Apocalypso

by Robert Rankin, Axel Merz (Translator)

The Ministry of Serendipity at Mornington Crescent runs everything. And that is everything. When the Ministry learns of' a spacecraft that crashed four thousand years ago into the Pacific Ocean, it sends Sir John Rimmer and his elite team of' paranormal investigators to recover it. Amongst Sir John's team is Danbury Collins, and Danbury isn't keen. He's seen the movies. He knows how it spacecraft is brought up from the depths. Mad alien thaws out. Hell and horror all around. Thousands flee in terror. And bloody big explosion at the end. Danbury knows just what should be done. Nuke it, and nuke it now. But will anybody listen? No! Porrig has Inherited a planet or it might be a bookshop, or it might be a gateway into another world. And Porrig is worried because he has learned a terrible secret. But if he told people all about it, would they listen? No! But perhaps they should, because a spacecraft has been brought up from the depths, a mad alien has thawed out, there is hell and horror all around and thousands are fleeing In terror. And there is every likelihood of there being a bloody big explosion at the end. In this, his eighteenth novel, Robert Rankin takes a classic science fiction theme, turns it inside out and upside down and blends it with horror and humour to produce something all his own.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Humor, Science Fiction, Comedy, Audiobook, British Literature

398 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

"When Robert Rankin embarked upon his writing career in the late 1970s, his ambition was to create an entirely new literary genre, which he named Far-Fetched Fiction. He reasoned that by doing this he could avoid competing with any other living author in any known genre and would be given his own special section in WH Smith."
(from Web Site Story)

Robert Rankin describes himself as a teller of tall tales, a fitting description, assuming that he isn't lying about it. From his early beginnings as a baby in 1949, Robert Rankin has grown into a tall man of some stature. Somewhere along the way he experimented in the writing of books, and found that he could do it rather well. Not being one to light his hide under a bushel, Mister Rankin continues to write fine novels of a humorous science-fictional nature.

Reviews

[Andrew]

It's been a long time since I last read a Robert Rankin book. I haven't laughed out loud during a book as much as I did in this one for a long time. Rankin's way of mocking his own writing style and unashamed acknowledgments of the plot inconsistencies built into the story all add to the enjoyment. The frequent lapses into poetry for room setting descriptions was a highlight of the book for me, although the penis gags were wearing a bit thin by the end (probably because of all the rub-tugging). If you like books that contain a plot purely as a tool to support a running series of gags then this is well worth the read.

[James Barnard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Robert Rankin on fine form.

I was a little underwhelmed by the 'Armageddon' series, so I decided to read a stand-alone book of his instead. I'm glad I did - here we have Rankin's staples of a socially awkward and unwilling hero, allies who are more of a hindrance than a help, a committee of villains whose attempts to control things are complete rubbish, and the threat of an apocalypse. All achieved with aplomb!

With some laugh-out-loud passages, rude jokes and a breathtaking scope and pace, this is a rollicking read. It's not a particularly 'deep' book, but there's a lot of insight into human nature on display.

Very enjoyable.

[Soumya · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5. Usually, when faced with a half-star, I grant an extra half. However, I would prefer to describe this book as 'okay' rather than 'good'. I had a very good time reading the first few chapters, indeed they made me chuckle heartily. Then it was lost in the crowd of rub-tugging jokes, sprouts and emotional dialogue.
Definitely will read more of his books hoping to find more of what the initial chapters contained.

[Marfita · Rating 2 out of 5]

This reviews the audiobook narrated by the author, which just reminds me of the John Finnemore sketch about the author who rejects Sir Ian McKellan and tries to narrate his own sexy espionage novel with disastrous results. This is not like that. Just reminded me of the sketch. I used to aver that poets should never read their own work, but Chuck Sullivan put that to rest and now I enjoy poets reading their stuff. While not Nigel Planer or Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Rankin does a good job of not ruining his own oeuvre.
As I did not actually read this book, I don't know how the names are spelled, especially the "hero," Porrig. Or Borrig. Not sure. Should look it up (in fact, I did and I don't remember), so I'll be vague.
The world is ruled by a Ministry of Serendipity in London and the only person who can stop that is our misspelled hero, who is a complete ass and social pariah. And the way he's supposed to do this is by writing, illustrating, and printing a comic book.
This is complicated by a giant, mind-controlling, carnivorous Brussel sprout who's about to be defrosted so it can go back to being a god to and consumer of all humanity.
This is fantasy gone nuclear with bits of meta thrown in. I could appreciate that, but it seems our hero and many other characters are just plain unpleasant. I didn't care about Porrig or Borrig or whatever. I didn't care about any of the characters.

