Book news, reviews and recommendations
This is the fourth novel by Robbie Arnott I’ve reviewed here. Having been a wee bit reluctant to read Flames, his debut, it ended up on my Booker wishlist as did Limberlost in 2023, and now Dusk which sees the Renshaw twins, desperate for money, on the trail of the eponymous black puma who’s already […]
Dusk by Robbie Arnott: Beauty and the beast Read More »
I was in two minds about reading Miriam Robinson’s And Notre Dame is Burning, attracted by the idea of a fragmented, non-linear narrative which I often enjoy but wondering if it might be too ambitious for a debut. Robinson’s novel follows Esther over five years or so in which time seems to flatten for her
And Notre Dame is Burning by Miriam Robinson: ‘Do you know this man?’ Read More »
I’ve often mentioned the power of novellas on this blog, how in the right hands a few pages can convey much more than several hundred. Mai Ishizawa’s prize-winning debut, The Place of Shells, is a fine example of that for me. Set during the pandemic, it’s narrated by an unnamed academic from Tōhoku, whose coastline
The Place of Shells by Mai Ishizawa (Transl. Polly Barton): Trauma, grief and memory Read More »
Liadan Ní Chuinn’s debut collection comes garlanded with praise from a fistful of my favourite Irish writers including Wendy Erskine, Louise Kennedy and Lucy Caldwell, all heralding the arrival of a brilliant new talent. Every One Still Here comprises six stories, several quite brief, bookended by two lengthier pieces, all more than worthy of a
Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn: A hard legacy Read More »
I’d not read anything by Benjamin Wood when Seascraper was pitched to me. It’s his fourth book but this is his first novella, beautifully packaged with a cover that fits it well. Set sometime in the 1950s, it takes place over a single day which sees Thomas Flett lifted out of his hardscrabble life for
Seascraper by Benjamin Wood: Vividly atmospheric Read More »
I’ve had several successes with Swift Press, notably Ben Shattuck’s The History of Sound, one of last year’s favourites, enough to keep an eye on their upcoming titles. Alexander Starritt’s Drayton and Mackenzie is very different. Opening in the early 2000s, it follows James Drayton and Roland Mackenzie whose chance meeting a couple of years
Drayton and Mackenzie by Alexander Starritt: The odd couple Read More »
I liked the premise of Hal Ebbott’s debut and the starry endorsements from the likes of Miranda Cowley and Cate Lombardo suggested that it might appeal at a time when I was after a bit of quality easy reading. Beginning with a weekend when two wealthy New York couples celebrate a birthday in the country,
Among Friends by Hal Ebbott: A curate’s egg Read More »
This is the latest in a series of occasional posts featuring books I read years ago about which I was wildly enthusiastic at the time, wanting to press a copy in as many hands as I could. This is an unusual one for me. As regular readers know, I rarely read thrillers but there was
Blasts from the Past: Los Alamos by Joseph Kanon (1997) Read More »
It’s ten years since I reviewed Laura Barnett’s The Versions of Us which, rereading my review, I obviously enjoyed but never got around to reading anything else by her. She writes absorbing, well turned-out fiction, tending towards the commercial end of the scale. Her new novel follows a group of six friends over the year
Births, Deaths & Marriages by Laura Barnett: A celebration of friendship Read More »
Just as I enjoy a good road movie, I love a well turned out road novel. Lots of time for reflection, meeting new characters and maybe a bit of vivid landscape description. Beginning with one that’s named after a road, and a very famous one too, below are five novels that take their readers along
Five Road Novels I’ve Read Read More »
I’d been so impressed by Wendy Erskine’s quietly brilliant short story collection, Dance Move, that I jumped at the chance to read her debut novel. Set in Belfast, The Benefactors follows the fallout from the rape of a young woman by three boys she’d thought were her friends. Being with their mum felt like when
The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine: Family first Read More »