AUTOPSY

This is business as usual from Patricia Cornwell’s later Scarpetta novels - Kay Scarpetta is rude and arrogant and better than everyone, all men are potential rapists and/or murderers, there is endless product placement padding out the narrative, and all the supporting characters have many annoying characteristics to make Scarpetta look better. Oh, and Scarpetta judges and looks down on practically everybody. 

The book begins with a simple murder case and ends up bordering on science-fiction. The storyline is faintly ludicrous and makes me think that Cornwell had two separate but incomplete but incongruous storylines lying around the house and decided to mash them together to make a full-length book. Everything is connected, of course, but it is a slog getting there. 

Cornwell makes sure to reference the zeitgeist with mentions of the pandemic and the inclusion of a female Vice President, the latter presumably included so Cornwell could highlight the fact that she isn’t the actual President. Yes, the President, because Scarpetta is eventually called to the White House to investigate an incident in space. I think Patricia has been reading a few too many James Patterson books; there is even a drawing of the White House on the frontispiece, and quite probably the cover. 

If you’ve read earlier Scarpetta novels then you’ll be used to the first-person narrative and clinical tone. Whilst the book is competently written, the constant criticism of other characters from Scarpetta’s point of view grates after a while. I get the impression that Cornwell wants to turn Scarpetta into a world-saving heroine, which does not suit the character and actually does her a disservice. My mother’s rather more succinct review of the book declared it to be “a bit far-fetched”. It certainly is, and doesn’t match the quality of the early Scarpetta novels.

THE HEEDING

"The Heeding" is an excellent collection of thirty-five poems by Rob Cowen, written during and inspired by the pandemic of 2020 and hauntingly Illustrated by Nick Hayes with drawings which sometimes lean towards "folk horror". although the poems themselves don't fall into this category.

After an incredibly well-written and moving introduction, the visceral opening poem, “Duel”, tells of a battle between a hawk and a rat - 

“Then it bends to rip out a strip

of glistening purple gut

and swallows the lot”

This poem is a statement of intent for what we can expect from the poetry going forward. Nature is raw and brutal, and its power and indifference is exposed in these verses, and some form of bird or creature or element of the natural world is always present in each poem. However, isolation also leads to a renewed appreciation of nature. Capturing the seemingly hopeless days of lockdown perfectly- the boredom of isolation, the separation from loved ones, the constant barrage of demoralizing news. The reference to discarded face masks littering the streets resonated strongly.

There are some very affecting lines - “Hell of a thing to be afraid of air.", and on the whole these are emotional verses, but there is humour too, in particular in “Lovers”, which tells of two young people caught in the act late at night - 

"Now, reasons for being outside are concrete-set:

A form of exercise? Well, you might argue that.

He was certainly burning calories down there, 

Pants round his ankles, backside bare.” 

Elsewhere, we get tales of first love and lost love, but the realities of the pandemic are ever-present shadows - 

“Passing her on the street, a couple

automatically swerve six feet.”

The shocking “Black Ant”, in which the author tries, but fails, to help a trapped ant, rams home the inevitability, and in some ways, the futility, of life, but the final poem, "Duel Part II", brings us full circle and gives us hope that we should keep trying - 

"Death? Inevitable, yes, but not yet.

Or not today, at least." 

"Lockdown poetry" will no doubt become a new genre in its own right, a kind of alternative written history of the pandemic, and "The Heeding" is one of the best examples I've read this year. There is death in these poems, but they also implore us to take heed of the natural world, each other and our relationship to it, and to hope for better times to come. 

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THE RED PLANET | A NATURAL HISTORYOF MARS

Simon Morden is a science fiction writer by trade (and a PhD in Geophysics) and he brings those skills to bear brilliantly on this non-fiction “biography” of our mysterious sister planet, Mars.

The red planet poses many questions - Why is the northern half of the planet significantly lower than the southern half? What happened to its atmosphere? Where did all the water go? Simon Morden answers, or in some cases, attempts to, all these questions, and more. 

But this is no dry textbook - the opening chapter is stirring and evocative, describing dawn on Mars as “you” - us, the reader as intrepid astronaut? - explore the planet in a rickety rover. Other excursions await you sporadically throughout the book, on water and ice.

