Book Review – The Japanese Devil Fish Girl

by Robert Rankin (Gollancz) ISBN: 9780575088542

If you think this book has anything to do with Japanese devils or fish, then boy will you be in for a surprise.

If anyone reading this knows what the term Steampunk means then buy this book it contains all your nerdy requirements for the month.

The story is what makes this book good. The writing, while not without humour, is bland but very smooth and readable. The pacing is just not an issue because there is none.

This is an example. “London imminently threatened by invasion. Let’s have a wedding. Build up to wedding. More boring stuff about weddings. And then oh crap I forgot about the invasion… they’re here now. Wait? Oh right that I’d forgotten.”

But it’s not boring. There is a total disregard for anything resembling a plot but it manages alright without one. It’s like having a really angry bull on your high school debating team. You don’t need to make a meaningful point so long as the other team knows Big Red is ready to trample them if you lose.

It’s a bumbling stumbling mess through jungles of a mad man’s mind. And I can’t wait to read the next instalment

Christopher Dean
4/5

Buy the book here