Aaron Gall is a scientist. He's also a cannibal. After an experiment at the Large Hadron Collider goes horribly wrong, Aaron re-evaluates his life, finally finding a purpose: to locate, discuss with, and then kill and eat various catholic priests and other people of notice such as Tony Blair and the Queen of England herself. But as he proceeds with the list of his victims, and with the police trailing him along every step, it will be too late when he realizes that something is terribly amiss...
"But that's the thing about human beings. It''s not laughter or the ability to stand upright that distinguishes man from the animals, it's the capacity for incompetence. When any other creature makes a mistake, it gets eaten. I admit mankind is a bit of a bungler but, in his own way, a fairly successful bungler... despite everything. Although, to be fair, it also depends on your definition of success."
Scorn is, as much as its cover, a work of art; a complex story that marries reality and fiction, resulting in a high octane adventure of endless suspense. In Scorn, Hoffman is exhibiting a profoundly excellent control on the pace of the story, weaving between each of the plots and sub-plots and lurching from crisis to crisis in an expertly manner.
Hoffman took his time writing this novel, and the result is evident. Every aspect of the book is carefully planned and well developed; from the involving mystery with the rising tension, to the odd but captivating way of storytelling, and from the believable characters and the incredible insight into their minds, to the reversed archetypes and the twisted oxymorons, Scorn is a delicate work from a master craftsman.
All in all, Scorn is an excellent suspense thriller, and I recommend it to everyone, but especially to Dan Brown fans.
Scorn is out on September 7th 2017. You can pre-order it HERE.
