“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, June 10, 2007

“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 108: Duane Swierczynski

Yep, it's rubber-hose time, folks: a rapid-fire Q&A for those shifty-looking usual suspects ...
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
My twenty-fifth.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
Kafka, Joyce and Updike. So damned embarrassing – I mean, can you get any more ‘airport’ than that?
Most satisfying writing moment?
Whenever one of my characters does or says something I didn’t see coming. There’s nothing better than that. (Of course, it also suggests that I may need professional help.)
The best Irish crime novel is …?
Anything with Ken Bruen’s name on the spine.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
Ken Bruen’s American Skin. It’s like a smart Jerry Bruckheimer movie.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Worst? The time away from my family. The best? Pretty much everything. I love this job.
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
Clearly, he doesn’t want the ‘Banville’ name to sully his real work.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Fast. Crazy. Polish.

Duane Swierczynski’s Severance Package is published by St Martin’s Minotaur in November

No comments: