On The Irish Crime Novel And Tat

I was supposed to take part, via Skype link-up, in the Bouchercon panel on Irish crime writing yesterday, a panel hosted by Erin Mitchell and featuring John Connolly, Stuart Neville, Eoin Colfer and Erin Hart. Sadly, the technology let us down, and I was reduced to earwigging on the event, which sounded like it was terrific fun, with much in the way of self-effacing humour and self-mockery. Erm, chaps? It behoves you to act with appropriate seriousness, and whinge a lot about how you’re a second-class literary citizen, etc. Otherwise, crime writing will never get the credit it deserves from the likes of John Boland.
  Anyhoo, I had an interview with said John Connolly published yesterday in the Irish Examiner to mark the publication of his latest Charlie Parker novel, THE BURNING SOUL, which opened up a lot like this:

“You know the Irish crime novel has arrived,” says John Connolly, “because we’ve started producing tat. In the beginning it was a blank canvas, and there wasn’t a lot of money to be made, and there was a lot of experimentation, people whizzing off in interesting directions into virgin territory. Now we have the foot-soldiers coming through, producing stuff we’ve read in other forms before. Especially with the serial killer novel, which in the wrong hands can quickly spiral out of control and become a bit nasty, bodies piling up all over the pages.”
  The Irish crime novel was still something of a novelty in 1999 when Connolly, then an Irish Times journalist, published his debut, ‘Every Dead Thing’. Set in Maine in the US, and featuring the private eye Charlie Parker, its experimental aspect was the blending of conventional crime fiction tropes with elements of the gothic novel, and particularly those of the supernatural.
  “Crime fiction is still very uncomfortable with any kind of experimentation,” he says, “anything that deviates from a functional, rationalist take on the world. But I think it’s legitimate to introduce other elements, and elements that are directly opposed to that rationalist mindset ...”

  For the rest, clickety-click here …
  Staying with said John Connolly, the Dark Lord will be leading the charge to New York next week, when he heads up a posse of Irish crime scribes being hosted by Ireland House at NYU for the purpose of celebrating the rise and rise of Irish crime fiction. Attendees will include John Connolly, Stuart Neville, Arlene Hunt, Alex Barclay, Declan Hughes, Colin Bateman and Professor Ian Ross on the Irish side, and Peter Quinn and Pete Hamill holding up the Irish-American end. The event takes place from 9.30am to 7pm on Saturday, September 24th at Ireland House; if you’re in the vicinity, clickety-click here for all the details …

