January is Dystopia in England Month !
5 / 5 Stars
Any overview of literature devoted to a dystopian England is obliged to include the four 'Angels' novels written by the one-man fiction factory, Laurence James, under the pseudonym 'Mick Norman'.
According to an interview with James conducted by Stewart Home, who provides the Introduction to 'Angels from Hell', James was working as a editor for New English Library (NEL) in the early 70s when he noticed that the biker novels by Peter Cave were among the publisher's strongest sellers.
James drafted his own biker novel, submitted to NEL under a pseudonym, and NEL accepted it. Upon its release in 1973, 'Angels from Hell' was a bestseller and James quickly followed it up with three sequels: 'Angel Challenge' (1973), 'Guardian Angels' (1974) and 'Angels on My Mind' (1974).
Needless to say, the original NEL paperbacks of the 'Angels' series all have long been out of print and copies in good condition have steep asking prices.
(I should point out that there are affordable digital versions available for all four books).
Copies of this 1994 omnibus edition (348 pp) from Creation Books have steep asking prices; I was lucky to get mine for about $20.
Laurence James elected to set his 'Angels' novels in the near future, that is, 1997 - 1999. The UK has undergone economic collapse and an authoritarian government is in power, stifling dissent through violent actions by the police. Society has become colorless, grey, and conformist........save for the last gang of motorcycle outlaws in the country. Living an underground existence, careful about where and when they gather, the 'Last Heroes' chapter of the Hell's Angels has a charter signed by Sonny Barger himself. And a willingness to do whatever is necessary to survive........
My capsule summaries (spoiler-free) of each novel:
Angels from Hell: It's 1997, and 28 year-old Gerald 'Gerry' Vincent, and his girlfriend Brenda (who met each other at a Young Anarchists' meeting) have decided to abandon respectable society in order to join the sole surviving group of bikers in the UK: the Last Heroes. Having survived the brutal and disgusting initiation ceremonies (which the author revels in detailing), Gerry and Brenda find themselves accompanying the Last Heroes in a series of adventures, including participating in a film being made about the Angels (a plot device that gives James plenty of opportunity to satirize the artsy set).
When the British government learns that the Angels exist, measures are taken to ensure that the chapter is eliminated. But Gerry and the Last Heroes are well aware of the danger. A violent confrontation between a small army of policemen and the Angels will determine if the outlaw bikers are to endure, or vanish into the mists of legend..........
Angel Challenge: Author James shows he's still dialed in to abundant sex and violence by opening this Angels adventure with a Traumatic Amputation in a Sensitive Place:
Gerry tried to stop the bleeding, but there wasn't enough left to tourniquet.
Unfortunately for Gerry and the Last Heroes, the English biker scene of the Summer of 1998 is disrupted by the advent of a new gang: the Ghouls. Led by the charismatic Evel Winters, who takes his name from a legendary American biker of the 1970s, the Ghouls are Glam Rockers turned outlaw motorcyclists: uniforms consist of the latest in 'lovely, soft, caressing silks and satins', and cosmetics ('I get my makeup from the "Quaint Fairy" range'). And to add further to their shock value, the Ghouls are.......bisexual !
The Daily Leader newspaper believes that sponsoring a reality show featuring the Last Heroes and the Ghouls is a sure-fire moneymaker. To entice the gangs to participate, a competition is arranged: a series of scavenger hunts held in the greater London area. This 'sporting challenge' draws a TV viewership of millions throughout the UK and Europe.
But what Gerry and the Last Heroes don't know is that the fix is in for the Angel Challenge.........
In this sequel, James is out to satirize the Glam Rock movement and he succeeds brilliantly. If had to describe 'Angel Challenge' , I'd say it's a cross between Velvet Goldmine and Death Race 2000.
Guardian Angels: It's 1999 and the pop music world is preoccupied with the tremendous success of two new bands, each fulfilling the needs of an eccentric category of female fans.
For 'Foolsgold', a group comprised of adolescent boys, the fans are 'middies', middle-aged women who tend to rush the stage in an erotic fervor in response to the band's songs, such as 'Mother Love', 'No Baby Love for Me', and 'In Praise of Older Lovers'.
For Central Heating, a group comprised of veteran rockers, the fans are 'teenies', adolescent girls who shriek with lust and rush the stage when hearing songs like 'I'll Untie You If You Let Me', 'Meat Injection', and 'Sixty-nine Ways'.
For tour manager Rupert Colt, the problem is that the middies and teenies are so prone to violence that concert stewards are being murdered when the fans rush the stage (the teenies have a nasty habit of secreting knives under their clothing). The entire tour is in danger of being cancelled unless Colt can find someone tough enough to serve as security.
As luck would have it, the Last Heroes are looking for work....
'Guardian Angels' is easily the most humorous of the 'Angels' novels. I frequently laughed out loud while reading it. James is intent here on satirizing the world of rock music and concert promoters, and succeeds with style and grace. There also are some bloody confrontations between the Angels and a new group of rebellious yobs, the suicidally violent 'Skulls'............
Angels on My Mind: the Spring of 1999 is warm and filled with flowers, but it brings little comfort to Gerry Vincent and the Last Heroes. Gerry finds himself imprisoned by a female psychiatrist who believes she can 'correct' his criminal nature via Depth Psychology (!).
The Last Heroes are obliged to sally forth without their leader when their brother gang, the Wolves of Wales, find themselves under attack by an upstart gang known as the Star Trekkers (the second-in-command of the Trekkers is a man named Spock, who has had his ears surgically altered into a pointy shape).
A brutal battle for survival looms between the Last Heroes, the Wolves, and the Star Trekkers............while a hapless Gerry Vincent can only hope that a lapse of security will enable him to escape his captor..........
'Angels on My Mind' takes a different tack from the previous novels in the series, focusing more on the character of Gerry Vincent and his past, than on typical Angel mayhem.
The verdict ? Norman's 'Angel' quartet remains one of the most engaging, amusing, and effective portrayals of a dystopian UK. While the availability of the printed versions of the books is limited, obtaining the digital versions likely will be rewarding if you are a fan of this genre of literature.
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