Conrad Williams' Dust and Desire was published by Titan Books in November 2015.
Information about Conrad Williams:
Conrad Williams is the author of seven novels, four novellas and a collection of short stories. One was the winner of the August Derleth award for Best Novel (British Fantasy Awards 2010), while The Unblemished won the International Horror Guild Award for Best Novel in 2007 (he beat the shortlisted Stephen King on both occasions). He won the British Fantasy Award for Best Newcomer in 1993, and another British Fantasy Award for Best Novella (The Scalding Rooms) in 2008.
Click here to visit the author's official website.
Information about Dust and Desire:
The Four-Year-Old, an extraordinary killer, has arrived in London, hell-bent on destruction... PI Joel Sorrell is approached by the mysterious Kara Geenan, who is desperate to find her missing brother. Joel takes on the case but almost immediately, an attempt is made on his life. The body count increases. And then Kara vanishes too... as those close to Joel are sucked into his nightmare, he realizes he must track down the killer if he is to halt a grisly masterplan - even if it means sacrificing his own life.
A REVIEW OF CONRAD WILLIAMS' DUST AND DESIRE
Conrad Williams' Dust and Desire was an interesting surprise for me, because it turned out to be an enjoyable PI novel with a few elements that bordered on the line of being horror elements. I don't normally read this kind of fiction, because most thriller novels tend to be anything but entertaining and thrilling, but I enjoyed reading this novel and can recommend it to speculative fiction readers.
Because Conrad Williams has previously written horror fiction, his approach to thriller fiction feels fresh and satisfyingly gritty. I've noticed that horror authors, who have begun to write thriller novels, tend to write interesting stories that have that special something in them. Based on this novel, it's possible to say that Conrad Williams seems to be a good author who clearly knows what he's writing.
As many readers may know, there's often a fine line between thriller fiction, crime fiction, PI fiction and horror fiction; especially psychological horror fiction is often pretty close to crime fiction and thriller fiction in terms of storytelling and terrifying elements. There are a few occasions in this novel when the story borders nicely on the line of being horror fiction, because it contains a couple of dark and brutal scenes.
Here's information about the story:
- In the prologue, the serial killer arrives in London and kills a woman.
- Joel Sorrell hears about Kara Geenan and her problems from Barry Liptrott. He meets Kara and she tells him about her missing eighteen years old brother. Joel is a bit reluctant to accept the job, but after a bit of persuasion he agrees to search for Kara's brother, because he needs a job. He's being attacked and somebody has broken into his house.
- Soon Kara goes missing and Barry turns up dead. Joel finds out that his job isn't as easy as he thought it would be...
This is the beginning of an entertaining story that has been divided into three parts.
The author has a nice touch for brutality and is capable of delivering an interesting story. Rough and sarcastic humour offers nice counterbalance to the darker aspects of the story.
Joel Sorrell is a bad-mouthed private investigator. He's an excellent example of a classic PI character who has had a rough life and who has a love for alcohol. He has quite an attitude and he often uses sarcasm and witty dialogue when he talks to people.
Joel has a dark past, because his daughter, Sarah, is missing and his wife, Rebecca, has been murdered. His past affects his life in many ways. He helps desperate people, because he thinks that by helping them he might find a key to help himself.
Joel is careful about his private life. He doesn't want anybody to come to his house anymore, because he likes his privacy. He advertises his PI services by leaving cards in various places around London from phone boxes to pubs, and uses a post office box.
Conrad Williams draws readers into Joel's dark world in an effective way by writing about Joel's work, private life and his investigations in an entertaining and gritty way. He has a few acquaintances and he carries out his investigations in his own kind of way.
It was interesting to read about Joel's relationship with Dr. Melanie Henriksen (a vet). Their relationship is based on friendship and Melanie looks after Joel's cat, but they also have sex.
It's nice that the story has been divided into three different parts. The second part gives readers an interesting glimpse into the killer's mind. I was fascinated by this part, because Conrad Williams wrote well about the killer. I'm not an expert on thriller and PI fiction, but I've noticed that too many authors play safe and avoid writing about the happenings from the killer's point of view, which often results in mediocre stories with little depth. Fortunately Conrad Williams hadn't avoided it.
It's great that Conrad Williams reveals bits and pieces of the protagonist's life as the story unfolds, because it adds depth to the story and keeps up the reader's interest in the story. When you read this novel, you'll gradually get to know what happened to the protagonist's family.
There are certain dark moments in this novel that perfectly demonstrate the author's ability to write thrilling PI fiction. The author seems to have a talent for creating a mysterious and twisted atmosphere in an effortless way. The author's descriptions of some of the happenings have intriguingly sinister undertones.
Conrad Williams writes well about brutality and violence. The violent acts are as gritty and unsettling as they can be without being tasteless. The story contains a few graphic descriptions that may cause a bit of unease to readers who are not used to reading gritty fiction.
One of the things why this novel works well is the author's ability to write descriptive, sharp and observant prose. His observations about people and happenings are often deliciously sharp. He fluently tells his readers what happens to the protagonist and how he carries out his investigations. It was a pleasure to read the author's prose, because I've always enjoyed reading sharp and observant prose.
I'm sure that careful readers will easily notice that this novel has quite a lot of dark humour and sarcasm. I found it refreshing that the author dared to lighten the story with dark humour, because it fitted the story.
I've noticed that there's something about British horror and thriller authors that separates them from other authors. They have a clear vision of what to write and they know how to write about everyday life and PI life in a stunningly effective way without unnecessary filler material. Conrad Williams clearly belongs to this group of authors. He seems to be a master of his craft, because he doesn't stumble while writing about terrifying and unexpected happenings that shake the life of his protagonist.
I think it's good to mention that if you've ever watched modern British thrillers and crime TV series, you'll most likely be impressed by this novel. There's something in the story that reminded me a bit of British thriller films and crime TV series that have been filmed during the recent years.
This novel includes a bonus short story ("Do Not Resuscitate") and an informative author Q&A. If you enjoy reading this novel, please make sure that you'll read the short story, because it's a good story.
By the way, if you find this novel fascinating and want to read more about Joel Sorrell and his investigations, the next Joel Sorrell novel, Sonata of the Dead, will be published in July 2016.
I give this novel strong four stars on the scale from one to five stars, because it's an entertaining and gritty thriller novel with an interesting protagonist.
I can recommend Conrad Williams' Dust and Desire to readers who are interested in horror fiction, crime fiction, PI stories and serial killer novels. I can also recommend it to readers who have read urban fantasy stories with PI characters. It's a brilliantly hardboiled look at life and brutality in London. It offers readers an interesting glimpse into modern British noir fiction.
My final words are:
Conrad Williams' Dust and Desire is good and well written entertainment to readers who enjoy reading serial killer fiction, PI stories, horror fiction and gritty thrillers. It's modern noir fiction at its best.