A Week in December (Sebastian Faulks)

Okay, so it was clever. Quite readable (though I could definitely put it down frequently). But at the same time somehow quite annoying. It's like Ben Elton without the jokes, and with an extra helping of smug on the top. I got bored of the rants about modern life - how people are disconnected from real life, how the education system is failing and the endless stuff about hedge funds and banking. Also, I couldn't find it in myself to like or care about the characters, I felt like they were more generalisations than anything. Perhaps this is what Faulks wanted, yet another comment on how self-centered and stereotypical we've all become. Add the re-occurring 'mysterious' bicyclist (a bit of an obvious technique if ever I saw one) and it adds up to quite a disappointing book. I found myself willing the fundamentalist on if only for something to happen. Two stars out of five, I didn't completely hate it. I'll give Sebastian another chance someday (probably), but I won't go searching for him.