THE BIG BLIND

In his diverting noir debut, British author Banks pulls off the challenge of creating a repellent protagonist with few virtues who still manages to engage the reader. A salesman of double-glazed windows, Alan Slater feels his bleak life begin to spiral out of control when he accidentally kills a dog. Slater is then drawn into the violent world of a fellow salesman whose requests for help become increasingly demanding. The one ray of light in Slater's life, his young girlfriend, demonstrates a remarkable and baffling tolerance for his irregular habits and schedule. The author's own experiences in double-glazing sales lend an authentic flavor to his character's sometimes darkly humorous efforts to close a deal, though the story lacks the power and force that one associates with the work of a classic noir writer like Cornell Woolrich. A blurb from Ken Bruen, the king of Hibernian noir, may give a boost. Agent, Marc Gerald at the Agency Group. (Jan.)