Ashley’s Reviews > Under the Volcano > Status Update

Seagulls: “…pure scavengers of the empyrean. Hunters of edible stars.”

“Hugh put one foot up on the parapet and regarded his cigarette that seemed bent, like humanity, on consuming itself as quickly as possible.”

I don’t think I appreciated what a political novel this is. The looming catastrophe of WWII is so present in the first three chapters of UtV it’s borderline nauseating. The atmosphere of the 1930s almost chokes you with its melancholy dread.