We enter the world of extreme Sci Fi fandom, courtesy of the talented Nev Fountain, in the pages of The Fan Who Knew Too Much.
Vixens From The Void was a Sci Fi series, episode one premiered 1986 and it ran until 1993.
Young Lily Sparkes was an extra on the first series of ‘Vixens’. A year later she was back for the second series. Lily jumped off the pier in Brighton. But was it suicide or murder? Her body was never found.
2022, Wolf Tyler is about to interview a ‘Special Mystery Guest’ for his podcast called Nerd Mentality. Wolf has discovered something about the disappearance of Lily Sparks and is about tell his fans. He is murdered on air in his ‘studio,’ actually a shed in his garden, during the live broadcast before he can reveal the secret. Who was the special mystery guest?
Kit Pelham is a fan of Vixen From The Void. But not any ordinary fan, Kit is ‘professional fan’ an interviewer at Sci Fi conventions, columnist, author of twelve biographies and presenter of her own podcast called The First Cult is the Deepest. She is also an occasional obituary writer.
Kit goes to Brighton, she is going to broadcast a tribute to Wolf on his Blog assisted by their mutual friends. They all live at 33 Hanover Parade, a house Victor bought. Victor is a senior administrator at a hospital, He always wears a suit, quite the opposite of the other of Wolf’s housemates/weirdos. We meet Binfire, Kit’s very eccentric friend who calls her ‘Pilgrim’. Through Binfire she met his house mates at 33 and they all became friends. Freya, a Brighton Goth and girlfriend of Wolf. Robbie and Victor are a couple. Robbie is older than Victor and if Victor is the father of the house Robbie is mother.
What was the secret Wolf knew? Who killed Lily Sparkes.
Kit, Binfire, Freya, Robbie and Victor decide to find out. If someone killed Lilly Sparkes, that person murdered their friend Wolf. The friends agree that it had to be someone from the original cast of Vixens from the Void.
They decide to put together a 'Then and Now' Blu-Ray documentary that will reunite the original cast and crew and Victor will fund it. Kit will interview them on tape and surely she will find out.
Vizor – Roger Barker; Arkadia – Vanity Mycroft; Medula – Tara Miles; Captain Talon – Patrick Finch; Duggie Fletcher – stuntman; Joan Peverin – costume designer and Kit all stay at the original hotel, The Hotel De La Mer in Brighton. Then there is the repulsive Graham Goldingay an older superfan who does not like Kit.
The game is on. Over four days Kit and friends will observe and investigate, unearth Wolf's secret, and solve his murder.
The Fan Who Knew Too Much is an entertaining, comical and captivating story. The characterisation is spot on, the personalities and eccentricities are believable. There are twists and surprises aplenty, smokescreens and misdirection’s. The ending is satisfying and unexpected. Bring on more novels Nev Fountain.
