“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
Friday, July 20, 2007
Funky Friday’s Free-For-All: We’ll Trade You Monday And Tuesday For Another Friday, Big Guy
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Amo Amas Amant Ammo
Remembrance Of Almond Buns Past
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 2,012: Paul Charles
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
Anatomy of A Murder by Robert Traver. It’s a true classic.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
Anything with the magic word “Beatles” on the jacket.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Would have to be starting a new book. In this case I’m talking about the second Starrett mystery, called Family Life, which I’m currently working on.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
Anything by Colin Bateman.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
A Kind of Homecoming by Eugene McEldowney.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
The best thing is the dangerously beautiful space you fall into while working on the book. There really isn’t a worst thing; the privilege to write and be published pales any gripe into insignificance.
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
To separate his work?
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Very, very real. I try as best I know how to keep my fiction factual.
Paul Charles’ first Inspector Starrett mystery, The Dust of Death, is published on September 4.
The Lies That Bind
“As for Love, Lies and Bleeding, it was Sylvester who put the book our way. During his research for a book in Ontario, he got talking to someone who works in the police / security fields, and who admitted to the odd scribble. Sylvester had a look at it, gave some advice and asked us to look at it and we were impressed. The one drawback is that the author’s background precludes public appearances and the like – which makes things difficult for us in these days of media-accessible novelists-cum-celebrities! Although, had circumstances for the author been different, I’m sure that a much bigger publisher would have taken it on. What impressed us about Love, Lies and Bleeding is that it brings to the reader a series of questions about love, friendship and inter-cultural relationships without ever impinging on what is a fast-paced, whodunnit, thought-provoking and sometimes funny crime story.”Consider us intriguingly intrigued, folks. If you're interested in reading an excerpt, you can slide on over here for Chapter One ...
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
What KT Did Next, Again
“Five women, all wealthy and with influential connections, meet once a month to set in motion a project that challenges their collective intellects. For their latest challenge, they accuse Detective Inspector Connolly of aggravated rape, then set about providing ‘compelling evidence’ to support their claim. Only investigative journalist, Emma Boylan (heroine of my five previous novels), appears to be on Connolly’s side, but her motives are questioned when it transpires that she and the detective are lovers …”Consider us suitably intrigued, sir. But hell, do us a favour and slow down a little with the old scribbling. We’ve already burnt out two keyboards and three sets of fingertips trying to keep up …
Whoever You Tell, Tell No One
More Irish Than The I-reich Themselves, Apparently
“Declan: I’m happy to report that Jack Irish’s name is pronounced in the ordinary way. Irish is, however, a corruption of an earlier family name. Thank you for your generous words.”Criminy! Is it possible to be simultaneously stoked, humbled and flabbergasted? And what say you now, Mr After Dark My Sweet (if that is, in fact, your real name) who peddled the erroneous info in the first place? Don’t make us go down under there, pal. You wouldn’t like us when we’re angry. You wouldn’t even like us when we’re not angry. Because we’re not likeable. You have been warned, sirrah …
Monday, July 16, 2007
Doctors Differ, Patients Die
Archbishop calls for action on crime as three dieNot what you might call a good news story. Except the previous day’s Sunday Times (Irish edition) front page ran a piece from Mark Tighe and Tom Gordon that suggests ‘national emergency’ might be a little wide of the mark, to wit:
"One of the country’s leading churchmen has described the spate of violent crime as close to a national emergency and has called on the Government to devise a new strategy to deal with the problem."
Don’t look now, but you’re in Europe’s safest countryWhich is a bit more serious than potayto / potahto, no? Anyone have any suitably wacky theories as to the discrepancy? We’re all ears …
"As surveys go it seems to fly in the face of reality, but figures to be released by the World Health Organisation (WHO) show that Ireland is the least violent country in Europe."
“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 319: Allan Guthrie
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
My next one.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
That’s tough … Has to be Heat Magazine. It’s full of people I’ve never heard of, doing things I’ve no interest in. I only read it in the hope of spotting Ken Bruen one of these days. Honest.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Probably the Edgar nomination for Kiss Her Goodbye.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
My favourite is American Skin, Ken Bruen.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
Off the top of my head: Alex Barclay’s The Caller, Gene Kerrigan’s Little Criminals, Bateman’s I Predict A Riot (a looong movie) and Bruen’s Her Last Call To Louis MacNeice and London Boulevard.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Worst: writing. Best: rewriting. Or, possibly: Worst: writing alone. Best: co-writing.
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
Presumably because the books are aimed at a different market. Or maybe he just likes the idea of following in Bernard Mara / Brian Moore’s footsteps. Or it could be a contractual nicety. I haven’t a bloody clue. Go and ask him and let me know what he says.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
The suspense is ...
Allan Guthrie’s Hard Man is out now. And if you’re feeling particularly generous today, you can vote for Allan’s Two-Way Split in the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award over here. Go on, you know you want to …
The Embiggened O # 1,012: We Got Mailed
"A crime novel set in Dublin sidesteps expectations of gangland shootings and bumbling gardaí with characters who may have grown up on the smooth ideals of American mobster movies but are having a tricky time moving from fiction into reality. Taut dialogue and understated description lift Burke’s style above mere Elmore Leonard impersonation."Lawks! Consider our gast well and truly flabbered, people. As for the other page-turning thriller-types, they were Alex Barclay’s The Caller, John Connolly’s The Unquiet, Matt Rees’ The Bethlehem Murders, Michael Connelly’s The Overlook, and Tana French’s In The Woods. Are we honoured and privileged to be even mentioned in such illustrious company? Ask us when we finally manage to get our gast unflabbered …