“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, May 27, 2007

The French Correction

It’s barely a couple of weeks since we reported that Tana French’s (right) In The Woods was getting mixed reviews, and lo! here we are sautéing our words in a light balsamic. To wit: “French, in addition to the quiet, chilling psychological study that forms the bedrock of In The Woods, has crafted a first-rate mystery,” says the Book Reporter, while the Daily American chips in with: “French writes as if she were far more experienced as a novelist. Her pacing is fast, her characters are vivid and well-developed and her plotting is so engaging that it's hard to put down. This is one of the best mystery novels this year.” So far, so fantastic. But tarry awhile, there’s more … “In the Woods is as creepily imaginative as it gets,” reckons USA Today, while the Irish Indo goes one or twelve better: “This astonishing first novel weaves a web of intrigue to confound even the most astute; and its denouement, swift, shocking and sublimely executed, will remain with the reader long after the final page has been turned.” Blimey! Rock on over to Book Opinion to get a round-up of In The Woods’ recent reviews, and also to catch the gal du jour yakking it up in an interview …

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