false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179005942m/864915.jpg 864915 8 Sometimes an author can make a considerable mark with their first book (as Louise Welsh did with <i>The Cutting Room</i> and almost immediately lose momentum with their next outing. <i>The Bullet Trick</i> is proof that Welsh is no one-trick pony, and this highly entertaining (if, at times, baffling) novel will be gratefully received by those who like their fiction eccentric and unabashed--Welsh doesn't shy away from presenting us with the more extreme forms of human behaviour, sexual or otherwise. <p> The protagonist here is a Glaswegian conjurer who has seen better days. Those who know their literature of the Gothic (and Louise Welsh is certainly of that number!) will no doubt spot that the author has christened her anti-hero William Wilson--the same name, in fact, as the luckless hero of the Edgar Allen Poe tale of sinister duality. Welsh's Wilson is desperate to escape from his crushing existence in Glasgow, and jumps at the chance to perform his conjuring tricks in the cabarets of Berlin. Leaving behind people who he most definitely wants out his life in this free and easy foreign city seems like the best move of his career. But Welsh implies that (like the Poe character with whom he shares his name), Wilson's real problems lie within himself, with the external danger he encounters a manifestation of the sickness in his own soul. <p> If the above makes <i>The Bullet Trick</i> sound like a depressing read, nothing could be further from the truth. This is exuberant stuff, floridly plotted and crammed full of the kind of over-the-top characters that we encounter far too little these days in most parochial fiction. It's also worth noting the Welsh's second novel could not be more different from its predecessor, and if she is going to come up with something quite distinct with every new book, that alone is going to mark her out from most of her contemporaries.<p>--<I>Barry Forshaw</I> 2532126 2006 The Bullet Trick total:71|5:9|4:21|3:32|2:8|1:1| 71 242 113 19 3 0 false false Mon Apr 13 12:00:27 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 13 12:01:14 -0700 2009
William Wilson is a magician on the last leg of a faltering car...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Jun 03 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 05 06:53:02 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 05 07:19:24 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Wed Nov 18 11:49:42 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 18 11:50:04 -0800 2009 SETTING: London, Berlin, Glasgow
SERIES: Standalone
RATING: 3.0
WHY: I thought the tale of an illusionist would be more magical, but ultimately, the plot was nothing out of the ordinary, the dialog weak and the ending predictable...more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun May 24 00:17:55 -0700 2009 Sun May 24 00:18:38 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Tue Jan 06 11:33:00 -0800 2009 Tue Jan 06 11:33:44 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Sun Nov 23 17:11:20 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 23 17:12:26 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Thu Oct 22 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Nov 08 08:46:57 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 08 08:47:42 -0800 2009 2 0 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 03 07:56:07 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 24 12:28:32 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 23 11:43:02 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 23 11:49:47 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Oct 10 09:54:33 -0700 2008 Fri Oct 10 09:57:46 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Tue Jul 15 14:37:15 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 15 14:38:29 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Mon Oct 13 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Aug 02 10:13:57 -0700 2008 Mon Oct 13 08:00:52 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Thu Aug 30 01:04:08 -0700 2007 Sat Sep 15 01:19:49 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Wed Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 09 08:18:45 -0700 2007 Sun Sep 09 08:21:05 -0700 2007 2 0 true false Sun Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Mon Jul 27 20:58:22 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 27 20:58:22 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat Apr 26 16:09:41 -0700 2008 Sat Apr 26 16:10:44 -0700 2008 2 0 false false Mon Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 19 15:14:54 -0700 2007 Mon Oct 15 08:55:12 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Tue Nov 06 13:38:23 -0800 2007 Wed Sep 26 22:56:59 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 26 22:57:18 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Mon Jun 30 17:00:13 -0700 2008 Mon Jun 30 17:00:29 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Thu Nov 12 04:55:11 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 07:51:00 -0800 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=864915