A Novel by Steve Redshaw & Richard Pendry

Vapeaway!

Steve Redshaw & Richard Pendry

Mid-2010s London. Billionaire ad balloons dominate the skies with insults and impossible dreams. Can a ragtag resistance bring them down? Will a refugee find the mystical vape formula that might help an unwitting DJ — manipulated by an anarchic rabbit — save the world and get the girl?

When the beat drops at 3am, maybe reality itself is going to burst.

Who Owns the Sky?

Who owns the sky? Not grumpy Reg, it seems. He hates the balloons, and his estranged son Dave — an old-skool superstar DJ who'd love to rewind his regrets, not least his lost love for Silke, a former Hamburg squatter.

Now Silke counsels refugees like Tareq, who's seeking the elusive formula for a mystical vape that might change the world.

Hapless junior copywriter Oliver dreams of greatness while his ad agency boss Sandra texts in from a hen-do in Amsterdam.

Meanwhile, make-up artist Tabi, Dave's biggest fan, joins the underground resistance against the skybound menace, as journalist Mike hunts the truth behind the propaganda.

Through it all, Dave's anarchic pet rabbit Bakunin communes with a stranger power under the full moon.

From London clubs to Hamburg basements to Amsterdam bars, this satirical vapour trail follows a web of unlikely rebels on a collision course with the system — until the beat drops at 3 a.m. at the Brick, and reality bursts like a balloon.

Unlikely Rebels

Reg
Retired and grumpy, he hates the ad balloons crowding London's skies — and is estranged from his son.
Dave
Old-skool superstar DJ haunted by regrets, a lost love, and a rabbit with a very secret agenda.
Silke
Former Hamburg squatter turned refugee counsellor. She and Dave share a complicated past.
Tareq
A refugee with a remarkable story and a lead on the world-changing formula hidden inside a vape pen.
Oliver
Hapless copywriter at a minor London ad agency, convinced he's destined for greatness.
Tabi
Make-up artist and Dave's biggest fan, pedalling into the underground resistance on a vintage racer.
Bakunin
Dave's anarchic pet rabbit. Communes with a stranger power under the full moon. Not your average bunny.
Mike
Journalist on the trail of the truth behind the balloon propaganda machine.

Say Hello

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