Hellcorp by Jonathan Whitelaw

I bought this book a good while ago but hadn't got around to reading it. So when the invitation came to join the blog tour for the follow up, The Man in the Dark (review here), it seemed like the perfect time to read both.

The Blurb:

"Hellcorp sparkles like a blood-black diamond. Satan's got his work cut out in this darkly comic crime tale. A cracking read!" - Mark Leggatt

"Hellcorp combines suspense, humour, and philosophy in a startlingly unique novel. Whitelaw delights and entertains while leaving readers contemplating life's important issues. Don't miss this razor-sharp book.'' - International bestseller K.J. Howe, author of The Freedom Broker and Skyjack

Life is hard for The Devil and he desperately wants to take a holiday. Growing weary from playing the cosmic bad guy, he resolves to set up a company that will do his job for him so the sins of the world will tick over while he takes a vacation. God tells him he can have his vacation just as soon as he solves an ancient crime.

But nothing is ever easy and before long he is up to his pitchfork in solving murders, desperate to crack the case so he can finally take the holiday he so badly needs...

This is a perfectly-pitched darkly comic crime novel that is ideal for fans of Christopher Fowler and Ben Aaranovitch.

Hellcorp was published by Urbane Publications Limited on 5th July 2018. You can purchase it from Waterstones, Amazon UK, Amazon US and other good bookshops.


My Review:

As always for me, I was attracted to this book by the blurb. But in this case, it was also the cover that did it. To be honest, I'm not often particularly influenced by a cover, unless in a negative way where it puts me off completely. However, I love Hellcorp's bold, bright, blocky look.

I knew I had made a good decision by the end of the prologue. At the end of a long, tiring day, the Pope lets out a huge, satisfying fart... just before the Devil arrives to tell him that he's legitimising Hell as a business, with its headquarters in Edinburgh. Obviously.

The author has clearly had some fun writing this. The Devil is fed up - his days seem to be full of paperwork and bureaucratic nonsense, which sounds Hellish, and he wants a holiday, so is setting up a business to take care of the work for him. But God, or Him as He is referred to here, is still The Boss and He has something to say about it all. Before the Devil can take his holiday, God wants him to solve the mystery of an attack on a human man forty years previously. We don't see much of Heaven - all the meetings between God and the Devil take place on a celestial golf course, which  would actually be my idea of Hell, but that's a personal thing.

The Devil wakes up injured on earth, in hospital in Glasgow, in a male human body with none of his spiritual powers but a whole lot of attitude. Dr Jill Gideon is strangely drawn to him, and intrigued by a message on a bouquet of flowers by his bed. She agrees to help him in his quest, and chaos ensues.

The Devil is brilliant. He's rude, unthinking, obnoxious and generally horrible, but I couldn't help liking him. And he likes big bottoms, which is always a good thing.  Gideon is whisked along in the madness, generally trying to smooth over the mess the Devil makes, but is not afraid to stand up him or share a piece of her mind. She teaches the Devil a little bit about humanity, and in turn learns a little bit about the afterlife. And who knew that Beethoven loves nothing better than a good game of darts?! And back in Hell, The Devil's secretary Alice is a woman to be reckoned with. Large, sassy and sexy, she rocks!

There's lots of action, lots of awkward social situations, lots of laughs and a few poignant moments in this original and fun book. It's certainly irreverent, but never offensive, and both God and the Devil come out of it rather well, I thought. It was slightly let down by some poor proofreading/copy editing, but overall I loved it and am looking forward to reading the follow up, The Man in the Dark.


The Author:

Thanks to Mrs W for the photo. 

Jonathan Whitelaw is an author, journalist and broadcaster.

After working on the frontline of Scottish politics, he moved into journalism. Subjects he has covered have varied from breaking news, the arts, culture and sport to fashion, music and even radioactive waste - with everything in between.

He's also a regular reviewer and talking head on shows for the BBC and STV.

HellCorp is his second novel following his debut, Morbid Relations.

Author Social Media Links:

Website: https://urbanepublications.com/authors/jonathan-whitelaw/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JDWhitelaw13
FB Author Page:  https://www.facebook.com/JonathanWhitelawAuthor/