The Fire Starters
Published on 5. March 2020
Book
Paperback/Softback
304 pages
978-1-78416-384-6 (ISBN)
Description
**WINNER of the EU Prize for Literature**
'One of the most exciting and original Northern Irish writers of her generation' SUNDAY TIMES
'Gripping, affecting, surprising. I inhaled it' LISA MCINERNEY
'Captivating, intelligent and courageous' IRISH TIMES
'Spectacular. At once grittily real, wildly magical and insanely alluring - a siren-song of a novel.' DONAL RYAN
'Jan Carson seems to have invented a new Belfast in this gripping, surprising, exhilarating novel.' RODDY DOYLE
'Blew me away with its power, anger and wit.' JOSEPH O'CONNOR
Dr Jonathan Murray fears his new-born daughter is not as harmless as she seems.
Sammy Agnew is wrestling with his dark past, and fears the violence in his blood lurks in his son, too.
The city is in flames and the authorities are losing control. As matters fall into frenzy, and as the lines between fantasy and truth, right and wrong, begin to blur, who will these two fathers choose to protect?
Dark, propulsive and thrillingly original, this tale of fierce familial love and sacrifice fizzes with magic and wonder.
'One of the most exciting and original Northern Irish writers of her generation' SUNDAY TIMES
'Gripping, affecting, surprising. I inhaled it' LISA MCINERNEY
'Captivating, intelligent and courageous' IRISH TIMES
'Spectacular. At once grittily real, wildly magical and insanely alluring - a siren-song of a novel.' DONAL RYAN
'Jan Carson seems to have invented a new Belfast in this gripping, surprising, exhilarating novel.' RODDY DOYLE
'Blew me away with its power, anger and wit.' JOSEPH O'CONNOR
Dr Jonathan Murray fears his new-born daughter is not as harmless as she seems.
Sammy Agnew is wrestling with his dark past, and fears the violence in his blood lurks in his son, too.
The city is in flames and the authorities are losing control. As matters fall into frenzy, and as the lines between fantasy and truth, right and wrong, begin to blur, who will these two fathers choose to protect?
Dark, propulsive and thrillingly original, this tale of fierce familial love and sacrifice fizzes with magic and wonder.
Reviews / Votes
Gripping, affecting, surprising. I inhaled it. -- Lisa McInerney Spectacular . . . Dark, beautiful, at once grittily real and wildly magical. Insanely alluring. -- Donal Ryan Blew me away with its power, anger and wit. * Joseph O'Connor, Books of the Year * A big and rambunctious novel that casts a cold satirical eye on themes such as language, culture, identity, sectarianism, and the terrifying proximity of the past * Sunday Times, 50 Greatest Irish Novels of the 21st Century * Shimmering with wit, simmering with an incandescent rage, shot through with a seam of wild magic, The Fire Starters is a powerful, disturbing portrait of East Belfast and its people and its hope for the future. I won't be the only reader to proclaim that, in the best way possible, Jan Carson is on fire. * Lucy Caldwell * Captivating, intelligent and courageous * Irish Times * Carson's playfulness delights again and again, even as she explores her city's darkest corners. Sound the siren: this novel truly burns bright * Irish Independent * Jan Carson seems to have invented a new Belfast in this gripping, surprising, exhilarating novel. With her idiosyncratic blend of warm intelligence, dark humour, and magic realism, Jan Carson brings us a singular portrait of a city and its people struggling with questions of guilt, responsibility, and the limits of love. * Carys Davies * A perfect mix of dark humour, magic and social commentary. * Irish Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Transworld Publishers Ltd
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 195 mm
Width: 126 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
216 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78416-384-6 (9781784163846)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Jan Carson is a writer and community arts facilitator based in Belfast. Her first novel, Malcolm Orange Disappears, was published in 2014 to critical acclaim, followed by a short story collection, Children's Children (2016), and a flash fiction anthology, Postcard Stories (2017). Her work has appeared in numerous journals and on BBC Radio 3 and 4. In 2016 she won the Harper's Bazaar short story competition and was shortlisted for the Sean O Faolain Short Story Prize. She specializes in running arts projects and events with older people, especially those living with dementia. The Fire Starters is her second novel.