LoveReading Says
Winner of the 2023 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction, The Satsuma Complex is a pitch-perfect showcase of Bob Mortimer’s unique brand of comedy; it's surreal, whimsical, and delightfully absurd. He masterfully blends the bizarre with the banal, crafting a story that feels warmly familiar. Steeped in the great tradition of British eccentricity, Mortimer’s humour thrives on unpredictability, skewering everyday situations with wild logic and unexpected twists.
At the heart of the novel is Gary, a mild-mannered legal assistant living a largely unremarkable life in London - until he finds himself unexpectedly drawn into a murky underworld after his acquaintance Brendan mysteriously vanishes. Left with a seemingly innocuous computer drive that turns out to be highly sought after, Gary is soon caught in a spiralling mystery that’s as strange as it is compelling. Along the way, he encounters a captivating woman he dubs "Satsuma," after spotting her reading the eponymous book. Their connection provides a soft thread of romance that grounds the story amid its chaos, giving the reader someone to root for amid the madness.
Mortimer’s signature deadpan delivery and disarmingly warm tone lend the novel a gentle charm. Despite its oddball plot and eccentric characters, The Satsuma Complex never feels alienating. Instead, it feels like a gentle invitation into a weirder, sillier version of our world - one that somehow still rings true.
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The Satsuma Complex Synopsis
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 first novel by bestselling author and comedian Bob Mortimer.
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About Bob Mortimer
Bob Mortimer was born in Middlesbrough in 1959, the youngest of four sons. He trained as a solicitor before a chance encounter with Vic Reeves in the 1980s led to a successful career in comedy as half of duo Reeves and Mortimer. His screen credits include Shooting Stars, Big Night Out, Catterick and most recently BBC2's Gone Fishing. His memoir, And Away..., published in 2021. It became the bestselling memoir of the year, was named Times and Sunday Times Humour Book of the Year, and was shortlisted for Non-fiction Book of the Year at the National Book Awards. The Satsuma Complex is his first novel. He's on Twitter and Instagram as @RealBobMortimer.
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