MAKING NICE is political satire set in London.

The synopsis had me at the Veep comparison, though I have to say, I didn't find the book "deliciously funny." I think Wag the Dog may be a more apt comparison, given the book's focus on spin.

Middle-aged Dickie is laid off from his job as a diplomatic correspondent due to the newspaper heading in a more modern direction, which is awful timing given that his wife wants to take some time off work to focus on their younger daughter's health. Dickie quickly finds himself employed by Making Nice, a PR firm that often works in international politics. He's brought in and mentored by the shady Ethel, the firm's founder.

This was a fairly quick read for literary fiction. I think it might be a good fit for those who were fans of Mouth to Mouth -- Dickie and Ethel, as well as the book's tone, reminded me of that one. It never quite got off the ground for me, though.

The typesetting was off, which made it hard to parse, but the frenetic and disjointed nature of the narrative wasn't appealing. I get what it was going for, and it was very British, but I thought the Iannucci comparisons were oversold and the pathos unearned.

This is from a fairly prolific author. He writes well, and this is mostly entertaining. It certainly doesn't paint a pretty picture of humans or society, but it's well done for what it is.

Thanks very much for the ARC for review!!

I enjoyed making nice and I’d happily suggest it to others. I read about ten books if not more a week and this one was memorable. That’s a bonus.