Lazy Sunday Service

Yesterday I went to listen to talk by Declan Burke on 'emerald noir' at the Boyle Arts Festival.  As always he gave an entertaining presentation involving a couple of readings and giving his take on the development of Irish crime fiction over the past twenty years or so.  There was plenty of food for thought in his observations.  I particularly liked his discussion on 'value for time'.  Most readers, I think, would recognize that a book provides good value for money - several hours entertainment for €8-15.  But do books provide value for time?  That is, do they sustain their entertainment over those several hours given that there are lots of other things competing for one's attention, including other books, but also television, cinema, games, theatre, sports, etc.  Most of us have gotten some way into a book and started to lose interest, perhaps due to a weak plot or poor writing or the pace has become glacial.  We either soldier on stoically to the end or abandon it.  One of things Declan strives to do in his writing is to keep the reader's attention throughout, providing value for time that could be spent on something else.  It a valuable tip, I think.  And you can find out how good Declan is at achieving value for time by checking out his books.  Absolute Zero Cool was my top read of 2011.  His latest is Crime Always Pays, published by Severn House.

My posts this week
Review of Cross of Iron by Willi Heinrich
Review of Summertime, All the Cats are Bored by Philippe Georget
There's a new sheriff in town

Review of Slaughter’s Hound by Declan Burke (Liberties Press, 2012)

After a spell in mental health unit after killing his brother, Harry Rigby, one time private investigator, is now driving a taxi and making ends meet shipping drugs round Sligo town on the Northwest coast of Ireland.  Finn Hamilton, his independently wealthy former room-mate, runs a pirate radio station, broadcasting from the top of the old Port Authority tower.  After a late night run to drop off some weed, Harry watches Finn dive from his studio, landing head first on his cab.  Rather than wait for the police to arrive he heads to Finn’s mother to tell her of her son’s death.  It's the early hours of the morning, but Harry’s day is about to get a whole lot worse as everything he does leads to more woes - tangling with an ambitious cop, ex-paramilitaries turned drug dealers, the warring Hamilton family, a dodgy solicitor and his bodyguard, and his former partner and teenage son.  Harry is on a downward spiral, but he’s resourceful and fighter, and he’s determined to get to the bottom of Finn’s supposed suicide dive - especially since if he didn't dive, he's the prime suspect for pushing him to his death.

Slaughter’s Hound is the sequel to Eight Ball Boogie, Burke’s first novel published in 2004.  In the intervening time he’s published three other novels, the last of which, Absolute Zero Cool, was my read of 2011.  Burke’s trademark as a wordsmith is in strong evidence in Slaughter’s Hound, the sense of place and characterisation is strong throughout, and the noir plot was nicely constructed.  However, for me it was a book of two halves.  After an excellent opening scene, the first half I found quite slow and ponderous and I struggled to get into the story.  It lacked the pace, wit and action of his other work, sacrificed to in-depth characterisation and observational asides.  The second half, in contrast, was excellent with dark humour, pathos, and twists and turns aplenty as it hurtled to its sinister, action-packed resolution.  If the first half had been compressed into a third, then this would have been a really great read.  As it stands, Slaughter’s Hound is a good, solid, noir tale, firmly rooted in North West Ireland.       

Crime fiction and contemporary Ireland

First announcement of an event I'm organising. All welcome, free entry.

Crime Fiction and Contemporary Ireland:

An audience with Declan Burke, Gene Kerrigan and Niamh O'Connor

Tuesday, 6th March, 5-7pm, Renehan Hall, NUI Maynooth

It is perhaps no coincidence that at time of crisis and social and economic upheaval Irish crime fiction is flourishing both domestically and internationally. More than any other genre, crime fiction is said to document and help its readers make sense of the social, political and economic landscape of its setting. Talking about their own work and that of other Irish novelists, the three authors will discuss the role of the crime novel in reflecting and understanding contemporary Ireland.

