White Goods

by Guy A. Johnson

Set in the south of England at the beginning of the 1980's, White Goods is a novel about loss and the search for the truth, told through the eyes of a deceptive twelve-year-old boy. Scot Buckley is a complex young man, living under the shadow of absence: his mother encounters a horrific death at the start of the book. Further, he is haunted by the elusive existence of a relative simply known as 'Jackie' - whose very being the rest of his family are determined to keep secret. White Goods opens very dramatically: a child is pushed into the icy, open mouth of a chest freezer and the lid is slammed shut. His identity and fate are central to the story, but remain a mystery until the end. Aside from the imprisoning chest freezer, other domestic goods participate in the drama. Scot recalls that his mother's death is the result of a gory accident with a dishwasher. However, all is not as it initially seems and, each time Scot recalls her death, the scene and the actual cause are different... White Goods is Guy Johnson's second published novel. As with his debut, doG Backwards, the cover art was created by Lisa Moss. Praise for doG Backwards: 'Really liked! V interesting, gripping and unusual!' - Sophie Hannah, bestselling author of 'Little Face' and 'Kind of Cruel.' 'A powerful and unusual exploration of grief.' 'Intriguing and complex.' 'Original, gripping, emotional and unique plot.'

Genres: Mystery, Drama, Amazon, Fiction

374 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2012

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting read!

Very suspenseful, interesting characters! I wasn't sure at first reading this, but then I couldn't put it down. A good read

[Rosie Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of complex twists and turns and just when I thought I'd got a part sussed, it changed again. Written around an English family in the 1980's, where a lot of "White Goods" pass through their house, from a place called Dontask (Don't ask). The story is mostly told from the point of view of 12 year old Scott. A complex boy with his own set of fears he finds that secrets are kept from him and there is a mysterious person called Jackie whom no one will talk about. For the reader there is also a mysterious character called Tina who plays a role in the mounting number of fatalities as the story reaches its end. The book shows a great insight into how complicated some people's lives are, and how families rally around to support each other. White goods remain a powerful part to the story right up to the end, I don't think I'll ever look at a chest freezer the same again. My congratulations to Guy for writing a book with so many layers.

[Cassia Barkes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Only 4 stars because its quite slow but once you find out its so good and gripping

[Rob Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a fantastic read, I highly recommend it.

[Danny Farham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant Coming of age mystery. It reminded me of Dathan Auerbach's novel, Penpal. Try as I might I couldn't guess how it would end.

[Lynda Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another story I was greatly enjoying but I've knocked on the head because I happened across one mistake too many. Life really is too short to be wading through things put out to the public in this state !! I did get to 33% before I finally gave up.
It was set in my era with loads of references I could chuckle about and identify with and I would have certainly stuck with it were it not for the mistakes. I've others downloaded by the author too so I'm hoping (because I downloaded them both on later dates) that he got himself a decent editor or proofreader by then.
Firstly immersion spelt as emersion, then this sentence "You a got a dishwasher" ? Too used instead of to (more than once)then we had page boy spelt as paige. Onto another of the doubled up sentences-this one went "Felt a small a small curve work at my lips...".Extremely irritating. Wimpy was spelled properly until he threw in Whimpy just the once. Why ??? Then pour was written as poor (which I've not seen as a mistake in any other book)then bought instead of brought and to top it all an apostrophe mistake. The last few on pretty much ensuing pages which is why I packed it in and deleted it. They were coming too thick and fast.
There were some laugh-out-loud lines and so many things that made me smile in remembrance, especially those traffic light car airfresheners. They were called Feu Orange, weren't they ? Please get it re-edited though, Mr Johnson. Such a bloody shame to leave it out there in this incarnation.

[Heather Doughty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will only appeal to a specific type of reader. Luckily, I am one of those readers.

The entire book is written in first person. I thought I knew what was going on, then I didn't. I thought I knew who was speaking, and then I didn't. The author sets the reader up for mass confusion and pulls the rug out quite a few times.

