Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway : Victorian machines and madness

Nick Harkaway can write.(Understatement) is what I discovered after reading Angelmaker The prose is top notch. The characters are brilliant.

There is Joe Spork, good son of gangster who turns bad. Edie Banister was a world war two spy but is now an octogenarian and it is her world war adventures that are narrated with the most verve and panache. There is Frankie the crazed french woman scientist and of course the villain is the best of the lot.

The passion Nick Harkaway has for steampunkish machines just shines through. There are passages of such brilliance describing a mundane detail that you wonder how he managed to put so much life into the object.

The trailer should tell you all you need to know about the plot. Its simple on the surface but there are many subtle reveals along the way which should not be spoilt.

Its just a brilliant read full of inventive wit.

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