Register: nirsa@nuim.ie


Declan Burke is the author of Absolute Zero Cool (2011), Crime Always Pays (2009), The Big O (2007) and Eight Ball Boogie (2003) and editor of Down These Green Streets: Irish Crime Writing in the Twenty First Century (2011). He writes the influential blog, Crime Always Pays, reviews crime novels for a number of newspapers and radio programmes, and is film reviewer for The Last Word on Today FM. Absolute Zero Cool was nominated for an Irish Book Award in 2011.

Gene Kerrigan is the author of four novels, The Rage (2011), Dark Times in the City (2010), Midnight Choir (2008), and Little Criminals (2007), and seven non-fiction books including Hard Cases (1996) and This Great Little Nation (1999). He is one of Ireland's leading political commentators, working as a columnist for the Sunday Independent. He won the Irish Book Award with Dark Times in the City and has been nominated for the Crime Writers Association's Gold Dagger Award.

Niamh O'Connor is the author of two novels, Taken (2011) and If I Never See You Again (2010), and the author of the true crime books, Blood Ties (2009), Cracking Crime (2001), and The Black Widow (2000). She is a journalist and true crime editor at The Sunday World. If I Never See You Again was nominated for an Irish Book Award in 2010.

August reviews

August was a pretty good month of reading.  Three five star books and two 4.5 star reads.  Sweet Money by Ernesto Mallo and Winterland by Alan Glynn are both very enjoyable novels, one set in a country emerging from dark period (Argentina), the other in a country teetering on the edge of collapse (Ireland); both are riddled with politics and corruption.  My book of the month though is Absolute Zero Cool by Declan Burke - a surrealist, satirical, screwball noir.  It takes the crime genre, turns it inside out and spins it round until its dizzy.

Winterland by Alan Glynn *****
Down Among the Dead Men by Michelle Williams **.5
City of Bohane by Kevin Barry **.5
The Big Mango by Jake Needham***.5
Absolute Zero Cool by Declan Burke *****
Bury Me Deep by Megan Abbott ****.5
Sweet Money by Ernesto Mallo *****
The Whispers of Nemesis by Anne Zouroudi ***
The Dramatist by Ken Bruen ****.5

Review of Absolute Zero Cool by Declan Burke (Liberties Press, 2011)

Declan Burke is working on a new novel when Billy Karlsson appears in his back garden. Karlsson claims to be a character in one of Burke’s previously unpublished novels, a hospital porter with a sideline in euthanasia taking part in a did he/didn’t he kill his girlfriend plot. Burke’s initial response is that this is some kind of weird piece of performance art – that the supposed Karlsson has somehow got his hands on a version of the abandoned novel. What Karlsson wants is for Burke to re-draft the novel with his help; to make it out of the purgatory of a manuscript left languishing in a drawer and to become published. Playing along with Karlsson’s performance, Burke helps Billy rework the manuscript. If euthanasia isn’t enough to get the work accepted then Karlsson is going to blow up an entire hospital.

On the jacket cover, John Banville states that Absolute Zero Cool is a cross between Flann O’Brien and Raymond Chandler. I think it’s more a cross between Flann O’Brien (the Irish satirist) and Declan Burke, author of Eight Ball Boogie, The Big O and Crime Always Pays – satire and high art meets screwball noir. The nearest comparison for the existential, literary plot-play I can think of is Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next and Nursery Crimes novels. Whereas Fforde plays with literary theory and intertextuality, Burke uses Greek mythology, theology and philosophy to deconstruct and satirise the life of a writer, the crime novel and contemporary society, especially the Irish health system. The result is a very clever book, that’s at once fun and challenging. The prose and plot has been honed within an inch of its life, full of lovely turns of phrases, philosophical depth and keen observational insight. I wouldn’t classify Absolute Zero Cool as a page turner – it’s far too cerebral for that – and the middle of the book is a little ponderous as various pieces are moved into place, but it does have a coherent plot that tugs the reader to the somewhat inevitable end. That’s no mean feat given how postmodern the tale is, but does reveal that the book is, as Burke insists in the text itself, a crime novel and not simply a literary conceit. Absolute Zero Cool takes the crime genre and its many tropes and stereotypes and throws them out the window. It’s a genuinely unique tale. It certainly won’t be for everybody, but for those crime readers who like to be pushed and challenged this is well worth a look. Five stars all the way for me.

