Precious

By (author) Douglas Glover
Categories: Humorous fiction, Fiction and Related items
Publisher: Goose Lane Editions
Paperback : 9780864924148, 219 pages, March 2005

Description

Douglas Glover’s raucous first novel was a finalist for the Books in Canada First Novel Award and sold out its first and only print run in just one month. Now mystery fans and readers of literary fiction alike can once again enjoy this witty post-modern detective tale by the author of Elle. The eponymous central character in Precious is a boozy, burned-out reporter with an embarrassing nickname and a penchant for getting into trouble. After three failed marriages and a humiliating stint in a Greek jail, he will do anything for the quiet life. A job as woman’s page editor for the Ockenden Star-Leader seems like just the ticket — that is, until town gossip Rose Oxley winds up dead with a pair of scissors lodged in her chest. Suddenly Precious finds himself embroiled in a hilariously over-the-top murder mystery, brimming with delicious satire about the newspaper business and culminating in a characteristically outrageous Gloverian showdown with firearms, snowmobiles, and booze. Inviting comparisons with the novels of Jasper Fforde and Ross MacDonald, Precious deftly combines an ingenious literary parody with the plot of a richly satisfying mystery.

Reviews

Meet Precious Elliot, a boozy, burned-out newsman with am embarrassing nickname, an instinct for self-destruction, and a hilarious sense of the absurd. After three failed marriages and a sting in a Greek jail, he's ready for a rest. A job as women's page editor for the Ockenden Star-Leader seems like just the ticket — that is, until Rose Oxley, the town busybody, winds up stabbed to death with her own scissors.

"Sheer high spirits make it a jolly Canadian extravaganza."

"Sheer high spirits make it a jolly Canadian extravaganza."

- <i>Globe and Mail</i>