J. J. Connolly

Layer Cake by J.J. Connolly is the story of an unnamed drug dealer in London. Both utterly smooth and totally savvy in the world he moves in, his plans are to make his money and then quietly disappear before the age of 30. Although he has plenty of money stashed away, he needs the ok from his boss, and he’s only getting that if he will handle a problem. The boss wants him to track down a friend’s runaway daughter, oh, and also there’s this one final deal he would like him to oversee …

I don’t want to know these people or even be anywhere around them, but I do enjoy reading about the London criminal element. They have their own style and flair, their own language and even though they are as brutal as they come, they make for very interesting reading. The author leads the reader step by step, deeper and deeper in this gangland world, peopled by a supporting cast of colourful characters, With wry humor and a real ring of authenticity, Layer Cake is an original, inventive crime story.

I have seen the movie that was based on this book and although it was a number of years ago, I remember also being very impressed by it. Although it took me a chapter or two to be comfortable with the slang terms, this was a great story that had me gasping in horror on one page and laughing out loud on another. Quite violent and not for the overly sensitive but otherwise an excellent work of crime fiction.… (mais)