Morden takes us on a journey from Mars’ earliest beginnings in the nascent solar system right up to the present day and speculates on what the next 100-200 years might entail for Mars. Relating the multilayered history of Mars he lets the planet tell its own, ambiguous story. Deftly explaining the various Martian features and their colourful names, Morden quickly makes you feel like you could pass yourself off as an expert on the red planet. Chapters are short and snappy even though they relate a story across billions of years. Shorn of waffle, Morden keeps the information concise and digestible. 

Thanks to Morden’s skills as a fiction writer, this book is a comfortably easy read; quite the page-turner in fact. It deals with some very complicated science but you barely notice. It is a complete(ish) history of Mars, insofar as such a thing could exist, and is a joy to read. I’ve read a lot of books about Mars but Simon Morden’s effort has become one of my favourites.

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BORN IN LOCKDOWN

The trials and hardships of Covid lockdown are all too recognisable in this satisfying volume of poetry by Tolu’ A. Akinyemi - the silence, the boredom, the stress and uncertainty. A narrative theme can be discerned throughout the verses; strained marriages, financial difficulties and loss - all recognisable fallout from the pandemic. Akinyemi also touches on the political consequences and “anti-vax” conspiracy theories. Not your average subjects for poetry, I grant you, but it all works. 

Poems vary in length and effectiveness but one very powerful poem is entitled “F*ck - F*cking 2020” which begins - 

“How do we scrub 2020 from our history books? 

How do we f*ck it off 

as a one-off?”

This is followed by a short declaration of intent called simply “F*ck 2020” which consists of just these two lines - 

“Rollback the years, f*ck 

twenty-twenty. Wipe out the 

               scars that blurred the year.”

  

Some of the best poems are short, brutal verbal assaults, while others are longer but no less bruising. “Passports” in particular resonated with me -

“My left arm carries so much weight

and immunity.”

Been there, done that. 

As you would expect, several poems contain (and often repeat) the word “pandemic”. To my ears, this sounds like the least poetically versatile word ever. It is neither lyrical nor elegant; but maybe that’s the point. Sometimes it works, as in the case of “Stories” - 

“Paint this pandemic what it was - 

a sordid misadventure”

This doesn’t harm the poems themselves, but it becomes rather repetitive. But then I suppose we’re all sick of that particular word. 

Nobody has ever published a book of poetry entirely filled with superb odes, but while this volume has its share of unsuccessful poems, there are enough to make it a worthwhile read. I think Akinyemi is a better poet when he’s angry. He cuts very close to the bone at times and the world of lockdown he evokes will be painfully familiar to everyone. These poems are a worthy and satisfying record of one of the hardest years in human history.

MY BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021 - BLACKLAND

“2044 in the year of our Lord”.

A race war between white and black America, precipitated by the assassination of the second black US President, has escalated to the use of nuclear weapons by the white army. Elsewhere (“elsewhen”?) an unemployed artist Jason Williams resolves to build the first African-American hydrogen bomb - the “Boom Shakalaka”. Or, at least, he builds the idea of “Da Bomb”; in this metaphysical masterpiece, nothing is really real - “the only thing that was real was that everything was FAKE”.

Exploring the logistics and possible consequences of his plan over the course of the story, while the overarching narrative brutally examines the Black experience, leads Jason to suddenly wake up in the fabled “Blackland”, a country without any white people, where he comes under the mentorship of one M. B. Asia, with whom he has an epic philosophical debate on the way to Liberty City, the seemingly Utopian capital city of Blackland. This leads to a darkly comic Kafka-esque meeting with the hidden security forces, and just when you think the book can’t get any better, the deeply profound ending takes your breath away.

I realise I am ineptly describing the plot because any attempt to describe this stunning book is doomed to failure. Sci-fi? Not really. The postmodern “Roots”? Possibly. I was not prepared for this book. A sentence towards the end of Chapter 5 nearly made me faint. There’s so much truth in this book, it’s almost painful. Prepare to be knocked senseless on every page.

