WHO IS VERNON SUBUTEX?
An urban legend.
A fall from grace.
The mirror who reflects us all.
Vernon Subutex was once the proprietor of Revolver, an infamous music shop in Bastille. His legend spread throughout Paris. But by the 2000s his shop is struggling. With his savings gone, his unemployment benefit cut, and the friend who had been covering his rent suddenly dead, Vernon Subutex finds himself down and out on the Paris streets.
He has one final card up his sleeve. Even as he holds out his hand to beg for the first time, a throwaway comment he once made on Facebook is taking the internet by storm. Vernon does not realise this, but the word is out: Vernon Subutex has in his possession the last filmed recordings of Alex Bleach, the famous musician and Vernon's benefactor, who has only just died of a drug overdose. A crowd of people from record producers to online trolls and porn stars are now on Vernon's trail.
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[THE WINDOWS OF THE BUILDING OPPOSITE ARE ALREADY LIT]***
(@maclehosepress, 22 March 2018, first published 7 January 2015, 352 pages, paperback, copy from @AmazonUK #AmazonVine, translated by Frank Wynne)
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I wanted to read this book because of the crazy cover. It just invites you to take a peek. I didn't have any expectations because I didn't really know what the book was about. The cover seduced me. This is a dazzling book. The book is set in Paris and is very well written so I got a real sense of place. The book is packed with a range of diverse, colourful and a times crazy characters, least of all Vernon. Subutex is the brand name for an opioid used to treat opioid addiction which I didn't know for ages. The characters are vivid and unforgettable and completely messed up. There are no heroes here. I loved the Paris the author brings to life, dark and gritty, far different from the tourist destination of my own experiences. Vernon becomes homeless when his benefits are cut and the book is painful to read at times. Vernon's experiences living on the streets allows the author to explore even more diverse characters in the people he encounters, most who dismiss him or overlook him.
