DC Farmer's The 400lb Gorilla was published by Spence City in June 2014.
Information about DC Farmer:
Once a successful doctor of medicine, DC Farmer now works two days a week for the NHS and, thanks to the wonders of Krudian physics, the other nine days a week for Hipposync Enterprises, as a scribe.
Hipposync was established in the early fourteenth century as a purveyor and publisher of rare books, the sort of stuff you are not able to get elsewhere and which contains information as varied as how to guard your castle against the Hordes of Maltasub using Harpie blood and tar, and how to change a beetle into a useful toothpick.
Of course, you will have gathered from all of this that Hipposync is, in fact, just a cover. What lurks beneath that thin veneer of respectability (yeah, right) is much, much more interesting. Hiding behind an office on the banks of the canal in Jericho, Oxford is the Department of Fimmigration (as in Fae immigration). Hey, there has to be one, otherwise just anyone could walk in, right?
DC's role in documenting the work of the Fimmigration Service has, over the years, led to the realization that the world needs to know. Moreover, if he doesn’t tell someone soon he is going to burst. So, within these pages you will find actual accounts of the splendid work of the Fimmigration Service, beginning with The 400lb Gorilla – a sample of which is also on this site, and which will soon be published in its totality by Spence City once appropriate clearance from the 'authorities' has been obtained.
Some people say that this is contemporary fantasy fiction. Believe me, it's real enough on planet hipposync.
DC Farmer is alive and well in darkest West Wales.
Click here to visit the author's official website.
Information about The 400lb Gorilla:
Matt Danmor thinks he's lucky. Not many people survive a near death accident with nothing more than a bout of amnesia, a touch of clumsiness and the conviction that the technician who did the MRI had grey skin and hooves. Still, it takes time to recover from trauma like that, especially when the girl who was in the accident with you disappears into thin air. Especially when the shrinks keep telling you she's just a figment of your imagination.
So when the girl turns up months later looking ravishing, and wanting to carry on where they left off, Matt's troubled life starts looking up. But he hasn't bargained for the baggage that comes with Silvy, like the fact she isn't really an English language student, or even a girl. Underneath her traffic stopping exterior is something else altogether, something involving raving fanatics bent on human sacrifice, dimensionally challenged baked bean tins, a vulture with a penchant for profanity, and a security agent for the Dept of Fimmigration (that's Fae immigration for those of you not in the know) called Kylah with the most amazing gold-flecked eyes.
The 400lb Gorilla is caustic, (vampire-free) introduction to the Hipposync Archives: Contemporary fantasy at its sparkling best.
A REVIEW OF DC FARMER'S THE 400LB GORILLA
DC Farmer's The 400lb Gorilla is a well written, entertaining and humorous urban fantasy novel. It's a refreshingly different kind of a fantasy novel for readers who enjoy reading urban fantasy with clever, quirky and sarcastic humour.
I have to admit that I'm difficult to please when it comes to modern urban fantasy, because I've often been more or less disappointed by the low quality of many urban fantasy novels. In my opinion there are many mediocre urban fantasy novels out there on the market, because way too many authors tend to write bad urban fantasy. That's why it was nice to find out that The 400lb Gorilla differed from other urban fantasy novels and was good entertainment. This novel managed to grab my attention almost immediately when I began to read it and I had to read it as fast as possible to find out what happens at the end. I can mention that this seldom happens when I read modern urban fantasy novels, because only a few of them have managed to impress me.
There's a lot going on in this novel, because the author has written a novel that contains many happenings, so it's difficult for me to describe the story with a few sentences, but I'll try do so.
Here's a bit of information about the story:
Matt Danmor has survived a bad car crash and thinks of himself as lucky. He doesn't remember much about the happenings leading to the accident. Matt has been a med student, but at the moment he works as a porter in the hospital in Oxford while he recovers from the accident. He has a few problems with his superiors, because Dr. Giles Roberro and Linda Marsh cause him quite a lot of grief and problems. Matt's recovery is slow, but he's getting better all the time. Matt remembers that he was in the car with Silvy who disappeared during the car crash. The psychologists think that she wasn't a real person, because Matt doesn't have any kind of proof of her existence. One day Silvy returns to Matt's life and he has a lot to wonder about, because he wants to know why and how Silvy disappeared. Matt notices that strange things happen around him. For example, he sees a sacrificial ceremony performed by children and manages to save the man, Mr. Porter, who was about to be sacrificed. Mr. Porter takes Matt to the Hipposync Enterprises (Hipposync Enterprises is a front for the Department of Fimmigration aka Fae immigration). Matt learns that Mr. Porter is a Doorkeeper and the persons at Hipposync Enterprises keep an eye out on beings who visit Earth. Soon Matt has to deal with a kidnap case, evil fundamental elves and a sexy and uninhibited priestess who's trying to kill him, and on top everything else he has to come to terms with the fact that he can see weird things and beings...
This is the beginning of an exhilarating and entertaining story with plenty of surprises and humour.