Full of relentless energy and written in the kinetic, fluid, dense language of Black America, this is a powerful and vital work about the Black experience in a future USA, yet still recognisable as the world we live in now. A howl against racist “Amerikkka”, it is satirical, self-referential and fourth-wall shattering. But also very funny. “Blackland” is the Black “Ulysses” - it even ends with “Un huh”, a postmodern reinvention of Molly Bloom’s final, exultant “Yes”. According to the closing author’s note, “Blackland” took twenty-five years to write; I can think of no better way to spend a quarter of a century. This is a work to be read and read again. If this book isn’t declared a masterpiece, there’s no justice in the world. Which is what the book is actually about.

THE MAKING OF TOMB RAIDER

If you trembled with terror as the T-Rex thundered towards you, prayed you would reach the end of a level with only a sliver of health or tried to lock the elderly butler in the freezer, then this rigorous unofficial history of the birth of Tomb Raider and its sequel is the book for you. 

I vividly remember loading up Tomb Raider for the first time and being dumbstruck by its atmosphere and realism. It cost around £40 which was a fortune back in 1997, but I still have it and play it. This was something nobody had seen before; it required an entirely new sklllset from the player. The freedom of movement, though limited by today’s standards, was mind blowing. Once it clicked, I lost hours of my life inside its world. 

Released in the time of the Spice Girls, Tony Blair and Britpop, Tomb Raider quickly became a global phenomenon. Author Daryl Baxter has interviewed every member of the creative team behind the games (including Lara’s voice artists) and vigorously verified every fact so this is the definitive, true story. The book is richly illustrated with iconic images from the games and rare, original drawings of schematic outlines for the levels. There is plenty of detail on the technology used to code the game and also a chapter on the music and its composer. 

Very much a nostalgia-fest for anyone who loves the game, the book reminds the reader of a simpler time when video games were made by talented amateurs rather than money-driven committees. It is a book written by a fan for fans, and is a joy to read. 

S.O.E. IN DENMARK

This concise history of SOE operations in Denmark is split into two parts, the first being an historical narrative of the creation and operation of the Danish SOE organisation, and the second being a series of appendices which go into greater detail about the SOE agents, a rundown of the wireless communications between Denmark and the UK, air and sea operations etc. 

There is also a particularly satisfying section on the various acts of sabotage carried out by the Danish Resistance. The story of this important yet largely unknown chapter of World War II is told lucidly and without sensationalism; written by an unknown Staff Officer in SOE’s Danish Section prior to disbandment in 1946, it is a vital addition to the history of SOE and the canon of wartime history.

MAYBE I DON'T BELONG HERE

 

Actor David Harewood pulls no punches in his autobiography in which he shares the formative events of his life that led to psychotic episodes after becoming an actor, and which ultimately led to him being sectioned twice. Harewood writes in such a friendly, conversational style that is so easy to read that it makes his harrowing depiction of the psychotic episodes that much more effecting. He is completely open about his breakdown and hopes that the book will encourage others, especially Black people, to overcome the stigma of mental health and seek help. 

He vividly describes his early childhood and an early life-changing experience of racist abuse in which his psyche is “split” into two separate personas, English and Black. This is juxtaposed with scenes of a warm and loving family life, his love of the TV comedians of the time and the rarity of seeing a black actor on television at the time. This is something I remember myself from growing up, and he paints a very familiar picture of late ‘60s, early ‘70s Britain. Soon David finds himself assimilating into the “white space”. His happy school life, in which he evolved to be the class clown, changes when his father is sectioned following a breakdown. Harewood sees similarities in the drastic changes both he and his father had to undergo through living in England and admits “the white space had taken its toll on both of us”. His parents later divorce also causes the young David a great deal of pain and confusion. 

We share his initial euphoria at becoming an actor which soon ends in a haze of alcohol and drug use due to psychological pressure from another actor. The title of the book is a phrase that Harewood keeps saying to himself as he struggles with his identity and feels rejected even by the “Black space” - “maybe I don’t belong here”.

