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Black Sails, Disco Inferno
An unnamed city, in which crime families flourish and the police pinch pennies from those with most power...
Black Sails, Disco Inferno is a retelling of the classic medieval romance of Tristan and Isolde, turning things on their head by reversing the sex of the chief protagonists and placing them in a '70's pulp/noir world.
Andrez Bergen's latest novel exposes layers of the bullet-riddled pulp/noir world of Trista and Issy amidst a sensual, disco-infused narrative overflowing with shady schemes, double dealings, cruel brutality and spellbinding mystery.
Black Sails, Disco Inferno is a retelling of the classic medieval romance of Tristan and Isolde, turning things on their head by reversing the sex of the chief protagonists and placing them in a '70's pulp/noir world.
Andrez Bergen's latest novel exposes layers of the bullet-riddled pulp/noir world of Trista and Issy amidst a sensual, disco-infused narrative overflowing with shady schemes, double dealings, cruel brutality and spellbinding mystery.
- GenresCrime
292 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 1, 2016
2 people are currently reading
374 people want to read
About the author
Andrez Bergen
31 books87 followersAndrez Bergen is an expat Australian writer, journalist, DJ, artist and ad hoc saké connoisseur who's been entrenched in Tokyo, Japan, for the past 15 years.
Bergen has written for publications such as Mixmag, The Age, Australian Style, VICE, and the Yomiuri Shinbun. He has published six novels, wrote and illustrated three graphic novels, and published five comic book series.
Bergen's fiction previously appeared through Perfect Edge Books, Shotgun Honey, Snubnose Press, All Due Respect, Roundfire Fiction, Dirty Rotten Comics, Crime Factory, Open Books and Another Sky Press, and he occasionally adapts scripts for feature films by the likes of Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) for Production I.G in Japan.
He also makes music as Little Nobody.
Bergen has written for publications such as Mixmag, The Age, Australian Style, VICE, and the Yomiuri Shinbun. He has published six novels, wrote and illustrated three graphic novels, and published five comic book series.
Bergen's fiction previously appeared through Perfect Edge Books, Shotgun Honey, Snubnose Press, All Due Respect, Roundfire Fiction, Dirty Rotten Comics, Crime Factory, Open Books and Another Sky Press, and he occasionally adapts scripts for feature films by the likes of Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell) for Production I.G in Japan.
He also makes music as Little Nobody.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 23, 2016
Disco from the late 1970's / early 1980's being a formative part of my early years, some of the sheer enjoyment that BLACK SAILS, DISCO INFERNO provided could be put down to nostalgia, but there's a lot more to it than that.
Based on the ancient story of Tristan and Isolde, with a pulp / noir sensibility, there is a strong sense of homage and a deep understanding of the original medieval romance. The setting employed here is an unnamed city, sectioned off into the territory of rival crime families the Holts and the Cornwall's. Issy (Isidor Junior) is the playboy heir of the Holt family. Trista Rivalen a trusted niece and heir to Marcella, head of the Cornwall family. The switching of the gender of the two main characters is a device that works seamlessly, even if you're steeped in the original tale, because of all the things that BLACK SAILS does well, it absolutely excels at character. Issy's background is pretty simple - the only child and heir, a boy with all the advantages and not a lot of responsibilities, his relationship with his parents is strained. Similarly Trista's relationship with her parents is difficult, and she's mostly been raised by faithful lieutenant Governal. His idea of extra-curricula education might seem a little peculiar, but Trista has a future that needs to be considered. Needless to say, around the two main characters of Trista and Issy, there's a wonderfully elaborate cast of good and bad, villains and the slightly misunderstood.
The cast is then placed in a setting which is all about atmosphere, with location names that echo the Irish / Cornish roots of the original. The plot then revolves around the bones of a grand old family feud, covering off the scenarios of the original, enhanced with some complications you'd expect in noir set in the 70s. There's plenty of twists and turns built into that - including a very interesting twist on the adultery storyline, and the tragedy of the ending.
Into this go the sorts of cultural hat-tips that Bergen excels in, including my very favourite - the references to disco songs that are now so deeply embedded as earworms, they are pretty well all I've been able to hear since reading this book. It has all come together into something that's extremely addictive reading.
