“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

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Amo Amas Amant Ammo

Lawksamussy! ’Tis Friday already and we’ve hardly mentioned Shamus 2007 nominee Ken Bruen all week. For shame, Crime Always Pays elves, for shame … Anyhoo, Sir Kenneth of Bruen’s latest, Ammunition (published July 24), the seventh in the increasingly loony Brant series, has been garnering the kind of raves that have become the default reaction at this stage, to wit: “The seventh Inspector Brant noir from Shamus-winner Bruen (after 2006’s Calibre) maintains the feverish pacing that has become Bruen’s trademark … Bruen keeps this train wreck on proper course to a wholly satisfying, and very noir, conclusion,” says Publishers’ Weekly, while the Washington Post weighs in with, “It’s always a delight to discover a writer with an utterly distinctive voice … the words that best describe him, besides original, are outrageous and hilarious.” And there’s plenty more in a similar vein if you want to scoot over here

2 comments:

Peter Rozovsky said...

I've just ordered this from a real bookshop (I decided to avoid the chainstore purveyors of book-related products this time). Hmm, "very noir conclusion." That sort of thing can mean anything coming from a reviewer, but in this case, I've read that Ammunition will be the last of the Brant/Roberts books. Geez, maybe I should start reading this from the end when it arrives.
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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/

Peter Rozovsky said...

And now I've read the first seventy-four pages. I won't read the full text of the reviews you cite until I've finished the novel, but I'm surprised that the excerpts emphasize the similarities to the previous Brant and Roberts books. There are noticeable differences, if one looks beyond the brawling and the blasting guns. (I've posted a comment, if you feel like wandering over to take a look.)
===================
Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/