Matt McAvoy Book Review

Hear the words “dating comedy”, and you might think, Meh…  Put a man in the role of primary protagonist and that Meh might become, Okay…  Now also consider the fact that this isn’t a romcom, or what some ill-advised old timers might call “chick-lit”, but rather a simple, relatively decent, old-fashioned comedy of errors – almost like those British Confessions… and It Shouldn’t Happen To… movies of the 1970s, with a more contemporary cultural twist.  It’s pretty good, too.

I don’t know how closely Jay Jameston relates to the hapless and uninspired Jake, but he has no qualms about discouraging his ill-fated and not particularly dynamic anti-hero.  Jake is a guy who, at face value, appears hard done by, by the people around him – dumped by his ex; grilled by his employers – but it’s also not too difficult to conclude that he has really brought much of this on himself.  As the book goes on, I did find myself starting to think, I don’t really blame her.  Not that Jake is particularly dislikeable; he’s just a bit ill-advised and thoughtless.  There are some interesting characters, including Jake himself, Zoe, Travis, some of his friends and employers, but I don’t think Jameston really throws caution to the wind and goes all-in on any of them, including the lead.  There are some promising comical setpieces, such as getting razzed on his boss’s credit card before really thinking it through, or starting a homophobic punch-up in a gay bar, and I think the author would like to go a little bit slapstick or puerile; there is a fair amount of puking, for example (not really my cup of tea), and some silliness when saucy photos get sent to the wrong people.  But by Jay notably holding back, it doesn’t become pure slapstick or pure bawdiness, or pure loser-comedy; it becomes rather more a humorous slice of life.

That said, it is a fun read, and it does make a nice change to see a book of such nature where there isn’t a love interest or a revelation of deep feelings for an unexpected supporting character.  This is just a twenty-something guy who can’t get his act together, and watches everything going down the plughole as a result, who meets some interesting characters along the way – never really noticing that the “bad luck” which continually befalls him doesn’t seem to happen to any of them.  Still, I don’t want to judge Jake, and he does ultimately find himself somewhere in a place of inner peace, with a few lessons learned.

If you want an entertaining, light-hearted and genuinely quite funny read, which doesn’t promise to go anywhere profound or thought-provoking, this will be ideal for you.  You might consider Jake more kindly than me; I feel with this particular book everyone will have their own thoughts on him and his story.  As far as the author goes, though, there is no such ambiguity; Jay is quality, and I would very much like to read more from him.  And, if the tone of this review has been a little misconstrued, I do apologize; I genuinely do recommend Vincible, for a cosy read at any time of the day.