Review of The Explosion of a Chandelier by by Damian Murphy

In this swiftly paced adventure, D. M. marries a clarity of expression with a depth and ambiguity of subtexts. 

You feel a current running beneath the surface narrative of dark forces astir. Hector and Vito epitomize the thrill of youth’s longing after dramatic distractions as they encounter with some uncertainty the consequences of their haphazard charades and observe with relish the preposterous reactions of hapless bystanders. Hector has imposter syndrome from all appearances, yet he gravitates naively toward the charismatic leader of their not-yet-infamous rebel group entrenched in a daily exercise of wreaking subtle anarchies, always seeking to exert influence and to confound the uninitiated. While they are not immune to sabotage, they are wary of outsiders, which is to say, the average, unseeing commoners who stand baffled in their wake. Under the monarchy of King Alfonso in Spain, but answering to a higher cause, they engage in frequently mysterious subterfuges on the level of composing surrealist missives to wage slaves or smuggling what might be a bomb into a derelict hotel. The setting is redolent with secret allure and is of the utmost importance. This novel marks yet another expertly composed foray into decadent explorations through the vehicle of occult descriptions fraught with menacing undertones by the master of the form. The main character may not be the most reliable viewpoint, and may often proceed willy-nilly at the beck and call of Vito, but his perceptions are decidedly interesting.

Each doorway and elevator becomes a portal to an unlikely and sinister destination. Hector is sensitive to the silent protestation of secret rooms and finds himself enmeshed in a mystery of eternal significance. Though this is not the most approachable work of Murphy’s, it represents a glowing turret upon the magnificent cathedral he is composing one story at a time – each brick a scintillating phrase honed upon the axe of his aesthetic.