Michael is an unemployed lad in Manchester who passes the time in the jobcentre or in the pub. One day he’s out getting drunk when he meets Lee, who introduces him to her “Uncle” Ian. One thing leads to another and he gets a job as a doorman at a massage parlour in the city’s Northern Quarter. One night he witnesses the very violent death of one of the punters and he’s soon sucked into a world that he doesn’t understand and knew nothing about.
This is a novel for anyone who's wondered what goes on behind various dodgy doors. When in my twenties, I used to go out a lot in London’s Soho, which had a great number of bars and clubs. Soho has cleaned up a lot since it’s infamous heyday in the 1960s, but there are still a number of “walk-ups” - flats that host prostitutes - and clip joints. These were often forbidding and seedy doorways and one couldn’t help but wonder what went on inside them.
This is a novel that answers that question, albeit in a Quentin Tarantino/George Romero-esque way. This is a disturbing, but also brilliantly imagined novel, and while none of the protagonists are particularly likeable, they’re all very compelling. This is a short novel, just under 200 pages, but it’s wonderfully written, and if you like your fiction dark and chilling, then this is a must-read.
Habit has also been made into a film, apparently, and while I haven't seen it yet, having read and enjoyed the novel, I'm definitely going to seek it out.
5 out of 5 stars
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