Reviews for Beyond Black

The average rating for Beyond Black based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2009-10-19 00:00:00 Matthew Whitty There's not much here in the way of plot, but still there's a lot to recommend in this novel about a professional psychic--who really does see ghosts--plying her trade in the working class suburbs of London. The profession itself becomes an excellent metaphor for writing: the spirits though genuine are often difficult to discern, and even when discerned do not always appear when summoned, and therefore the medium is forced to make do with psychological manipulation, theatrical effects, and charlatanry. The relationship between Alison the psychic and her manager Collete is effectively presented, the character of Morris the spirit guide--an obscene, dwarfish bookmaker--is entertainingly vile, and the hints concerning Alison's childhood are predictably dark and deftly placed within the narrative. Where Mantel really excels, however, is in descriptions of threadbare London neighborhoods, the mediocrity of British food, and descriptions of a spirit world equally threadbare and mediocre. The biographical revelations that end the novel are suitably shocking, but I have to admit that by that time I barely cared, principally because the story itself is never compelling. The novel is, however, vivid in language and stylistically impressive. It is definitely worth a read.

Review # 2 was written on 2011-09-29 00:00:00 Shawn Critchlow Oh god. Where do I even begin? Lots of reviewers complained they didn't know where the book was going. Well, I didn't know either, but I thought it was a good thing. Don't you just love when you don't know where the book is going? 'Beyond Black' was going in all sorts of directions at once. It was a story about Alison, a medium, who can see and talk to ghosts and also happens to be very fat. It was a story about her obnoxious, nasty assistant cum manager (who weirdly reminded me of my very own assistant) and their very toxic friendship. It was a story of the world of professional psychics, broken childhood, and some real or metaphorical (depending on how cynical you are) ghosts haunting Alison. It was also a story about mental illness. There were so many different layers to this book, I am actually considering re-reading it (and I hardly ever do anything like that, because you know, so many books, so little time, etc.). Be warned, this book is dark, drab, grim and depressing. People are dreary, English suburbs are bleak, even food is vapid. Redemption seems an abstract and improbable concept and we only have bits of black humour to cheer us up. Basically, it reads like a Polish book. At the same time this book is beautiful. Mantel can write. Every paragraph is a little masterpiece. The only thing that confused me were the abrupt changes of POV between Alison and her haughty assistant Colette.