The Satsuma Complex by Bob Mortimer

The Satsuma Complex is a comic crime novel by the comedia Bob Mortimer. It is the first one by him that I have read, but we have the sequel and his autobiography on our shelves. I think at least two of these books came from charity shops. They may end up going back to one when we are finished with them.

I do not know how aware people outside the UK are of Bob. I first saw him on Vic Reeves Big Night Out that was on TV in the early 90s. It was a surreal show that reminded me of Spike Milligan. He and Vic have done other shows together.

More recently Bob has been through heart surgery and reached a new audience on the fishing show he does with fellow comedian Paul Whitehouse where they talk about mental health as well as mucking about near rivers. He is also a frequent guest on the panel show Would I Lie To You?

Getting back to the book, it is about a young lawyer called Gary who gets mixed up in some nasty criminals. Bob was a lawyer before he got into comedy and you can imagine him as Gary. Gary is not really enjoying life until he meets a girl, but this leads him into all sorts of trouble. That sounds grim and it does get quite dark, but the dialogue is pure Bob with lots of whimsy. He spends a lot of time talking to squirrels. It gets a bit meta as the novel features a book that is also called The Satsuma Complex, but it seems to be a different book.

There is a bit of a trend for gentle crime books such as those by Richard Osman, but this has its own style. It is not a very long book, but it plays out at a nice pace and the ending does not disappoint. It did make me laugh at times. I will be reading the follow-up soon, but I will have something different before that from my pile of books I want to read.

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