It is around this time in his life when, David admits, his mind begins to unravel. He vividly describes his manic episodes where he would take walks late at night, wavering between periods of lucidity and psychosis, and often wake up the next morning in completely unfamiliar surroundings. The most extreme psychotic event results in him being arrested after believing the voice of Martin Luther King was in his head, directing him, and ends with David being sectioned twice and admitted to a psychiatric hospital. The chapter on this, entitled “The Ward”, is heartbreaking, and on the (probably unwise) advice of his brother he decides to “act normal” to get out of the hospital. Eventually, through sheer resilience, he is able to restart his acting career and to finally find inner peace while playing parts all over the world, which would ultimately lead to him starring in the show “Homeland”. He admits that his illness has given him a resilience to survive in the acting business and that it possibly shook “some of the bullshit” out of him. 

The book also touches on Harewood’s shock at discovering the disproportionate amount of black people in the mental health system in the UK. A 2019/2020 survey discovered that “Black and minority people suffer elevated rates of psychosis and schizophrenia compared with white people”. This leads to Harewood making his acclaimed BBC documentary, “Psychosis and Me”, in which he finally learns the real truth about how ill he had been during his breakdown and the production is a profoundly moving experience for him. 

This is a raw and honest book about being Black, (Harewood capitalises the word throughout) and about what it means to be Black with mental health problems. The book is refreshingly free of “luvviness”; Harewood necessarily mentions the famous actors he has worked with, but he never loses his starstruck amazement at meeting people like Al Pacino. He bemoans the greater opportunities for Black actors in the USA compared to the UK; pointing this out once got him into a bit of trouble. David Harewood’s book is heartbreaking yet hopeful, and I read it in one sitting. 

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ALEISTER CROWLEY'S FOUR BOOKS OF MAGICK

 

“Mr. Crowley, what went on in your head?”

Show-off, womaniser, charmer, the wickedest man in England or just a bit of a prat? The jury on Aleister Crowley has been out for decades, but now this welcome collection of his work may help to rehabilitate him.

History has forgotten Crowley’s “distinctly original contributions” to the study of yoga in the West, and his many mountaineering records, some of which still stand today, in favour of the “sexier” stuff. Stephen Skinner’s excellent, lucid and often funny introduction to this definitive collection of the four Parts that make up Crowley’s “Book Four” magnum opus is worth the asking price alone. There is also a timeline of Crowley’s life which shows he packed in enough action to fill several lifetimes, but there is also a clear decline as age and hard times caught up with him. Skinner also examines how Crowley’s attempt to start his own religion, Thelema, and how it came to obsess him.

I’ve never swam so deep in AC’s world before so I appreciate the guiding hand of author Stephen Skinner; an expert in the world of magic and a Crowley admirer, but unafraid to be critical when needed. The four books are presented in their original form with new footnotes where necessary. The author has also moved certain original appendices around so that they are now grouped by type, rather than Crowley’s own often haphazard system. This collection is a welcome (and successful) attempt to simplify Crowley’s work and to present it as a coherent whole.

Crowley’s work is, to the uninitiated (and possibly even to the initiated) utterly impenetrable nonsense. True, some of it was Crowley’s own invention which he added in for show, and he was not averse to “fiddling the numbers” to make his Kabbalah calculations work better. But, as Skinner explains, Crowley’s desire was to modernise magic and to explain it in scientific terms, thus making it accessible to the masses.

I vividly recall buying a copy of “Magick” back in the early 90s, feeling quite naughty and being convinced I’d be able to summon up demons in no time, but utterly failing to make any sense of the bizarre words and weird diagrams within.  Unsurprisingly, I still can’t get anything out of Crowley’s work but thanks to Skinner’s lucid annotation I can at least get the basic gist, and I’m truly glad that this collection exists. This volume will be of great benefit to the reader who is already well-versed in the subject matter.

A reappraisal of Aleister Crowley is long overdue, and this erudite, definitive work is the best of all possible starts.

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THE CABINET

Prepare to meet people who drink gasoline, eat steel and chew newspapers, and a man who has a ginkgo tree growing on one of his fingers. They are known as “symptomers”; people who display the symptoms of a new evolution of the human species. Their records are stored in Cabinet 13, looked after by a Mr. Kong and his boss, Professor Kwon. The story introduces us to some of the colourful characters who are documented within the Cabinet and their singular situations. “Torporers” sleep for abnormally long periods, “memory mosaicers” can edit or delete unpleasant memories and “time skippers” lose long periods of their lives in an instant. 