[John Carlsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Porrig, eller Padraig Arthur Naseby som han egentligen heter, är i början på boken på sitt livs nollpunkt. Han har aldrig varit bra på sociala koder, och nu har han gjort bort sig inför sin flickvän på en bröllopsfest. Dagarna går och helt plötsligt blir han kontaktad av en advokat som påstår att han kommer få ärva av sin onkel. Något som förvånar honom då han under sin uppväxt varken hört om en farbror eller morbror, då ingen av hans föräldrar har haft några syskon. Men efter ett möte med advokaten visar det sig att de han vuxit upp med inte är hans riktiga föräldrar...

Det han ärver visar sig vara en bokhandel, som också är en portal till en annan värld. Och helt plötsligt korsas Porrigs vägar med ett antal olika existenser, och till slut också med det faktum att jordens existens kan vara i fara...

Jag har läst en bok av Rankin tidigare, och jag känner igen mig i den vildsinta handlingen och bisarra humorn. Fans av Monthy Python, Douglas Adams och Terry Pratchett borde gilla detta (även om jag inte är någon större fan av sistnämnda). Man har rätt roligt för det mesta.

Här är det dock lite för mycket som pågår – man blir aningen matt efter ett tag. Sen är det frekventa inslag av kuk- och runkhumor som känns väl flåsig och som i de flesta fall inte för handlingen framåt.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another predictable but endearing Rankin novel, this time of Porrig, a misanthropic youth, who helps save the World from a rather aggressive alien vegetable. This has many corny jokes, including quite a few familiar ones reworked, and enough funny moments and scenarios to make it an entertaining read, if fifty-or-so pages too long. 3.5 stars.

[Lucas Brown · Rating 1 out of 5]

You know when a Robert Rankin book starts with a character complaining about political correctness, that you’re in for a bad time and jokes that clang, including one real crap one that insists on being a running gag. Don’t bother with this one, he’s done better.

[Robert Cerio · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very odd book, with an exceedingly British sense of humor about it. If you're an American with a good grasp of Monty Python and Douglas Adams brand of humor, you will enjoy it. I know I did.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not that great when compared to his other works.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read.

[Larry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't finish, the err humour, such as it is, didn't do it for me. No subtlety and just annoying. Which is strange because I enjoyed his earlier books.

[Lozza · Rating 2 out of 5]

Funny in parts but it was too many characters and not as good as ones i have read in the past.

[Sue Skinner · Rating 2 out of 5]

I appreciated this light-hearted look at whatever the genre of this novel is....
Definitely Monty Python, Spike Milligan & Goons inspired in humour and style.
Amusing & witty.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly didn't know what to expect from this book. I wasn't expecting it to be as funny or entertaining as it turned out to be, though. What a wild ride!

[Nathan Dehoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I believe this is the second appearance of Rankin's team of psychic investigators, Sir John Rimmer, Dr Harney, and Danbury Collins. Working for the Ministry of Serendipity located under Mornington Crescent, which secretly runs the world, the three of them go to a Pacific island where an alien sprout monster is making a comeback. The alien, whose name is Dilbert Norris, landed on Earth centuries earlier and got humans to worship him as a god, but was trapped under the sea after the sinking of Mu. The main protagonist, however, is actually a guy called Porrig (actually Padraig, but nobody calls him that), someone who always manages to put his foot in his mouth. He also draws offensive comics that he doesn't understand why people aren't interested in, and even his parents don't particularly like him. He inherits a derelict bookstore from his uncle, the magician Apocalypso, and discovers a way to shift between alternate worlds by using harmonics. Accompanied by a dvergar named Rippington and his distant ancestor who can't die until he's returned a feather to an angel, he has to find a way to defeat Dilbert. There are a lot of the usual elements in Rankin novels here, including running gags, secret government conspiracies, monster attacks, sprouts, and a lazy and unpopular but imaginative hero. I understand the Kindle edition, which I read, was edited within the past few years by the author, who fixed some plot holes and cut some penis jokes.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robert Rankin fills red exercise books with bizarre scribblings in his local pub until they reach the length of a novel. And it shows. This is my favourite of his weird ramblings, it had me choking with laughter. The novel is also notable for finally revealing what's hidden underneath Mornington Crescent tube station.

[krin · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this rather strange and quirky book made me chuckle at times, I felt that it could have used some trimming here and there. In particular, some types of jokes, while funny, were overused from time to time. Still, I liked the story of the put-upon Porrig learning about other worlds and creatures and finding the courage to save this world.

[Tim Heywood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Can't exactly remember when I read this from the library a few years ago, however having just read Retromancer reminded me of this one - the Ministry of Serendipity, regular plots turned inside out etc etc

[Thrainn]

nothing yet - just started reading it

[Mike Bygrave · Rating 3 out of 5]

There really isn't much to say. The book is OK; not up to Rankings usual high standards and little underwhelming. Much like this review.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read, very funny.