Banging the Monkey

by Tod A

Writer Mark O'Kane is in a downward spiral. His last novel tanked. His wife left him. And his drinking is out of control. So when a chance meeting with enigmatic businessman Frank Fochs leads to a cushy job on the tropical island of Madu, it sounds like Mark's salvation: he can finally write his comeback novel and set his life on a brighter path.

But when Frank disappears, Mark is left holding the bag for his boss's shady business dealings. And after a corpse washes up in the local lagoon, Mark may even be charged with Frank's murder. As he skirts the border between regret and desire, Mark discovers that the demons of his past are not so easily outrun, and that paradise comes with a price.

Banging the Monkey is for anyone who has ever dreamed of chucking it all and starting over. Debut author Tod A injects pulp noir with a punk prose rhythm to weave a darkly comic tale about life at the end of the American Century.

248 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 1, 2019

About the author

Tod A is best known as the leader of the 'world-punk' band Firewater. Tod left New York City to backpack through Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. His debut novel, Banging the Monkey, was inspired by events he witnessed and stories he collected along the way. Tod A currently hangs his hat in Istanbul.

Reviews

[Madeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pulp noir at its finest.

I am still feeling something, I just don’t know what.

[James Leon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't recommend this book enough! Tod A has a writing a style that resonates anyone who has felt like a stranger in strange lands or environments that were over-worn by familiarity. It is also for those who desperately seek a change when faced with life's dead end streets. Readers of mysteries, love stories and tragic-comedies will be transported into a realm and a section of the world completely removed from their own comfort zone, which isn't always a bad thing. Buy and read the physical book!

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yeah, obviously i read this one because of the author. I think its a reasonable book, with fine writing, but also not exactly my normal style, and, more dammingly, pretty much exactly what one might expect from Tod A given his life... I guess that's not necessarily bad, but I suppose I was hoping to be a little more surprised by what was revealed within.
In less general terms, this is sort of a 'finding ones self' kind of book, and a little dark, and a little gritty. And possibly just a tiny germ of hope at the end?

[Quinn W Buckland · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely fantastic.
The characters feel very real, in an almost uncomfortable way. The island of Madu strikes me as a real place, even though it's fictional.

This is a book that deserves your eyes, and I'm willing to bet your praise as well.

[James Kennedy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Absolute rubbish. Talking about a crap America but that’s what this is