Angelmaker - Nick Harkaway

Joe Spork is a normal guy. He fixes clocks for a living, he stays out of trouble, he's nice to everyone. Then he fixes something for a client, something he really shouldn't have fixed, and his whole world goes to pot. He soon finds himself in the middle of a worldwide crisis, having unwittingly turned on a device, named the Apprehension Engine, that could devastate the planet. It doesn't end there, either, the plot actually starts years earlier.

Nick Harkaway is a genius. He has created a plot that intertwines beautifully, like a Dan Brown novel, only a little bit more intricate. His protagonist is easy to understand, easy to like and you can place yourself almost entirely in his shoes. His growth throughout the book is brilliant, and you end up really rooting for him by the end. The other main characters are great too, showing multi-faceted personalities and having interesting back-stories. Perhaps the best character is Edie Bannister, a feisty old lady who owns an ugly dog and a few guns. I found the flashbacks to her younger days very entertaining and highly intriguing. The way that the plot then blends all this in in expertly done.

The only down point is that it took a while to really get into it. However, as soon as Edie's flashbacks started, I was hooked. The verbose language and the complexity of the sentences may make your head ache at first, but give it time, keep a dictionary on hand and keep reading. The best is yet to come. And the finale? Well, lets just say that Joe Spork isn't such a normal guy after all.

This is a tiny review, but if too much of the plot is revealed, the story will get ruined for all of you, and no-one wants that! The book is a fairly long read, especially if you have to keep looking up words (thank god for Kindle dictionary, is all I can say), but it's worth it! 8 out of 10.