Plans For 2019

Jan 04 2019

Happy New Year everyone.

‘May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions.’ – Joey Adams

This, my first blog post of 2019, is about my plans for this year. With regards writing, I plan to release my sixth book later this year. I released two in 2018 (Sepultura & Tomorrow’s World). Golgotha will be the third and final instalment in the Necropolis Trilogy. It will feature suave sociopath Dyson Devereux. The first part, Necropolis, has 100+ reviews on Goodreads. Part two, Sepultura, was released last year. If you like dark humour you’ll love the Necropolis trilogy.

A sociopath can only keep up a façade for so long.

Sepultura Goodreads link.

As for other plans, I have some freelance writing work to get on with, and then there’s the reading. Here are a couple of books I want to read this year.

If you are looking for some more reading recommendations and you haven’t seen it already, check out – The 20 books I read in 2018. I have written a review of each. Happy New Year.

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The 5 Books I’ve Read Recently

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The Books I Read In 2019

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5 Darkly Humorous Reading Recommendations

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Another Week Bites The Dust

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The 10 Books I’ve Read In 2019

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6 Dark Fiction Reading Recommendations

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6 Books for 6 Moods

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6 Dark Humour Reading Recommendations

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My Plans For 2019

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