The overall book is about family disfunction (who doesn't have that?), how it impacts generations, and the power of lies. The main character, Scot, just wants the truth - and ironically, he can never tell the truth. Not to his friends, not us (the readers), not his family. The lies and the truth are all woven into an intricate tapestry of story. Read this with a clear head to keep up!

When I first began the book, I thought I knew where it was going. The opening chapter led me to believe one thing, and that was way way wrong. The entire story was like this. Yet I couldn't put it down. I was compelled to finish and get the ending - the truth.

The ending is the weakest part for me. The truth was powerful, but not what I was expecting or maybe hoping for. It was a good conclusion, just more tempered than the build up.

[Peri · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is disturbing but in a good way, if there is such a thing. It dangles little enticements to keep reading and then blows them out of the water, more than once.
I loved the background and setting and many of the descriptive details recalled my own era of childhood...without the plethora of weird stuff though.
This is the second book of this author that I've read and all his others are downloaded ready to read when I need a break from my usual choice of genre. He writes with an economy of style that draws you in until you just have to finish the book....even though it is 2am and you have to get up for work in a couple of hours.
A brilliant book from a talented author.

[Gail Ritter · Rating 5 out of 5]

What kind of book is this? Well, I spent a good chunk of it trying to figure out whether a character was a person or a dog. ( I was glad to have this cleared up towards the end I was really confused beginning this book; I decided as I went on, that a lot of it was due to the mindset of the main character, Scot. He is telling the story (mostly), and his mind is full of tales, questions, and deceptions. This was an emotionally exhausting book to read; I'll look up other books by the author, but I need a break before I read another one.

[Merredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I liked the most about this book, was that it's hard to tell what's going on. The first half of the book, I wasn't even sure what it was about. It's narrated mostly by a 12 year old boy, who seems to have some sort of something, maybe Aspergers, or something else. His mother has died, possibly, and all these strange things keep happening, with lots of secrets from everyone in the family, including our narrator. I was glued to the book, wondering, what happened? What is happening? Do they even know themselves? I recommend this one.

[Mary Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is quite novel in the way the plot folds and unfolds. Even beyond the end the reader is left to puzzle things through. Largely written from the perspective of an 'unusual' 12 year old boy, the take on his world and his challenging interpretation is both engaging and entertaining. His quest for the 'truth' is the plot itself. With characters that could be part of the Shameless series, the peep into the dodgy world of unseen Britain forms a memorable read.

[Krysta · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was quite complex. I was never quite sure what was going on, and that was the fun of it! I loved constantly trying to figure it out. No formula novel here. My only critique is it got a bit TOO confusing and somewhat disjointed near the end, but it pulled everything back together. I am highly recommending this to anyone who wants a different kind of story. I think White Goods is a book to talk about in college, in book clubs and amongst friends. Looking forward to sequel!

[Sarah Watson]

I don't usually give up on books, even if I am not enjoying them I like to read to the end just so I can say no I really don't like that book or style of writing but I read it and wouldn't again. However, with this book I just cannot get into and cannot follow the story so have had to admit defeat and finally delete it off the kindle without finishing it - would not recommend

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

great story, confusing at times with twists & turns, but fantastic characters especially Scott that felt very real.

[Peri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. Compelling, macabre with a dash of humour. Had to know how it worked. Clever author.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very different

Almost put this book down, so tortuous and confusing at first, made sense in the end. Glad I persevered, a very unique read.

[Diana J Heding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my kind of book

To me it was confusing. It left you hanging and I guess you have to read/buy the next book in the series.

[William Bitner Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

569 pages of oh my gosh. So many twists and turns, a great physiological thriller. My first read by Guy A. Johnson, but not my last for sure.

[William Bitner Jr. · Rating 5 out of 5]

569 PAGES OF OH MY GOD. A GREAT PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER. MY FIRST, BUT NOT MY LAST READ BY GUY A JOHNSON.

[Pen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure if I liked it or not! I know I was confused.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

N

[Polly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bizarre, haunting, confusing, the strangest book I've ever read.