Author:Frederick Rolfe

'If there be one place in all this orb of earth where a secret is a Secret, that place is a Roman Conclave'
Part novel, part daydream, part diatribe, this strange masterpiece tells the story of George Arthur Rose, a poor, frustrated writer who lives in a shabby bedsit, saving his cigarette ends and eating soup - until one day he is made Pope. As the first English pontiff in five centuries, he is a mass of contradictions: infallible and petulant, humble and despotic. Yet Hadrian the Seventh is really a knowing self-portrait of its flamboyant author Baron Corvo, a would-be priest with aristocratic pretensions, and one of the greatest eccentrics of English literature.
Extraordinarily alive ... a first-rate book
—— D.H. LawrenceOne of the most extraordinary achievements in English literature
—— A.J.A. SymonsA brilliant fantasy self-portrait
—— London Review of BooksA novel like no other
—— Weekly StandardAn exhilaratingly literate and playful first novel by a fresh, electrifying talent. DeWitt goes to the top of the class...her adventurousness spins out on an epic scale
—— New York TimesA brilliant debut novel...keeps things moving at an exhilarating clip... DeWitt is formidably intelligent but engagingly witty
—— Washington PostDestined to become a classic
—— Garth Risk HallbergThe Last Samurai is an original work of brilliance about, in part, the limits of brilliance. And in literature as in life, DeWitt understands that what we like most of all is a good yarn
—— TimeYou walk into a book due to an Akira Kurosawa link and your fondness for the great film-maker. You walk out, staggered by the book's originality and bravery... It should be read by everyone
—— Irish TimesI adored this crazy, fabulous, lovable book… This really does deserve to be a modern classic
—— The PoolA brilliant and sad book… The funniest book I’ve read in years.
—— SpectatorHelen DeWitt is a real find – I loved this book
—— Independent on SundayIt is exciting for the future of the novel that a writer can do all the basic things readers need – from Peter Pan to the Odyssey, from Bleak House to The Crying of Lot 49 – and do something new with the form of the tale itself
—— New YorkerA delightful and original novel – expansive and intelligent writing
—— Daily TelegraphDeWitt pushes against the limitations of the novel as a form; reading her, one wants to push against the limitations of one’s own brain
—— Paris ReviewAn original, daring novel, The Last Samurai could well become a classic – accessible and as unremittingly entertaining to the casual reader as it is rewarding to those who would delve further
—— Times Literary SupplementA tremendous novel. DeWitt is one of the most interesting writers working in the English language today
—— David FlusfederA singular masterpiece
—— VultureThe Last Samurai is a book everyone should be talking about
—— Huffington PostDe Witt has intelligence, wit and unusual stylistic bravery
—— GuardianAn ambitious, colossal debut novel
—— Publishers WeeklyDeWitt pushes enjoyably but firmly against (and sometimes beyond) the unknown capabilities of the reader
—— Harry Strawson , Times Literary SupplementRyan has the ability to shatter your heart into a million pieces with every book he writes - and even have you welcome the pain.
—— StylistAn example of masterful storytelling
—— RTE CultureWith each novel Ryan gets better, and this moving and quietly insistent work is his best yet.
—— RTE GuideYou can sense his compassion in the bones of his work
—— Sunday Business PostDevastating and masterful
—— Irish Country MagazineA hugely affecting, moving read. I was heartbroken by the end, but adored every chapter
—— Image MagazineBeautiful
—— Woman’s WayEach section displays Ryan’s range as a writer... [he] writes with brilliant empathy.
—— Boston GlobeExquisitely rendered, with raw anguish sublimated into lyrical prose.
—— Washington PostHeartbreaking … Arguably the best of the new wave of Irish writers to have emerged over the last decade
—— Irish Mail on the Sunday, Books of the YearRyan has the gift of ventriloquism - he inhabits his fictional creations thoroughly, enveloping you in their worlds
—— Sunday Business Post, Books of the YearSublime
—— Irish Independent, Books of the YearFrom a Low and Quiet Sea by Donal Ryan made me laugh and cry and forced me to look strangers in the eye
—— Liz Nugent , Irish Times, Books of the YearBeautifully bleak and characterised by his remarkable ability to write about grief and common humanities.
—— Diarmaid Ferriter , Irish Times, Books of the YearBeautiful, compassionate
—— Sinéad Crowley , RTÉ Culture, Best Books of 2018Superlatives wouldn’t do for describing From a Low and Quiet Sea … understated, and gloriously heart rendering
—— Hot Press, Books of the YearStrout turns her clear, incisive gaze on the intricacies and betrayals of small town life
—— Maggie O'FarrellAnything is Possible is predictably great because it's written by Elizabeth Strout, and brilliantly unpredictable - because it is written by Elizabeth Strout
—— Roddy Doyle