“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

Saturday, October 5, 2013

On The Road

Brian McCabe, a friend of a friend – or a friend of a neighbour, to be precise – has just self-published a novel, THE STONEY ROAD, which should appeal to fans of Kevin McCarthy’s work. Quoth the blurb elves:
As Ireland begins her difficult, troubled journey towards independence, the Berford and McNeill families find themselves struggling with upheavals of their own. These two families are brought together by marriage and then torn apart by death, war and loss. THE STONEY ROAD chronicles a city in turmoil as a country tries to find itself. Crowds line up to welcome the king to Dublin, but rumblings of rebellion can already be felt in the dark alleys and smokey pubs. Soon people will have to decide whether to be loyal to their past or embrace an uncertain, dangerous future.
  Between 1900 and 1922, the very idea of Irishness was redefined. A new nation emerged from the rubble of war. And two families had to find their own roads out of the ruins.
  What caught my eye on this one is the Introduction, which is written by one of the great pioneers of the Irish crime writing boom, Eugene McEldowney. “The author has set himself an ambitious project but he acquits himself with distinction,” writes Eugene. “He brings to the task an intimate knowledge of the geography and history of his native city and makes it come vividly alive for the reader.”
  For more, clickety-click here

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