[.ca] Dead Air (ISBN 0349116644)

From Amazon.co.uk:
There's no question that the anticipation for each successive Iain Banks novel grows ever greater, and Dead Air is a literary event. The sardonic, inventive prose guarantees a unique reading experience with each new book (the misfires may be counted on one hand), and whatever genre he tackles, Banks is one of the most stimulating writers at work in Britain today. His protagonist here is Ken Nott, a character as penetratingly realised as ever. He's a committed contrarian, ekeing out a living as a left-wing radio shock-jock in London. He makes his home in a loft apartment in the East End, in a former factory due to be demolished in a few days. After a wedding breakfast, people begin to pitch fruit from a balcony on to a deserted car park 10 storeys below; then they begin dispatching other things: a broken TV, a loudspeaker with a ruptured cone, bean bags and other useless furniture. Then the guests enter a kind of frenzy and start dropping things that are still working, at the same time trashing the rest of the apartment. But suddenly mobile phones start to ring urgently and they're told to turn on the TV, because a plane has just crashed into the World Trade Center. And Ken Nott finds his life is to change irrevocably. Banks's subject here is nothing less than the survival of the individual in the face of a chaotic world. The destruction of personality under the lacerating values of modernity is a subject repeatedly addressed by JG Ballard (and that author's shadow is clearly evident here), and although this is one of the Iain Banks novels in which he pointedly does not use the "M" in his name that marks his science fiction, this nightmare vision of contemporary London has more than a trace of that genre in its sense of fractured reality. But all the caustic humour and dark character development that Banks excels in are fully in place. --Barry Forshaw

Underrated:
I'm very surprised at the low rating of this book to date on Amazon. I found it to be good entertainment from beginning to end, and found I could relate to a lot of the scenarios and dialogue arising in the book. It is not a book based around one particular strong storyline but more about getting involved with the everyday life of one man and his friendships, relationships, vices and virtues. I found myself laughing out loud (intentional on author's part) near the end of the book during what was, at the same time, one of the most tense scenes when he broke into the house of his soon-to-be tormentor. Not my favourite Ian Banks book, but a good one as far as I'm concerned, and considerably better than the Business, the previous effort, which I did find dissappointing. I would like a return to something a bit darker though before Mr. Banks hangs up his pen for good.

Slow paced but good pay-off:
Iain Bank's recent "reality" novels haven't quite matched the magnificence of his splendid sci-fi "Culture" saga, and Dead Air, sadly, is no exception. Like the similarly slow-paced The Business, DA certainly takes a while to get going, and by page 125 or so, I was on the verge of giving up. Apart from the occasionally and all too brief witty dialogue between the shock jocks, I was finding the ponderous characterisation and politicising very heavy going. HOWEVER, I am very glad to have finished DA, as, when the main plot surrounding the dangerous affair with Celia starts to develop, things certainly start to accelerate, and there is a building sense of unease that Banks is about to throw something pretty damn mind-blowing at the unsuspecting reader. You want tension? You got it! Certainly, the chapter which finds our (anti-)hero Ken stranded in the Merrial mansion is amongst the most heart-stoppingly suspenseful passages Iain Banks has ever written. I also loved Ken's (Banks') inspired method of illustrating the morally repugnant dogma of the Holocaust denier, and the final pay-off, without giving any spoilers, is satisfying. So. The bottom line is that whilst, in my opinion, Dead Air isn't quite up there with The Bridge, Wasp Factory, Crow Road, Whit or any of the Culture epics, it is, ultimately worthwhile. I'm glad I read it, but slightly disappointed that it falls short of the very high standard that this hugely talented author has set himself.

