Ghost Network by Catie Disabato

Going by the description alone this book sounded wildly attractive. All the more so for featuring things that specifically wildly attract this reader, such as secret societies, mysteries and, the main one, subway systems. The latter might seem like a strange attractor, but a mere mention of metro sends my mind into a sort of Neverwhere infused happy place.
But then there was matter of reviews,…while critically acclaimed, it didn’t seem to rank as high with regular readers, neither on Amazon nor GR. Well, the good won out. And I did read the book. And now, having read it, it’s easy to understand the divergence of reviews. For all of its plot convolutions, ingenious narrative contortions, clever interweaving of real historical events and figures into a fictional story and, possibly most importantly, it’s undeniable originality, there’s much to praise here. This book practically screams critical darling. But then there’s a matter of general public appeal which usually relies on easily defined presets and ideas and likeable characters…and the book doesn’t really pander to that, almost at all.
Sure, it’s main star is a pop music juggernaut, Molly Metropolis, and the book is essentially a narrative of her adoring fans/posse/friends who are desperately trying to solve her sudden disappearance. But that oh so hip pop culture connection might not be enough to engender the book for some/most readers.
The Ghost Network is decidedly cerebral in a way that might turn off some audiences. It features random, randomly fascinating components, like obscure European counterculture artistic minded revolutionaries and extensive (and I mean extensive) coverage of the Chicago subway system, both existing and intended. It contemplates the nature of fame and meaning of life and creativity. The juxtaposition of work to play as a way to go through one’s life. It’s heavy and serious and really freaking interesting. But, unlike Molly Metropolis’ music, it isn’t an easily digestible fare.
The book is structured as a serious investigation wherein the author Disabato follows a researcher named Cyrus who followed Molly’s disappearance and tried to solve it, so it’s a fictional documentary account, comprised of interviews, observations, diary entries, etc., but all of them processed and streamlined into a cohesive chronological narrative, complete with extensive footnotes. The final result is somewhat dense for a fiction book, but like most bodies of considerable density, it exudes a potent gravitational appeal.
The structure being done this way provides a certain distance from the charaters, so we don’t really get to know them that much and that’s fine, they aren’t all that likeable, but they are interesting and searching and that certainly drives the novel along.
The Situationalists are absolutely fascinating and I’ve never heard about them until now and their concepts of detournement and derive and, especially, psychogeography were very much of interest and relevance to me. And yes, there are secrets below Chicago’s streets as the novel eventually reveals. It takes a while to get there and the final chapter seems like something of a letdown almost or at least underwhelming, until the epilogue. The epilogue absolutely kills, delivering on all of the promise of the novel with a great final twist.
So a strange, offbeat, different sort of a read. But a very good one all the same, at least for the right readers. The author states in her afterword it took years to put it all together and it’s easy to understand how, but once the plot coheres, it’s really something to behold. It certainly credit for originality alone. I enjoyed this book. Used mileage may vary. Recommended.