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From Publishers Weekly
This tedious successor to American Psycho , a patchwork of interrelated vignettes about a set of filthy rich L.A. families in the early 1980s, weds Ellis's over-the-top if one-dimensional satirical style to the sensational hedonism characteristic of Danielle Steel and the spiritual malaise of Douglas Coupland. Mobilizing his trademark first-person narrative voice, Ellis charts an amoral hyper-elitist social landscape from the interchangeable perspectives of debased Hollywood players, pseudo-celebrities and industry brats. There is Cheryl, an aging newscaster who shacks up with a narcissistic surfer and stops showing up for work; Bryan Metro, a vacuous American pop star who tours Japan leaving a wake of battered groupies and pharmaceutical bottles; Jamie, a vampire who lures teenagers home from trendy clubs and murders them in sadistic scenes reminiscent of American Psycho . Ellis's often racist characters crisscross an L.A. littered with the trendy iconography of the early 1980s (Wayfarer sunglasses, Duran Duran, designer drugs), their affectless, inarticulate sentences registering a jaded disdain for other people's lives. Ellis does not break new ground here but returns, perhaps nostalgically, to the cultural context of his celebrated first novel, Less Than Zero . Ultimately, this book is so inconsequential that it should neither vex Ellis's critics nor gratify his fans. 50,000 first printing; QPB alternate.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Although billed as a novel, this work reads like a collection of 13 loosely related short stories. The characters in Chapter 1 reappear in the last chapter, and Jamie, whose death occurs in Chapter 2, may be the vampire named Jamie who later appears. None of this much matters, however, since the characters have no personality anyway. Every chapter is told by a different narrator, further preventing the reader from connecting to the characters. Set in Eighties L.A. like Ellis's debut, Less Than Zero, the book makes endless, almost obsessive references to obscure bands, upscale restaurants, and clothing of the time. For Ellis, this seems to have been a time when "people [were] becoming less human...everyone [was] operating on a very primitive level," but, unfortunately, the effect is of an era safely past. The Informers has fewer gruesome scenes than American Psycho, and its affectlessness renders them less powerful. Still, this is a disturbing book that will be requested by patrons familiar with Ellis's work.
Nora Rawlinson, formerly with "Library Journal"
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Nora Rawlinson, formerly with "Library Journal"
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most helpful customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
too disjointed,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Informers (Paperback)
IF you're into reading disturbing books that are POSSIBLY some reflection of our society, then you may enjoy this book. I found it unconnected and disjointed. Some characters connected, but others just appeared as a new member of the cast unconnected to anything. If you approach this as just a series of short stories, rather than a novel, I think you'll enjoy it much more. Didn't make me feel good, particularly introspective, or contemplative.
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you liked The Rules Of Attraction...,
By Eric (El Sobrante, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Informers (Paperback)
then you will like The Informers. I loved The Rules Of Attraction (and also all of Bret Easton Ellis's books), and I came across this little book and I dove right in. Some of these stories are Easton's best writing, and his characters are STILL unlikable, and they do stupid stuff like drugs, and all that other mess. With these characters; and like most of Bret characters, they always do coke or smoke a joint afterwards.In one of the stories, it has a touch of American Psycho which Jamie who is a vampire who drinks human blood and murders his victims brutally, like what Patrick Bateman did. The book mostly contend of characters who live in the same city; Los Angeles, and they get their drugs from the same dealers, and they went to the same school. They dont know each other, but all of the characters in this book have a lot in common which is some of the things I just mentioned. Of course the stories I found out ruled, and it was different because Bret likes to ramble into detail; like he did in American Psycho, but he didnt do it that much. Also you could tell by reading the book that Bret had a couple of problems when writing their characters when they are talking. They would stop. Pause. and begin again. Does this make the book bad? No of course not. But this is some good stuff. Worth checking out, and another point, a couple of names in this book; Tim Price, Sean Bateman, are mentioned and if you read The Rules Of Attraction and American Psycho you would know these two characters already. If you dont, then read TROA and AP.
2.0 out of 5 stars
The Rules of Attraction,
By gonn1000 (Portugal) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Informers (Paperback)
The most interesting aspect of this book is its narrative structure. It combines multiple stories told in the first person by diverse characters, the events narrated are somehow connected although they don`t create a cohesive whole. Most of these characters are rich elistist, souless and hedonistic people from L.A. who can`t relate to those who surround them, living vapid lives in a mind-numbing loneliness. There are some good, intense and entertaining moments here, as well as a couple of repulsive ones. The ending result is uneven and, for the most part, as shallow as the lives of these cardboard characters. Some of this material reminds me of Martin Amis`s "Money" or Irvine Welsh`s "Ecstasy", however those books are a bit better. Still, this one is worth a look anyway. Mildly recommended.
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