“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
Friday, June 1, 2007
Funky Friday’s Free-For-All Interweb Mash-Up: Let’s Just See If We Can Get Through This Without Saying ‘Baloohaha’, Shall We?
Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peas
Thursday, May 31, 2007
“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 719: Adrian McKinty
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
The Big Sleep is hard to beat. The prose, the style, the attitude … I’m also a big fan of Jim Thompson - The Grifters is one of my favourites. And now that we’re on to this, I also wish I’d directed Blood Simple, one of the greatest noir movies ever.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
Anything by Alan Moore, but I don’t feel that guilty about it.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Sad to say I’ve yet to have a truly satisfying writing moment.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
One of the gems by Ken Bruen, but I ain’t gonna pick one.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
Her Last Call to Louis MacNeice. Love that book and it really should be a movie.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
The worst thing is that your friends and family think you’re rich when in fact you’re still dirt poor. The best thing is no heavy lifting.
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
Banville thinks of the crime genre as a low form of writing, in fact he barely considers it writing at all. It wouldn’t do at all to have the great literary name John Banville connected with such a tabloid medium.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Sparkly, cosy, pixie-dust.
Adrian McKinty’s The Bloomsday Dead is the must-buy novel this year
Ssssshhh … It’s All So Unquiet
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
At Play In The Fields Of The Glynn
This Week We're Reading ... Bishop's Pawn and Cannon Law
The Weekly Seamus Smith Update: You’ve Not Seen Nothing Like The Mighty Quinn
Flick Lit # 12: Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
The Mid-Week Interweb Mash-Up: Being Honest, It’s Just A Pathetic Excuse To Use The Word ‘Baloohaha’
Yet More Monk-y Business
The Embiggened O # 213: A Trumpet, A Trumpet, Our Kingdom For A Trumpet!
“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 84: Bill Crider
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
I'm not at all sure I can answer this. On any given day, the answer would probably be different. For today, The Big Sleep, followed closely by The Maltese Falcon and The Chill.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
I never consider reading to be guilty, but at the moment I'm reading the new paperback edition of Harold Robbins's The Carpetbaggers. That's about as guilty as it gets.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Any time I finish a book or story.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
Can I call The White Trilogy a single novel? That's what got me started reading Ken Bruen. I'm not really qualified to answer, though, not knowing as much as I should about the Irish crime novel. Certainly the "middle period" Jack Higgins books are wonderful stuff. Or does Higgins count? He was born in Belfast, I think.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
Again I'm not really qualified to answer. How about John Connolly's Every Dead Thing? The right director might do well with that one.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Best: the huge royalty checks. Worst: there's a worst?
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
Branding? Like, if you buy a Ford, you want a Ford. If you buy John Banville, you want "literature."
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Laid-back, wry, rural.
Edgar-nominated Bill Crider recently published Murder Among The OWLS
Monday, May 28, 2007
Yep, This One Will Run And Run ... And Run
Smells Like Pre-Teen Spirit
Nobody Move, This Is A Review: The Colour of Blood by Declan Hughes
Listowel: Tough On Crime, Tough On The Writers Of Crime
Sunday, May 27, 2007
The Monday Review: Like, Are There Any Irish People Out There Who AREN'T Writing Crime Fiction?
Bruen Up A Storm
“Ya Wanna Do It Here Or Down The Station, Punk?” # 214: Charles Ardai
shifty-looking usual suspects ...
What crime novel would you most like to have written?
The Big Sleep.
Who do you read for guilty pleasures?
Dan Brown.
Most satisfying writing moment?
Appending the words ‘The End’ to the final page of a book I’ve worked on for years.
The best Irish crime novel is …?
I can’t pretend an exhaustive enough knowledge of the contenders to make this determination – but it wouldn’t surprise me if the right answer was a book with the words “by Ken Bruen” on its spine.
What Irish crime novel would make a great movie?
The Guards, Ken Bruen.
Worst / best thing about being a writer?
Worst: Rarely possible to make a living at it, even if you’re good. Best: If you do it right, a little piece of you will live forever.
Why does John Banville use a pseudonym for writing crime?
Damned if I know. I only know why I do: because I'm a sucker for clever anagrams.
The three best words to describe your own writing are …?
Sorrowful, disillusioned, bleak.
Charles Ardai is an Edgar-winning writer and co-publisher of Hard Case Crime