Blurb:

My name is Gary. I’m a thirty-year-old legal assistant with a firm of solicitors in London. To describe me as anonymous would be unfair but to notice me other than in passing would be a rarity. I did make a good connection with a girl, but that blew up in my face and smacked my arse with a fish slice.

Gary Thorn goes for a pint with a work acquaintance called Brendan. When Brendan leaves early, Gary meets a girl in the pub. He doesn’t catch her name, but falls for her anyway. When she suddenly disappears without saying goodbye, all Gary has to remember her by is the book she was reading: The Satsuma Complex. But when Brendan goes missing, Gary needs to track down the girl he now calls Satsuma to get some answers.

And so begins Gary’s quest, through the estates and pie shops of South London, to finally bring some love and excitement into his unremarkable life…

A page-turning story with a cast of unforgettable characters, The Satsuma Complex is the brilliantly funny smash hit first novel by bestselling author and comedian Bob Mortimer.

Review:

I’m a big fan of Bob Mortimer so I was intrigued to read The Satsuma Complex. It’s easy to read and his voice comes through the story really well. There are a few moments of silliness (including imaginary conversations with a squirrel) but the story is still compelling and I was interested to see how it would be resolved.

The protagonist of The Satsuma Complex is Gary. He seems like an average, unremarkable man, but I did warn to him quickly and enjoy getting to know him as he found himself in some unfortunate situations. His narration is peppered with humour and this makes his character more relatable as the story develops.

We also occasionally hear from Emily, and this helps to tie the story together. I did feel some sympathy towards her, but I was never quite sure that Gary (or I) could trust her, and I enjoyed the jeopardy that this created.

Alongside the humour, Mortimer does raise some difficult issues such as domestic abuse, loneliness and family relationships. This added  tension and grittiness to what would have otherwise been a cosy mystery, and I did appreciate this element of the novel. 

I listened to the audio version of The Satsuma Complex and I felt that Bob Mortimer and Sally Phillips brought the novel to life brilliantly.

I am looking forward to seeing how the story continues in The Avocado Hotel.

The Satsuma Complex is available from Amazon.