A Pleasure and a Calling

We really enjoyed A Pleasure and a Calling by Phil Hogan, what a wonderful page turner!

It is an easy read about a very uncomfortable subject. The strong narrative, monotone voice of Mr Heming pulled you in from the start. It is a darkly comic novel with brilliant characterisation of the central character and completely believable – what you see on the surface is not what you find beneath. The author shows tremendous writing skill in creating a very believable character amidst a story which cleverly flows seamlessly back and forth to reveal an extremely complex and extraordinary storyline. Against your better judgement you can’t help but feel Mr Heming is a victim of circumstance who just wants to keep things in order, the way they should be and that there could well be other Mr Hemings lurking in attics somewhere…..

The ending was gratifyingly true to the spirit of the book and we did wonder about the possibility of a sequel. Mr Heming is a character who will remain with you long after the book is finished leaving you wondering what he gets up to next….. estate agents beware!

Our discussion was one of the most animated we have had as a group and we urge people to sit back, read and enjoy the unexpected journey.

This is a very good read. It’s the story of Mr William Heming, a successful estate agent in a small town. He is very quite, unassuming, blends into the background, secretly does good works around the town – a pillar of society? The story is told from his point of view, starting from the present day, with flashbacks to his childhood and how he came to be an estate agent. He is a man with no remorse, even as a child. The story builds up well. It is like watching a predator stalking its prey – mesmerising. The descriptions of the minutiae of everyday life in a small town are also very well done. This book is unusual in its subject matter, with lots of twists and turns all the way through and not just at the end as with many books. We liked the ending and could imagine it leading on to other books. We all enjoyed this thriller and can see it being a best seller. The main message to take away from this novel is - when you move to a new house change the locks!

From Ruislip Readers

Hi I have read the book and here are my comments - based on the questions on the sheet:

I don't think Mr Heming's problems were believable or realistic. He was not a credible character to me.

None of the secondary characters made a strong impression. Perhaps Zoe had the strongest impact.

The fact that the crimes and trickery took place in the homes made them less believable - it did not seem real to me.

The location did have an impact on the story - as it gave a sense of belonging. The library felt like the strongest place to me.

Events that were memorable: entering the teacher's accommodation, visiting his aunt after he had become established as an estate agent, being caught by Mr Sharp and then murdering him, the library and Zoe's death.

The plot was more important than the characters.

Nothing made me laugh.

Mr Heming's action did not seem justified. They seemed to be the actions of an irrational human being, with his own sense of justice.

The title - "A Pleasure and a Calling" did not seem to fit the content of the novel.

It had a strong element of suspense - although the murders did not seem as shocking as "The Talented Mr Ripley".

The female characters did not seem to be realistic. They were two dimensional and very focused on their need for a male relationship. There was not one female character that had any depth.

The flashbacks were effective at bringing some of the background to the character and worked well.

The ending was a bit too conveniently tidy. I was expecting Mr Heming to be caught out - by something very trivial. I would have liked him to have thought that he had got away with it and then to have been rumbled by something insignificant.

Although my comments above seem quite negative, I enjoyed reading this book. It was an easy read and I wanted to know what was going to happen next. It kept my interest and flowed well. I did have to suspend my disbelief throughout the book. It was strange to enjoy reading a book where the central character was so flawed and he was not an individual that I could like. From the beginning, he did not seem to like himself either, recognising that his behaviour was non-conformist / peculiar. The information about his mother and father seemed to be skimmed over, with very little information - although more snippets were gleaned towards the end of the book.

Binfield Afternoon Book Group:

The majority thought that this was a real page turner which couldn't be put down and would be extremely suitable for a TV drama. They commented on the short chapters interspersed with the longer ones which made the book even more readable. They agreed the ending was good, leaving the possibility of a follow-on novel in the future. The two most talked about events were the initial dog pooh incident which led to everyone (including Mr Heming) thinking that the wife had been killed rather than the dog. The other was the putting of the wrong key through the door and it's retrieval.

Members of the group said that they would never have picked this book off the shelf in normal circumstances and it has interested them in reading Phil Hogan's other titles.

Incidentally one of our member's was an estate agent and she has always recommended to everyone moving house to change the locks once they are in!!