“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, September 5, 2008

He Sells SANCTUARY – Aye, But When? And Where?

Anybody out there know what’s happening with Ken Bruen’s SANCTUARY? I’ve been getting emails asking me if / when the latest (and rumoured last) Jack Taylor story hits the shelves in the US / UK in hardback / paperback, and I haven’t the proverbial baldy. If anyone can help, you know what to do …
  One man who did get his grubby mitts on a copy is Tony Black, he of PAYING FOR IT fame. He has a review of SANCTUARY up at the inimitable Sons of Spade, with the gist running thusly:
“The beauty of the prose can only be described as that of a genius. Bruen applies a finesse to his slickly-crafted sentences that’s unmatched. It’s a Salinger-esque trip told with the kind of insight you’d expect from an author with his own unique, cultural X-ray vision. And, in SANCTUARY, the new Ireland, in all its complexities, is never far from his field of view.”
  Nice. Meanwhile, one book that is definitely published in the US this week is Brian McGilloway’s BORDERLANDS, and we know this because his fellow scribe David Isaak has the pics to prove it over at the Macmillan New Writers blog. Quoth David:
“This is more than a selfless interest in seeing Brian’s book reach a wider audience; this is also an historic, but little-noted occasion. This is the first time a Macmillan New Writing book has jumped the Atlantic and been printed in an American edition …
  “McGilloway’s prose is flawless, his characters pop off the page, the plot is engrossing, and the setting unique. The book received deservedly great reviews in Ireland and the UK, and sold enough copies to turn most writers Elphaba-coloured with envy.”
  Erm, David? What the blummin’ hell is Elphaba when it’s at home?

6 comments:

David Baynham said...

Dec, I don't think Sanctuary was released in hardback, only trade paper last month in the UK. his most recent US book is the third in the series he's doing in pulp format with Jason Starr, "The Max". These are terrific! His next hardbach here is "Once Were Cops" in late October, which I believe is a sequel to "American Skin" but not really positive about that.

Unknown said...

I got the UK hardback (A signed edition, my two year-old has some seriously deep pockets) as a Father's day present, and it's freaking fantastic! This looks to be the final Taylor. And Once Were Cops is a stand alone.

Declan Burke said...

Ta very much, gents ... And I'm pretty sure ONCE WERE COPS is a standalone alright. I'm also hearing it's his meisterwerk ... Cheers, Dec

Anonymous said...

Dont think it is the last Taylor. Heard Ken Bruen being interviewd recently on Irish radio where he said that he is currently writing / or has written the next Jack Taylor book, and that the setting is Mexico.

P

Declan Burke said...

Taylor in Mexico? The. Mind. Boggles. Cheers, Dec

Unknown said...

Wow, that's awesome! I'm looking forward to that one already