Sleb - Andrew Holmes

"A great read" - Glamour

"Holmes has a great line in drunken, rage-filled monologues which collapse into pathos." - Literary Review

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In this media-obsessed world, we are ...
...the tv, in the papers, we even have magazines devoted especially to them! It's hard not to be envious at times of the trappings of celebrity - wouldn't it be nice to be adored by the public, to have people interested in our lives, to get to attend a constant stream of parties and premieres, experiencing all the glitz and glam of the life these golden people appear to lead?

Nowadays, it seems that a new celebrity comes out of the woodwork ... more

"A great read" - Glamour

"Holmes has a great line in drunken, rage-filled monologues which collapse into pathos." - Literary Review

☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼☼

In this media-obsessed world, we are exposed to the famous day in day out - on the tv, in the papers, we even have magazines devoted especially to them! It's hard not to be envious at times of the trappings of celebrity - wouldn't it be nice to be adored by the public, to have people interested in our lives, to get to attend a constant stream of parties and premieres, experiencing all the glitz and glam of the life these golden people appear to lead?

Nowadays, it seems that a new celebrity comes out of the woodwork every day and that you don't even have to do very much in order to make your entrance through the hallowed doors into Celebville. Hey, one brief glance at "Celebrity Love Island" will prove that - the son of a former footballer, the woman the most famous footballer in Britain allegedly jeopardised his marriage for, the former "supportive" girlfriend of a tv presenter tried for raping another celebrity. You don't have to be an actor, or a singer, or actually DO anything in order to acquire fame - fame by association is the new celebrity career of choice.

So, in theory, killing a celebrity can make you famous.

And this is what happens to advertising exec Christopher Sewell in Andrew Holmes' debut novel "Sleb", a satirical look at celeb culture and the part both the media and the fans play in it. Published in 2002, this book tells the story of a celebrity worshipped by millions - and the man who murders him. The celebrity in question is Felix Carter, a genre-defying singer with the world at his feet and his pick of girls in his bed. When he is found dead at his home, with a bullet wedged in his chest, and his killer sitting opposite him, passed out in a drunken stupor with the weapon in his hand, no one can understand why it happened. But everyone wants to know why.

Christopher, the murderer, has finally deigned to give an interview from his prison cell, to an anonymous journalist. He tells the journalist about the numerous events leading up to the murder, starting with his father's unexpected death, his growing dependancy on alcohol as he struggled to cope with the realities of life, and his marriage breakdown as a result of his alcoholism. He also often mentions the fact that he has been told he has a physical resemblance to Felix - they look vaguely alike yet Felix has everything he wants and Chris has LOST everything that ever mattered to him. In a way, this fact is almost irrelevant to the storyline, as Chris's path doesn't cross Felix's for a long time, and it seems that Chris's spiral of self-destruction would have continued whether or not Felix had appeared in his life. However, there is a link related to their similarities in appearance, and this is what eventually leads to Felix's downfall.

The book opens with a premiere - the premiere which Felix did not turn up to due to the whole being dead thing. This provides a good introduction to the glamour - and superficiality - of the famous. After this the action jumps backwards and forwards as we meet Christopher and hear his story, intertwined with commentary from a third person narrative about various details of the murder and the people it affects. Holmes devotes a whole chapter to various people's reactions to the death of the star - a clever idea as the first thing people do when people talk about the death of a star is what they were doing themselves and how they felt. This chapter contains characters which may never appear again and really seem to be mainly there for comedic value, as well as characters who actually re-appear in the novel later on, and may have accidentally played a part in Felix's eventual murder - without even realising it!

Although the action and point of view jumps around a lot, from past to future to present and back to past, and from person to person, it is still a fairly easy book to get into. There is a lot of humour contained within the book, although it is fairly dark humour rather than laugh-out-loud funny most of the time. The mood isn't always humourous though - it is also fairly depressing at times as we witness Chris becoming more and more alcohol-dependant and increasingly isolated from the world, until it doesn't seem he can sink much lower. And then he does, and it can be uncomfortable reading as he starts to realise for himself how drastically his life has changed. You may have been prepared to hate him - he is a murderer after all - but it is hard not to get caught up in his world and care about what happens to him. As he speaks from his prison cell, it seems that his life is so much better now. Before he was a nobody, now he IS someone. People RESPECT him. It feels good. Strangely enough, I felt happy for him!

With "Sleb" Andrew Holmes has created an immensely readable novel which will have you turning the pages furiously, desperate to find out what happens next, wondering how an amiable "normal" bloke can turn killer in such a short space of time - and waiting for the neat little twist in the tail that could very well appear at any moment. This is a must-read novel for anyone who likes the idea of the world of celebrity - or loathes it!

On a final note, you may look at the front cover of this novel and think - "hmmm, this guy looks familiar". You may then start reading the novel and think "Hmmmm, Felix sounds like someone familiar, is he based on someone in particular?" Well, in Andrew Holmes' own words, here's your answer . . .

"It was originally called 'Killing Robbie Williams', but Hodder's lawyers said the title would have to change. "

I'm unsure whether or not that was a joke. But sounds like Robbie should steer clear of that particular author - just in case!!!!

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"SLEB" IS PUBLISHED BY SCEPTRE AND COSTS £6.99
AVAILABLE FROM AMAZON.CO.UK FOR £5.59 OR FROM AMAZON MARKETPLACE FROM 1P - WELL WORTH A READ!

 

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