posted on 08 May 2016

The Dumas Club by Arturo Perez-Reverte

I wonder how many people who are familiar with the Johnny Depp / Roman Polanski movie collaboration called The Ninth Gate are aware that it is based on this novel by the Spaniard, Arturo Perez-Reverte. I say based on and I really should be saying, loosely based on.

In my view the film is pretty poor and Depp's attempt to play an antiquarian book expert and hired book mercenary is, frankly, laughable but the book deserves a bit more respect than it gets from the film. I have to be honest, however; the novel really is a huge piece of hokum which has a plot which stands hardly any analysis without falling to pieces and has a strangely limp denouement.

Having said that, this isn't the sort of book that you should be analysing - just hold tight, head downhill and go along for the ride. It's a book that demands real caution when setting it up for any sort of review - give away the wrong detail and it could really spoil the read for someone. So I'll take care.

The book is set in the cut-throat world of antiquarian book dealers who are busy collecting and trading the very rarest books and manuscripts. Our hero, Lucas Corso, makes his living enabling these trades, locating the rarest books and taking commissions on behalf of people who would rather stay in the shadows. Two plot lines are set running at the same time: in one, Corso is asked to authenticate a handwritten chapter of the Alexander Dumas classic, The Three Musketeers; and in the other, he is commissioned to establish the authenticity of a book known as The Book of the Nine Doors to the Kingdom of Darkness which was allegedly co-authored by the Devil himself.

Perhaps, unsurprisingly, the movie ditches the Dumas plot line in favour of the Devil's book element, and its easy to see why. In fact, I suspect Perez-Reverte himself was probably more fascinated by this strand himself judging by the elaborate detail he builds up around The Book of the Nine Doors - including detailed reproductions of the key illustrations and variants that pop up.

Of course, the client who wants his copy of The Nine Doors authenticated - and there are 3 known editions although only one is thought to be genuine - wants the book for demonic and unsavoury reasons and so Corso's quest is fraught with peril of all kinds. There is also an unresolved suggestion that Corso's well-being is receiving supernatural or even Heavenly aid.

Suffice it to say that we encounter any number of dark forces, femme fatales, crumbling stately homes, mysterious bookbinders and lavish book collections as the story unfolds. Each of the two storylines plays out linked by Corso but it isn't until the end that we are able to see the bigger picture of who has been influencing what and why.

Of course, what lifts this book out of Dan Brown territory is the quality of the writing. Perez-Reverte (and credit must also go to the translator Sonia Soto ) has a knack for high quality storytelling that wouldn't have been out of place alongside his beloved Dumas. If you read this book you must set aside the desire to demand a flawless plot or consistent character motivation - just relax and have fun.

(This book is known as The Dumas Club in the UK and as The Club Dumas in the USA)

Terry Potter

May 2016