The Monday Review

How long has it been since we mentioned Eoin Colfer on these pages? That’s right, too long. “Another entertaining adventure from Eoin Colfer that has time travel, demons, warlocks, pixies, centaurs, fairies, dwarves, hitmen, bodyguards, and not one, but two human genii. I’m looking forward to the next instalment,” says Grubsneerg at Book Crossing of THE LOST COLONY … Over at Reviewing the Evidence, Diana Sandberg likes Cora Harrison’s MY LADY JUDGE, to wit: “I enjoyed reading this book. Many readers of historical mystery will be immediately reminded of another female working within the Brehon laws, Peter Tremayne’s Sister Fidelma … The story would not suit a person looking for a thriller, it falls well into the realm of cozy, but many characters are well drawn and the historical and cultural information is nicely integrated into the story, not slathered on as some authors unfortunately do.” Which is lovely … “Despite being humourous, when it gets down to the nitty-gritty of magic and action, SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT delivers, and delivers in style … Incredibly witty, and immensely fun – put SKULDUGGERY PLEASANT to the top of your “To be read” pile!” raves Bookiemonster about Derek Landy’s debut … “There are … occasional examples of clumsy phrasing. But these are minor quibbles. They do not detract from the smoothly crafted unfolding of the mystery and its surprising denouement,” says Roy Greenslade of Paul Charles’ THE DUST OF DEATH in the latest issue of Verbal … “SLIDE is slick. With the follow up to last year’s BUST, Ken Bruen and Jason Starr have raised the bar. BUST … was a black comedy of errors; noir with a grin. The sequel is comic, but it’s not just slapstick. It’s satire,” asserts Nathan Cain over at Indie Crime … The big-ups just won’t quit for Ronan Bennett’s ZUGZWANG, to wit: “It is tempting to place ZUGZWANG in the same company as CJ Sansom’s WINTER IN MADRID and Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s THE SHADOW OF THE WIND. What sets ZUGZWANG above those two works, however, is its complexity,” says Nick Greenslade in The Observer, although Julia Flynn, at The Telegraph, is rather less impressed: “I was bowled over by Bennett’s last novel, HAVOC IN ITS THIRD YEAR, but this one, despite excellent moments, does not scale the same heights. It is beautifully written, in lucid prose; but the story as a whole does not quite cohere.” Boo, etc. … They’re still coming in for Adrian McKinty’s latest: “Anyone in the mood for a few thrills need look no further than THE BLOOMSDAY DEAD … Literature buffs will enjoy McKinty’s numerous references to Joyce’s novel, which supplement the non-stop, and very bloody, excitement that Michael encounters on his own epic journey. Michael is an appealingly tough but tormented hero,” reckons Rebecca Oppenheimer at The Towerlight … And they just won’t stop coming for Tana French: “IN THE WOODS by Tana French is another solid debut novel … The ensuing psychological suspense tale has a teeny hint of the supernatural that provides a thrill of extra creepiness,” vouchsafes Ellen Datlow at her Live Journal … Benny Blanco’s latest, THE SILVER SWAN, isn’t due until next month, but Book Dwarf is already raving about it thusly: “Perhaps a stronger book than CHRISTINE FALLS (itself a strong debut in mystery), Black writes for an audience that doesn’t need all the answers handed to them … Black doesn’t rely on clichés and switchback plots to keep the book going. I hope he continues to write such gripping books.” … “A gripping follow-up to [Erin] Hart’s sensational debut, weaving together history, folklore, and forensics, and following in the evocative tradition of writers such as Elizabeth George and Daphne du Maurier, LAKE OF SORROWS is a passionate novel of suspense from a superbly gifted new crime-writing star,” raves Paperback Swap … Back to Verbal for Mia Gallagher’s HELLFIRE: “The book should be depressing since its rare moments of drug-free clarity portray a relentlessly harrowing world. Yet because of the author’s sheer ability with words and an abundance of characters that would have been the envy of Dickens, one reads on – perhaps white-knuckled,” says Sean McMahon. Finally, Sean Moncrieff’s THE HISTORY OF THINGS received some well-deserved oxygen this weekend, first from the Irish Times: “Moncrieff is a fluid, confident writer who expertly creates a sense of genuine menace, and this very readable book is genuinely unnerving at times … The story’s oppressive, threatening atmosphere lingers in the reader’s mind long after the final page,” says Anna Carey. The Sunday Tribune liked it too: “This ability to pique interest and hold it is ably assisted by his clipped, concise sentences which subtly switch between genuinely hilarious riffs and seemingly throwaway lines that only add depth. Moncrieff often leaves both jokes and key events to hang in the air and enhance the emotion.” Okay, but can the boy Moncrieff juggle chainsaws underwater? Huh? He can? Oh …

The Queen of Harts

A busy week for the CAP roving reporter elves – not only did they meet Brian McGilloway, they also bumped into Erin Hart (right), of Lake of Sorrows fame, whilst canoodling in the Cobblestones pub with Critical Mick (that’s the elves who were canoodling with Generalissimo Critical, not Erin). So, how lovely was she? Lovelier than Forever Changes-era Love doing a cover version of Endless Love doesn’t even start to describe it. “So what’s happening with the follow-up to Lake of Sorrows, Erin?” burbled the elves. Quoth Erin:

“Still writing away, trying to make this new book really worth the wait. The current working title is False Mermaid, and it’s the third in the series, which means Nora Gavin will be travelling back to Saint Paul to re-open her sister’s unsolved murder, leaving Cormac to make amends with his ailing father back in Ireland. I’m anxious to finish because I can’t wait to see how it turns out. You’ll be the first to know when there’s cause for celebration!”

Actually, the elves got totally scundered on the Cobblestones’ patented Groovy Good-Vibe Enhancer and not only forgot every word said during the entire night, but ended up in a bout of bare-knuckle fisticuffs with a bevy of belly-dancing dwarves, thus ending up in Big Chokey for the night. So we had to steal the above quote from Erin’s interweb mail-out thingagummy. Still, it can’t be Pulitzer prizes every week, right?