The 400lb Gorilla is not your normal kind of an urban fantasy novel, because the author manages to avoid writing about the most typical clichés that are associated with urban fantasy. Although the author has used well-known fantasy elements, he has used them to his advantage and has created a fascinating story that's something a bit different. He has also managed to add a few romantic elements to the story in a good way. He has done all this in such a good and addictive way that you can't help but enjoy the story.
One of the best things about The 400lb Gorilla is that it tastes of real life, because the protagonist is a realistic person and his own problems. Another thing worth mentioning is that DC Farmer doesn't rush into action, but takes his time to introduce Matt and the happenings to the readers. I really appreciated this, because it was nice to read about the protagonist's life.
DC Farmer writes convincingly about what the doctors and nurses do and how they treat patients. He writes fluently about Matt's everyday work at the hospital, what happens during his daily tasks and what kind of problems he has with his chores. Everything that happens in the hospital feels surprisingly authentic.
It was fascinating to read about how Matt tried to figure things out and slowly realized that he knew very little about the world, not to mention other dimensions, until he met Mr. Porter and Kylah. Because certain things were unclear to Matt, he had a bit of problems with them. I think that all readers will enjoy reading about his adventures and what happens to him, because the author reveals interesting things about him as the story unfolds. For example, readers get to know the reason for Matt's miraculous survival of the car crash, and readers will also find out what kind of a person Matt truly is (interesting things are revealed about his family).
Reading about Silvy was intriguing for me, because she was a mystery to Matt. Matt didn't know much about her, but he had spent time with her. Her disappearance bothered him a lot and when she came back to his life, he couldn't help but wonder about who - or what - she actually is and why she came back.
The author's descriptions of different persons and beings are funny and accurate, and his descriptions of the happenings are also amusing (they will most likely put a smile on the reader's face). For example, it was fun to read about what kind of cases were brought to the casualty and what kind of pranks the members of the staff did to each other. I think it's quite impossible for all readers not to laugh out loud when reading about the cucumber incident and other similar things.
The cast of characters is delightfully odd and memorable. Here's a bit of information about some of the characters:
- Mr. Porter is an intriguing man, because he turns out be something totally else than what Matt thought he would be when he was taken to the Hipposync Enterprises.
- Kylah, Mr. Porter's niece, is an interesting person. She's careful and strict about security issues, because she's a security agent at the Hipposync Enterprises.
- Dr. Giles Roberro is one of the most nasty doctors ever imagined on the pages of fantasy novels. He has bad attitude problems. He is a total jerk and acts badly towards Matt.
- The vulture, Rimsplitter, is a memorable and especially interesting character. He has quite a penchant for profanity and his use of words offers entertainment to the readers. He helps Matt.
I enjoyed reading about the conversations between Matt and Roberro, because there was something charmingly British and sharp about them that made me enjoy them. The author's wicked sense of humour sparkles in these scenes, because Matt hates Roberro and his attitude, and Roberro likewise hates Matt.
The author has an interesting way of writing about supernatural beings. It was great to read about the Ghoulshee (the fundamelist Fae), because were very nasty and evil Fae. They wanted religious freedom to perform their rites and sacrifices, and they also wanted an end to political suppression. There are also other supernatural and mythical beings (brownies, Merrowmen, Glaistig etc) in this novel.
I enjoyed reading about how Kylah explained things to Matt. It was great that author pointed out that what is normal to people may feel strange to other beings and vice versa. This is seldom mentioned in modern urban fantasy novels.
I think it's good to mention that DC Farmer has a fresh and surprisingly original vision of life after death. He writes humorously about what happens when a person dies and avoids using boring clichés.
The author uses many popular culture references (TV series, novels, music etc) in this novel and it works well, because these references are used in an inventive and funny way. For example, there are a few amusing references to J.R.R. Tolkien's novels and Star Trek.
I have to mention that after reading several American urban fantasy novels, it was great to read a British urban fantasy novel, because the author used English phrases etc in a wonderful way (I've always liked reading British English, so I enjoyed reading the author's prose). This novel is excellent counterbalance for American urban fantasy novels (it's much better entertainment than many of them).
By the way, if there happen to be readers out there who wonder about the title of this novel, I can tell them that the title will be explained to readers when they read the whole story. I won't reveal what it means, but I'll mention that the scene in which its meaning is revealed is an interesting scene.
DC Farmer's The 400lb Gorilla is one of funniest urban fantasy novels I've ever read. It's possible that readers may find themselves reading this novel with a big grin on their face and laughing out loud at certain points. The author has been able combine certain elements of the humorous stories written by Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams and Ira Nayman with the thrilling urban fantasy atmosphere of Jim Butcher's novels. If you've ever read anything by Pratchett, Adams, Nayman and Butcher, you'll most likely enjoy reading this novel.
I think that DC Farmer has struck gold with The 400lb Gorilla, because it's something different and will please readers of humorous modern urban fantasy. Hopefully the author will write more Hipposync Archive novels in the near future, because it would be fun to read more about the characters and their adventures.
My final words are:
The 400lb Gorilla is excellent and amusing entertainment. I recommend it to all readers who are interested in urban fantasy and humorous novels. Please, take a look at it, because it's something different.