"Sk1nn3r" by Nathan Jones

Set in Bristol, the book opens with a murder. We then scoot forward thirty-four years, into the future, and meet our protagonist Dayne, a very ordinary person working for the health services but in his spare time writing  a book about four serial killers in Bristol, the latest being Sk1nn3r, who flays a part of each victim. As Dayne develops his thesis that the killers, each of whom has a theme, are part of a cabal, his researches bring him closer to an inevitable clash with Sk1nn3r himself.

It is a very dark theme, made even darker by the graphic descriptions of the horrors Sk1nn3r inflicts upon his victims. In response, the whole mood of the book is unremittingly sombre. The near-future setting is one in which the technological advances, mostly very probable, have made the world an even bleaker place. The protagonist suffers from multiple problems including severe intestinal problems and bipolar disorder exacerbated by seasonal affective disorder. He finds it difficult to make friends and is plagued at work by an unsympathetic boss. He's a very ordinary little man, with no superpowers or special skills and this makes the story hugely realistic, even when the Batman-like villain is a reclusive billionaire with special abilities, a secret lair, android servants, and access to futuristic technology. It also makes the ending portion of the book, when Dayne spirals down into drug abuse and paranoid madness, compelling.

The book is a fascinating fusion of horror and scifi, with a dash of thriller for added spice. We are introduced to the dystopian setting bit by bit, as is natural, rather than all at once. Consistent with the theme of the book, and with the condition of the protagonist, this is a dark and forbidding place, and I welcomed the few moments of humour as glimpses of a rainbow in a stormy sky.  It is the product of an author whose skills have improved even beyond his great debut novel, Travelling Without Moving.

Selected quotes:

• "If you’re going to join an exclusive club, it would be wise to get to know the other members first." (Sunday, 1st March   2015)
• "Smart fella, empathetic to the pathetic." (Thirty-four years later.)
• "I wrote a novel a few years ago. Put my heart and soul into it and not a single bugger got round to reading it. Not one. Friends nor family."  (Thirty-four years later.)
• "Dayne thanked the bus as he alighted, a habitual throwback to the days when buses were still operated by human drivers." (Friday, 3rd December   2049)
• "His mum’s face, on the other hand, was plagued by wrinkles; an insane, beautiful webwork of interconnected facial lines that only seemed to emphasise the naive, innocent form of wisdom she’d been blessed with." (Friday, 3rd December   2049)
• "Dayne set his wooden peppermill on its side and gave in a spin." (Tuesday, 7th December   2049)
• "In his current state, he doubted he could string together enough meaningful words to form a haiku." (Thursday, 23rd February   2050)
• "The cloud-cocoon he had become, reverse-metamorphosising him from wasp to larva, also stole his senses one-by-one. First sight, stealing all colour, then taste and smell, then hearing, and even touch. During this devolution, the cloud crept along his nerves to his brain, dulling his thoughts and slowing his mind." (Thursday, 23rd February   2050)
• "the words tumbled from me anyway, my mind jumping from thought to though randomly, cutting up the logic into nonsense, like a William S. Burroughs book." Extract from Dayne S Mitchell’s Notes App Dated Thursday, 31st March   2050)
• "Harper stood and began circling the sofa. After two circuits, Dayne asked her what she was considering. ‘I’m trying to decide which Disney heroine is most beautiful, what the fuck do you think I’m thinking about, Dayne?’" (Friday, 1st April   2050)

April 2022

This review was written by the author of Motherdarling  and The Kids of God