Blinded by the Lights (novel)

Blinded by the Lights (Polish: Ślepnąc od świateł) is a novel by Jakub Żulczyk, first published in Poland on October 22, 2014[1].

Blinded by the Lights
AuthorJakub Żulczyk
Original titleŚlepnąc od świateł
CountryPoland
LanguagePolish
GenreUrban fiction, Thriller
Publication date
October 22, 2014
Media typeNovel
OCLC1085680381
Preceded bySanctuary 
Followed byThe Hill of Dogs 

Background

Żulczyk wrote Blinded by the Lights based on personal experience with Warsaw's nightlife. Creating this novel was his way to settle the dark side of his past, which included alcohol and drug abuse. He completed writing it in half a year[2].

Plot
Jakub Żulczyk

Jacek is a young man who settled in Warsaw and in order to ensure a better future than his peers, he started to act as a drug dealer. He is a neat, nihilistic perfectionist who sleeps during the day and works overnight, delivering cocaine to the upper-class citizens of the Polish capital. While also helping a criminal group he gets the drugs from, led by Piotr, Jacek observes a very dark and brutal side of Warsaw, which seems to be a ruthless living creature itself.

The novel covers one week of Jacek's life, which is led by strict rules: no alcohol, no drugs, and no deep relations, which could his attention during work. It is a pre-Christmas period and he is planning to escape from everyday routine by flying out to Argentina, but things start to run out of control when he agrees to keep a strange bag full of drugs from Stryj, another member of Piotr's criminal group.

After 8 years spent in prison, an old school gangster Dario, former crime partner of Piotr, is released. As he gets back into the drug business, he realizes that during his absence some parts of his property were stolen. His and Jacek's paths soon cross, which is not a good sign for a young dealer whose perfect life starts to fall apart.

Reception

By November, 2018, approximately 80000 copies of Blinded by the Lights were sold[3].

The novel received positive feedback from readers and critics[4]. It was nominated for the Paszport Polityki prize in 2014[5].

TV series

On October 27, 2018, Blinded by the Lights premiered on HBO GO. The 8-episode series was created by Krzysztof Skonieczny and Jakub Żulczyk, based on the plot of the novel[6].

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References
  1. "Jakub Żulczyk: Warszawa to pole minowe. Jest miastem koterii, rautów, klik, synekur". gazetapl (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-12-16.
  2. "Jakub Żulczyk po ciemnej stronie Warszawy [WYWIAD]". Culture.pl. Retrieved 2019-12-18.
  3. "Żulczyk o 'Ślepnąc od świateł': HBO kupiło prawa, nim książka się ukazała. Nikt nie wiedział, że to będzie bestseller". gazetapl (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-12-18.
  4. "Wyprute trzewia miasta [RECENZJA]". Newsweek.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-12-18.
  5. 2014 (2014-12-09). "Literatura. Nominowani: Jakub Żulczyk". www.polityka.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-12-18.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. Blinded by the Lights, retrieved 2019-12-16
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