All reviews are written by members of The H2G2 Bookworm's Club. We hope this review is helpful, and that we'll see you airing your views at the Club soon.

Dead Air was something of a revelation to this researcher. Iain Banks has been writing extremely popular books for some time and has a huge fan base. However, I found one of his most widely acclaimed books, The Wasp Factory, extremely difficult to get in to. As a result I never bothered to try any of his other novels until I was stuck in a hotel with no reading material. Somebody lent me Dead Air and I reluctantly started to read. Several hours later I was still thoroughly engrossed.

The book begins at a party being held on the roof of a block of loft apartments. We are introduced to the main protagonist, Ken Nott, a grouchy, militantly left-wing shock-jock, who in his boredom begins to launch first ice-cubes and then fruit into the car park below. Soon everyone has joined in and most of the contents of the flat are crashing to the ground. Suddenly everyone's mobile phones begin to ring. The world has changed - a plane has hit the World Trade Centre in New York. The attack is not commented on except as a topic for discussion on Ken's radio show, so it could be seen as something incidental to place the book at a specific point in time. However, I believe the author has used this scene as a parallel with Ken's personal life – unsuspecting and slightly bored, he is fairly happy until a woman smashes into his life and things can never be the same again.

Ken is an engaging, believable character, likeable but flawed, and definitely not your typical 'hero'. He drinks too much, uses drugs, is extremely anti-establishment, with a deep moral streak that he tries (and sometimes fails) to live up to. There is a nice contrast between his social and personal morality when it comes to relationships – he could fairly be described as a bit of a cad with the ladies. The supporting cast are interesting and varied, and we learn a little more about Ken through all his significant relationships.

To back up the excellent characterisation, the plot is simple but licks along at a fair pace as Ken's life is threatened and his chaotic existence is shaken up further. This is superb storytelling and has encouraged this researcher to try more of Iain Bank's work in the future.

The Bookworm Club Review Archive

Review written by fatkelli

08.04.04 Front Page

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