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The Brightonomicon (Brentford Trilogy #8)
Were you aware that there are, hidden in the streets of Brighton, twelve ancient constellations, like the Hangleton Hound and the Bevendean Bat? Well, there are, and on each one hangs a tale, a tale so strange that only The Lad Himself, that inveterate spinner of tales and talker of the toot, Hugo Rune, can get to the bottom of them. And he'd better do it quickly, because ...more
Hardcover, 352 pages
Published
July 1st 2005
by Gollancz
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I picked The Brightonomicon up at the library after reading "The English Spike Milligan" on the back cover. I'm pretty sure I've read just about everything Spike wrote and even went to see him live where he beat seven bells out of his plastic 'frustration dummy' with a baseball bat if his jokes didn't get a big enough laugh.
This is my first Robert Rankin and, probably, my last.
Our hero, an amnesiac teenager, is saved from drowning by one Hugo Rune, a large, bald ge...more
This is my first Robert Rankin and, probably, my last.
Our hero, an amnesiac teenager, is saved from drowning by one Hugo Rune, a large, bald ge...more
Good for a bit of light-hearted fun. Really makes you want to track down RR in his local and 'talk the toot'.
If you like double entendre, unadulterated foolishness and a classic detective/adventure story with some zany mystic and occult nonsense thrown in then this is for you.
If you're a Terry Pratchett fan and you're looking for that sort of creative genius that makes you laugh yet leaves you lying awake wondering about the mysteries of life then this may not be your cup...more
If you like double entendre, unadulterated foolishness and a classic detective/adventure story with some zany mystic and occult nonsense thrown in then this is for you.
If you're a Terry Pratchett fan and you're looking for that sort of creative genius that makes you laugh yet leaves you lying awake wondering about the mysteries of life then this may not be your cup...more
Mr Hugo Rune had a way about him, something that signalled him as being above the everyday and the everyman. He was an enigma, a riddle wrapped around an enigma and tied with a string of surprising circumstances, He appeared to inhabit his own separate universe, where normal laws - and I do not mean those of he legal persuasion - did not apply. Who he was and what he was, I know not to this day.
But he was certainly someone.
As well as the zodiac in the stars, there are also zodiacs...more
But he was certainly someone.
As well as the zodiac in the stars, there are also zodiacs...more
Bettie
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review of another edition
Shelves:
amusing,
re-read,
britain-england,
fantasy,
fraudio,
play-dramatisation,
published-2005,
winter20092010
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Rankin is always 5 stars for me. His far fetched fiction never fails to make me laugh out loud. This was especially welcome as I was reading The Brightonomicon in hospital after some very minor surgery. It seemed almost wrong to be lying in a hospital bed shaking with laughter at a particularly saucy joke about Aleister Crowley! But that's Robert Rankin for you!
I enjoyed this more than Retromancer -- while it's fine, plot-wise, to read the books out of order, there's a bit more character development in Brightonomicon as Rankin introduces Hugo Rune and Rizla (and, to a lesser extent, Fangio). As a result, Brightonomicon felt a bit less like a collection of running gags and puns than Retromancer (though it was still chock full of both), and more like an actual story.
Wierd dont sum it up. But in a good way of course.
Set during the 60s (altho you wouldnt really know it - its basically timeless except for times when dates become relevant!), its a series of chapters based on detective musings of the supernatural, wierd and ridiculous persuasion!
Highly reccommended - altho you may want a stiff drink ready!
Set during the 60s (altho you wouldnt really know it - its basically timeless except for times when dates become relevant!), its a series of chapters based on detective musings of the supernatural, wierd and ridiculous persuasion!
Highly reccommended - altho you may want a stiff drink ready!
Excellent nonsense, had me rolling on the floor! This is the first of Robert Rankin's books that I've read. It was recommended to me by my brother-in-law who said that Terry Pratchet's work was a poor copy of Rankin. I can see the similarity but can't say that I agree with him. A great read for anyone who has a sense of humour.
I've read a couple of his other books and remember them as being funny, but the recurring jokes in this one wore a bit thin by the middle of the book. An easy read but I hope my next book will be better!
Another classic of absurd-humorous sci-fi by Rankin set in Brentford and starring Hugo Rune - the man himself - in a bizarre conspiracy laden story involving secret zodiac mysteries laid out in the streets of Brentford.
Too much.
Where Terry Pratchett is satirically conscious, Robert Rankin never moves beyond slapstick. Zany without soul, at least in this novel. I admit that perhaps I just don't "get it."
Where Terry Pratchett is satirically conscious, Robert Rankin never moves beyond slapstick. Zany without soul, at least in this novel. I admit that perhaps I just don't "get it."
Even better than 'Hollow Chocolate Bunnies'....like all his books the narrative just gets in the way of the story. :-)
Definately one for lads, I'm sure the boys find it very amusing, but it's really not my kind of humour.
Danger Kallisti
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Recommends it for:
fans of kooky BBC sci-fi shows
Shelves:
sci-fi
After reading four of his books, I've decided that I like the more Hugo Rune-themed novels best. Granted, he references all of his books back and forth, and characters from one end up in another all the time. But, if the books could be divided into series, I think this one would fit more with the Witches of Chiswick (which I heartily enjoyed). The ending was really nice to this one too, and I didn't get bored halfway through like I did in Fandom of the Operator. I guess like any prolific fic...more
The Brightonomicon (Brentford Trilogy) by Robert Rankin (2006)
Brightonomicon, The by Robert Rankin (2005)
The Brightonomicon (Brentford Trilogy) by Robert Rankin (2006)
Have read but will re-read again for review.
Enjoyable read, but not one of Rankin's best.
Mt favourite RR novel.... Stark Raving Genius...
okayish, funny
Nothing is as it seems ! Its like Sherlock Holmes meets Aleister Crowley meets Steampunk ! Filled with witty situational permutations its best experienced in the radio play version, full of great sound effects and a delightful signature theme.
Wonderful performances by a stellar cast. I found that Rankin's mixture of surrealism, parody, and non-sequitur wore a bit thin after a while - the book kept me amused, but not gripped. On the whole, the book is like a strange mixture of Douglas Adams, Terry Pratchett, and Robert Anton Wilson's Schroedinger's Cat trilogy. If that sounds at all appealing, I'd recommend checking this out.
Excellent read - fabulous! Classic Rankin, up there with Pratchett!
A thoroughly odd little tale, or twelve combined tales, regarding the Brighton (England) zodiac...figures found in the streets of Brighton by a mystic likely high on acid. Good for plenty of chuckles, word play, and several standing jokes throughout. If you like fantasy, the absurd, or Douglas Adams; give it a try.
I read a review about one of Rankin's books and thought I had found a British Carl Hiaasen. It's been a week I haven't slogged more than 20 pages into the book. It's so slow! Maybe I'm missing a lot of small idioms but still . . . . I can't do it.
Only gave this one 3 stars as i listened to the dramatised audio version which was quite horrible to listen to... the story was great as always but unabridged would of been better
Read this as a result of hearing the BBC Radio play. Was much more enjoyable to read than I thought it would be!
not as funny as "the hollow chocolate bunnies of the apocalypse" but pretty funny.
Bestest, most weirdest book EVER!!! Loved it! <3
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"When Robert Rankin embarked upon his writing career in the late 1970s, his ambition was to create an entirely new literary genre, which he named Far-Fetched Fiction. He reasoned that by doing this he could avoid competing with any other living author in any known genre and would be given his own special section in WH Smith."
(from Web Site Story)
Robert Rankin describes ...more
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