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by Robert Glancy
Frank has been in a serious car accident and he's missing memories - of the people around him, of the history they share, and of how he came to be in the crash. All he remembers is that he is a lawyer who specializes in fine print, and as he narrates his story, he applies this expertise in the form of footnotes.*
Everyone keeps telling Frank that he was fine before the accident, "just a bit overwhelmed," but as he begins to reclaim his memories, they don't quite jibe with what everyone is telling him. His odious brother Oscar is intent on going into business with an inventively cruel corporation.** Alice, Frank's wife, isn't at all like the woman he fell in love with. She's written a book called Executive X that makes Frank furious, though he isn't sure why. And to make matters even stranger, stored in a closet is a severed finger floating in an old mustard jar that makes him feel very, very proud.
As more memories flood in, Frank's tightly regulated life begins to unspool as he is forced to face up to the real terms*** and the condition of his life.****
Robert Glancy's debut novel is a shrewd and hilarious exploration of freedom and frustration, success and second chances, and whether it's worth living by the rules.
* Yes, exactly like this.
** We can't tell you what it's called for legal reasons, but believe us, it's evil.
*** Which are rarely in his favor.
**** Which is a total mess.
"Starred Review. Replete with obsessive footnoting, wry observation, and e-mails from Frank's globe-trotting brother, the book follows Frank's struggle to become the person he wants to be (whomever that is) and is a remarkably fun read." - Publishers Weekly
"Starred Review. Highly recommended for fans of bleak humor." - Library Journal
"Delivered with a profusion of witty quips and tongue-in-cheek footnotes, Glancy's first novel is written with a wry humor that belies the poignant life lessons within. It is somewhat weighed down by the abundance of annotations, yet those detract only slightly from the contemporary and heartwarming message found at the story's core." - Booklist
"Hilarious ... An original office comedy that dots all the I's and crosses all the T's: Think a dash of Office Space, a pinch of Palahniuk and a glance at Regarding Henry." - Kirkus
"An extravagant treat of an office novel, for fans of Memento and The Mezzanine. I loved it." - Ed Park, author of Personal Days
"Original, very funny and very poignant. Read it!" - Paul Torday, author of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
This information about Terms & Conditions was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Robert Glancy was born in Zambia and raised in Malawi. At fourteen he moved from Africa to Edinburgh, then went on to study history at Cambridge. By day he works in PR and by night he writes. He currently lives in New Zealand with his wife and children.
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