Finally, by popular demand, all seven Barney Thomson novels have been collected in one handsome omnibus edition. And it's a snip at the price!
Fans of Douglas Lindsay's genre-defining barbershop death junky novels will be delighted to know that THE BARBERSHOP SEVEN includes the complete, unabridged text from the following Barney Thomson novels:
#1 THE LONG MIDNIGHT OF BARNEY THOMSON #2 THE BARBER SURGEON'S HAIRSHIRT #3 MURDERERS ANONYMOUS #4 THE RESURRECTION OF BARNEY THOMSON #5 THE LAST FISH SUPPER #6 THE HAUNTING OF BARNEY THOMSON #7 THE FINAL CUT
Praise for the Barney Thomson novels
"This chilling black comedy unfolds at dizzying speed... an impressive debut novel." – Sunday Mirror
"The plot, Russian literature fans, is a modern spin on Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment. The bloody ending, movie buffs, is pure Reservoir Dogs." – The Mirror
"This is pitch-black comedy spun from the finest writing. Fantastic plot, unforgettable scenes and plenty of twisted belly laughs." – New Woman
"A mad, macabre romp with surreal characters and cutting black humour." – The Sunday Mirror
"Gloriously over the top, very bloody and very, very funny." – Daily Telegraph
"A novel which is both genuinely silly and a fun read." – The Scotsman
"Extremely well-written, highly amusing and completely unpredictable in its outrageous plot twists and turns." – The List
"Lindsay’s burlesque thrills offer no sex, no drugs, no desperation to be cool. Just straightforward adult story; fantastic plot, classic timing and gleeful delight in the grotesque. With more talent than Irvine Welsh could dream of, Lindsay has crafted a macabre masterpiece where content lives up to style." – What’s On
About the author
Douglas Lindsay is the author of the Barney Thomson crime series, which begins with THE LONG MIDNIGHT OF BARNEY THOMSON. He is also the author of the thriller, LOST IN JAUREZ, as well as the police procedurals, THE UNBURIED DEAD (Thomas Hutton #1), A PLAGUE OF CROWS (Thomas Hutton #2) and WE ARE THE HANGED MAN (DCI Jericho #1). Douglas lives in Somerset.
This is the last time I read a collection of seven books without breaking it up with something else. By book 6 I was all Barney Thompsoned out.
The first three books were fun and refreshing, a new take on the crime novel. I loved the parodying of the game shows and soap operas. Taking the mickey out of the newspapers was also great fun, but you do get used to it being there and don't notice it so much as the books progressed.
Books four to six felt forced. As if the publisher had said we want more Barney Thompson. You'll have to resurrect him. The final book was more like the first three, Except for the divine intervention and reads like an effort to tie up the loose ends.
On the whole an enjoyable read just stretched too far.
Well ... Books 1-3 on their own would have got five stars. They were funny and cleverly written. Books 4 through 6 seemed as though they were written under pressure to bring Barney back without having thought through the implications of plot, characters and realism ... Scooby Doo ... Seriously? And Book 7... Apart from the happy ending for Barney, it kind of lost whatever remnant of plot there was. Definitely not reading 7 books in one go again.
Overall, I am giving the Barbershop Seven four stars. In terms of individual books, I'd give five stars to stories 1-3 and 7, but four to the others. I loved the initial novels in this series, but I think some of that early spark of originality was lost towards the middle. However, the author found it again with the final tale. This is an engaging series, dripping with black humour and murderous mayhem. I recommend it for those who enjoy films like The Green Butchers. I just have the last two novellas to read to finish my Barney Thomson odyssey, so expect reviews of the those in the next few days.