Occupied City by David Peace

The second part of David Peace's planned Tokyo trilogy, Occupied City is based on the true story of the Teikoku Bank Massacre. In 1948, a well-groomed man walked into a bank at the close of business and explained he had been sent to inoculate all employees against an outbreak of dysentery. He poured a clear liquid into 16 teacups and issued careful instructions as to how the antidote should be taken. Within minutes, 12 of the staff were dead, the remaining four unconscious. Peace retells the story from 12 points of view, exposing the conspiracy and confusion surrounding it. Crossed-out sentences, shouty capitals and Beckettian repetition are deliberate stylistic quirks that make a cracking story at best hard work and, at worst, exasperatingly pretentious.