The author’s most recent book, a novel named Soineanta Maskirovka, in common with his previous works demands the reader’s thoughtful attention from the beginning. What does the title mean? I’ll leave it for you to decide, as part of the pleasure literature like this brings is in the deciphering. The cover art is reminiscent of a certain type of Troubles era poster. The artwork may have played a part in my interpretation of some of this work, but so, too, did knowledge of Owens’ previous publications, and of course, there is my own areas of research and interest.
The central character in this story is Gilbert Hood. The book is set contemporaneously, but is concerned with Gilbert delving into his own, and others', pasts. Gilbert in some ways reminded me of Stasi Captain Gerd Wiesler from the excellent 2006 German film The Lives of Others. Outwardly, he is not a colourful personality: he is someone who avoids noise and people, and his former colleagues appear to find him borderline condescending. Indeed, like the Stasi officer Wiesler, Gilbert appears to exist as something approaching an automaton. However, Gilbert has a rich inner world which can appear overwhelmed by the present and, in part, manifests itself via a YouTube channel in which he reviews films. This element of Gilbert’s character, in some ways, reminded me of the Ian Smith character, in Irvine Welsh’s book The Acid House (the chapter titled Snuff), although Gilbert does not share that individual’s lethal nihilism.
The film reviews are one of a number of plot devices which allow the reader to view society via Gilbert. These devices add value to the story, their subtlety is such that it was only with re-reading that I noticed their positioning and decided to pay more attention to them. Like Owens' previous published works, Soineanta Maskirovka demands the reader to return, and its brevity allows for this. So it is that this novel opens with a officious and earnest reproduced letter informing Gilbert of how much he will receive for his voluntary redundancy. Then, we are invited to “listen” (via a transcript of his YouTube film review channel) to Gilbert’s thoughts on the 1919 film The Chink and the Child which continues into, what I took to be, a subtle comment on wokeism. I have always found devices like this tantalising and enjoyable. The files John Strang kept in Irvine Welsh’s The Acid House, for example, or the police files on Frank Costello in Scorsese’s brilliant film The Departed. Soineanta Maskirovka treats us to a few of these joys. The film review also discusses the East End of London, which will feature later in the book.
The job, which Gilbert is made redundant from, changed radically, and not to his liking. He has concerns, and with good reason. He seeks to travel, researching the past to look at his antecedents and to other locations for the same reason. What he finds poses questions, which might resonate with those from the six counties. This isn’t in any way a story of the Troubles, but I found there were suggestions of it in the prose. I don’t think this was intentional, but I found it interesting, and wonder if it’s possible for Belfast to feature in creative writing without the conflict casting a shadow.
One of the strengths of this book is how invested the reader feels in the character. I didn’t think Gilbert was the type of person I’d have warmed to, but I wanted to see how the various threads of his life were tied up. I felt a range of conflicted emotions for him, and towards the people and institutions that arguably failed him. Gilbert was a man with a story, and that story was told in atmospheric settings.
I think that this novel shows a maturation of Christopher Owens as a writer. Whilst saying that, I preferred Dethrone Gods. But it’s a matter of taste. I think Owens will continue to produce work of merit and interest. I’d love to read a serious Troubles novel written by him, but I think his interest may lie elsewhere.
Either way, this is a good, solid piece of work and bodes well for the future.
Christopher Owens, 2025. Soineanta Maskirovka. Publisher: Down by Law Books. ASIN: B0DWLTQL2R.
The central character in this story is Gilbert Hood. The book is set contemporaneously, but is concerned with Gilbert delving into his own, and others', pasts. Gilbert in some ways reminded me of Stasi Captain Gerd Wiesler from the excellent 2006 German film The Lives of Others. Outwardly, he is not a colourful personality: he is someone who avoids noise and people, and his former colleagues appear to find him borderline condescending. Indeed, like the Stasi officer Wiesler, Gilbert appears to exist as something approaching an automaton. However, Gilbert has a rich inner world which can appear overwhelmed by the present and, in part, manifests itself via a YouTube channel in which he reviews films. This element of Gilbert’s character, in some ways, reminded me of the Ian Smith character, in Irvine Welsh’s book The Acid House (the chapter titled Snuff), although Gilbert does not share that individual’s lethal nihilism.
The film reviews are one of a number of plot devices which allow the reader to view society via Gilbert. These devices add value to the story, their subtlety is such that it was only with re-reading that I noticed their positioning and decided to pay more attention to them. Like Owens' previous published works, Soineanta Maskirovka demands the reader to return, and its brevity allows for this. So it is that this novel opens with a officious and earnest reproduced letter informing Gilbert of how much he will receive for his voluntary redundancy. Then, we are invited to “listen” (via a transcript of his YouTube film review channel) to Gilbert’s thoughts on the 1919 film The Chink and the Child which continues into, what I took to be, a subtle comment on wokeism. I have always found devices like this tantalising and enjoyable. The files John Strang kept in Irvine Welsh’s The Acid House, for example, or the police files on Frank Costello in Scorsese’s brilliant film The Departed. Soineanta Maskirovka treats us to a few of these joys. The film review also discusses the East End of London, which will feature later in the book.
The job, which Gilbert is made redundant from, changed radically, and not to his liking. He has concerns, and with good reason. He seeks to travel, researching the past to look at his antecedents and to other locations for the same reason. What he finds poses questions, which might resonate with those from the six counties. This isn’t in any way a story of the Troubles, but I found there were suggestions of it in the prose. I don’t think this was intentional, but I found it interesting, and wonder if it’s possible for Belfast to feature in creative writing without the conflict casting a shadow.
One of the strengths of this book is how invested the reader feels in the character. I didn’t think Gilbert was the type of person I’d have warmed to, but I wanted to see how the various threads of his life were tied up. I felt a range of conflicted emotions for him, and towards the people and institutions that arguably failed him. Gilbert was a man with a story, and that story was told in atmospheric settings.
I think that this novel shows a maturation of Christopher Owens as a writer. Whilst saying that, I preferred Dethrone Gods. But it’s a matter of taste. I think Owens will continue to produce work of merit and interest. I’d love to read a serious Troubles novel written by him, but I think his interest may lie elsewhere.
Either way, this is a good, solid piece of work and bodes well for the future.
Christopher Owens, 2025. Soineanta Maskirovka. Publisher: Down by Law Books. ASIN: B0DWLTQL2R.
⏩Brandon Sullivan is a middle-aged West Belfast émigré. He juggles fatherhood & marriage with working in a policy environment and writing for TPQ about the conflict, films, books, and politics.
Brandon,
ReplyDeletethank you very much for taking the time to review it. I'm glad that you enjoyed it and saw links with other areas that I, genuinely, had not contemplated when writing the book. This will always be a joy for me to have someone interacts with my work in such a manner.
A great review. Another one to read!!
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