And then there are the troublesome, complaining daily phone calls from the symptomers. A persistent non-symptomer, Mr. Hwang, who wants to be turned into a cat to be with the woman he loves, calls everyday. Mr. Kong deals with these bizarre people everyday in a secret area of the lab where he works at a virtually non-existent job. Office politics and interpersonal relationships also play a major part in his daily working life. Eventually, Mr. Kong and the future of the Cabinet and the symptomers are threatened by sinister forces. 

There is much to enjoy in the dry humour and bureaucratic silliness of this book but it has a serious side too, with an especially shocking yet darkly funny ending. Korean author Un-su Kim has crafted an absurdly wonderful world of unique individuals and characters. These people are usually greatly troubled, even tortured by their abilities. Beautifully written and translated, funny, tender and sometimes tragic, “The Cabinet” is an offbeat dose of Korean quirkiness and is one of the best books I’ve read all year.

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THE KING'S PAINTER | THE LIFE AND TIMES OF HANS HOLBEIN

A mere text review couldn’t possibly do this amazing piece of work justice. If one were to judge it only on the painstakingly detailed research that must’ve gone into the text itself it would require a thesaurus-full of synonyms for “good”, but there’s the illustrations as well. Double-page spreads adorn the beginning of each chapter (see photo), and lush, detailed reproductions of Holbein’s (and his contemporaries) works make every page they appear on a joy to behold. There’s even a bookmark ribbon.

Hans Holbein is most famous for painting portraits of Henry VIII, his wives and various members of his court, but there is much more to him. Against the backdrop of the rise of Martin Luther and Protestantism, Holbein follows in his father’s footsteps and forges a career as one of most accomplished and sought after artists of his generation in his hometown of Basel. His ability opened doors to the great and the good of the day. Despite the upheavals that that era of history is known for, and his exemplary skills as an artist notwithstanding, one could argue that Holbein was definitely in the right place at the right time as the arts flourished in the early to mid-15th century.

This is one of most enjoyable history books I’ve ever read. Author Franny Moyle writes in an easy and accessible way - I wish she’d been around when I did my A-Level history! It’s not only the story of Holbein but also a history of the Tudor dynasty, and the rise and fall of its prominent players. Henry VIII’s excesses are laid bare and will no doubt draw comparisons with certain modern-day politicians. The everyday lives of historical people are so vividly brought to life that you feel like a fly on the wall - how wonderful would it have been to visit Sir Thomas More in his heyday? Or Erasmus? These historical legends come alive in this book. For scholars and lovers of Tudor history this book is essential.

As sumptuous and detailed as a Holbein painting, this stunning title must be a serious contender for book of the year. It’s without doubt one of the best history books ever written, and the definitive work on Hans Holbein.

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HEALING IS THE NEW HIGH

Having experienced past and ongoing pain and trauma over the passing of a family member, I have tried countless books that claim to be able to show you how to heal and move on, and the vast majority of them are worthless.

After being given a copy of Vex King’s “Good Vibes, Good Life”by a friend, I read it cover to cover and I knew that here was someone who actually cares and isn’t just out to make money. Other books never actually tell you how to become achieve the goals they’re selling you, but Vex is different. I couldn’t wait for his new book when it was announced; it’s exactly what I’ve been looking for. Finally we have a book that guides you while being packed with honest and insightful perspectives by a person who cares because they’ve been through the same traumatic experiences.

Like Vex’s previous work, this new book is so relatable, it puts into words the feelings that I was unable to explain. It understands me more than I do myself, and is teaching me that I should accept myself as I am...and this is the key to inner peace. It also stresses the importance of balance; a key aspect which is changing the way I look at things.

Being the type of person that doesn't speak up when something isn’t okay with them, instead preferring to push it down, I never feel as if my opinion is important because I always choose a quiet life over any kind of confrontation or analysis. This book is giving me the confidence in myself to speak up and seek help when necessary.

Vex has developed inner healing techniques to help him find freedom and heal his emotional pain, and anyone can use these techniques to achieve the same results. As the blurb says, you don’t need to “go on a retreat or spend large amounts of money to find happiness” - it’s all here for you in this book.

