Review by Iain Minney of "The Dark Fields" by Alan Glynn

Adam Glynn’s 2001 debut is probably best described as the fabled "positive drug story," albeit a cautionary tale about drug use. Strong themes of addiction, excess and greed run through it like a stick of rock.  

More-traditional drug users fall somewhere in-between hallucinating hippies, giggling stoners or hyperactive, gurning ravers, with the perception being uniformly negative. The "positive" drug in this novel, "MDT-48," allows the user to remain uncluttered, learning and performing practical tasks with a radically, evidence-based improvement, unlike other drugs, which merely mess with the user’s perception of themselves. In other words, MDT is the ultimate drug fantasy: it actually DOES make you smart and interesting.

Eddie Spinola is a something of an average guy; a little past his prime and stuck in a rut. The writing assignment he requested isn’t the labour of love and salvation he thought it’d be, and he has little else lined up on the horizon.  But a happenstance encounter with his ex-wife’s shady brother quickly changes his fortune. Literally.

Now (with a certain tiger-in-his-tank) Eddie’s blasting his way up the ladder a little too quickly and a little too impatiently for his own good, in order to quell his various appetites … and with his secret stockpile in place, but all manner of gaps, cracks, hallucinations and allegations becoming increasingly obvious and hard to ignore, the only question seems to be how much higher can Eddie go?

A neat and original premise is wonderfully executed (especially for a debut) and metered out with appropriate caution and respect to the subject of drug use, rather than the fantastical and pithy romanticism that could have been applied to a substance that, thankfully, doesn’t exist. Although MDT could essentially be considered an aid to concentration (some sort of hyper-concentrated Ritalin, for example), it allows the story to expand on "Addiction to ambition" as another interesting sub-reference to the Reaganomics era, to which so much is unfortunately owed.  

The writing style is pleasant too, with the quasi-autobiographical first-person narrative providing a rewarding full-circle twist ending, that underlines what must have been a genuinely thorough and painstaking research process, allowing the author any number of hidden in-jokes. The tycoon character "Van-Loon" seems suspiciously similar to a figurehead brand like Trump, the so-called "Psychopharmacological" writer probably references Tim Leary, and even the title is taken from a line in The Great Gatsby.  There’s even a theme on lost (and rediscovered) love, and a pining for lost youth, signified in Eddie's love of drugs that he used to enjoy back with his ex-wife.

About the reviewer
Iain Minney (B.A. in Journalism & Creative Writing): tall, "mature," sober, comedian(ish). He has dabbled in stand-up comedy - which he has been writing since he was teenager - as well as being involved with comedy sketches, local filmmaking groups and working on local radio for a number of years both as "Head of News" and having his own weekly 3-hour show. He has been interested in writing for some time and even tried recording a number of audiobooks of short stories he's written together with satirical rants based on the standup he never quite "stood up" with. He loves old punk and 80s rock music, all manner of movies, and Bill Hicks and George Carlin SAVED HIS LIFE. But that's a whole other conversation.

Review by Iain Minney of "The Day of the Triffids" by John Wyndham

John Wyndham's post-apocalyptic epic might sound somewhat underwhelming when explained as simply being about "Killer Plants" - especially when they're not even the all-singing "Audrey II" variety, from noticeably more upbeat storytellers. In fact, this particular famished flora is arguably only a bi-product of how humanity has accidentally undone itself in pursuit of advancing science and weaponry. ("A botanical Frankenstein" would, presumably, be similarly too glib and imprecise).

Waking up blindfolded in hospital, Bill Masen finds his daily routine unexpectedly and annoyingly interrupted. He soon learns he's ironically avoided the permanent blinding that affects practically everyone else, following the spectacular comet-shower that transfixed them all the night before.

At first, the blind actually do try to lead the blind, with everyone stumbling about distraught and disorientated. But, after involvement from those both good intentioned and bad, it's obvious the population simply cannot survive the complete and simultaneous breakdown of such a complicated, interconnected society that we all take for granted.

After the disoriented grow desperate, they then disappear entirely as great cities become crumbling ghost towns in the years that follow. Ultimately Bill, his companion Josella Playton, and a few others, must find safe sanctuary for the future of the human race, battling hardships both ancient and new.

Penned in 1951 (eerily pre-dating both satellites AND genetically modified crops) let's just hope no more of Wyndham's Nostradamus-like predictions come true in a world still single-mindedly bent on advancement ...

As well as being top-notch science-fiction, the novel allows the reader to indulge the dual fantasies of invisibly seeing inside a stranger's privacy, and what to pack and prioritize for the end of the world. Above all else, it's a story about preparedness, knowledge, practicality and ultimately, luck. There's also a subtle commentary on class and social standing, hinting at how perhaps this, too, is merely a fragile human construct that could so easily break down under the right conditions.

in the 70+ years since publication, the story's longevity has demanded countless reprints, spawned a number of dramatizations (of varying success) and also directly inspired Danny Boyle's zombie-ish 28 Days Later (2002). In fact, given the biggest threat the Triffids themselves pose is their inevitable recurrence akin to a persistent weed, perhaps this story gives birth to the uniquely English phobia, that gardening may one day set out for revenge.

About the reviewer

Iain Minney (B.A. in Journalism & Creative Writing pending): tall, "mature," sober, comedian(ish). He has dabbled in stand-up comedy - which he has been writing since he was teenager - as well as being involved with comedy sketches, local filmmaking groups and working on local radio for a number of years both as "Head of News" and having his own weekly 3-hour show. He has been interested in writing for some time and even tried recording a number of audiobooks of short stories he's written together with satirical rants based on the standup he never quite "stood up" with. He loves old punk and 80s rock music, all manner of movies, and Bill Hicks and George Carlin SAVED HIS LIFE. But that's a whole other conversation.