Alex Pearl

Unlike the 9/11 attacks on the United States, I am unable to pinpoint exactly where or when I first learned of the 7/7 attacks on commuters in the UK. And unlike many other novels written about such attacks, The Chair Man by Alex Pearl was the first I picked up that focused less on tragedy and more on the psychological toll and aftermath of a fictional survivor and his family.

We begin the story with the attack itself, but then immediately the action moves into the recovery of our main character Michael Hollinghurst. Michael has been rendered a tetraplegic by the events, and Pearl does an outstanding job of showing us what life would be like if we were ever in such a position. It does not dwell on the disability as a crutch, either, but treats the condition with respect while still examining survivor’s guilt and bouts of depression.

The Home Secretary at the time of the bombings, Charles Clarke, called the 7/7 bombers “cleanskins” or those who were previously unknown to intelligence until too late. Michael’s quest to seek vengeance for the attack and thrust those underground cells into the light is what really gets the story going. Through some clever hacking and placement of ads, Michael attempts to draw out similar jihadists in order to put them in the eyes of intelligence agencies. In turn, however, those intelligence agencies take an interest in Michael.

I would describe the action The Chair Man as a “slow burn,” that is, Pearl gives us a longer exposition than many other novels to include establishing shots of other characters before really getting into the action. There are also moments in the novel when we are introduced to a tertiary character or two that can be a little jarring, but by the time the introduction is over, it just fits. While I feel some readers might be put off by this, the story is so well written, that I had a hard time putting it down.

Coupled with my fascination for the colloquial Londoner language, I was fully immersed into Michael’s world by the time the rising action went vertical. The tension grew to the point where I was nervous by the end, and the end was something I did not expect. The Chair Man by Alex Pearl is a well-research and tense novel that I will not soon forget. I would say that Pearl has a new fan.… (more)