The techniques Vex has created encourage inner healing and are already helping me find freedom from the painful experiences of my past. After finding out a little more about him on his social media etc, I was not surprised to discover that Vex has helped countless people to begin their own healing journey and to move forward with their lives. He guides you through the layers of the self, using yogic principles and unique practices. These techniques are simple, accessible and have the power to produce exceptional results, and you don’t have to be some kind of mystic guru or pop up a mountain to do them!

The book is aptly named, because going through this process and finding release from your inner pain really is like a high-the feeling of freedom is addictive! Taking charge of your inner healing is one of the best things you can do for yourself. I already feel happier and more at peace in the short time I’ve been using this book. In the long run I expect to fully heal and move forward with my life which up until now had been stuck in a rut of misery and self-loathing, hardly helped by the last year. And by being a happier person I will be able to share some of that happiness in my everyday life, and create space to welcome more joyful experiences into my life. You can do the same.

The printed book is lavishly presented and is a high-quality item, filled with stunning photographs and drawings, and is written in language that is easy to understand.

To put it simply, this book is working for me. I fully believe it will help you too, but everybody is different, and you have to want to begin the healing process. It is already helping me, and it will help you too if you open yourself to it. This book is teaching me self worth and confidence in myself, and I highly recommend it.

THE RIGHT SORT OF GIRL

"I’m a girl and northern and brown, didn’t you know? A triple threat!”

Three things which I, and probably most people, view with complete indifference, but which Anita seems to be daring us to take issue with in her autobiography. This doesn’t bode well - please don’t judge me, Anita, just get on with telling your story.

I’ve always quite liked (or at least, not entirely hated) Anita Rani as an amiable and chirpy Northern presenter on this and that, but it’s unsurprising that Anita’s book treads very familiar paths. Not fitting in as a child, check; coming to terms with her race, check; things she wished she could tell her younger self, check. All the tried and tested elements of a 21st Century biography are present then, but, ultimately, she just isn’t that interesting. The sections on her television career pass the time but offer no major revelations and are very much of the “Asian woman struggling to succeed in a white male-centric world.” All very modern and boring. The glowing quotes from “celebrity” readers call this book inspirational; but one man’s “inspirational” is another man’s “banal".

This a very safe, Guardian Books-friendly tome with absolutely nothing out of the ordinary within its pages. If you like Anita Rani then you’ll probably like her book as it contains nothing that will put you off her - it’s just that nice Anita Rani “off the telly” talking about herself.

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ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD

The first work of written fiction by Quentin Tarantino is, to all intents and purposes, a novelisation of his movie “Once Upon A Time…In Hollywood”. And, thank the Gods, it is exactly what you would expect a Tarantino movie to be like…but in word form.

The physical appearance of the book is important - it is meant to resemble a 1970s-era mass-market paperback, the sort of cheap book you used to find in an American supermarket (and possibly still do for all I know). It looks and feels like a cheap book - which is what it’s meant to be. Pulp fiction, to coin a phrase.

For those who have seen it, the book version of a washed-up TV star differs from the film in several ways, which I won’t spoil, but there is a new, terrifying scene involving one of Charles Manson’s cronies. Elsewhere, QT digs deep into Manson’s failed but weirdly promising music career and stuntman Cliff Booth’s backstory is filled in. Also, Tarantino indulges himself with excellent passages about acting, B movies, sex scenes in films, foreign movies etc. You can tell he enjoyed writing this book.

Tarantino is not out to impress us with the intricacy of his sentences or the nuance of his psychological insights - he is not out to endear himself to Guardian readers. This is grossly funny and often violent book, and Tarantino writes (and films) some of the best/worst violence out there. It is sophisticated but rough. If he’d written it better, he’d have written it worse. It’s a mass-market paperback that reeks of mass-market paperbacks, and is all the better for it.

Better than the film? Possibly. It certainly doesn’t defame it by existing. It expands the story in a way that does it visceral justice. Tarantino has defied expectations (mine included) by writing a page-turner that is brutally titillating, shockingly salacious and quite, quite brilliant.

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BOMBSHELL | THE NIGHT BOBBY KENNEDY KILLED MARILYN MONROE

“In life [Marilyn] could be anybody or anything you wanted her to be. Her ending came when she became trouble.”