Infinity and beyond

Appropriately enough I finished Absolute Zero Cool last night on the train to Sligo, the setting for the book. I'll write a review sometime over the weekend and post on Monday. I need to try and get my thoughts ordered. It's one heck of a novel - a postmodern crime tale mixing noir, Greek mythology, theology, philosophy, satire and heaven knows what else. And the prose is exquisite. A book where every section seems to have been worked over and honed until it is shines. A book designed to make you think. It won't, I suspect, be for everybody. It's not a light beach read, but for those wanting to be challenged then this is definitely worth checking out. And it's not just me who thinks so. Here are the glowing reviews from today's Irish Times and Independent.

Crime fiction, but not as we know it

I attended the launch of Absolute Zero Cool by Declan Burke last night in the Gutter Bookshop in Dublin. John Connolly gave it a very nice send off. Also had a good, short chat with Alan Glynn and Decland Hughes. John Banville describes AZC as a cross between Flann O'Brien and Raymond Chandler. I beg to differ. I think it's a cross between Flann O'Brien (the Irish satirist) and Declan Burke (the writer of screwball noirs). If you read the book, that last sentence will make sense. Honest. I'm only a hundred pages in, but it's fair to say that this is one of the most original crime fiction books I've read. Probably ever, actually. Along with Duane Swierczynski's Secret Dead Men, it really takes the genre and throws it out the window to take it in a completely different direction. It's erudite, philosophical, clever and funny. So far, so good. Looking forward to the rest.

Review of Crime Always Pays by Declan Burke

In the aftermath of a kidnapping insurance scam, Frank is in hospital with a shattered leg, the crimimally insane Rossi is having his ear tended to by a vet whilst being watched over by his narcoleptic friend Sleeps , Anna the wolf is regretting not ripping Rossi’s whole head clean off, Anna’s owner Karen is looking to skip the country with the money and the reluctant thief Ray, Doyle the cop assigned to the case is suspended but still wants justice, Madge the kidnap victim is looking forward to a nice Mediterranean cruise with Terry, the guy who set up the scam, and Melody a porn script writer is looking to spread her wings and pen a full length decent crime movie script. Karen and Ray are heading to Greece to meet up with Madge to split the proceeds, but where the money goes, everybody follows, all desperate to get their hands on the cash and each other.

I’ve been trying to decide how to describe Crime Always Pays. I guess it’s a screwball, crime caper, road trip noir. And very well done it is too. Burke weaves a tale that does not rest, with the action starting on the first page and not letting up until the final sentence. The story follows the intersecting trajectories of two handfuls of well penned, memorable characters as they set out from Ireland to the Greek island of Ios, swirling round each other trying to bag the proceeds of an insurance scam and each other. Laced with a big dollop of humour, there are bluffs, backstabbings, double crosses, and twists and turns galore. The story pretty much has it all – electric pace, good dialogue, tons of action, great characters (particular the double act of Rossi and Sleeps), clever plotting, and a strong sense of place. I had only had two issues really. The first is the extent to which someone who hadn’t read The Big O would be able to follow what was going on. This is very much a sequel, starting immediately where the first book ends, and it is framed in that context. I suspect it might be fine, but my advice is to read The Big O first (you won’t regret it). The second is the thread following Madge seemed a little underdeveloped and disconnected from the others. And I’m picking hairs here. If Burke’s new book Absolute Zero Cool is as good as this then it’ll be a cracker. Hopefully it’ll catapult him to the kind of success he deserves.

P.S. this book is available for Kindle on Amazon for the criminally low price of 87 pence or $1.47. Talk about a bargain. Get buying and reading.

Absolutely cool

I finished reading Declan Burke's absolutely cool Crime Always Pays last night. I'm hoping that his forthcoming new novel Absolutely Zero Cool, published by Liberties Press in early August, will demonstrate that crime does pay. Declan's blog Crime Always Pays is the must read site for news on Irish crime writing and reviews, and his edited anthology Down These Green Streets provides a fascinating set of essays on Irish crime fiction. The guy knows his crime fiction and it shows in his own stories. Expect my review of Crime Always Pays later this week. In the meantime, here's two blurbs for Absolute Zero Cool.