Satire, but I think it is a bit weak:
It took me a while to figure out this one: it is set in the backdrop of 9/11, but 9/11 is not really important for the story, apart from a brilliant line: "If 9/11 was meant to be an attack on democracy, they should have rammed the planes into Al Gore's house!" No, the satire lies in the fact that for the wast majority of people 9/11 did not change anything, life has gone on. Some banality here, a little drama there. The protagonist, a shock-jock with similarities to Howard Stern goes on with his daily life in London, UK. Things happen to him, and he tries to set wheels rolling with political stunts, but everything just fizzles out for him. I think that's where the satire is: whatever big things that happen around is, our personal life and private dramas tend to be pretty banal.

Alcohol + Drugs + Talks Too Much = Trouble:
Iain Banks first novel, The Wasp Factory, was published in 1984. In the years since, he's won critical acclaim, topped best-seller lists and has even written Science Fiction books under the cunning nom-de-plume 'Iain M. Banks'. He's also seen this book, "The Crow Road", adapted for television by the BBC in 1996. "Dead Air" is his eleventh non sci-fi book and was first published in 2002. The book's 'hero' is Ken Nott - a Scottish 'shock jock' who works in London for Capital Live. He's very much a liberal who doesn't believe in religion; having said that, he isn't about to prevent someone from going to church. Ken currently lives on the 'Temple Belle', a very cool houseboat on the Thames. His home, however, is actually owned by Sir Jamie Werthalmey, Capital Live's incredibly rich owner, and is rented by our hero at a very reasonable rate. Ken also appears to be a very prolific lover. Divorced fro Jude, his current official girlfriend in Jo. A PR agent for a record label, Jo's main project appears to be pandering to the every whim of the label's current 'hot' band, Addicta. Unofficially, Ken's also been spending quite a bit of time with Celia. This is something he has to be very secretive about - not only because of Jo, but also because Celia is married to John Merrial. Merrial is not only an acquaintance of Sir Jamie's, but is also a noted 'businessman' whose imports and exports include drugs and people. Although, apparently, he isn't personally violent, crossing him will leave you - at best - VERY injured. The story itself jumps backwards and forwards, which may put some off - for example, its established very early in the book that Ken and Celia are lovers, though the history of their relationship is told only gradually as the book progresses. The biggest factor on how much someone's going to enjoy this book is Ken himself. The holds very definite opinions about things - notably politics and religion - and won't hold back when he wants to make a point. Given that the book opens on the 11th of September, 2001, it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that part of what Ken has to say touches on America's response. I'm also pretty sure there'll be people who won't like what he has to say or how he says it - as a result, I suspect the book won't be enjoyed by the pro-war, anti-liberal community. However, this isn't a book about the Twin Towers or the 'War on Terror' : it's about Ken's ability to get himself in trouble. Despite what I felt was a slow start, I enjoyed it a great deal.

A bit sparse, but not bad:
A moderately engaging story is buried deep in Dead Air, the latest book by Iain Banks, which is about a 'left' wing shock jock in London who likes to talk a lot (shoot his mouth off is a more accurate expression). Having never read his other works, I can't compare this to anything else he's written the way some reviewers have done. On the whole, though, I'd say I enjoyed it well enough. The basic stories are that Ken Nott, our protagonist, likes to talk a lot (did I mention this?), likes to rub people the wrong way, and so grows rightfully paranoid when suddenly it seems that some dangerous people really are after him. Since I continually compared him to the shock jock in the movie Talk Radio, I also continually wondered if anything really bad would happen to him. Unlike the main character of many novels, I really didn't know if he would come through alive or not (read it to find out). Towards the end, although somewhat contrived, the tension was about as high as I've read in a long time. The problem, though, is that so much of the book, particularly the first half, is filled up with endless and often pointless banter. I don't know anything about Banks, so I don't know if some of the endless rantings are meant to represent his own real world views or are just part of the character's personality. But the rants are the more entertaining sections. Other passages are just pointless conversation, perhaps meant to show how shallow the guy really is in his life. If so, the word 'overkill' springs to mind. But ultimately, it's a pretty good lark. I'll probably go ahead and read more of his stuff at some point. Just don't expect any great depth in this one.