The Gates, a review
This is slightly different from the cover of the book I had. I think this is the British cover.
I already covered one of John Connolly’s works, The Book of Lost Things. I really enjoyed it, and was really happy to find another by him, in a similar vein that is, called The Gates. I will be honest, the cover of The Gates was really similar to that of The Book of Lost Things in design, and that excited me.
Both novels share one similarity, the main character being a young man. The tone of the novels really couldn’t be any different. Lost Things was pretty sad at the start. The Gates, however, was dark and comedic.
What other book features the Large Hadron Collider, a plucky young boy, the opening of the Gates of Hell, and a host of demonic critters? None that I have ever heard of, but if there are others I would like to read them to see how they compare!
Samuel Johnson, the main character, and his dachshund Boswell decide to go trick-or-treating a few days early. What Samuel witnesses, though, are a satanic ritual being performed, and his neighbor Mrs. Abernathy being pulled through the portal. What takes her form is anything but human.
Meanwhile, at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland, something goes wrong. A particle manages to escape the collider and disappear, rewriting the programming of the machinery at the collider site, as it goes.
It seems that the particle is responsible for the opening of the portal in the Abernathys’ cellar, and a demon named Baal has taken Mrs. Abernathy’s form and seeks to open the portal further to release her master, the Great Malevolence.
Samuel was noticed by Baal, though, and she sends demons after him so he cannot tell anyone. Through sheer luck, Samuel manages to evade Baal’s attackers, and it’s up to him, his friends, his mother, and a “good” demon named Nurd, Scourge of the Five Deities, to put a stop to Baal and her evil plans.
This novel was very funny, even for one with this subject matter. It was absurd humor, not unlike The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists, which I reviewed last week. The characters are incredibly heroic. When I say characters I mean the entire town of Biddlecombe, England. They don’t even bat an eye at the demonic host that has begun to invade their town.
Perhaps what I enjoyed the most, though, are the footnotes that are peppered throughout the chapters. They explain some of the most absurd things, like how to make air quotes (Connolly explains that it’s like tickling a tiny, imaginary elf under the arms).
I am not going to say I liked The Gates better than The Book of Lost Things. As I mentioned, they are both very different books, and I like them both for different reasons. I really enjoyed reading through this one, and it ended with the possibility of a sequel. It reminded me, somewhat, of Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I recommend it, definitely!
Next week, I will be taking a look at another by Chuck Palahniuk (the library trip netted me a few books from authors I have already covered), called Pygmy. Until then, later!
