I wasn’t a fan of this book. I personally found it crude, vulgar, repetitive, and tiring. I got very bored of the sex, the language, and I really didn’t care much for any of the characters.
It felt bloated, it jumped around both in time and by narrator too much (I also couldn’t really tell the difference between narrators, i.e they all sounded like the same voice). I didn’t especially like the style of the writing, and fundamentally I found it tedious. I hoped to learn something about Jamaica. but I don’t think I did. I certainly learnt nothing positive about humanity.
Apart from all that, on the plus side, it definitely didn’t hold back, I learnt some new words, and I’m sure it opened my mind a little, even though I thought I was rather open-minded already.
It’s bound to win the 2026 Booker Prize. (But I hope Black Bag does)