Having loved, but gleefully not understood parts of an earlier book by Andrez Bergen (Tobacco-Stained Mountain Goat), and having seen the early publicity for BLACK SAILS, DISCO INFERNO I was expecting it to be good. It exceeded good by a very big measure.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
Based on the ancient story of Tristan and Isolde, with a pulp / noir sensibility, there is a strong sense of homage and a deep understanding of the original medieval romance. The setting employed here is an unnamed city, sectioned off into the territory of rival crime families the Holts and the Cornwall's. Issy (Isidor Junior) is the playboy heir of the Holt family. Trista Rivalen a trusted niece and heir to Marcella, head of the Cornwall family. The switching of the gender of the two main characters is a device that works seamlessly, even if you're steeped in the original tale, because of all the things that BLACK SAILS does well, it absolutely excels at character. Issy's background is pretty simple - the only child and heir, a boy with all the advantages and not a lot of responsibilities, his relationship with his parents is strained. Similarly Trista's relationship with her parents is difficult, and she's mostly been raised by faithful lieutenant Governal. His idea of extra-curricula education might seem a little peculiar, but Trista has a future that needs to be considered. Needless to say, around the two main characters of Trista and Issy, there's a wonderfully elaborate cast of good and bad, villains and the slightly misunderstood.
The cast is then placed in a setting which is all about atmosphere, with location names that echo the Irish / Cornish roots of the original. The plot then revolves around the bones of a grand old family feud, covering off the scenarios of the original, enhanced with some complications you'd expect in noir set in the 70s. There's plenty of twists and turns built into that - including a very interesting twist on the adultery storyline, and the tragedy of the ending.
Into this go the sorts of cultural hat-tips that Bergen excels in, including my very favourite - the references to disco songs that are now so deeply embedded as earworms, they are pretty well all I've been able to hear since reading this book. It has all come together into something that's extremely addictive reading.
Having loved, but gleefully not understood parts of an earlier book by Andrez Bergen (Tobacco-Stained Mountain Goat), and having seen the early publicity for BLACK SAILS, DISCO INFERNO I was expecting it to be good. It exceeded good by a very big measure.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
June 22, 2022
who's the genius who came up with this idea? not mr. bergen. i want to meet the fella who came up with the original story and give him a piece of my mind preserved in a jar
June 17, 2016
Very surprised by this book. Language is a bit of an adjustment but the narrative was there with plenty of intrigue.
July 12, 2016
BLACK SAILS, DISCO INFERNO is a criminally good novel that ripens the rotten forbidden fruit of romance amid the slippery red violence of the underworld in a classic retelling reminiscent of star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet.
Competing crime families Holt and Cornwall fire pot shots at one another with little remorse, populating morgues and spreading grief as easily as they fill disco's and line the pockets of their henchmen. In an unnamed city, this plight for power is omnipresent yet it's one young female character who stands omnipotent through it all; Trista - a flawed yet endearing protagonist who, despite her easy acquiescence to murder shows a softer side with a caring and needful nature yearning to indulge in love and the more harmonious side of life. Yet the bullets fly, killing friends and dreams alike.
Author Andrez Bergen has crafted a distinct literary noir oozing all that is sullen and grey while knifing his fictional reality with slithers of color and hope. From the outset there is little chance of a happy ending yet it's one hell of a ride arriving to that forgone conclusion.
I was provided a copy by the author in exchange for an honest review.
http://justaguythatlikes2read.blogspo...
Competing crime families Holt and Cornwall fire pot shots at one another with little remorse, populating morgues and spreading grief as easily as they fill disco's and line the pockets of their henchmen. In an unnamed city, this plight for power is omnipresent yet it's one young female character who stands omnipotent through it all; Trista - a flawed yet endearing protagonist who, despite her easy acquiescence to murder shows a softer side with a caring and needful nature yearning to indulge in love and the more harmonious side of life. Yet the bullets fly, killing friends and dreams alike.
Author Andrez Bergen has crafted a distinct literary noir oozing all that is sullen and grey while knifing his fictional reality with slithers of color and hope. From the outset there is little chance of a happy ending yet it's one hell of a ride arriving to that forgone conclusion.
I was provided a copy by the author in exchange for an honest review.
http://justaguythatlikes2read.blogspo...
June 10, 2016
Black Sails, Disco Inferno is a fast paced exciting book that is bound to entertain you. Andrez Bergen is an excellent writer who combines a famous tragic romance with 1970 culture with a pulp flair. The characters are very well built and I loved all of them whether they were hero or villain. This book has a quick pace that never lags. I flew through this book in a few days and wish it could have kept going. I love how the author incorporated many cultural references throughout the story. The plot and the characters continue to bounce around in my head and I am so glad I read this. Overall this is an excellent book by a great author and I highly recommend it. Bravo!
October 18, 2016
Intriguing premise (Tristan & Isolde legend set in a 1970s Noir Disco environment). Execution is erratic, the novel wanders a lot but is sometimes quite interesting. Not for everyone.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews