An absolute mess of a plot--especially near the end--and generous helpings of melodrama do not outweigh the fact that Murray's picaresque novel is wildly funny at the sentence level and in several whole sections as well. Some of the best parts are those in which the layabout wastrel Charles is ejected from his stately home and, in an exceedingly improbable move, takes refuge in a hovel with his sister's loutish ex-boyfriend. Naturally the lout turns out to have a heart of gold etc., but luckily not until readers get their money's worth out of him. Murray makes a few obligatory points about the new Ireland vs the old Ireland, but you don't get to cook up a story this implausible and then have people take you seriously.

There are some very creepy incestuous overtones here, and furthermore why Gene Tierney? She's just not camp enough. Still, a good tune-up for SKIPPY DIES.