Chien 51 - Laurent Gaudé

Chien 51 is a science-fiction novel set in what appears to be a near-future reality or an alternative reality one. There are more than a few elements that have echoes with the present day, or extensions on them that don't feel too far away from where we are now. In an unspecified year, the world is run by global corporations, and at the start of the novel we learn that Greece has collapsed economically and been bought over by a corporation called GoldTex. (Interestingly, in an uncanny echo with the uncertainties currently in the real world we find that Venezuela has also been similarly 'purchased' with somewhat less disturbance than the protests and street riots that occurred with the collapse of Greece).

The huge corporations are too powerful however and any insurrection is quickly put down. The fall of Greece was 20 years ago now, and the population of the country put to good use working for GoldTex, those with good qualifications sent to work in Magnapole as 'cilariés', salaried citizens. Zem Sparak is one such former Greek national who came over to Magnapole as a young man. Now 44 years old, he works as a police officer in Zone 3 of Magnapole. It's not the most pleasant of places, suffering from downpours of acid rain that can cause serious harm through just 5 minutes of exposure.

There is very little cross-over between the three zones of Magnapole, but Sparak makes the border crossing to the rather more upmarket zone 2, which has a climatic dome to protect from the severe acid rain storms that occur frequently. Sparak has been sent to team up with Salia Malberg, an officer in zone 2, to assist with a recent case involving a resident of zone 2 whose body was found eviscerated in zone 3. It's part of a new initiative being piloted to improve cross-zone police co-operation, but as far as Malberg is concerned as his superior, Sparak is expected to act as a good dog ("bon chien") and do some digging around for his master.

Sparak has no interest in being the “dogsbody” for anyone, but there is a political campaign running and the initiative is being backed by one of the candidates, Barsok. What is interesting it that there appears to be a connection to the killings with his political rival Kanaka. Kanaka's name comes up early in the investigation when it is identified that, judging by the Eternytox in his system the dead man had a "greffe" removed, an experimental graft or transplant that is Kanaka's business, but the dead man does not appear on the list of official tightly controlled procedures.

The feel of Chien 51 (the reason for title only becomes clear late in the novel), is very much a near-future dystopia lying somewhere between Ballard and Bladerunner. There are no major advances in technology here, drones are used more extensively, but really we aren't that far from the world depicted here, nor indeed the prospect of yellow acid rain I would imagine. Adhering close to the present it's evident that there are commonalities and commentary on the current state of affairs, a warning if you like, but it's not as if we are in any position to turn back, things have already been set on motion and it could turn out this way or another future like it.

As a French novel, recent events in France and in Europe that have undoubtedly have had a profound on people clearly feed into the situation; the terrorist attacks, the yellow vest protests, anti-capitalist protests, not least the financial crisis in Greece and the growing political and financial crisis in France. On a wider global societal level crashing into these situations is climate change and the growing equality gap between the rich and poor that is represented in the vast differences between those living in zones 1-3 of Magnapole. Let's not add AI to that stew just yet. The world we see in Chien 51 can be seen really just evolving out of these current realities.

Without giving anything away, the murder investigation doesn't provide much in the way of surprises. Indeed, it hardly seems 'futuristic' at all, either in the procedural aspects of the investigation or in the underlying motivations behind the killings (yes, there are more than one). Even the uncomfortable buddy copy team-up is fairly conventional, but as straightforward as those elements are, it's a strong enough line to carry you through to the revelations of where the real strings are being pulled and how far back it goes. The strength of the novel however is in how it doesn't let it get too far removed from the familiar powerplays we suspect go on in our own reality - and that is troubling indeed.

Reading notes: Chien 51 by Laurent Gaudé was originally published in France by Actes Sud in 2022. I read a 2024 first edition pocket paperback copy published by Babel. It was only the day after the news was filled with reports of President Trump's 'intervention' into Venezuela that I read the part in the book that tells us that Venezuela had also been 'purchased' like Greece by GoldTex. That brought home how frighteningly close to the world of Chien 51 we really are.

The novel has already been adapted for the screen by the author with Magnapole re-imagined (or just acknowledged) as a futuristic Paris. The film is directed by Cédric Jimenez and starring Gilles Lellouche as Zem Sparak and Adèle Exarchopoulos as Salia and seems to have been fairly well received by the critics and press. I'd like to see it.

Gaudé's as followed up Chien 51 with another visit to Magnapole in his latest novel Zem. I'd like to read that as well.