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 Can't Wait for the Sequel Mar 05, 2010
Murder in the Magick Club is a sizzling but light read written with serious effort to make it almost flawless. Starting from the cover all the way to the end, there was nothing in the book that I did not enjoy.....and little I knew I enjoyed dark humor. The book is a treat for those who appreciate the flawless command of the writer over his plot and somewhat odd characters tied oddly in a common setting. The plot keeps the interest of the reader alive, always waiting for another interesting twist; another crazy sentence; another wild thought given life on paper. While this novel is the very first written by its Author Lorrier, he, however, appears to be an expert of building his characters and playing with them as and when he pleases. His skillful writing reflects his keen observation of not only the human behavior, human psyche but also the surrounding environment. His vivid imagination brings the characters to life. Weaved in the common fabric of vice and tied tightly in a common but dark social setting, the characters retained their uniqueness till the end. Indeed there is nothing loveable about the plot or the characters yet, the reader continues to want more. A refreshing book about not so refreshing things. Not to mention the "apt" use of not so perfect language (extremely suitable for the characters) added much more flavor and edge to the overall sizzle. The book kept me thinking....what's coming next!
0 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 Book Needs Help! Feb 27, 2010
As the synopsis says that this book will be one for the banned bookshelves, I will have to say that it needs to be banned because it was truly an awful read, and not because it could possibly have a little bit of darkness or naughtiness to it, like most banned books out there. The characters were raw, gritty, grotesque, and quite slovenly unlikable, not to mention the fact that the book could have been written in half the pages if the author did not create characters that rambled on incessantly boring not only the other characters, but the reader as well, to death. The author also could use someone to edit his book as there is quite a bit of grammatical errors throughout, including incorrect usage of the question mark and semi-colon. Sure, all of the characters were using terrible speaking language, and that point was clearly made obvious, but the sentence structures where it should have been correct were often incorrect. The overuse of the word "cowan" became irritating, and was almost comical in a sad sense, making one wonder if this was a new word just learned by the author. The plot was weak and limped, dragged and rambled on with really no sense of purpose, until it finally wheezed and choked out a "whodunit" ending.
In sum, I believe this book could have been a lot better had it actually been written with less words, some grammar tweaking, and a more solid plot.
Memorable characters Nov 17, 2009
This is the author's first published novel, and I applaud him for telling this story in an entertaining, fresh voice that compelled me to keep reading even as I cringed in places. The characters are dysfunctional in their relationships. They appear to be codependent, yet they have disdain for one another. This made for an interesting dynamic that set up some of the novel's best scenes and dialogue. The club itself was also a dark, dysfunctional character that appeared to constantly consume the time, energy, and resources of the owner. These were not the kind of characters that I could root for, or empathize with. However, I doubt that this was the author's aim. It appeared that he wanted to craft memorable characters that would leave the reader wanting to know about the next chapter in their strange, twisted lives. They made me laugh out loud. They frustrated me, and kept me interested. And yes, they made me want more (soon).
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Murder In The Magick Club...an accident scene you won't be able to pass by! Oct 25, 2009
Byron Lorrier's first novel, Murder In The Magick Club, provides the steamy, smoky stage for a small cast of characters who -- sometimes literally -- inhabit a dark little bar on the wrong side of Tampa. Luckily for the bar's owner, the wrong side of town is where the wrong kind gather...and spend everything they can! The bar's would-be employees -- if they ever did any real work, that is -- are among the lowest of the low...they use and abuse the unfortunate owner of this strangely successful local dive. They despise one another, yet need one another to be their truly nasty selves. No ray of light would dare shine into the Magick Club, lest it be cut down by the vile and vicious banter flying before, during and after closing time. In fact, the customers are almost as bad as the hired help! Despite the wall-to-wall crowd, the owner is overwhelmed by debt and equally overwhelmed by the prospect of staying open another day...having to face not only his diverse client crowd but, more so, the bums in his employ. Disgustingly funny and occasionally cause for cringing, this novel is a biting look at characters who, even when given a sympathetic second glance, are inherently repulsive and turn out to have no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Truly, the murder resulting in a dead body out back by the stinky old dumpster is the least of their problems! It's a fast and furious read that I couldn't put down until the very end, when I felt both relieved...and anxious for the next turn of events to be put down on paper for the reader!
A friend of mine blogged this review (& asked me to post it)... Oct 03, 2009
My mother used to tell me that you cannot judge a book by its cover. Actually I disagree with her, without even reading a single line of the text you can learn a great deal. Before I delve into a book I always read the stuff that most people do not. It did not take much investigation to figure out that I was going to enjoy this book, there were two things that caught my eye, firstly the dedication:
To all of the warty toads who hopped across my path
None of that mushy stuff to long lost friends and relatives. Byron just tells it the way it is! The other thing that caught my attention was the inscription on the back cover, a piece of real estate usually occupied with gushing one paragraph excerpts of praise from fellow authors. Once again Byron bucks the trend with:
Byron A, Lorrier ia a lawyer who lives in Largo, Florida. He rather proudly knows everything about nothing, and only talks to his cats.
Armed with these two pieces of vital information I settled into the meat and potatoes of Murder In The Magick Club. Normally when reading a book I look for such mundane things a plot and story flow. This book does not need really need either. The imagery and dialog draw the reader in, like a moth to the porch light.
The Magick Club is a seedy rundown nightclub, in a seedy rundown area, inhabited by seedy rundown characters. There is a Magick Club in every city I have ever lived! I like dive bars, in fact I seek them out. I like them so much that I held my wedding reception in one, a few glassed of draft beer, some stale pretzels, a bottle of Baby Duck, and we were all set!
Byron Lorrier has done a fabulous job of painting his characters, they are all disreputable, you would not want to invite any of them home for dinner and a chat, they would steal your silverware and empty your liquor cabinet in the blink of an eye.
The Magick Club is presided over by owner Bryn, a failing businessman who drinks too much of the profits and has a PhD in cynicism, when he discovers a dead body laying next to his dumpster he merely remarks "Grrreat `nother dead drunk".
His staff are also from unique molds, waitress Magdeline is 29 going on 60, drug addicted and alcoholic, and of course shacked up with a loser who has never worked a day in his life. Waiter Cal the consummate cad, and waiter Robert the house homosexual. The only employee likable in any way is waitress Briana who works to help pay her school tuition.
The customers are equally dysfunctional, disreputable and dislikable. Drug dealers, drug users, ladies of the night, and losers by the dozen.
I can honestly say that I think Byron Lorrier has a great career ahead of him as a writer, he had me laughing so hard it hurt. I guess part of the allure is is that I think I have met many of his characters over the years. Byron has a superb ability in creating word pictures, within only a few pages I could see his characters come to life.
Murder In The Magick Club is well worth seeking out, it is a truly wonderful exploration of the underbelly of society. You can order your copy from Amazon. I do hope to lure Byron onto my Week In Reviews radio show, I just can't wait to talk to him.
Simon Barrett
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