The Weight of Numbers

Description

Saul Cogan is a good man who does bad things. Nick Jinks, his employee, is a haunted man. Between them they run a successful business trafficking people. Nick doesn't understand what he's doing; and Saul doesn't believe what they're doing is wrong. When a delivery goes awry Saul and Nick are faced with 58 dead bodies and the greatest dilemma of their lives. From blitz London to 1980s Mozambique in civil war; from an emaciated d-list celebrity to an American astronaut, The Weight of Numbers is a tale of panoramic scope. Murder, abduction, buggery, misplaced letters, robbery, anorexia, love and a two-volume dictionary of philosophy all play an essential part in this tale that will burn the retinas.

Simon Ings lives in London with his wife and daughter.

Dazzling, admirable narrative verve... It is unlikely there will be a finer written fiction this year * Guardian * An ambitious, exciting novel.. unforgettable' * The Times * A dynamic, innovative, and compelling book that brings into focus some of the most interesting trends in contemporary fiction * Daily Telegraph * Simon Ings' ambitiously genre-defying novel is a virtuoso display of imaginative plotting * Financial Times * Ings weaves an ingenious, shimmering web of contiguity and chance... a feat of meticulous plotting. * New Statesman * One of the most exciting - and relevant - books of the last year. Booker material, for sure. * Arena * A deceptively readable, dizzyingly constructed novel... Ing's mad, mad world is held together to the very last page by humour, vivid depictions and a deeply compelling emotional core * Publishers Weekly STARRED review *