fabulous book, full of characters that you dont want to empathise with but secretly recognise the ways they behave as being close to home. It keeps drawing you in, more and more as the behaviour gets worse and worse.

I wouldn't usually read books of this nature, but when it arrived at my store, the glorious picture of a fat red lobster on the front cover made me believe it was going to live in the food and drink section. Discovering that it was fiction, I took a stroll to the section and on route began to read the first few lines of text. A few hours later I had finished it and can honestly say that I've never read anything like it. It has a style that reminded me of Bret Easton Ellis' matter of fact style but is written in such an original tone that I devoured it as greedily as I would hace done the Lobster on the front cover. It's a dark, odd, strange and compelling journey through the perils of being a parent and as each four courses (chapters) of the meal unfolded, I really didn't have any idea where it was going to end. All I knew is that I couldn't wait to find out what happened and was on the edge of my seat from about halfway in. A totally wierd ride but one that I'm really glad I took.

This is an excellent book. Quite horrific and disturbing at times but very thought provoking. Thoroughly recommended

What a fabulous read! To start any book with a quote from Reservoir Dogs you know immeadiately that you're in for a cracking read. Aperitif, where any good meal should start sets the scene for our evening with two brothers and their wives. A decision to discuss their children, who at fifteen may have created an untenable situation for both families. Over the course of the meal polite conversation becomes darkly funny with a hint of unspoken tension. Beautifully crafted, emotional and fraught with family loyalties. How far would any parent really go to protect their Children? Questions posed and ultimately answered, The Dinner will leave you feeling more than satisfied!

Now this is a novel to get your teeth stuck into. Paul and his brother Serge have an uneasy relationship. Serge is a big-time politician, and in Paul’s opinion lays it all on a bit thick. The novel opens with Paul dwelling on their dinner date that evening. Serge has made the reservation, too easily, at a flash restaurant, flaunting his name and position and perceived good nature. It irks Paul, having a brother who’s a somebody, yet still able to communicate with the ordinary people. It irks him greatly. He takes great pleasure in going to a café before dinner, without Serge, to spend some with his wife chatting and enjoying her company. He seems OK, Paul, a regular bloke with an over-achieving slightly annoying brother. Until his wife mentions their son. It quickly becomes apparent that Michel, their son, has done something very bad. That’s why the dinner has been called, to do something about the situation. Serge’s son too is involved. The two sets of parents gather uneasily in the restaurant, with different expectations and approaches to the impending crisis. It takes some time to fully understand what the boys have done, and how much each parent knows about it. Every time I thought I had a grip on it all another little bomb was dropped. I’m reluctant to give anything much away here; I don’t want to diminish the jaw-dropping moments. Suffice to say, there were several points at which my mind went all boggly with disbelief. The self-justifying, self-centred thinking on display is breathtakingly awful. Worse still is the realisation that maybe it’s not so far from some people’s idea of the truth. This is an extreme family dilemma, with some extreme personalities involved. I found the story very involving and scarily believable. It’s presented in a perfectly rational, straightforward way. Paul’s version of events is without melodrama, contrasting brilliantly with the implications of what he reveals. Sociopathic behaviour has never been more reasonable or reasoned than in Koch’s five-course menu.