“Declan Burke is his own genre. The Lammisters dazzles, beguiles and transcends. Virtuoso from start to finish.” – Eoin McNamee “This bourbon-smooth riot of jazz-age excess, high satire and Wodehouse flamboyance is a pitch-perfect bullseye of comic brilliance.” – Irish Independent Books of the Year 2019 “This rapid-fire novel deserves a place on any bookshelf that grants asylum to PG Wodehouse, Flann O’Brien or Kyril Bonfiglioli.” – Eoin Colfer, Guardian Best Books of the Year 2019 “The funniest book of the year.” – Sunday Independent “Declan Burke is one funny bastard. The Lammisters ... conducts a forensic analysis on the anatomy of a story.” – Liz Nugent “Burke’s exuberant prose takes centre stage … He plays with language like a jazz soloist stretching the boundaries of musical theory.” – Totally Dublin “A mega-meta smorgasbord of inventive language ... linguistic verve not just on every page but every line.Irish Times “Above all, The Lammisters gives the impression of a writer enjoying himself. And so, dear reader, should you.” – Sunday Times “A triumph of absurdity, which burlesques the literary canon from Shakespeare, Pope and Austen to Flann O’Brien … The Lammisters is very clever indeed.” – The Guardian

Sunday, May 27, 2007

The Monday Review: Like, Are There Any Irish People Out There Who AREN'T Writing Crime Fiction?

A bumper crop of reviews this Monday, folks, kicking off with The Times’ take on John Connolly’s The Unquiet: “At times he approaches the spiritual and the supernatural, without falling into the abyss of total impossibility.” Which is, um, good, right? Cool … “Hugely under-rated among thriller writers,” Paul Charles gets the big-up from the Sunday Tribune, which reckons his latest Detective-Inspector Kennedy yarn, Sweetwater, is “one for that long air journey.” … Mystery Books is equally impressed with Ruth Dudley Edward’s latest, Murdering Americans: “Baroness Jack is a delightful character … in this entertaining and witty book.” Mmm, lovely. Next up is Alex Barclay, who “shows promise as a mystery writer, but she needs to make her characters behave more rationally,” warns the rather stingy Kansas City Star … “Be warned: even my scepticism did not prepare me for the ending of this book,” says The Book Chase of Ken Bruen’s The Dramatist. “I was stunned at its suddenness and power. (It’s) the first Ken Bruen novel that I’ve read without thinking about, and admiring, the author’s style more than the novel’s plot. Jack Taylor fans will consider this one to be a classic.” Crikey – do you want jam with that, sir? … Neville Thompson is well in with RTE’s Afternoon Show: “Mama’s Boys is a touching yet funny story starkly depicting life today,” say the Afternooners … Elsewhere, the Kirkus Reviews lauds Andrew Nugent’s Second Burial: “What shines throughout (is) the piercing compassion that crosses racial and national lines to embrace everyone who seeks the truth,” say Mr & Mrs Kirkus … “Irish-born Michael Collins is an astute chronicler of contemporary America, and this stylish campus thriller sees him at the top of his game,” clickety-clicks The Telegraph about The Secret Life of E. Robert Pendleton, while The Elegant Variation is tickled pink at Benjamin Black’s Christine Falls: “Those who feared Banville might turn in an overly literary effort needn’t worry … At the heart of the book is the coroner Quirke, a Banvillean creation on par with Alex Cleave and Freddie Montgomery.” A ‘Banvillean’ creation? Don’t confuse Der Blandville with Benjamin Black, bro – he won’t be best pleased.

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