Blurb 1:

Who in their right mind would want to blow up a hospital?

“Close it down, blow it up – what’s the difference?”

Billy Karlsson needs to get real. Literally. A hospital porter with a sideline in euthanasia, Billy is a character trapped in the purgatory of an abandoned novel. Deranged by logic, driven beyond sanity, Billy makes his final stand: if killing old people won’t cut the mustard, the whole hospital will have to go up in flames.

Only his creator can stop him now, the author who abandoned Billy to his half-life limbo, in which Billy schemes to do whatever it takes to get himself published, or be damned . . .

Blurb 2:

Absolute Zero Cool is a post-modern take on the crime thriller genre. Adrift in the half-life limbo of an unpublished novel, hospital porter Billy needs to up the stakes. Euthanasia simply isn’t shocking anymore; would blowing up his hospital be enough to see Billy published, or be damned? What follows is a gripping tale that subverts the crime genre’s grand tradition of liberal sadism, a novel that both excites and disturbs in equal measure. Absolute Zero Cool is not only an example of Irish crime writing at its best; it is an innovative, self-reflexive piece that turns every convention of crime fiction on its head. Declan Burke’s latest book is an imaginative story that explores the human mind’s ability to both create and destroy, with equally devastating effects.

Between them those have got me whetting my lips. Postmodern literary noir. Sounds like Duane Swierczynski territory a la Secret Dead Men. Which is the kind of territory I love.

The US produces the most compulsively-readable crime fiction in the world? - get Down These Green Streets

Duane Swierczynski has a new book out - Fun and Games. It's right at the top of my present wish list. I've just come across the following review quote, which set my alarm bells ringing. Don't get me wrong I'm a big fan of US produced crime fiction, but it's a big claim to say the US produces the most compulsively-readable crime fiction in the world.

"Along with fellow writers Charlie Huston and Victor Gischler, Duane Swierczynski leads an insurgency of new crime writers specializing in fast-paced crime rife with sharp dialogue, caustic humor and over-the-top violence. Together, they ensure that the grittiest and most compulsively-readable crime fiction in the world is still produced right here in the USA. Spinetingler Review

In fact I'm hoping to attend an event this evening that might put that statement to the test. Down These Green Streets is a collection of essays, interviews and short stories by Irish crime authors, edited by Declan Burke (who blogs over at Crime Always Pays). Contributors include John Connolly, Tana French, Ken Bruen, Arlene Hunt, Declan Hughes, Gene Kerrigan, Alan Glynn, Alex Barclay, Eoin McNamee, Brian McGilloway, Niamh O’Connor, Jane Casey and Gerard Brennan (all of whom will be in attendance at the launch this evening), along with Adrian McKinty, Andrew Nugent, Colin Bateman, Cora Harrison, Cormac Millar, Gerry O’Carroll, Ingrid Black, John Banville, Kevin McCarthy, Neville Thompson, Paul Charles, Ruth Dudley Edwards, Sara Keating, Stuart Neville, Tara Brady.

Now for a small island of around 6 million people this is a team to take on all-comers. And if you want grit and compulsively-readable crime fiction, then these lot produce it in spades. The Irish don't do cozies.

Anyway, do check out Duane Swierczynski's Fun and Games as it will be compulsively-readable, but also check out the Irish authors listed above. And if you are in Dublin tonight Down These Green Streets is being launched by Eoin Colfer in the Gutter Bookshop, 6-7.30pm. More details here.

