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The Mule
Jacky is a translator. He is a bit of an eccentric. And he can't quite understand why the enigmatic and beautiful girl at the bar wants to talk to him. Even more perplexing is the tatty-looking book she carries with her but won't let him touch. Written in an untranslatable language – even for him – it contains, quite impossibly, what seem to be photographs of her murder. When she disappears hours later and the book comes into his custody, the suspicion falls on him. Accused of her murder, Jacky must find a way to decipher the untranslatable book she has left behind. Racing through Paris in pursuit of the truth and the missing girl, he must track her down with nothing but an unwavering determination and the assistance of the world's most annoying man. The Mule is a wholly original, comical thriller filled with eccentric characters, sporadic violence and other peculiarities. Weaving a tale of intrigue, betrayal and romance, this is the bizarre story of the world's most enigmatic book.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published February 25, 2016
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126 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
May 10, 2021
Murder. Conspiracy. Ineptitude. That’s what the cover says. Add to that Madness. Kidnapping. Paris. Convolution. Humour. Originality. Another amusing, madcap adventure from David Quantick, although I think I enjoyed Go West more.
Jacky is a translator who unwittingly becomes involved in a plot concerning a book published in a mystery language. He meets an attractive girl in a bar one night - Jacky does not generally meet attractive girls and he wouldn’t be attractive to them if he did - and finds himself wanted by the police as ‘a person of interest’ when she subsequently goes missing.
3.5 stars for an enjoyable and entertaining read. I really do love this author’s off the wall humour and his originality.
Jacky is a translator who unwittingly becomes involved in a plot concerning a book published in a mystery language. He meets an attractive girl in a bar one night - Jacky does not generally meet attractive girls and he wouldn’t be attractive to them if he did - and finds himself wanted by the police as ‘a person of interest’ when she subsequently goes missing.
3.5 stars for an enjoyable and entertaining read. I really do love this author’s off the wall humour and his originality.
January 17, 2019
Very odd story. A gently humorous pseudo-mystery. Clearly inspired partly by Umberto Eco but also with an English narrator (who finds out part way through the book that he is known behind his back as The Mule) seemingly based on The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy's Arthur Dent in his bewilderment at the world around him.
The narrator is a loner translator of European fiction - two of his authors being a pretentious but best selling French author of blockbuster and lengthy philosophical novels (now a Parisian recluse notorious for being difficult but who suddenly is friendly to him) and an author he particularly hates who wrote a ridiculous fantasy written in a pretend half Italian half Latin cod medieval language.
The book starts when he is approached by a woman in a bar with an odd version of Alice in Wonderland written in a bizarre European mash up language but also with pictures of her apparently murdered. Intrigued by her and realising the book is a bizarre invented language translation of Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There he realises to his horror that the only person that can help him is the fantasy author. That author in turn gets incredibly excited and announces that the novel is clearly the key to a literary mystery - a beautifully produced fake encyclopaedia written in the same language and with a cult following among literary conspiracy theorists (of which he is one).
Overall an extremely bizarre but strangely entertaining read mainly due to the voice of the offbeat, sardonic but also clearly (if not to him) odd and downbeat narrator.
The narrator is a loner translator of European fiction - two of his authors being a pretentious but best selling French author of blockbuster and lengthy philosophical novels (now a Parisian recluse notorious for being difficult but who suddenly is friendly to him) and an author he particularly hates who wrote a ridiculous fantasy written in a pretend half Italian half Latin cod medieval language.
The book starts when he is approached by a woman in a bar with an odd version of Alice in Wonderland written in a bizarre European mash up language but also with pictures of her apparently murdered. Intrigued by her and realising the book is a bizarre invented language translation of Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There he realises to his horror that the only person that can help him is the fantasy author. That author in turn gets incredibly excited and announces that the novel is clearly the key to a literary mystery - a beautifully produced fake encyclopaedia written in the same language and with a cult following among literary conspiracy theorists (of which he is one).
Overall an extremely bizarre but strangely entertaining read mainly due to the voice of the offbeat, sardonic but also clearly (if not to him) odd and downbeat narrator.
September 20, 2019
Despite my dislikes at the start of the book, this soon became a rather interesting read. At times I found the writer to unnecessarily waffle, which made it a little irritating when you just wanted to know what the hell was going on, and at times, I really didn't know what the hell was going on. But the more I read, and the further I got to the end, more secrets were revealed. Some that were particularly exciting. I can't help but feel like a lot of the chapters were pointless, considering the overall situation was actually quite simple, but given the characters love of drama, this did seem to fit and the way Quantick wrote it seemed to represent them. It was an easy enjoyable read though.
May 24, 2016
This tale is farcical but oh so much fun. A chance encounter leads to adventure and intrigue. Alice in Wonderland is a common theme that is poignantly fantastical. The Mule has to prove that his is not like Tweedledum or Tweedledee and that he can translate twirly whirly gum drops of made-up languages into sense, or at least something that resembles sense. His side-kick, Frant is an insufferable lunatic whose exaggerated bushy eyebrows and proficiency for trouble drives the Mule to despair; yet his comic secret asides are enjoyable and hints that this ass will not give up that easily.
