Orpheus Nine (Chris Flynn, Hachette)
When a boys’ soccer game in the regional town of Gattan is interrupted by a grotesque supernatural event that ushers in a new world order, residents of the town – and indeed the world – are left scrambling to make sense of the new reality in which children routinely die on their ninth birthday. Orpheus Nine by Chris Flynn (Mammoth) follows three very different but connected Gattan families as they process what feels like a borderline Biblical smiting in an already broken world. The same desperate search for meaning that drives the novel’s characters – many of whom fall into sectarianism and cult-like behaviours – compels the reader forward. There is a fascination in imagining what a sudden population decrease would do to society, and the novel brought to mind Tom Perotta’s The Leftovers, adapted into a television series in 2014. Orpheus Nine is certainly funnier, though, with the devastation wrought by the cataclysm offset by the observational comedy woven throughout Flynn’s prose even as his characters navigate grief both real and anticipatory. As one character thinks: ‘It wasn’t a virus, it wasn’t a fungal infection, it wasn’t an M. Night Shyamalan movie…’ Flynn’s world is rich with contemporary touchpoints – think doomscrolling, TikTok, lockdowns and climate change – grounding the strangeness of his premise in unsettling familiarity. While some pop culture references already feel dated, and occasional tonal shifts create moments of unevenness, the novel maintains a compelling and oddly believable realism. A darkly funny, thought-provoking read, Orpheus Nine will appeal to fans of Rumaan Alam’s Leave the World Behind.
Books+Publishing reviewer: Melissa Mantle holds a Master of Arts in Literature and balances her bookselling work with going to the cinema as often as possible. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.
Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.
Category: Friday Unlocked reviews Reviews
