Un cóctel de coca, corbatas colombianas y realismo mágico al puro estilo García Márquez.

There's more magic here than in all of Hogwarts.

Senor Vivo and the Coca Lord began as an enthralling, funny, well-written book. Then it took a tragic turn, and became deep, philosophic, and thought-provoking. It's characteristic Louis de Bernières, a sequel to The War of Don Emmanuel's Nether Parts (but don't worry if you don't remember most of it; I didn't and still very much enjoyed this one).

The best way to describe this, I think, is to say it's a lot like life: Funny, unpredictable, rich, harrowing, sweet, and sad. But not depressing. It's everything a book should be.

- Louis, baby, how are you?

- That’s great, man. I’m good too. You know me: working hard, playing hard. Listen, we received your latest opus and we have to say, we are impressed!

- No problem at all, you really do know how to dig and strike gold, or oil. Or whatever it is they dig and discover down South America way. Opium? Is it opium? Do you dig for opium? Hey! It don’t matter, just rest assured that you have a good story here.

- Please, Louis, I’m always happy to give a guy like you compliments. There’s just one thing though, Louis, baby.

- Honestly, now don’t look so worried. It ain’t that much of a biggie. It’s just as good as ‘Senor Vivo and the Cocoa Lord’ is, we ain’t in the business of publishing short stories. That’s just the way it is. Nada on the short stories! Sorry we didn’t mention it. Actually we did mention it, you crazy bastard. Why didn’t you pay attention, you dumbass?

- Sorry, Louis, excuse my laughter. Don’t pout, please. I’m joking obviously.

- No, don’t be melodramatic. Honestly, Louis, nobody wants you to throw it in the bin. What you have here is gold, or oil or opium, or whatever it is they dig for in South America. I loved this Dionisio guy, your philosophy lecturer who takes on the local drug lord through impassioned letters to the newspapers. It’s drama when he earns the ire and wrath of organised crime, funny when they try and fail to assassinate him. There’s a Latin American sexiness to it, a lust that that’s just so exotic to us in rainy old London. I laughed, I chuckled, and if I still had a heart I probably would have cried at his doomed love affair with the gorgeous Anica.

- What’s that? Do I think some of the violence is too graphic and mysoginistic? Well, maybe a little, but it’s South American so I guess that makes it okay. Certainly if it was set in Darlington, we’d have more of a problem with it in what’s really a comic romp.

- So, yes, rest assured you have a good short story there, Louis. But as I said before, we ain’t in the short story business, so what we want you to do is pad it out.

- Yeah, you know what I mean, baby – pad it out. Just drop in a few vignettes and comic sketches that are clearly set in the same world as the rest of the action, but really have nothing to do with it. You know, the kind of thing.

- Hey! What are you looking at me for ideas for? You’re the author right? Just flick through your Marquez again, that’ll give you some notion. Or maybe just revisit your characters from the last novel – ‘Don Emanuel’s Groin’, or whatever the hell it was called. You don’t have to go back to them in a meaningful way, or even really make it that entertaining, but it’ll be good to see some familiar faces – even if them being there is a little pointless. That’s what padding is about, right?

- No problem at all, Louis. You do that we’ll have it into W.H. Smiths by Christmas and who knows maybe it’ll still be in print nearly twenty five years later.

- Really, Louis, baby, no problem at all.

- What’s that? What’s that old picture on the wall?

- That’s just a photo of my old Italian uncle and his mandolin, but don’t worry about that for now.

I was given this book a number of years ago by a friend and just hadn't gotten around to reading it. I was delighted to find that it was on the "1001 Books you Need to Read Before you Die". I loved de Bernier's style, especially his use of magic realism and I do intend to explore more in this series.

It was a grower; I'm usually a big fan of magical realism but often struggle with LdeB's writing. Not sure why. Midway through I would have given 3 stars, but by the end, it climbed to 4. Just. It's a very good study of power, and what it takes for bad and good people to acquire and retain it. As always, it's because people give it to them, whether they personally believe in it or not.

The lushness of magical realism combined with the dry smart-assery of more modern writers. I thought it was a bit of a cop-out to have the climactic show-down described via newspaper article, but other than that, pretty danged awesome.

So many stories in one book. Romance, violence, religion, hope. Dionisio Vivo was a hero after my own (journalism major's) heart. With his mighty pen and letters to the editor, Senor Vivo brings the cocaine trade to their knees and wins the hearts of his countrymen.

I especially loved chapter 16, titled "Memos." It ends with:
"From: The Missionary of Information
To: The Office of His Excellency the President

His Excellency is to be reminded that he abolished this Ministry two months ago."

Without the hilarious and crazy elements of magical realism, this book would be horrific and depressing. But De Bernieres throws it all together: Panthers! Sex! Justice! Brutality! and makes it work. It is really something to behold.

The first sentence ("ever since his young wife had given birth to a cat...") was promising, but unfortunately the rest of the book wasn't that great...

I'll tell you what another Good Reads reviewer said concisely and with insight, which allows me to take a pass, have a cup of tea, and get on to my next book. I hope I'm not breaking some rule by quoting them. I will say that I didn't like it as much as the first and last book in the trilogy, and contemplated 3 stars. But its wonderful language won me over.

"Beautifully written and amazingly vivid, this is a book that covers a great swathe of narrative, and human experience. Sometimes it made me laugh out loud. One chapter prevented me from sleeping, and still haunts me. When de Berniers is playful, he is charming. When he plunges into the darkest aspects of human nature and behaviour, he is shocking. Through the contrasts, the dramatic shifts betwen light and dark, compassion and horror, he weaves a complex story. There is romance, tragedy, magical realism, comedy, and a fine story threading it all together." (Nimue Brown)

Excellent novel, funny witty and gruesome in places.

This Brit, a self-acknowledged "Márquez parasite," tries too hard to write a crazy, mythic, magical, Latin American book starting with his first line: "Ever since his young wife had given birth to a cat as an unexpected consequence of his experiments in sexual alchemy..."

But you can get carried away as you follow the professor unloosing his pen and some unintended voodoo on a minor drug lord carrying out his terrible, gory, minutely-described tortures.

Caricatures abound. But action drives the book across a pseudo-Columbia looking for the final confrontation. It happens but I won't talk about it.

Easy read.