Say you’re me, just for a second or two. Your humble tome (right) is due to be released in the U.S. tomorrow, Monday September 22nd, and you’re a little nervous as to how it’ll fare. ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to get some positive feedback,’ you might say, ‘just to save yourself the hangover that’ll accrue from attacking that bottle of brandy to steady the nerves.’ And then a Galway-based little birdie passes on the latest newsletter from London’s quality crime fic bookstore Murder One, which happens to mention said humble tome in passing. To wit: “Declan Burke / THE BIG O £17.99, absolutely wonderful Irish hardboiled novel … Now available in US hardback form and a hoot. Elmore Leonard crossed with Ken Bruen and Fredric Brown!”Erm … Elmore Leonard and Ken Bruen? Sod the brandy, break out the frizzy …
Maybe we should call our little October expedition, "The Farewell Tour."
ReplyDeleteCongrats, well deserved.
...What he said, well done! I'll have that brandy myself, seeing as you won't be needing it...
ReplyDeleteFair play to ye. I'll lift a Sunday night beer to you and The Big O!
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Much obliged, folks ... yeah, it was a nice shot in the arm. God bless Maxim Jabukowski ... Cheers, Dec
ReplyDeleteForget about Bruen and Leonard,it's the Fredric Brown reference that wins it for me,expecially because it's not a name that gets dropped around very often.
ReplyDeleteI bought the translation of his collected sci-fi short stories when I was in high school and fell in love.
He wrote mysteries and science-fiction and,while some were written in haste in order to pay the bills,when he was on song,boy was he good!
Now I'm really itching for my copy!
bye
Marco
The Big O will fly if those damn yanks have any sense and like their writing sharper than a tack. Herr Burke, you have nothing to fear, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride. And remember your entourage when the going gets good. Mine's a speedball...
ReplyDeleteBobby the Rookie
I've got mine on pre-order with my local whacky hardboiled shack, the Poisoned Pen. Congrats, Dec!
ReplyDeleteYou should be flattered by the Frederic Brown comparison, an astute comment on Mr. Jakubowski's part. I called The Big O funny and compassionate, if I recall right. Brown's superb novel The Fabulous Clipjoint has those qualities, too, with two appealing protagonists and a coming-of-age story that salvages the reputation of that debased genre. I recommend it.
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Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://www.detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/
Good luck with the book - anything I can do to help, let me know, apart, obviously, from buying one.
ReplyDeleteAll the best on the Big O's big day, Declan. Reading and relishing. Each short chapter is like a shot of ice-vodka. Why not more (stylistic) comparisons to Armistead Maupin?
ReplyDeleteThanks a mill, folks - and yeah, the Frederic Brown reference is a nice one, but I didn't think anyone else was still reading him ... happy days. Bateman? Don't even try to buy a copy ... the cheque bounced so high the last time I got a nose-bleed just watching it go.
ReplyDeleteErm, Deborah? Are we sure about the Maupin comparisons? Vodka-shots, sure, I can handle that ...
Cheers, Dec
Obviously I haven't read whatever your book is called, but I did model my own I Predict A Riot on the Maupin style. Clearly nobody can tell.....
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