Mike Rothmiller knows who killed Marilyn Monroe - it was Bobby Kennedy, and in this book he will tell you how he knows that she was silenced to prevent her going public with details of her affairs with the Kennedy brothers.

In 1978, working as a detective in the LAPD’s OCID (The Organized Crime Intelligence Division), Rothmiller had access to thousands of index cards relating to restricted files containing information on notable figures in America, not all of whom would have been seen as criminals - actors, TV newsreaders, sportsmen from Muhammad Ali to Michael Jackson. Eventually he came to an index card for President John F. Kennedy, cross-referenced with his brothers Bobby and Ted, Rat Pack actors Frank Sinatra and  Peter Lawford (who plays a large part in events) and, of course, Marilyn Monroe.

Before her death, Marilyn had long been a “person of interest” for the authorities due to the kind of people she was linked to. After encountering a bedraggled and boozy Lawford during a tour of the Playboy Mansion, Rothmiller contrives to interview him some weeks later. The details of this conversation, and the “truth” about Marilyn’s death resulting from it, are being presented in this book for the very first time. Also, many of JFK’s hitherto unknown sexual shenanigans are being made public within these fiery pages due to them being filmed or bugged by the OCID at the time. Once JFK’s Presidential nomination was announced, all of these details were suppressed and Marilyn’s days were numbered.

This book, written by Rothmiller with Douglas Thompson, is, basically, sleaze-city. Thanks to irresistible scene-setting, a world of mobsters, corrupt politicians and Hollywood sex parties is vividly brought to life. Bedrooms are bugged, phones are tapped. It is unputdownable in the most delicious way, but for all that it never loses sight of the tragedy of Marilyn Monroe, who was ostensibly abused by the Kennedys; indeed, by many people. Despite the enduring legend of the Kennedys, their true personas are laid bare in this book. There are many passages in the book that some may find upsetting - the abusive treatment of Marilyn sometimes beggars belief.

The evidence presented is compelling, but whether one believes it or not, noted figures such as the Kennedys, Frank Sinatra, and especially the easily-intimidated Peter Lawford don’t come out of it very well. This book starts out as a titillating thrill but becomes progressively more tragic. You will learn some things that you’d probably rather not know, but it is well-written and timely. Like a car-crash, this book is hard to stop looking at.

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THE C0MFORT BOOK

It’s not easy reviewing a Matt Haig book - in my opinion he is literary Marmite. You either love everything he does and draw comfort from him, or you view him as an entitled hack cashing in on misery.

His earlier work “Reasons To Stay Alive” (the title alone makes me angry) was a bestseller, of course, but I avoided it because it seemed to be nothing more than a rich, middle-class weekender monetising his depression whilst being vain enough to believe he can help others with the same condition. But whilst real people with depression face an uphill struggle just to get out of bed everyday, Haig’s struggles were more of the “Waitrose selling out of avocados” variety. Now, Matt Haig wants to comfort us.

Some people are naturally suspicious of a rich writer going all “woe is me” and your level of engagement with this latest book will depend on how you see the author. He is either the most caring man in the world or a comfortably-off author cranking out quick vanity projects. I suspect Haig wrote this latest book to cash in on the “we need hope in these dark times” bandwagon; one of the more regrettable consequences of the last eighteen months has been the rash of dilettante writers thinking they are psychologists.

As to the book itself, this isn’t the kind to read from cover to cover, rather something to dip into when you need a “comfort hit”. You may glean comfort from this book, regardless of what I think, and that’s wonderful, but in my opinion if you need a Matt Haig book to comfort you then you must be easily pleased. A lot of the content is simply lists of music, books and films that Haig likes and finds comfort in. There are anecdotes here, poetry there, some remedial philosophy in-between
. Mixed in with this is pretty much the kitchen sink - stories, quotes, a list of “things it is OK to say no to”, and an apparently serious discussion about the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” If Matt Haig’s name wasn’t on this book, it would be lucky to sell twenty copies.

“The Comfort Book” is happy-fluff. If you need that in your life then you will enjoy this book. I’ve already seen glowing reviews for it so it is sure to be another bestseller for Matt Haig, and he may very well help some people (including you), but as far as I am concerned, the world wouldn’t suffer too much if this book didn’t exist.