June 11, 2016
I loved this book -- a thoroughly entertaining read, and so much fun. I was immediately intrigued by the plot description, the idea of a translator coming across a book written in a completely unknown language, which is then connected to a woman's disappearance, and as soon as I started reading it, I was hooked. The narrative voice was just perfect. The comedy-thriller is a difficult genre, so easy to get wrong, but this one made me laugh and kept me on the edge of my seat as it galloped along through plot-twists and unexpected developments.
June 16, 2016
I’m on the fence about this one.
While the book has an interesting concept I found the last half (especially the climax) disappointing. It all seemed quite unbelievable yet predictable (everything was wrapped up in a sloppy rushed bow) Nothing in the reveal of this big mystery surprised me which seems to make this all not really worth the read time…
However it did have some saving graces. The book was light and comical at times, I did like the way the mystery was set up and unlike some other people, judging by these other reviews, I did like the main character Jacky (although, I had to sit and think for a second what his name was…you can decide if that’s a negative on the book or just my bad memory)
It’s not the kind of book you read in one sitting that just grabs you until you can’t wait to find out the answers behind this mystery book. But it’s a solid read I didn’t feel as if I had wasted my time but I wouldn’t read again.
While the book has an interesting concept I found the last half (especially the climax) disappointing. It all seemed quite unbelievable yet predictable (everything was wrapped up in a sloppy rushed bow) Nothing in the reveal of this big mystery surprised me which seems to make this all not really worth the read time…
However it did have some saving graces. The book was light and comical at times, I did like the way the mystery was set up and unlike some other people, judging by these other reviews, I did like the main character Jacky (although, I had to sit and think for a second what his name was…you can decide if that’s a negative on the book or just my bad memory)
It’s not the kind of book you read in one sitting that just grabs you until you can’t wait to find out the answers behind this mystery book. But it’s a solid read I didn’t feel as if I had wasted my time but I wouldn’t read again.
April 19, 2016
I found the book a bit hard going. There are parts of it that are quite good, story itself not bad but it didn't grab me and I could have put it down anytime but I decided to finish it and I found the 2nd half of the book far better than the 1st half.
December 29, 2016
Not bad at all. Slow to start, much better in the second half and an intriguing plot. Some interesting characters. Maybe just me but expected a bit more bang than whimper at the end. Funny throughout, however, as you'd expect from Mr Q.
May 8, 2016
This is a good pick me up book, Clever and whimsical with a hint of darkness lurking at most turns.
November 8, 2017
A lark of a mystery, with books. Quantick’s experience as a write and rock guy serves him well on some details in this shifting phantasm.
June 4, 2019
I picked this one up because it sounded interesting conceptually. The story is imaginative and comedic in parts. It struggled at times to keep my attention since there appeared to be a lot of tangents that didn’t quite fold into the overall plot and I lost focus because of its wordiness.
October 17, 2017
As i read it ,i was hoping it would get better, but it never does.
May 27, 2020
Honestly Quantick has now become one of my favorite authors. A nice mystery with a bit of noir that takes a lot of the vanity of authors.
January 4, 2017
A Translator is stuck with a notebook he can't understand after meeting a mysterious girl in a bar with an indecipherable book in tow.
This mystery started off with a lot of promise, but quickly lost my interest with a remarkably unlikeable narrator and a drawn-out and weak parade of set pieces that lead to a confusing and unsatisfactory conclusion.
This mystery started off with a lot of promise, but quickly lost my interest with a remarkably unlikeable narrator and a drawn-out and weak parade of set pieces that lead to a confusing and unsatisfactory conclusion.
February 3, 2017
As much as I wanted to like this in support of how it was self-published on Unbound, I just couldn't. None of the characters were likeable or believable, the plot is full of holes, the repetitive language proves that there really is a need for book editors, and the humour really felt like it was trying too hard - basically, it's quite an irritating read. The mystery did stop me giving up halfway, but once it was all explained I really wished I hadn't bothered. Sorry.
June 23, 2016
A really great first novel. The story is original and even through the pace is a touch slow (for me) in the beginning it picks up. I found myself wanting to keep reading long after my bedtime to see what happens. The characters were really fun too. This book gets a definite thumbs up from me.
September 6, 2016
Funny at times but with a poor plot
Very interestingly captured mind of a sociopathic translator, his background and work however the story the author wanted to tell isn't particularly interesting, doesn't bring anything new and is pretty static (with some elements of absurdity).
Very interestingly captured mind of a sociopathic translator, his background and work however the story the author wanted to tell isn't particularly interesting, doesn't bring anything new and is pretty static (with some elements of absurdity).
May 11, 2016
Such a frustrating read, plot holes, grammatical errors and the like. The protagonist was a bumbling fool, with not an ounce of sense. Think I'm "The Mule" for reading this...
June 12, 2016
I plodded on until page 153 then abandoned it.
August 22, 2016
thoroughly enjoyed this humorous book
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews