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Comeback
Behind the prosperous, genteel landscape of the inner city lies a very different world of hardship and insecurity – where a roof over your head is never guaranteed.
Jack van Duyn is a Melbourne taxi-driver in his mid-fifties, living alone in a dingy Brunswick flat. He’s settled into a drab existence, with little money, few friends, and no prospects.
He’s still recovering from weeks of turmoil triggered by his infatuation with beautiful Somali refugee Farhia, and the bitter conflict with drug dealers, spies, and thugs that ensued — as described in Comfort Zone.
However, Jack’s return to normality is short-lived. He’s about to be hurtled into a vicious power struggle involving crooked property developers, angry unionists, and a deranged stalker from his past. Before he knows it, his world is starting to unravel, and he’s running for his life …
Jack van Duyn is a Melbourne taxi-driver in his mid-fifties, living alone in a dingy Brunswick flat. He’s settled into a drab existence, with little money, few friends, and no prospects.
He’s still recovering from weeks of turmoil triggered by his infatuation with beautiful Somali refugee Farhia, and the bitter conflict with drug dealers, spies, and thugs that ensued — as described in Comfort Zone.
However, Jack’s return to normality is short-lived. He’s about to be hurtled into a vicious power struggle involving crooked property developers, angry unionists, and a deranged stalker from his past. Before he knows it, his world is starting to unravel, and he’s running for his life …
- GenresMystery
179 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 19, 2019
3 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
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May 6, 2019Lindsay Tanner’s political background shapes a compelling adventure through the unpredictable world of the Carlton crew, the construction industry, and the homelessness crisis.
Peter Gordon
Tanner’s second novel echoes what he says is the new fault line in global democratic politics: education rather than income.
Troy Bramston, Weekend Australian
A tribute to life in inner-urban Australia.
Cameron Woodhead, Sydney Morning Herald
The author captures with fidelity the cadences of working-class Australian speech – which serves to remind us that the exit of a politician who listens to ordinary folk is politics’ loss.
Ken Haley, Courier Mail
Tanner is not afraid to use this selfish, blokey bachelor as a guide, positioning the reader as a passenger being driven around by a friendly motor mouth and it’s quite relaxing, in a nostalgic kind of way.
Rhonda Dredge, CBD News
A thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable read.
Samela Harris, Adelaide Advertiser
Comeback, as the title implies, is a paean to the old school, to an inner-urban culture that is slipping into the past, perhaps more slowly in tribal-tending Melbourne than most cities, even as the patina of grunge remains.
Ed Wright, The Australian
Tanner tackles the Australian property development gorgon, confronting issues of corruption in the Melbourne construction industry, gentrification, and homelessness ... Tanner’s nuanced exploration of this housing crisis is a welcome narrative, lending hard-edged, working-class realism to a genre that sometimes forgets to include relatable people.
Chris Flynn, Australian Book Review
Peter Gordon
Tanner’s second novel echoes what he says is the new fault line in global democratic politics: education rather than income.
Troy Bramston, Weekend Australian
A tribute to life in inner-urban Australia.
Cameron Woodhead, Sydney Morning Herald
The author captures with fidelity the cadences of working-class Australian speech – which serves to remind us that the exit of a politician who listens to ordinary folk is politics’ loss.
Ken Haley, Courier Mail
Tanner is not afraid to use this selfish, blokey bachelor as a guide, positioning the reader as a passenger being driven around by a friendly motor mouth and it’s quite relaxing, in a nostalgic kind of way.
Rhonda Dredge, CBD News
A thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable read.
Samela Harris, Adelaide Advertiser
Comeback, as the title implies, is a paean to the old school, to an inner-urban culture that is slipping into the past, perhaps more slowly in tribal-tending Melbourne than most cities, even as the patina of grunge remains.
Ed Wright, The Australian
Tanner tackles the Australian property development gorgon, confronting issues of corruption in the Melbourne construction industry, gentrification, and homelessness ... Tanner’s nuanced exploration of this housing crisis is a welcome narrative, lending hard-edged, working-class realism to a genre that sometimes forgets to include relatable people.
Chris Flynn, Australian Book Review
September 2, 2019
Magnificent
This is a great follow up to ”Comfort Zone”. A story that swings from depressing to, at times, uplifting. Every possible hurdle is put in the way of the main character, Jack van Duyn (rhymes with spoon!), and while he comes close to buckling he presses on. If you enjoy a story about how the system doesn’t treat us all equally this is a book you must read. You don’t really need to read “Comfort Zone” first but you might as well as you will go back to it after you have read ”Comeback”.
This is a great follow up to ”Comfort Zone”. A story that swings from depressing to, at times, uplifting. Every possible hurdle is put in the way of the main character, Jack van Duyn (rhymes with spoon!), and while he comes close to buckling he presses on. If you enjoy a story about how the system doesn’t treat us all equally this is a book you must read. You don’t really need to read “Comfort Zone” first but you might as well as you will go back to it after you have read ”Comeback”.
January 25, 2020
2.75 stars, rounded up to 3.
Took me a while to finish this short book, so much getting in the way of my reading time.
This book, billed as a sequel to COMFORT ZONE isn't so much a sequel but a different story featuring the same character Jack, the cabdriver.
Not as compelling as COMFORT ZONE, but still readable, this time Jack gets himself into all sorts of trouble after witnessing a workplace accident near his home. Getting involved with dodgy building companies/developers, proves more than Jack can handle as he deals with crooks and thugs galore.
Took me a while to finish this short book, so much getting in the way of my reading time.
This book, billed as a sequel to COMFORT ZONE isn't so much a sequel but a different story featuring the same character Jack, the cabdriver.
Not as compelling as COMFORT ZONE, but still readable, this time Jack gets himself into all sorts of trouble after witnessing a workplace accident near his home. Getting involved with dodgy building companies/developers, proves more than Jack can handle as he deals with crooks and thugs galore.
March 8, 2023
Jack is back, although I have not read Comfort Zone. Jack is a quirky cabbie with a knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, due to his lonely life and helpful nature, great depiction of Melbourne city and the shadowy underworld
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews