"Faulks' latest effort will make you laugh, make you cry. It will make you gasp, make you sigh. It will frustrate, but will excite. In the end though, it will be a sheer delight."
Daring to be ambitious, Sebastian Faulk's novel attempts to deal with far reaching themes and issues which plagues society today, The very fact that Faulks have written previous novels such as 'The Girl at the Lion D'or', 'Birdsong' and 'Charlotte Gray', which were all set in France, reveals Faulks to be a bold author; not content with writing within himself, he traverses' across new pastures by removing himself from his comfort zone and setting this novel in contemporary London.
This decision alone should be applauded as it could potentially spell disaster if it were to go wrong. Thankfully though, it doesn't.
Opening with a rather modest beginning, Faulks delicately leads the reader into his novel, with an overview of London. He evokes images of London's famous football teams, Arsenal, West Ham and Chelsea; and the soon-to-be iconic Westfield shopping district. It seems inviting as we are immediately drawn into the novel through the relevant nature of it.
However it isn't the aesthetics which is of most interest, but the emotions and characters within them that is. In this opening chapter, we read a touching, short segment whereby the scene of a 'solitary woman' pays her respects to her deceased grandfather. Whilst it may be a passing event in the novel, the incident belies its stay acting as a subtle indication of Faulks' ability to touch and move even the most coldest of hearts.
The novel charts the daily lives of various characters during a week in December: Gabriel Northwood, John Veals, Jenni Fortune, Vanessa Veals, R. Tranter, Hassan al-Rashid, Farooq Al-Rashid, Amanda Malpasse and 'Spike' Borowski.
Whilst treated separately, the stories of each of these characters, bar two, eventually converge together under one place, the fabled dinner table. This is handled by Sophie Topping, the wife of the recently elected MP, who is holding a big dinner for her husbands' political party.
It is at the dinner where the sparks fly, with Roger Malpasse, Amanda Malpasse's husband, verbally attacking John Veals, the hedge fund manager for the debt that they are running up. He exposes Veals, and other bankers as selfish, detached and morally incorrect individuals - announcing that "the little tossers will be the only ones who won't pay back a coin".
In truth, one can observe Roger Malpasse as acting as one of Faulks' mouthpieces in the novel. He challenges John Veals, and bankers in general for being irresponsible with their handling of money. Indeed, Veals himself acknowledges what we all thought to be true, by explaining that they do it because they are a 'bunch of cunts'.
Faulks does nothing to shatter this image too as Veals is described as a joyless character - it is extremely rare to see or read about him laughing. He is depicted as a man who has little interests that extend beyond the point of making money. He hardly partakes any hobbies, parties or holidays. Doesn't live an especially extravagant lifestyle, and most shockingly of all; regards his family as nothing more than objects. It almost seems as if he lives a life removed from his family, highlighted by the separate dialogues between him and his wife.
Hassan al-Rashid, is similar to this as he plays the role of a young adult, disillusioned with the Western world. The son of Farooq 'Knocker' al-Rashid, the founder of the pickle empire; Hassan struggles to find identity and joy during his teenage years. Like Veals, Hassan relationship with his family is fractured. He argues with his father over the possibility of a true Muslim state, whilst also shunning his mothers advances to rekindle their close relationship from long ago.
He yearns for belonging, which attracts him to an extremist group hell bent on wreaking havoc and destruction. This culminates in him playing an integral role in a terrorist act of titanic proportions. Whether this is carried out remains to be seen as Hassan goes through a rollercoaster ride of emotions, confiding in his close friend and 'non believer' Shahla.
It is these moments which really make the novel stand out. Hassan's discussions with Shala are both insightful and witty; probing the credibility of supposed Islamic states such as Saudi Arabia, and, in a repeat of his argument with his father, the tangibility of an true Islamic state ever existing.
At the opposite end of the spectrum is Gabriel Northwood. Here is a character who, unlike most of Faulks' other creations, does not conform to stereotypes. He may be a lawyer, but as Gabriel accurately describes himself, this doesn't automatically make him wealthy. In fact, he is struggling to make ends meet, barely being able to pay for a night out with his client, Jenni Fortune.
What Gabriel may lack in financial status, he more than makes up for in character. He is, perhaps, Faulks' favourite character, with most work being done on describing him. Gabriel is observant, intelligent and learned. He, like his client, and eventual girlfriend, have had troubles of the past. They have both had experienced relationships which have damaged them.
In Gabriel's case, it was with a married woman called Catalina, the wife of a diplomat. Having initially met through a charity dinner, and at Catalina's persistence, they kept in touched, and ended up in an affair. He reflects on their relationship as a moment of bliss, where he fell in love. He savoured every moment of her, and in his own words, 'made the evening worth living for, the day worth rising to greet'.
What she brought in was happiness in an otherwise downcast life. Yet, his love was bordering on obsession, which prompted Gabriel to tearfully break off his ties with her.
Without a doubt, Gabriel is the stand out character. We cannot help but root for him as he plays the role of the underdog. There is so much going for him; intelligence, charm, and a sense of humour; but as is the tragic case, he leads a pedestrian life. Believing that books are the key to understanding life; what he doesn't notice is that he fails to put the lessons learned and apply them in reality. Had he done so, then perhaps he would've led a happier lifestyle.
Perhaps what makes him most likeable is that the we can relate to him. Just like him, we have all had periods where we have had to let go of those people or things closest to us. We all have some form of untapped potential that is just waiting to be noticed by potential suitors,but as is the case, these opportunities ever rarely come round, and even rarer are they taken up.
Faulks may not bring anything new to the table, playing towards the usual preconceptions that bankers are filled with greed and terrorists are marginalised sections of society. Even the portrayal of Gabriel follows this path for he is ultimately limited to the image others have of him. As early as the beginning, he is termed to be melancholy by Sophie Topping. And as we all know too very well; first impressions count.
In addition to contemporary themes such as extremism, greed and loss, there are small inklings of class divide.
Judging from the the intertwined narratives of wealthy characters such as the Veals, the Malpasses, the al-Rashids, and contrast this with those of Gabriel Northwood, Jenni Fortune, we begin to see that they are each treated separately - with the upper classes taking up more reading space than the lower classes, perhaps postulating the belief that those better off are viewed as the more predominant members of society. In addition Faulks begins to subtly reveal another issue surrounding society today.
He goes as far as to reveal that the affluent treat those below with scorn, with the rule set as: 'a billion or bugger all'.
The novel suffers from being plagued by a large cast of characters. For instance we find ourselves following the narratives of characters such as Amanda Malpasse and Jenni Fortune. Yet unlike John Veals, Gabriel Northwood or Hassan al-Rashid, they are only described what is otherwise a fleeting moment. Faulks fails to develop these characters properly, with the most glaring error being found in Roger Malpasse, Faulk's voice-piece for the public. Meaning we fail to fully resonate with him during his speech towards the end of the novel where he exposes the greed of bankers, making what should be a major talking point into just a minor tone.
The pacing of the novel is also another let-down. An example would be Ralph Tranter, the book reviewer in the novel, whilst initially intriguing and interesting due to his hilarious put downs of other modern authors; one cannot help but feel whether his place at certain points are relevant. When the novel is concerned with the wider issues such as terrorism, and is reaching a pivotal part, Faulks suddenly veers off track to switch the narrative to Tranter. To be discussing serious problems at one moment, to then instantly change it to more comedic matters, serves to break the flow. Making it harder to enjoy, appreciate and absorb their stories resulting in there being greater difficulty to following the on-running themes throughout.
Yet such is the majesty of Faulks' writing, his ability to describe his characters, his skill in conveying a convincing and compelling storyline that all these faults are overshadowed and can be overlooked. It may not be as refreshing as hoped, but then again, how could it when we live in an age where we are fed news 24/7?
4/5
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