Club Ded by Nikhil Singh

Publisher – Luna Press

Published – Out Now

Price – £14.99 paperback £4.99 Kindle eBook

Brick Bryson, iconic African-American 90s action star, is fresh out of rehab and shooting the doomed sci-fi blockbuster CLUB DED with his old drinking buddy, bad boy, #metoo'd director, Croeser, in South Africa. But all is not as it seems.

Behind the scenes, operatives of Oracle Inc., an elite, all-female information gathering organisation, have gone rogue. Utilising their vast criminal resources, they're pushing the interests of a street-level psychedelic drug-cult - spearheaded by the mysterious ex-Nollywood director Fortunato, and his underground 'reality- revolutionaries'. As the subtropical, fish-derived drug begins to exert an apocalyptic influence in secret, the fabric of time itself begins to unravel.

Set in Cape Town, Club Ded expands the Afrofuturist genre while it is still being formed, focusing on the methodology of creation in the media world of the city.

Reality and speculative fiction circle around each other. We can’t have SF, fantasy and horror without breaking reality up but at the same time these genres also use their takes to help us define what our reality is. The ability to alter our reality has been explored by writers such as Peter K Dick and Jeff Noon for many years in particular how certain drugs can change perceptions or show hidden realms we normally cannot see. In Nikhil Singh’s darkly hypnotic and engrossing Club Ded we get a trip through the seedier side of Hollywood and South African life mixed with altered humans and glimpses of disturbing futures.

Brick Bryson in the 1990s was part of a heralded superhero film Game Over that propelled him to stardom but now middle aged, alcoholic and with a fractured family. However his former friend and director who kicked him off the franchise Del Croeser is offering Brick  way back to appear in the latest sequel/reboot of the franchise - Club Ded - starring two of the hottest stars. Brick and Croeser have secrets between them and unfinished business to discuss. Elsewhere the Oracle runs a global helpline for those in need and shifts of employees named angels assist the work and run their own schemes outside several of which such as the enigmatic Jennifer soon find themselves running alongside the resident A-listers whose needs for drugs and sex have hidden agendas. Elsewhere the thieves and artists Ziq and Jaybird sow chaos and steal wallets but also find themselves crossing into Jennifer’s new world. A strange new drug is starting to take hold of people and offers delights and changes you in many many ways no one can expect.

I’m going to caveat that I found this an absorbing and engrossing read with Singh’s graceful writing really pulling me along for the ride. However this is a story that has frequent explicit drug, use, violence, sexual abuse and forms of racism and transphobia. I however did not find this was a story using this for gratuitous effect or humour but instead to explore the world these quite unlikeable characters all frequent. It was not a comfortable read but I do enjoy horror, but I feel important some reader know about this before deciding to look into it before getting a shock reading the first few chapters and wondering what more awaits..

In many ways this story is more an examination of very fractured people with quite empty lives seeking fame, power or some sort of transgressive experience to make them feel just something. Be it drugs after a shift if you’re Jennifer, a bottle of scotch if you’re Brick or a shell game of a movie set or a movie starlet to corrupt if you’re Croeser. Singh introduces a huge cast initially as pen portraits and then slowly all these characters start to intersect each other’s lives or e discover hidden connections. Our Oracle’s Angel offers to help people in different situations but following Jennifer we see outside of work these ‘angels’ working cons, happily taking any drugs and living life way too fast. Brick wants his chance to get back to what he considers his best – movie stardom. Everyone seems focused on themselves. Even when characters start relationships with each other very rarely does it feel like love and more some form of transactional pleasure because they can.

All of which can sound quite tawdry but Singh is a skilled writer and the first half of the book we get chapters composed of fascinating imagery. Singh can play with a phrase and then riffs off down related tangents and dark alleyways to explore a character or a scenario. It’s a unique and ambitious style that actually works when reading and Singh knows when to start dialling the metaphors down to start letting us gain the picture of each chapter. For me the key to unlikeable characters is not they are misunderstood heroes but can we start to understand them and while I would never want to be anywhere near these people you do start to see there is more to many than you would expect. They are capable of kindness and not always being selfish – just rarely and their desire for unique experience makes them intersect with a new drug based around an unusual fish that offers you either amazing highs, future events, body changes or long fugues. This is the main speculative element in what the most part if a tale of fame, money, power and betrayals but hints at much more going on. There are a host of plotlines running around and the slight feeling is that there is more going on than we ever see? Is an enigmatic character named Trill being labelled ‘It’ and ‘a creature’ because they are trans (which shows the prejudices of the characters) or do they have slightly more going on than being shown for now? In some cases, some plotlines (of which there are many) do feel to just end without resolution but there is now a sequel and I will be interested to see if this was a deliberate choice but sometimes you can find yourself wondering have you missed a chapter or two.

The standout though is Singh’s version of South Africa and this is a book that makes places come alive. The version here is a city of contrasts all at once with gorgeous views yet a dangerous and tawdry side hidden in plain sight. Again, Singh’s use of language to make places come alive and make you feel like you’re walking the streets, sinister apartments, outlandish clubs or deserted and dangerous docks and hinterlands show so many strata o society all bouncing around and off one another. It’s a city shown with a pulse and Singh explores how South Africans see themselves against other African counties and how those from outside such as our american characters keep seeing Africa as simply one place which they soon get dissuaded by. It’s a novel with a sense of place that neatly fits the characters and plots. Nothing is quite what it seems which works neatly to the idea of movie magic and the altered reality the various drugs are creating– is Club Ded which the movie will be named actually a real space station pleasure dimension or something else? The answer is when revealed disturbing and yet links to the wider themes of people pushing for that extra forbidden thrill and who exploits those seeking it.

Club Ded is a dark thrilling and not always comfortable reading experience but its got a unique voice, unusual characters and great approach to making the story come alive that really makes Singh stand out as a writer to watch out for. I’m really intrigued where the story goes next (and that sequel Bikini Atoll will be reviewed very soon). While not for all readers those who enjoy a trip into the darker side of reality may find it a compelling read and for those readers highly recommended.