Crime Fails to Pay or why past performance isn’t an indicator of future results

I’ve been swapping a couple of emails with Declan Burke, author of The Big O and Eight Ball Boogie.  I was trying to get hold of a copy of Crime Always Pays, the sequel of sorts to The Big O.  He’s ended up distributing it via Kindle having had all kinds of troubles with editors (e.g., leaving a company) and publishers (e.g., being taken over and slashing authors from the list; doing little to no marketing).  The result, not unsurprisingly, has been relatively modest sales driven principally by word of mouth.  Word of mouth can get you so far, but a bit of marketing rarely hurts a product and nor does a champion inside a company.  The sense is that those modest sales are now a bit of a millstone as they are viewed as an indicator of potential future sales on new works.   Having received loads of critical acclaim from reviewers and readers (see Declan’s must-read blog for examples), here is a very talented author seemingly marginalised by an industry that is increasingly seeking to de-risk their investment by judging authors and their works against a narrow set of criteria, rather than nurturing and supporting them.  There are plenty of authors and bands who have worked away producing acclaimed work for years, perhaps not making mega-bucks but nonetheless not losing anyone money, before going stratospheric.  If a condition of a writing career is immediate success then there is every danger of producing an entire generation of one book authors, killed off and demoralised before they’ve had chance to blossom into mature, successful writers with an established reader base.  It’ll also work to reproduce a certain kind of formulaic writing and stifle creativity and risk-taking – think of Hollywood film making at the minute.  I find it astonishing that I’ve had to write to Declan to ask for a copy of his book because I don’t own a Kindle and there is no way to purchase a paper copy.  This is a guy producing quality stuff, with a demonstrated track record of acclaim, if not mega-sales.  If I had the cash, I’d set up my own non-for-profit press with the express aim of giving talented authors an outlet as they build a readership and prepare to go stratospheric (or at least mid list).  My review of Crime Always Pays will appear in a couple of weeks.  Now I’ve managed to get my mitts on it, it’s slotted in near the top of the TBR.

Review of The Big O by Declan Burke (Harcourt, 2007)

Karen meets Ray when he accidentally intervenes in an armed robbery she’s committing. Her plan is to use the money she liberates to help buy a cottage in the mountains with three acres for her rescue pet, a barely tame Siberian wolf. Ray is no angel, painting bedroom murals between kidnapping rich folk for ransom, but he wants to leave the underworld and start a new life. Something clicks and they start dating. But the course to true love is not going to be easy. Karen used to date Rossi, a slightly psychotic, serial offender, who is getting out of prison after a five year stretch. Rossi wants his Ducati, his .44 and the sixty grand he had hidden in his lock-up. Karen’s day job is working as a receptionist for Frank, a plastic surgery consultant who can’t perform surgery any longer do to a malpractice suit. Frank is divorced from Madge, with whom he has twin daughters, who are bleeding him dry of cash. Frank wants Madge, who is also Karen’s best friend, kidnapped so he can collect the insurance money and start a new life in Haiti. Ray is the guy hired to snatch Madge. Doyle is a detective who wants as many scalps as she can get. All Karen and Ray have to do is trust each other enough to pull off the kidnap job, and avoid Rossi, Frank, Doyle or Ray’s new bosses from thwarting their plans.

The Big O is a comic crime caper – think of Carl Hiasson strained though a noir filter. The story is broken into a succession of short scenes each written from the perspective of one of the six principle characters. The structure works to provide a nice, quick pace and enables Burke to flesh out the characterisation, where each person is slightly larger than life with certain foibles. The plot is driven by multiple coincidences, each binding the actors into ever-more overlapping and mutually dependent or conflicting relationships. The prose is well honed and expressive, and there are plenty of comic asides and some astute observation. The only thing that grated after a while was the use of coincidence, which was clearly deliberate but edged towards excessive. I also couldn’t figure out Doyle, the detective, and her relationship with Ray, which seemed tenuous, or her motives. And there was one scene near the end that made little sense to me. But that probably says more about me than the novel. I’ve been saving The Big O for a little while so that it marks my 100th review since starting the blog last July. Was it worth the wait? Absolutely. The Big O is a very enjoyable read and a comic crime caper that is genuinely comic. I now need to track down the sequel, Crime Always Pays. It’s available for download for Kindle, but I don’t possess a Kindle. A publisher needs to do the right thing and step in put it out in paperback!  For those looking for an excellent crime fiction blog, Burke's Crime Always Pays blog is excellent and always worth a read.