!!! Warning-Contains Major Spoilers !!!

A/N: This is an essay assignment for my English class, it's actually more like a book report. The first part is a summary of the plot and the second part is my opinion on the book. Please read the book.

The Vesuvius Club

Part One:

The Vesuvius Club by Mark Gatiss is a novel told in the first person by the main character, Lucifer Box. The story takes place in streets of England where Lucifer Box is a portrait painter by day and an English secret agent by night. Lucifer is a very charming character and the first words he utters will either make you hate him or love him. He takes great pride in not only his work, but also in his appearance and mannerisms. He is quite self-centered, but it only adds to his charm throughout the novel. The Vesuvius Club begins with his latest assignment; to assassinate Everand Supple. He then acquires the idea, courtesy of his friend Christopher Miracle, to teach art to the public. Ms. Bella Pok answers his ad and he is instantly drawn to her. She is a very pretty woman and her personality is simply fetching that Lucifer cannot wait until their next lesson.

Throughout the book Lucifer is taken on several wild adventures and through near death experiences. He is trying to figure out why certain scientists, who seem to have a connection through their college years, have gone missing and where they are. His search eventually leads him to Italy where he encounters a young man by the name of Charlie Jackpot. Charlie seems to know quite a few things about the incident and takes Lucifer into an underground and secret society known as The Vesuvius Club. He finds that Charlie is not only a cunning individual, but also a very handsome man. By the middle of the book the reader discovers that Lucifer is bisexual, and as he puts it: “I am not adverse to a pretty face and a pretty rump, whether they may be man's or woman's (I draw the line at beasts, unlike at least one member of the Cabinet)”. This is an interesting development in his character.

Later on he comes across Bella Pok once more and she confesses that she found out about his travel plans to Italy and followed him there. Lucifer flirts with both Bella and Charlie, and does it quite shamefully. One is not sure to be disgusted or humored by his swaying actions and emotions. Lucifer also continues to interact with the reader throughout the novel as well, asking questions and talking as if one was right beside him to hear his tale. Eventually he and Charlie move on to finally discovering the secret to the missing scientists and why the club was named after the famous Vesuvius volcano. Both men find themselves in peril as they try to stop the nefarious scheme of destroying all of Italy by creating a chain reaction to all the volcanoes in the area.

Once all the action has cleared and all mysteries solved Lucifer returns back to his home, with Charlie as his manservant, to heal his wounds and finally get some rest. When Bella comes to visit him Charlie is shooed out by a clearly pleased Lucifer. Charlie leaves, but not without a glaring and hurtful look on his face from seeing his lover with someone else. Bella then tries to seduce Lucifer, but once he has his guard down she tries to kill him. Lucifer scrambles for his life and is completely confused by the turn of events. Bella confesses that her father was Everand Supple, the man he first murdered once the story began. Charlie eventually barges in and Bella ends up dead from a wound on her back. With the adrenaline pumping through them the novel ends with Lucifer and Charlie taking one last tumble together.

Part Two:

I absolutely loved this novel. It was an interesting find. I first came across The Vesuvius Club: The Graphic Novel. I bought it on impulse and once I read it and found out it was not only a comic, but also a novel I knew that I had to buy it.

Lucifer is such a self-centered and obviously unlikeable character but one is able to hate him. If anything, his attitude is what draws the other characters to him and they're all taken in by his dashing good looks and obvious charm. The novel is filled with hilarious wit and beautiful descriptions of not only the other characters, but also the surrounding area and action sequences. Any reader could fall prey to this book and simply drown in it's words and descriptions.

The plot, although filled with several odd and fantasy-like elements, was excellently constructed and the way Gatiss made everything connect and make sense at the end was truly amazing and enjoyable. The novel was filled with so many mysteries, twists, and turns that it brought about something new with every page. I recommend this book to anyone who loves humor, a good mystery, and a guy you long to hate, but can't.