Night of the Jabberwock / The Deep End

by Fredric Brown

In the second of a series of Fredric Brown Double Novels, Bruin Books joins together one of Fredric Brown’s best loved novels, Night Of The Jabberwock, with one of his most underrated mysteries, The Deep End. Brown’s lifelong love and appreciation of the works of Lewis Carroll is on full display in Night Of The Jabberwock. In that novel a bored journalist despairs over the fact he never has any newsworthy events to report on. In a zany and dark bit of wish fulfillment, which is further fueled by copious amounts of cheap whiskey and insomnia, he is plunged into a nightmarish hall of mirrors inspired by Carroll’s Alice books. In The Deep End, another journalist, this one on the fringes of divorce, must face his own shortcomings while solving a series of murders that has been previously whitewashed as accidents. This is an early example of the psycho-killer milieu, and Brown’s trademark shock-and-twist ending does not disappoint. Barry N. Malzberg, well-known science fiction writer and editor, introduces the novels with an overarching perspective of Brown’s literary legacy.

384 pages, Paperback

Published December 14, 2018

About the author

Fredric Brown was an American science fiction and mystery writer. He was one of the boldest early writers in genre fiction in his use of narrative experimentation. While never in the front rank of popularity in his lifetime, Brown has developed a considerable cult following in the almost half century since he last wrote. His works have been periodically reprinted and he has a worldwide fan base, most notably in the U.S. and Europe, and especially in France, where there have been several recent movie adaptations of his work. He also remains popular in Japan.

Never financially secure, Brown - like many other pulp writers - often wrote at a furious pace in order to pay bills. This accounts, at least in part, for the uneven quality of his work. A newspaperman by profession, Brown was only able to devote 14 years of his life as a full-time fiction writer. Brown was also a heavy drinker, and this at times doubtless affected his productivity. A cultured man and omnivorous reader whose interests ranged far beyond those of most pulp writers, Brown had a lifelong interest in the flute, chess, poker, and the works of Lewis Carroll. Brown married twice and was the father of two sons.

Reviews

[Bastien DZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very entertaining, especially "Night of the Jabberwock". It feels like watching a half comical half thriller short movie. You kind of expect what's going to happen, but every the angle surprises you.
One could argue characters lack a bit of depth, but then again, do they need to be in this genre?