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Drinking Midnight Wine by Simon R. Green Pub: Gollancz. 328 page paperback. Price: £
6.99(UK). ISBN: 0-575-07297-0. Check out website: www.orionbooks.co.uk
The plot revolves around a mortal human, more specifically a bookshop assistant with a talent for self-pity and panic. As he is introduced it actually seems as though Green is doing
everything he can to make you dislike 'focal point' Toby Dexter.
'Toby was still looking for a role to play that interested him;
something to live for, to give his life purpose and meaning. He
didn't know what he needed, only what he didn't want, and so he
drifted through his life, sometimes employed and sometimes not,
achieving nothing, going nowhere. Knowing that his life was slipping
away like sand through his fingers, but somehow unable to do anything
about it.' Most of the first chapter is filled with such musing and although you may be able to identify with some of his life's problems (particularly if you're from the UK), it is quite irritating. This is surely deliberate as every character in the book is fully fleshed with both good and bad character traits. Madness, violent tendencies, lust, cowardice, sarcasm and downright
rudeness all appear prominently amongst the eclectic cast of entities
that dwell in Green's Bradford-on-Avon. At the end of the first chapter, everything improves dramatically. Toby exits a train with a woman who has 'the most perfect mouth in the world' and follows her accidentally into Mysterie - a world almost identical to Veritie (the real world) but filled with 'marvels and wonders, banes and malignancies.' When he goes outside the next day, the streets are oddly filled
with classic cars but it is not until his cashpoint gives him a
flurry of free money because it likes his face that he starts to
suspect something very strange is afoot… As it turns out, Toby Dexter does have a purpose. The annoying
thing for him is that no one seems to know exactly what it is. Pitched against some gloriously evil villains with abilities and
fondness for causing death, Toby is thrown into a chaotic re-exploration
of his home town and reality. The old Chapel is still in its normal
position but it now contains the 'Howling Thing'. Carys Galloway
is still sitting in her usual place in the Dandy Lion Pub, but she
has another name and claims to have lived for centuries. The brilliant thing about this book is that all the main action
takes place over the course of a single day. This enhances the pressure
and gives you no time to pause and question the events unfolding
in this inventive fantasy. The dialogue is snappy, the characters are colourful and it all
blends to create a very entertaining whole. Toby, Gayle, Jimmy Thunder,
Angel and the other lead characters are unforgettable. The supporting
cast including the Death-Walkers are just as memorable, contributing
to the bizarre atmosphere of Mysterie by their presence even if
they are irrelevant to the central plot. Do not be fooled into thinking this is a lightweight book just
because it is humorous. It is an intelligent and well-crafted text
containing many references to Euro-centric folklore and history.
It doesn't lose any pace until after the conclusion - scenes without
ferocious battle sequences contain quick and vivid conversations,
conspiracy theories and narration. If I were to criticise any aspects, they would be very minor indeed.
The repeated generalisation that all single men live in filth is
simply not true. In addition, the cover illustration did not seem
to match the author's descriptions of the characters depicted. Very
small points though, which do not detract from this being a great
read. Toby is warned that 'it's a dangerous thing, to be a mortal man in a world of magic' but I found it fascinating. I couldn't put the book down for long after I started reading it and will heartily recommend it to my friends. If you enjoyed Neil Gaiman's 'Neverwhere', you should not miss
this book! Lucy A.E. Ward
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OTHER REVIEWS - November 2002
Other Reviews: November 2002 Books Forests Of The Heart by Charles De Lint Maps: The Uncollected John Sladek edited by David Langford The Last Hero (A Discworld Fable) by Terry Pratchett and illustrated by Paul Kidby The Frank Collection: A Showcase Of The World's Finest Fantastic Art by Jane and Howard Frank Blood And Honour by Simon R. Green Prowlers by Christopher Golden Prowlers: Laws Of Nature by Christopher Golden Star Trek Star Charts: The Complete Atlas Of Star Trek written and illustrated by Geoffrey Mandel Angel: Endangered Species by Nancy Holder and Jeff Mariotte The Hobbit Companion by David Day and illustrated by Lidia Postma Bodies: His Photographic Art by Boris Vallejo Drinking Midnight Wine by Simon R. Green TV series
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After
a very mundane start, this novel escalates into a fast-paced and
darkly amusing tale. 
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