Humanzee

A memorable opening and a strong story contend with a style of few gradations between the ordinary and the apoplectic and details and behaviour which resist credulity. The opening is wonderfully intriguing: the smokey, dark Victorian atmosphere of a flea circus is suddenly revealed, in the ringing of a mobile phone, to be just an act. But out of this background of the circus freak show comes the Humanzee, the missing link between human and chimpanzee. In rescuing him, Nemo and his family face the anger of a group dedicated to their beliefs in biblical creation. In underground caves, Nemo also discovers the missing link between dinosaurs and birds before the creationists attempt to kill him and the humanzee. Amidst the hokum there are some thoughtful ideas and some skilful plotting.