jacqueline crooks Fire Rush

[Mister Hobgoblin]

Fire Rush is an exploration of life on the margins of society seen through the life of Yamaye, a young and poor West Indian woman in 1970s-1980s Britain. The novel moves from the (literally) underground music scene on London, through to criminal gangs in Bristol, and finally to Yamaha's roots in Jamaica as she seeks out the family of her lost lover Moose. 

 

The novel is technically well written in a convincing patois, and I am sure the historical detail is accurate even though to this (white) reader who lived through those times, it feels sometimes unfamiliar. The nightclubbing, the raves and the riots were described with a real sense of atmosphere, but it never quite captured my interest. So much so that the pivotal moment when Yamaye meets the man who will take her to Bristol, it felt like an incidental moment. 

 

The Bristolian scenes, though, was where the novel lost me. I didn't really get why Yamaye went to Bristol with someone she barely knew; I did not believe the crew in Bristol could really be so unredeemingly evil; and I didn't get why Yamaye could not walk away. Maybe it was just because I was not familiar with the culture and its values, but the net result was that I could not believe in the characters. It was lifeless. 

The Jamaican section felt like the novel was getting back on track, bringing moments of genuine discovery and real tension. It felt like there was some payoff for having persisted with the novel for so far. 

 

Overall, Fire Rush was a slow read that I didn't particualrly care for. I suspect, though, that it would repay a second read.

 

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